For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many
mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world
to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound
the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are
despised, hath God chosen.... 1 Corinthians 1:26-28
If you see yourself as weak, feeble, or unskilled, don't let that bother you too much. God
has been calling feeble and unskilled people from the beginning of time. Few of those
whom God has called have been the cream of the crop according to the flesh. Again and
again, God has chosen people who were ill-esteemed in the eyes of the world when He
needed a candidate or a group of people to do a job.
God has always used common people to build His Kingdom. He doesn't primarily choose
famous movie stars or the royalty and nobility of the world to fulfill His plans and
purposes on this earth. God's criteria are different from the criteria of the world. As
Isaiah 55:8 says, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my
ways, saith the Lord.
When God chose Samuel to lead the nation, Samuel was just a young boy. When God
looked for someone to kill a giant, He chose a young shepherd boy named David. When
the fullness of time came and it was time to send His Son to this earth, God chose a
young girl named Mary to give birth to the Savior of the world.
When it was time for Jesus to choose disciples, He didn't go to the theological institutes
or seminaries of the day. Rather, Jesus chose disciples who knew more about fishing and
tax-collecting than about the Scriptures. And when God searched for someone He could
use to write the majority of the New Testament, He chose the apostle Paul, who was
once one of the meanest Christian killers of all time!
God has always shown up in places where He wasn't expected. Just consider the location
where Jesus was born in a lowly shepherd's stall. This was certainly not the place anyone
would have expected the King of kings to be born. Wouldn't it have been better for the
King of kings to be born in a gold-gilded hall with trumpets blasting to announce His
birth?
So if you have ever thought you weren't good enough for God to use, it's time for you
to renew your thinking! God is looking for people no one else wants or deems valuable.
When great victories are won through ordinary folks, there's no question as to who
should receive the glory! As 1 Corinthians 1:29 says, That no flesh should glory in his
presence.
The Old and New Testaments are filled with illustrations of people whom God wanted,
but whom the world rejected. God's choice is not based on beauty or ugliness, talent or
lack of talent, education or lack of education, a diploma or lack of a diploma. If a person
has a right heart toward God, he is qualified to be used by God.
In 1 Corinthians 1:26-28, Paul wrote, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not
many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: but God
hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen
the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things
of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen....
As Paul writes his list of those whom God does and doesn't call, he begins by stating
that God doesn't call many who are considered wise by the world. The word wise is from
the Greek word sophos. It refers to a person who possesses special enlightenment or
special insight.
The word sophos was usually used to portray highly educated people, such as scientists,
philosophers, doctors, teachers, and others who were considered to be the super-
intelligentsia of the world. These belong to a class of individuals whom the world would
call clever, astute, smart, or intellectually brilliant. This term was reserved only for those
considered to be super-impressive or a cut above the rest of society.
But Paul says, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the
flesh.... Paul informs us that most of the folks God calls don't fit into this category of
the super-intelligentsia. In other words, God doesn't specialize in calling people who are
especially bright, educated, astute, smart, or eminently enlightened.
I would be foolish to overlook the fact that over the years, many intelligent men and
women who loved God have made a great impact on the world. Paul himself was a part
of this elite group before he came to Christ. Apollos, Paul's friend who later pastored the
church of Corinth , also came from this intellectual upper echelon of society. But Paul and
Apollos were not typical of the first-century Church.
It was the sophos who scorned and ridiculed Paul when he preached in Athens . The
philosophers of Athens , the Epicureans, and the Stoics derided him and made him a
laughingstock. Paul said that not many are called who fit into this sophos category. Of
course, God's call is to all men; nevertheless, not many from this category respond to
God's call.
Take a close look at the Early Church , and you'll see that it was primarily composed of
servants, slaves, and poorer people who heard the Good News of the Gospel and
believed. It was an army of common people. Although there were a few elite in the
Church, these were the exception rather than the rule. In fact, as you study Church
history, you will see that God specializes in calling people from a much lower class. And if
you take a close look at the Church today, you'll see that God still specializes in calling
common people.
Now, I'm not debasing education. People should get as much education as possible. But
school-issued pieces of paper are not the criteria that impresses God and gets His
attention. There have been many educated people whom God could not use. Even
though they were brilliant according to the flesh, they were not worthy of being chosen
because their hearts weren't right.
Educational degrees may help you get a good job and positively sway the opinion of men
in your favor, but Paul makes it very clear that God is not bent on using people who are
especially bright according to the standards of the flesh.
In fact, the Bible shows that when God does call people who are intellectually impressive,
such as Moses or the apostle Paul, He usually has to empty them of themselves before
He can use them! When they lean on their own understanding, they are unable to
accomplish what God wants. But when they lean wholly upon Him, He is able to perform
miracles through their lives.
Proverbs 3:5 says, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own
understanding. Certainly natural knowledge and understanding are needful in the world
we live in today. But if our natural understanding rather than our trust in God becomes
the basis for our confidence, we put ourselves at a disadvantage. We have to learn to
use what we know while leaning only on the Lord and His might.
David wrote, Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the
name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7). The best technology of David's time was used
to develop chariots. Man's greatest intellectual powers were employed to make chariots
faster, stronger, and safer. In addition, horses represented natural power, strength, and
might. Therefore, David was saying, Some trust in man's mind and his great
achievements; others rely on their own natural power and might; but we will rely upon
the name of the Lord.
Perhaps you're one of those people who says, God can't use me because I don't have
enough gifts or talents. I haven't even been to college. I don't even have a Bible school
degree. If you are, it's time for you to change the way you're thinking and talking. It's
time for you to start seeing yourself the way God does!
In fact, if you feel inferior to others, remember that God regularly calls unskilled and
uneducated people. Just think of the majority of the apostles whom Jesus hand-picked
to serve at His side and to lay the foundation of the Church. Those apostles were
fishermen, tax collectors, common people not theologians.
God is looking to build a strong, powerful army. The soldiers of an army are rarely
composed of the intellectually astute. Flavius Vegetius Renatus, who lived around 380
AD, was the author of the most influential military book ever written for the Roman
Empire . Look at the type of person he says makes the best soldier: Peasants are the
most fit to carry arms.... They are simple, content with little, inured to fatigue, and
prepared in some measure for military life by their continual employment in farm work, in
handling the spade, digging trenches and carrying burdens.
The truth is, God is looking for people who know how and are willing to pay a price to
undergo any hardship needed, to confront the power of hell, and to dig trenches and
carry burdens until their assignment is completed just as God ordered it. God doesn't
necessarily need the super-intelligentsia of the world to get these jobs done. In fact,
common people are often God's first choice because they are already equipped to a
certain degree to face the challenges and difficulties of life.
So if you want to be used by God and serve in His army, quit complaining that you're
not as smart or sharp as someone else. Where does the Bible ever say God is looking
for brains? He's looking for hearts that are willing to follow Him. If you have that kind of
heart, you are exactly the kind of person God wants to use!
MY PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, I am so glad You don't choose only the intellectually brilliant. You are looking for
anyone who has a heart to be used by You. Well, that's me, Lord. I want You to use me.
I offer You everything I have my good points, my weak points, my gifts, my talents, and
everything else that I am. I want You to use me for Your glory! I've told You before, but
today I'm telling You again that I want You to take my life and do something wonderful
with me! I confess that I am exactly the kind of person God can use! God is looking to
carry out great victories through my life! His choice is not based on beauty or a lack of
beauty, talent or lack of talent, education or lack of education, a diploma or lack of a
diploma. No, God has chosen me because I have a heart that is right before Him! I
declare this in Jesus' name!
QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER
(from Sparkling Gems from the Greek, © 2003 by Rick Renner. Used by permission. All
rights reserved.)
Remember, when you feel like you are nothing, the Lord is up to something.
Chaplain Greg
mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world
to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound
the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are
despised, hath God chosen.... 1 Corinthians 1:26-28
If you see yourself as weak, feeble, or unskilled, don't let that bother you too much. God
has been calling feeble and unskilled people from the beginning of time. Few of those
whom God has called have been the cream of the crop according to the flesh. Again and
again, God has chosen people who were ill-esteemed in the eyes of the world when He
needed a candidate or a group of people to do a job.
God has always used common people to build His Kingdom. He doesn't primarily choose
famous movie stars or the royalty and nobility of the world to fulfill His plans and
purposes on this earth. God's criteria are different from the criteria of the world. As
Isaiah 55:8 says, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my
ways, saith the Lord.
When God chose Samuel to lead the nation, Samuel was just a young boy. When God
looked for someone to kill a giant, He chose a young shepherd boy named David. When
the fullness of time came and it was time to send His Son to this earth, God chose a
young girl named Mary to give birth to the Savior of the world.
When it was time for Jesus to choose disciples, He didn't go to the theological institutes
or seminaries of the day. Rather, Jesus chose disciples who knew more about fishing and
tax-collecting than about the Scriptures. And when God searched for someone He could
use to write the majority of the New Testament, He chose the apostle Paul, who was
once one of the meanest Christian killers of all time!
God has always shown up in places where He wasn't expected. Just consider the location
where Jesus was born in a lowly shepherd's stall. This was certainly not the place anyone
would have expected the King of kings to be born. Wouldn't it have been better for the
King of kings to be born in a gold-gilded hall with trumpets blasting to announce His
birth?
So if you have ever thought you weren't good enough for God to use, it's time for you
to renew your thinking! God is looking for people no one else wants or deems valuable.
When great victories are won through ordinary folks, there's no question as to who
should receive the glory! As 1 Corinthians 1:29 says, That no flesh should glory in his
presence.
The Old and New Testaments are filled with illustrations of people whom God wanted,
but whom the world rejected. God's choice is not based on beauty or ugliness, talent or
lack of talent, education or lack of education, a diploma or lack of a diploma. If a person
has a right heart toward God, he is qualified to be used by God.
In 1 Corinthians 1:26-28, Paul wrote, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not
many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: but God
hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen
the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things
of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen....
As Paul writes his list of those whom God does and doesn't call, he begins by stating
that God doesn't call many who are considered wise by the world. The word wise is from
the Greek word sophos. It refers to a person who possesses special enlightenment or
special insight.
The word sophos was usually used to portray highly educated people, such as scientists,
philosophers, doctors, teachers, and others who were considered to be the super-
intelligentsia of the world. These belong to a class of individuals whom the world would
call clever, astute, smart, or intellectually brilliant. This term was reserved only for those
considered to be super-impressive or a cut above the rest of society.
But Paul says, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the
flesh.... Paul informs us that most of the folks God calls don't fit into this category of
the super-intelligentsia. In other words, God doesn't specialize in calling people who are
especially bright, educated, astute, smart, or eminently enlightened.
I would be foolish to overlook the fact that over the years, many intelligent men and
women who loved God have made a great impact on the world. Paul himself was a part
of this elite group before he came to Christ. Apollos, Paul's friend who later pastored the
church of Corinth , also came from this intellectual upper echelon of society. But Paul and
Apollos were not typical of the first-century Church.
It was the sophos who scorned and ridiculed Paul when he preached in Athens . The
philosophers of Athens , the Epicureans, and the Stoics derided him and made him a
laughingstock. Paul said that not many are called who fit into this sophos category. Of
course, God's call is to all men; nevertheless, not many from this category respond to
God's call.
Take a close look at the Early Church , and you'll see that it was primarily composed of
servants, slaves, and poorer people who heard the Good News of the Gospel and
believed. It was an army of common people. Although there were a few elite in the
Church, these were the exception rather than the rule. In fact, as you study Church
history, you will see that God specializes in calling people from a much lower class. And if
you take a close look at the Church today, you'll see that God still specializes in calling
common people.
Now, I'm not debasing education. People should get as much education as possible. But
school-issued pieces of paper are not the criteria that impresses God and gets His
attention. There have been many educated people whom God could not use. Even
though they were brilliant according to the flesh, they were not worthy of being chosen
because their hearts weren't right.
Educational degrees may help you get a good job and positively sway the opinion of men
in your favor, but Paul makes it very clear that God is not bent on using people who are
especially bright according to the standards of the flesh.
In fact, the Bible shows that when God does call people who are intellectually impressive,
such as Moses or the apostle Paul, He usually has to empty them of themselves before
He can use them! When they lean on their own understanding, they are unable to
accomplish what God wants. But when they lean wholly upon Him, He is able to perform
miracles through their lives.
Proverbs 3:5 says, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own
understanding. Certainly natural knowledge and understanding are needful in the world
we live in today. But if our natural understanding rather than our trust in God becomes
the basis for our confidence, we put ourselves at a disadvantage. We have to learn to
use what we know while leaning only on the Lord and His might.
David wrote, Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the
name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7). The best technology of David's time was used
to develop chariots. Man's greatest intellectual powers were employed to make chariots
faster, stronger, and safer. In addition, horses represented natural power, strength, and
might. Therefore, David was saying, Some trust in man's mind and his great
achievements; others rely on their own natural power and might; but we will rely upon
the name of the Lord.
Perhaps you're one of those people who says, God can't use me because I don't have
enough gifts or talents. I haven't even been to college. I don't even have a Bible school
degree. If you are, it's time for you to change the way you're thinking and talking. It's
time for you to start seeing yourself the way God does!
In fact, if you feel inferior to others, remember that God regularly calls unskilled and
uneducated people. Just think of the majority of the apostles whom Jesus hand-picked
to serve at His side and to lay the foundation of the Church. Those apostles were
fishermen, tax collectors, common people not theologians.
God is looking to build a strong, powerful army. The soldiers of an army are rarely
composed of the intellectually astute. Flavius Vegetius Renatus, who lived around 380
AD, was the author of the most influential military book ever written for the Roman
Empire . Look at the type of person he says makes the best soldier: Peasants are the
most fit to carry arms.... They are simple, content with little, inured to fatigue, and
prepared in some measure for military life by their continual employment in farm work, in
handling the spade, digging trenches and carrying burdens.
The truth is, God is looking for people who know how and are willing to pay a price to
undergo any hardship needed, to confront the power of hell, and to dig trenches and
carry burdens until their assignment is completed just as God ordered it. God doesn't
necessarily need the super-intelligentsia of the world to get these jobs done. In fact,
common people are often God's first choice because they are already equipped to a
certain degree to face the challenges and difficulties of life.
So if you want to be used by God and serve in His army, quit complaining that you're
not as smart or sharp as someone else. Where does the Bible ever say God is looking
for brains? He's looking for hearts that are willing to follow Him. If you have that kind of
heart, you are exactly the kind of person God wants to use!
MY PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, I am so glad You don't choose only the intellectually brilliant. You are looking for
anyone who has a heart to be used by You. Well, that's me, Lord. I want You to use me.
I offer You everything I have my good points, my weak points, my gifts, my talents, and
everything else that I am. I want You to use me for Your glory! I've told You before, but
today I'm telling You again that I want You to take my life and do something wonderful
with me! I confess that I am exactly the kind of person God can use! God is looking to
carry out great victories through my life! His choice is not based on beauty or a lack of
beauty, talent or lack of talent, education or lack of education, a diploma or lack of a
diploma. No, God has chosen me because I have a heart that is right before Him! I
declare this in Jesus' name!
QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER
- Can you recall concrete examples of people in the Bible whom the world thought to
be worth nothing yet God called them, changed them, and then used them to
change world history? Try to name five people who fit into this category. - Can you think of specific people outside the Bible whom the world thought to be
worth nothing, yet God used them to change society? Try to name five people who
fit into this category as well. - If God specializes in calling people who come from common backgrounds, what
does this mean for you? 1 Corinthians 1:26-28
(from Sparkling Gems from the Greek, © 2003 by Rick Renner. Used by permission. All
rights reserved.)
Remember, when you feel like you are nothing, the Lord is up to something.
Chaplain Greg
| Where Does the Bible Ever Say God Is Looking for Brains? |