I Corinthians 1:22  For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
23  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
24  But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
25  Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

This morning God reminded us that He was in charge in a very clear way. I woke up to a thunder storm. There was lightning and the power even went out for a few seconds. Along with the sounds and sights there was also rain. Yesterday, I spoke with a local farmer that I know. After his greeting to me, his first words were, ‘it could stop raining already’. I recall when we moved back to Manitoba a few years ago, I worked for a local potato farmer. It was a very rainy fall. It was very hard on the equipment. Trucks were getting stuck in the field and the harvesters were also getting stuck. The farmer had purchased a self-propelled harvester just prior that year’s harvest and at times that was the only machine that could move. God is in charge. He has given us His Word. He declares Who He is and what He requires of man. He uses different means to remind us of the fact that He is in charge.
In recent years there has been far too much noise declaring that we as people are changing the climate because we drive cars and farmers are raising cattle, etc. I have mentioned before that I am interested in the space race. As I watch those rockets launch and see the massive fire coming off those engines, it is interesting to note that no one is complaining about the emissions of those engines. When our P.M. flies all over the place to try to look important, few people complain about the emissions coming from the planes involved in carting him around. The so-called climate concerns are very lop-sided and quite frankly, foolish.
God wants us to know He is in charge. He allows foolish and wicked people to act in very evil ways. However, He also limits their ability to fulfil their goals. In fact He knows things about their actions that they do not know until they begin to exercise their foolish plans.
In our text we are reminded that the Jews require a sign. The Jews often asked Jesus to prove that He was the Messiah. The Bible says that the antichrist will lure the people to follow him by “lying signs and wonders”. There are many Charismatics and others who follow that philosophy, who are already deceived by lying signs and wonders. One thing the world is seeking after is ‘peace’. They have no idea what that actually means. In Quebec we were recently reminded again that peace will come when they separate from the rest of Canada. Of course that separation does not mean they will not want massive amounts of money. They could never survive on their own. They want to have their own laws at our expense.
Getting back to our text, the Jews require a sign. The Greeks seek after wisdom. We have many universities and colleges in this country that are filling gullible people with anti-God views. Of course most of those attending those places of brainwashing are already convinced there is no God. Most of the professors are also fully convinced of this lie. Modern man is capable of complicating things. When I was a young person, there were many “back yard mechanics.” It was not that difficult to keep a car running. Now there are so many sensors that feed into a computer system that cause grief for car owners. You need a good job now to be able to afford to take that car to a shop that can only guess at what the problem is. There are few mechanics now. Most are ‘technicians’ who know how to replace parts but cannot fix things. The worldly wisdom of our time is crippling us but the world is quite impressed with what they have.
In contrast to the pursuit of the ungodly, “we” those who are saved, preach Christ crucified. We are told here that this preaching is a stumblingblock to the Jews. The Bible warns those who are saved that we should not be a stumblingblock to the lost. God warns us, those who are saved, not to hinder others from getting saved. God is certainly not guilty of that sin. The Jews have proven they have an imaginary idea of who the Messiah will be. That is why they will embrace the antichrist. He will meet enough of their requirements at first so that they will accept him.
Jesus Christ reminded the Jews often that they were lost sheep, needing the “good shepherd.” The Jews did not believe they were lost.

John 8:33  They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?

The Greeks (Gentiles) hear the preaching of Christ crucified and to them it is foolishness. Since the Greeks are in such blind pursuit of worldly wisdom, the preaching of the cross of Christ has no place in their minds. They will figure things out for themselves. We, those who are truly saved, can see how ineffective they are at figuring things out. We are digging a hole faster and faster with every generation and even within the time frame of a generation.
In verse 24 we see that those who are called, those who are saved, know the power of the preaching of the cross. They understand the power of God in Christ. This again is a reminder of the life-changing effect of true salvation. Jesus Christ came to set the captive FREE!!. He demonstrated His power over sin many times. Modern day “Christianity” declares that born again Christians are often left crippled by sin. This is not what the Bible teaches. Those who are saved see the wisdom of God as well. We learn how important it is to follow Him obediently and faithfully. He knows all things. He can see the result of our choices before we enact them. We need to walk humbly and faithfully with Him.
In verse 25 we are reminded that the “foolishness of God” is wiser than men. There is no foolishness in God. Lost people assume there is foolishness in God. There is also no weakness in God. Just because He allows evil people to do evil things, does not mean He could not stop them. He lets people make foolish choices and He also allows foolish people to experience the effects of their foolishness. He warns us many times of the importance of knowing Him. He warns us of the consequences of defying Him. We as people are slow learners. We think we know better than God does. We suffer due to our foolishness, not God’s foolishness.
The saved person learns more and more of the wisdom of God and appreciates that wisdom more and more. God expects His children to follow Him and to preach the Gospel faithfully. Others need to be reminded of the truth and they need to submit to the truth. God’s Word is truth. It is up to those who are saved to preach the truth. We do not need to enhance God’s Word. He does not need our counsel to make His Word more effective. We can only spoil things when we think we are wiser than He is.
Be sure you know the true God. If you know Him, it is imperative that you submit to Him. You will never regret that. You will regret defying Him. Choose wisely.
Pastor Bartel