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Foolishness and Wisdom

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
    the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” 
 Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom,  but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,  but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. (I Corinthians 1:18-25)
          As I said yesterday, some people think I’m a fool. This passage tends to come to mind when I discuss wisdom. What God calls wisdom, and what the world calls wisdom are miles apart, built on different foundations. What God calls wisdom is focused on God, who by definition is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. He set the rules for how the universe should work, and has the power needed to cause it to do so. 
          On the other hand, the world’s wisdom (man’s wisdom) is based on what man observes to be true and, on his desire to be God. The world’s wisdom is only wise in the sense of seeing and reflecting. Man may test his theories and grow in his understanding, but his understanding will forever be incomplete. Neither mankind nor any particular example thereof (except Jesus) has been, or, or will ever be omniscient.
          One of the great follies of most ages is that “we know better now.” Oh, there are things we do know more about now than we did, but it’s temporal snobbery to think that we can throw away all of the lessons of yesteryear because they were wrong in this point or that.  There are things we understand as well as we are able, but that ability is far less than that of the Creator. If, to follow Christ, we must be foolish, then far better to be foolish than to be the wisest person on Earth.

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