I'm reading this morning from
the book of 1 Corinthians 1. 1 Corinthians 1 verse 21 reads,
For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew
not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save
them that believe. The title and the text of the
message are The Foolishness of Preaching, or Why God Chose Preaching. In God's wisdom, this scripture
says, by the wisdom of God, according to God's wise purpose, He determined,
predetermined, that the world, by wisdom, knew not God. God purposed that no one would
or could know God. that is, who God is or what he
is like, by human intellect, by human reasoning or rationale,
that the wisest, mightiest, noblest persons would not be able to
know God. The scientists and scholars and
so-called wise men and women would not or could not find out
God. Now why is that? Why did God
use this means or choose this means of preaching? Pleased God,
verse 21 says, it pleased God. That's the first reason. It pleased
God. In the good pleasure and will
of God, that's what he purposed to do. We really need no other
reason. And no argument should be brought
up. It pleased God. This was pleasing
to God by the foolishness of preaching. to save them that
believe in God's wise purpose and good pleasure, he predetermined
to save the souls of human beings through this means of preaching. Now, preaching, this thing of
preaching is declaring a message, declaring, proclaiming, or setting
forth a message from the Word of God. Preaching is the means,
is the act of declaring the Word of God. Preaching is what God
is pleased to use, not singing. Nowhere does it say God saves
someone through singing. It's not singing, though we do
not discount the importance of singing songs of praise, but
that's not what God uses to say. Preaching, not singing. Preaching,
not personal witnessing. Are you listening? Preaching.
Preaching, not sharing. Preaching. Now, he calls it the
foolishness of preaching. Why is that? It's not because
preaching itself, true preaching, is foolishness. But it's because
the world thinks it is so. The world thinks it is foolish,
especially the worldly wise, or those who are wise in their
own conceits. There in verse 23, the Greeks,
that is the scholars, unto them it's foolishness. Well, the act
of preaching itself is foolishness to the world. The world even
says things like, don't preach to me. And especially though
the gospel, the gospel is called foolishness. And I'll explain
that in a moment. But the unbelieving world, the
skeptics, the agnostic cynics, the unbelievers say that preaching,
the act of it, is utter foolishness. And only ignorant fools would
listen to it. Now folks, I have to admit that
most of what I hear today over the radio and see on television
and so forth is foolishness. and these ladies, so-called,
who are doing it are themselves fools. They act like fools and
they're preaching a bunch of foolishness and they're trying
to make a fool out of God. I believe that. And people suffer
fools gladly. Make them rich and they flock
to hear them. But now, God's true preaching,
the preaching of Christ is not foolishness, but it's the power
of God and the wisdom of God. And the men who have done this,
the men whom God has called to do this preaching down through
the years, they were not fools, but rather wise men, bold men,
knowledgeable men, the prophets were the wisest and noblest,
truly noblest men of their day, and the apostles and so forth.
And this preaching, though, this act of preaching is called foolishness,
but especially the preaching of the cross, the dogmatic declaration
of a holy God, an angry God. God is angry against sin and
will punish sin, and he requires a blood sacrifice for the removal
of that guilt and those sins of human beings. That's utterly
barbaric and foolishness to the modern intellectual world. Foolishness. So they call it foolishness. It is not foolishness. It's the
wisdom and power of God. And this is what God is pleased
to use. But it's called foolishness by the world. And down in verse
25 it says the foolishness of God is wiser than men. You see,
God has no foolishness. but rather what God uses and
what men call foolishness, that is wiser than men. And the weakness
of God? God has no weakness. But that
which men call weak is stronger than men, verse 25 says. Now, we're talking about the
foolishness of preaching. Now, let me say this as kind
of a disclaimer for all of my preaching. and others. A disclaimer. You know what that is, don't
you? When you read the newspaper or a magazine or see a television
show, the television station or radio station or newspaper
might say something like this. The views expressed on this program
or by so-and-so are not necessarily the views of this station. Well,
let me make this disclaimer for all my preaching and others.
Man, myself, starting with myself, is is a fallible creature. He is liable to err, liable to
say things wrong, and I often say things that I wish I could
take back, say things in a way that I wish I could subtract and do again, but God
overrules that. I said something recently in
a message that I would kind of like to take it back, though The truth of it still holds,
I believe. I said this. I said God does
not save anyone by the act of preaching. I still hold to that. God does not save anyone by the
act of preaching. God saves through the act of
preaching the gospel. Now, here is what I meant when
I said that. does not save anyone by the words of a man, by the
outline of a man, alliterations, clever alliterations or outlines
or illustrations of a man. God does not save anyone through
the abilities of a man, the persuasible powers of a man, the personality
or charisma of a man, or anything that has to do with a man. God
does not use that to save souls. Are you hearing me? God will
not share his glory with another, and those things are not the
power of God. And I say this, all preaching
and preachers and sermons and books and notes someday will
be totally forgotten in heaven, in glory. One preacher stands
alone, the Lord Jesus Christ, who was himself a preacher. That certainly elevates this
office, doesn't it? The Lord himself was a preacher.
And every word, every sermon he preached will stand forever,
while all others will perish. All other words and acts will
perish, except what is God's word through the apostles. You
understand that, don't you? Through the prophets. God's word.
Those words and epistles that those men wrote down were not
their own, but the words of God. And so I say, God does not save
anyone by the act of preaching or by preachers and their abilities
and their words or their sermons. No, sir. But God uses this means
to proclaim His Word. It is the Word of God, the Word
of God that God uses. Though God uses the act of preaching,
it is not the act or the words or comments of a man that saves,
but is God's Word, His incorruptible seed. All other things return
void. All other words return void.
God's Word will accomplish that whereunto He sent it." He said,
and I contend that most preachers, and I've been guilty myself,
think entirely too much of their preaching and their sermons. And I say we should forget the
very last one we preached. Just forget it like it never
happened and go on to the next. All preachers are fallible human
beings liable to say and do wrong things, but here's my comfort
and hope is that God will overrule all of that, overrule the flesh,
all that is a man's. and use his word through that
man and to the salvation of heroes. Now, why did God choose this
means? Why preaching? Let me give you
several reasons. The first one of which, and the
only one we need really, is God. That's what it pleased God to
do. Over in 2 Corinthians 4, I read
to you 2 Corinthians 4, verse 7, the apostle writes, we have
this treasure in earthen vessels. that the excellency of the power
may be of God, and not of." We have this treasure. The treasure
is the priceless, unsearchably rich prize which is Christ himself,
the pearl of great price. Christ is the pearl in whom,
in Christ, are hid all the treasures, hid, mind you, and must be revealed. hid all the treasures of wisdom
and knowledge in Christ. He is that pearl. He is the treasure. The gospel is the treasure. He
says we have this in earthen vessels, like gold and silver
and precious stones in a clay pot in a wooden chest. The gospel
of Christ preached, declared by earthen vessels or flesh and
blood sinful, fallible men, The reason being is that the excellency
of the power may be of God and not us. In order to demonstrate
the power in preaching, the results in preaching are completely of
God, not man. Of all the prophets' people in
the Old Testament, only Moses had any formal training or credentials,
being raised in Pharaoh's house, but God took him out of Egypt
into the desert to teach him. of all the apostles, twelve apostles,
only Saul of Tarsus or Paul had any formal religious training,
and he later called that dumb. But the men were common, ordinary
working-class men in whom Christ chose and the Spirit of God taught
them and indwelled them and gave them understanding of Scripture
and ability to preach it with boldness and clarity. And even
the scholars of that day perceived that they were unlearned and
ignorant men, and they marveled. When they took knowledge, they
said, well, we know why. They had been with Jesus. He
taught them. Why did God choose preaching?
Number one, because He did. Number two, that the excellency
of the power, the results, the power may be clearly seen that
it is of God and not these men. And another reason, no one can
find out God apart from hearing the word preach. You won't find
any examples in the New Testament of folks saved apart from preaching
the gospel. That's the way God used it. And
no man, here's another reason, so that none will be lifted up
with pride to be his own teacher. This thing is to humble us. Preaching
humbles. We must sit and listen. We must
sit and listen. It stops our mouths. You can't
hear the Word when you're talking. So we must sit and listen as
a man unfolds or preaches and declares the Word of God. And
also so that men and women will need this preaching from then
on. the fellowship of the gospel under the preaching, and to prepare
us for glory where the Lord Jesus Christ will preach forever, preaching
without end. We begin to love it now, and
that's what God has used. Well, I hope this has been a
blessing to you. Until next Sunday, good day.