1 Corinthians: A 9-Day Devotional For WomenSample

Wisdom Does Not Come From The Web
1 Corinthians 2

We live in an age of information overload. With the press of a button we can access more data than the world has ever had before. But are we wiser? Or are we more confused with possibilities, more opinionated with facts, and more disconnected from our world, from our Creator, and from each other? To be wiser would be to act on increasing understanding of who we are, why we exist, and what we should be doing, all in light of creation and eternity. Facts without faith do not provide identity, meaning, or purpose.

The city of Corinth was also a place of information overload, in the apostle Paul’s day. As a thriving crossroads of trade routes, it boasted cultural and religious knowledge, with numerous temples to the gods and places of learning and philosophical debate. But this “wisdom” created challenges and conflicts within the young church. Paul wrote this stern letter to correct their beliefs, ministry practices, and moral behavior in light of biblical principles. And he started by correcting their thinking about wisdom. 

True wisdom involves the knowledgeable and love-guided practice of godly living (1 Cor. 13:1–3, 8–10). It is very different from society’s “wisdom” and is foolish to others since its focus is Jesus Christ (1:18, 30; 2:2; 3:18–23). Wisdom is a gift from the Holy Spirit, who helps us gain God’s perspective and empowers us to act on it (2:12–13). 

Though we gain information through media and the Internet, we do not gain wisdom. Nor does wisdom come from celebrities or people of status with eloquent, motivational speaking skills. Yet we often follow the culture in wanting teachers and church leaders to be entertaining, witty, and attractive, as if those qualities would guarantee our learning. Thus, we need Paul’s correction as much as the Corinthian believers did. We are led to ask,

• Does my identity come more from magazines and others’ opinions, or from prayerful consideration of what Scripture says is true of me (6:19–20; 12:14–27)? 

• Do my hopes and fears fluctuate with newscasts, or do I gain assurance from God’s promises (1:7–9; 15:20–24)? • Do I imitate the lifestyles of neighbors and TV characters more than the godly responses of people in Bible narratives (4:14–17; 10:1–14; 15:33–34)?
• Do I make sense of life more from novels and movies than I do from God’s true story of creation, rebellion, redemption, and restoration (15:1–8, 20–26)? 

Such questions point us back to Scripture and challenge our pride, so that our “faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (2:5). —Tasha D. Chapman