“Brothers, think of what you were when you were called.”
My, oh my, that’s an interesting request. What were we when we first heard God’s invitation of salvation? I know what I was, and it isn’t a very pretty picture. If we can’t remember, Paul goes on in his letter to tell us what we were when we were called … and I find that I fit very well into his description.
“Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things-and the things that are not-to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.” [1 Cor 1:26-30]
Not many wise, not many influential, not many of high social standing. Instead God looked to the foolish, the weak and the lowly and despised. He did it for a particular purpose, of course, so that “no one may boast before Him.”
I often remind people (and myself) that just because I wasn’t wise nor influential nor strong when I heard God’s call, does not mean I am to stay that way. We are to acquire the wisdom of God. We are to learn to speak with the knowledge of God. We are to become strong through the Spirit of God. In other words, we are to become conformed to the image of God’s True Son, Jesus.
The world may still consider us foolish, but they aren’t looking through the lens of God’s Spirit. They are looking at us through eyes that have been blinded by the god of this world.
