Jesus Alone Atones for Sin, Who is the Wisdom of God

1 Corinthians 1:10-31

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.

• The unity of Believers is in the name of Jesus Christ.
• Jesus Christ is the only one who atones for sin.
• Salvation is foolishness to this world but is the power of God for Believers.
• Worldly signs and wisdom do not lead to Salvation, only Christ does.
• God chose the humble of the world to bring to nothing the things which are.

The unity of Believers is in the name of Jesus Christ. “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” 1 Corinthians 1:10 The one thing all followers of Jesus Christ are united in and speak about is that He is Lord and Savior and there is no other name to be saved by except the name of Jesus. This is the core of every Believer, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 If focus is taken off the purpose of Jesus Christ, then it causes conflict, “For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you.” 1 Corinthians 1:11 Those contentions happened because faith in other people’s authority was made more important than the authority of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is the only one who atones for sin. “Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 1:12 Whoever nurtures us to live for Jesus Christ is never more important than Jesus Himself. “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” 1 Corinthians 1:13 Jesus Chris is the only one who gave His life on the Cross to atone for our sin, which unites the faith of every Believer, and water baptism isn’t important. “I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name.” 1 Corinthians 1:14-15 If we are baptized in water, the only name by which to be Baptized is in the name of Jesus.

“Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other.” 1 Corinthians 1:16 Water baptism is so unimportant that Paul doesn’t even recollect who he baptized, but he knows everyone who came to God through Jesus. “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.” 1 Corinthians 1:17 Followers of Christ are not sent to baptize in water, but to share the Gospel of Christ. A very simple message is all that is needed, that Jesus Christ died and was raised from the dead to atone for sin and give us eternal life. Fancy words and wise sayings are not necessary, those things distract from the testimony of Jesus.

Salvation is foolishness to this world but is the power of God for Believers. “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.” 1 Corinthians 1:18 Today, the esteem of human beings is more important than the forgiveness of sin through Jesus Christ. They detest anyone being called sinners as they embrace humanism rooted in the mark of the beast. The message of the Cross is foolishness to them, but to us followers of Jesus it is the power of God. “For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.” 1 Corinthians 1:19 Most books of wisdom, philosophy, etc. are not rooted in faith in Jesus Christ, and neither do they do anything to save the soul. Greek and Roman wisdom filled the world during the day of Jesus, which gave birth to the likes of Plato, Socrates, etc. But it was the message of the Cross that changed the world then, and changes hearts today. “Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?” 1 Corinthians 1:20 Wise words, debates, and writing books is foolishness compared to the simple message of believing in Jesus Christ to receive Salvation.

Worldly signs and wisdom do not lead to Salvation, only Christ does. “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.” 1 Corinthians 1:21 Finding God through the wisdom of this world is not going to happen. God arranged it that way through His wisdom so that Salvation comes through the simple message of the Gospel of Christ. “For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;” 1 Corinthians 1:22 The Israelis wanted to see signs that Jesus was the Messiah, and the Greeks were looking for wisdom such as found in Plato, Socrates, etc. “…but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,” 1 Corinthians 1:23 Instead of signs and wisdom, they got the message of the Cross for the remission of sin and Salvation. The Gospel is offensive to the Israelis and foolishness to the worldly wise.

Today, those who govern and live by the mark of the beast consider the teachings of Christ to be offensive and foolishness. “…but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:24 To the Jews and wise of this world, who come to Jesus through the Gospel, Jesus is the power and wisdom of God. “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” 1 Corinthians 1:25 God will always be wiser and stronger than human beings.

God chose the humble of the world to bring to nothing the things which are. “For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.” 1 Corinthians 1:26 Today, those who have uncanny knowledge and heightened intuition are among those with authority and are highly esteemed. Their “wisdom” is given to them by the thing that has power to form emotions and thoughts as it conforms them to the mark of the beast. They are the many who reject the Gospel, but we are among the few who believe the message of the Cross. “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;” 1 Corinthians 1:27 Even today, the Roman Empire is disgraced by their brutality to the humble Christians, Hitler’s Germany is disgraced by their brutality to the Jewish people, and the global “democratic” society of the beast is disgraced by their actions against Christianity.

“…and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.” 1 Corinthians 1:28-29 Those who are rejected in this world God chooses and He will bring about the collapse of the global government of the beast in the name of those who believe the Gospel of Christ. “But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption— that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 God has reconciled us to Him through Jesus Christ, and Jesus became the wisdom of God, who is the simple message of the Cross. Jesus is our righteousness, sanctification, Salvation, and our everything, so if we have something to boast about, the boasting is in the Lord.

---

“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:1