1 Corinthians 1:22-25

The Crucified Christ Displays God's Wisdom

Instead of gospel preaching, the Jews wanted a sign Jesus was the Messiah. McGarvey and Pendleton mention several examples of the Jews' demands for signs (Matthew 12:38; Matthew 16:1; John 1:18; John 4:48). They looked for a messiah to conquer Rome. So, Jesus' teaching and the cross was a stumbling block. They did not want to hear his kingdom was not of this world. Certainly, they did not want their messiah to die on a cross.

The Greeks rejected Christ as God's spokesman for a different reason. They wanted a greater wise man than the world had known. In their wisdom, they considered flesh, in and of itself, to be sinful. So, they could not believe God would take on human form, since that did not match up with their wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:22-23).

God does his calling in the message of the gospel. In his second letter to the brethren at Thessalonica, Paul wrote, "But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 2:13-14). Those who accepted the gospel call saw Christ as a great sign and the Messiah. They saw the great knowledge needed to plan such a means of salvation (1 Corinthians 1:24).

While the death of Christ on Calvary may have seemed foolish to the Greeks, it turned out to be above man's wisdom. In that death, all men have a means of overcoming the grave. Similarly, Christ's death on the cross seemed to be a clear sign of weakness to the Jews. "Likewise the chief priests, also mocking with the scribes and elders, said, 'He saved others; Himself He cannot save, If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him'" (Matthew 27:41-42). In fact, his death and resurrection from the tomb was the only way to crush the head of Satan and render the grave powerless over his followers (1 Corinthians 1:25; Hebrews 2:14-18).