A Mystery – June 19, 2023

This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed.
1 Corinthians 4:1

A Mystery

All things considered, the apostle Paul had to admit he was not much to write home about. Why Jesus would ever choose a man like Paul to be his ambassador is truly a mystery.

Just consider his past. Paul had been a violent persecutor and murderer of Christians. But his life changed forever one day when Jesus called Paul to be the single greatest missionary the world has ever known; millions still read and study his letters today.

This is shocking when you consider that even Paul recognized that his message was not the kind of philosophy and wisdom treasured by the people of this world. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote, “When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. . . . I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words” (1 Co 2:2-4). To the world, the message about Jesus dying on the cross for our sins and being raised back to life is foolishness.

All of which prompts us to ask: why would God choose to operate this way, to bring people to faith and save them forever through such worldly foolishness? It’s a mystery!

But that’s the point. God purposefully chooses to do things in a way that runs counter to how this world would do them. To our physical eyes, it all seems backward. But our Savior calls us through his Spirit to look behind the curtain and marvel at the way he delivers forgiveness and eternal salvation to us: through people and things that seem so weak and powerless.

Gospel preachers are nothing more than “servants of Christ . . . entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed.” And his way of doing things works perfectly!

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, through your Word and Spirit, grant me the eyes of faith so that I can see your power working through the weak people you choose to proclaim your powerful, saving gospel. Amen.