Reflection on 1 Corinthians 1:26-2:5

Luther was the one who inspired the idea of reformation in us local clergy. But, it was not because of Luther’s greatness. After-all, Luther was just a single monk who taught in a German school for theological education. He was nothing special, unless you would count his ability to swear and drink you under the table. Sure, he had his following, but does not every college professor who is a little off-color. Those professors are always the ones with disciples drooling at their heals. No, we local clergy were not inspired by Luther because of his greatness. Instead, we were inspired because God caused a complete turn around and invigoration of the faith through this one simple, swearing, drinking, short, fat man. We were inspired because of his weakness. And, we thought, if God could use Luther, then God could use us also. God could use us to start a reformation of the faith right here in our little town if God so desired.

I’m not sure what Pastor Bob Martin put in the coffee at his rustic home as we gathered by the lake, but it was invigorating. We were having visions of grandeur for our churches: churches filled to standing room only; churches filled with members who dripped with excitement about sharing God’s love and forgiveness of the sinner with their neighbors; churches filled with people who wanted nothing more than to go out and help their neighbor, fight social ills, seek justice for the forgotten, and fix the plight of the poor. We talked as if we were filled with new wine, it was actually old coffee reheated for a third time, but at that point is there really any difference between the two? With our coffee concentrate for fuel, we were convinced that God could do it. If God could use a slob like Luther, God could use us. “Oh God, reinvigorate your ministry” we prayed together. “Revive your work. Make it spring forth from here and spread throughout the land, and use us simple sinners as your tools to do that.” That was on a Saturday. On Saturday we were excited, on Sunday we preached inspired sermons (all of us heard comments at the door), and then Monday felt like it just had to pop into existence.

Monday is when the questioning began. What were we thinking? More to the point, what were we drinking Pastor Bob? Who do we think we are? We are all just a bunch of hack pastors in the mountains of Northeastern Pennsylvania. We are not Dr. Robert Schuller with a thriving legacy of a ministry. We are not Rick Warren and haven’t inspired millions with our written words. We are not spiritual powerhouses of the faith. We are just a bunch of rural hack pastors. Why would God choose us anyway?

These feelings were familiar. I have felt them many times before. I felt them for years sitting in the pew before becoming a pastor. Time and time again I would be both inspired by the pastor’s sermon and frightened at the knowledge that I could not possibly be the type of disciple that the pastor was describing. I did not know hardly anything about the bible. How could I do anything productive in the faith? I was scared to talk to other people. How could I share the gospel? Heck, I did not really think that I even understood the good news of God. The pastor was talking to the wrong person in his sermons. I was not discipleship material.

I know that I am not alone here. I have heard similar fears from others sitting in the pews. Most people do not consider themselves spiritual powerhouses, and many are not sure what they would proclaim even if the opportunity blatantly presented itself.

“Chuck, I need the good news man. Tell me the good news. How has the good news affected your life?”

“Uhhhh, gee Earl, our church has a great organist…I like that. You would think that after going to church for 40 years I could help you out. I know the phone number of the pastor though. He's a spiritual powerhouse. I am certain that he could help you.”

For years and years many of us have been convinced that we are not good Christians because of our weakness of faith. This has been reinforced by the faith bravado of many powerful spiritual leaders. It seems weird, but sometimes listening to the best preachers out there can actually make a person feel even more inadequate than when they began. “I will never live up to that. They speak so well, so clearly. They are so wise. They know what they are talking about. They are great. And, I’m not.”

But, the amazing secret of the Christian faith is that, our weakness does not matter. Weakness is actually our greatness. Never forget that the cross was the ultimate symbol of shame and weakness in the Roman world, yet Jesus the Christ used it for great things. Weakness is actually our greatness. Listen to these words from Paul, the worst preacher of them all. Remember that people were always falling asleep during his sermons, one even fell out of a window! He must have been terrible. Others were disappointed at his complete lack of wisdom when they spoke to him personally. Listen to this poor man's words, “When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.”

You do not have any great words of wisdom to help me better my life? Great. You don’t have any confidence in your spiritual abilities? Perfect! Does sin cling to you like the smell of cow manure? Great! You are perfect for the job of disciple. You are perfect for the job of preaching the good news.

“What are you talking about Pastor Jira? What’s so great about that?”

You don’t know anything. That is not such a bad place to be in your faith, because if you can’t trust in yourself and your own wisdom, then you have no choice but to trust in Jesus the Christ. That is faith. You do know what it is like to feel inadequate. You do know what it is like to not know the answers. You do know what all other people struggling in the world know. But, you know one thing more that they may not. You know what it means to trust Christ because you are not good enough. You trust because you are weak. That is genuine faith. Spiritual powerhouses do not know these things. Spiritual powerhouses have no need of a savior.

Listen to what Paul had to say about this, “God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God…Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

You are a living gospel waiting to be opened and read by those around you. You are a sin-filled, dirty, and weak spiritual person. But, when you are opened up people will be shocked to discover that you are great precisely because you are weak. You have no choice but to trust in Christ’s love and forgiveness. Your weakness is the very thing that makes you great. God prefers to use sinners like us for the kingdom of God.

God used a man like Bart Campolo. He is a Christian who is under no delusions of grandeur. He knows full well that he sins and cannot save himself. If my memory serves me right, his story goes something like this. While driving a group of city street hardened men to a Christian camp he was quite less than a spiritual powerhouse. Trying to be the men's "spiritual guide" he tried to cover up the fact that he was upset that they were running late, speeding through traffic, and secretly cursing the traffic around him. He did not want the men to see how angry he was at himself for showing up late for the event at the camp. The final breakdown of this "spiritual guide" occurred when the tire of the van blew. When the tire blew, he did too. He started cursing, throwing tire irons, and generally had a major fit in the middle of the highway. The men just stared out the window at their spiritual guide who was uttering some very unspiritual things. Getting back into the van, ashamed of himself, one of the men leaned forward and asked,
"You call yourself a disciple of Christ don't you?"

"Yes," he replied timidly.

“If your are a disciple of Christ and God can use a person like you; than that’s a God I can be a part of. Because of that fit you threw, I know that I would be welcome as a follower also."

So, who knows, maybe God can use us for a reformation of the faith. Who knows? It is up to God. God has done it before. God used the weakness of Luther to cause an explosion in the sharing of the good news in his time. God does use the sinner for reformation. And, at the end of his life, this is all that Luther had to say about what God had accomplished through him:

"Know that no one can have indulged in the Holy Writers sufficiently, unless he has governed churches for a hundred years with the prophets, such as Elijah and Elisha, John the Baptist, Christ and the apostles... We are beggars: this is true."

We are beggars: this is true. It is a very weak position. It is also the one God uses to cause a reformation of the faith.


All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.