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This devotion pairs with this weekend’s Lutheran Hour sermon, which can be found at lhm.org.
1 Corinthians 1:27-31 – But 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, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
Can you think of situations when it’s true that “things get worse before they get better”? Maybe it was the road construction this last summer—dust, debris, traffic jams everyday—it had to get worse before it got better. Or when a new manager came in and asked uncomfortable questions and made unpopular decisions to shake up a toxic company culture—it had to get worse before it got better.
Or, maybe you’re a few weeks into a new exercise regimen and struggling with soreness, discouragement, and blisters. Keep at it. It gets worse before it gets better. But context matters. Soreness after exercise is different than soreness after an injury. In some cases, things do have to get worse before they get better. But change the context, and something getting worse might be the sign of something going bad.
This is the case for human boasting, as we heard in our reading today. Among the house-churches in Corinth, boasting was the sign that their fellowship was going bad. Ancient Corinth was known for its competitiveness, pride, and self-promotion. And Christians were bringing this attitude into the church. And it was causing divisions, fights, factions. In the letter, Paul addresses this toxic culture head-on. His overall tone is loving. He wants to help them do better. But first, things had to get worse. He confronts them with the cross of Jesus. And the cross, when I truly survey it, as the old hymn says, the cross makes me want to pour contempt on all my boasting.
Jesus’ life ended on a cross because of competitive, self-promoting, political, religious boasting. The cross is the result of boasting gone bad. The cross is death and separation from God and from each other. The cross is what we deserve. But Jesus took it for us, because He loves us. So, He wanted to show us where this sort of boasting gets us. And He rose from the dead to offer a way out, a way to get better. The cross of Jesus was the place where things got worse for Him, so that we could get better, because the resurrection of Jesus creates a new context for our boasting.
In ancient culture, to boast in something was to take “glory” in it, to delight in it. In Greek literature, for example, characters take glory in what they believe are their best traits. The war hero, Achilles, glories in his strength. And the hero Odysseus, he glories in his wisdom. There is the seed of something good in boasting, in taking glory in what is true and excellent and praiseworthy (see Philippians 4:8). Human beings do this naturally. When we survey a great play in sport, or a great play on the stage, or a breathtaking sunset, we glory in these things because we delight in them. But when we survey the cross on which the Prince of Glory died—there is nothing left in which to boast, but the Lord.
WE PRAY: Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, save in the cross of Christ, my God. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Rev. Dr. Michael Zeigler.
Reflection Questions:
- What examples came to your mind of things getting worse before they get better?
- When are you in danger of letting your boasting go bad?
- In Christ, when do you find yourself “glorying” in God’s creation and salvation?
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