I Corinthians 1:27-31 “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”
My wife and I have perpetual disagreement over which scientist is the most impactful in history – Isaac Newton or Albert Einstein (we are geeky, I know). My wife is an Einstein gal, and I am a Newton guy. Einstein is well known for his ground-breaking work in relativity and quantum mechanics while Newton is renowned for his foundational work in classical mechanics and calculus. Clearly, I’m right.
We recently came across some information about Einstein that partially swayed my wife towards my position, and that illustrates an important spiritual truth. In spite of his academic brilliance, Einstein’s personal life was filled with challenges. His first marriage ended in divorce after he lived apart from his wife for several years. This first marriage ultimately crumbled as a result of his adulterous relationship with his cousin. In fact, Einstein married his second wife Elsa only months after his first divorce. Elsa was Einstein’s first cousin on their mom’s side (their moms were sisters), and Einstein’s second cousin on their dad’s side (their dads were first cousins). In fact, she was born Elsa Einstein and only had a different last name at the time of their marriage because she had kept the last name of her first husband (who was not her cousin). Yikes! Academic brilliance does not translate into spiritual or relational discernment.
There are people around us who are wise and mighty according to the world’s standards. Their wisdom and might can intimidate us and conceal their deep spiritual gaps. Yet, their greatest need remains the wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption that can only come from the Lord through Christ. Only in Him should we glory.
PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO PROPERLY PRIOIRITIZE THE CHARACTERISTICS THAT CAN ONLY COME FROM THE LORD. The foolish things of the world confound the wise, and we need to serve God by helping to illuminate the real source of wisdom … even to those who appear wise and mighty.
