Sermons / January 25, 2026

Theme: Christ Crucified—God’s Wisdom in a Foolish Message Passage: 1 Corinthians 1:18–2:5 The Proclamation of a Crucified Messiah The Message (1:18–25): God saves through a Crucified Messiah In so doing ... He reverses the world’s power structures (18). He frustrates and makes foolish the world’s wisdom (19–21). He enables those who believe to experience His oxymoronic power and wisdom (22–25). The Called (1:26–31) God chooses the unremarkable (26). God chooses the foolish, weak, lowly, and despised to nullify our boasting (27–29). God’s choosing incorporates us into Jesus Christ (30–31). He becomes for us  Wisdom from God Righteousness Holiness Redemption Our only boast The Preacher (2:1–5) The message doesn’t need an impressive preacher (1). The preacher simply needs to model and proclaim a crucified Messiah (2–3). Faith rests on God’s power through the Spirit rather than a human preacher no matter how skilled (4–5). Main Idea: God has chosen to reveal His powerful wisdom in the humanly foolish message of a crucified Messiah proclaimed and received by weak and fragile people. Application Questions: Why is the cross such a stumbling block and the essence of foolishness to those who are perishing? Why is a crucified Messiah such an offensive message? What is meant when Paul expressed that the cross is the power of God to those being saved (1:18)? What power structures in your life does the message of the cross confront? How does your own testimony of God’s saving work in you testify that God chooses the unremarkable? Locate the various references in this passage to calling and God’s choosing. Why do you think Paul placed such an emphasis on these themes? What are the implications of this? What does it mean that we are “in Christ Jesus ...” in v. (30)? How does the list of items that follow flesh this out for us? How are 2:1–5 an encouragement in your witness and ministry?