“For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”
It pleased God
The absolute God has a right to determine which methodology saves man. It is totally His prerogative since He created the world. His method is to give man a message to be received by faith.
through the foolishness of the message preached
God’s system is entirely different; He chooses to use a foolish method of declaring the “message preached.” Note that this is not the act of preaching but the content preached. Literally, “the message preached” is the thing preached. It is not the act of preaching but the message preached that reaches people. It is the message that Jesus died for our sins—past, present, and future and that all that is necessary is for us to believe it.
to save those who believe.
Salvation is entirely a work of God. God’s purpose is to save eternally anyone who believes the “message preached.” Salvation is by faith in the finished work of Christ for paying for our sins on the cross.
PRINCIPLE:
God’s method of salvation is to give a message and expects man to believe it.
APPLICATION:
All systems that approach truth come to belief by faith, including philosophy and science. This is also true with the current skeptical movement about knowing truth (postmodernism). The latter group accepts by faith that no one can come to absolute truth. The philosopher accepts the methodology of philosophy (rationalism) by faith. The scientist accepts the method of approaching truth by data (empiricism) by faith. Every approach to truth has an assumption of faith. That choice of a faith system is where the issue lies from God’s viewpoint. Either we accept our system or God’s system.
God’s system of salvation is true faith in the finished work of Christ to save our souls eternally—this is God’s revelation of the gospel.
Can you please expound in the greek on the truth that it is in the content of the message and not the method of delivery -preaching. I’m reading into the text that it’s BOTH the content (Gospel that Christ died for our sins—past, present, and future) and the method of delivery -preaching are both God’s chosen vehicle. I come to this conclusion by verse 23, “we preach Christ.”
Please clarify for me. Thanks.
Lyndon, when a noun has a MA (Mu plus alpha) suffice, it is passive in meaning. This does not preclude that the act of preaching can be found elsewhere in the passage. Note how translators translate this verse.
Here is a lexical explanation of the MA suffix: kerugma; gen. kerúgmatos, neut. noun from kerúss? (2784), to preach, discharge a herald’s office, cry out, proclaim. Sermon, message, proclamation. With the suffix –ma, it means the result of preaching, that which is cried by the herald, the command, communication, proclamation of the redeeming purpose of God in Christ (Rom. 16:25); the proclamation of Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:21; 2:4; 15:14; 2 Tim. 4:17; Titus 1:3); the message of denunciation from God to the Ninevites through Jonah (Matt. 12:41; Luke 11:32; Sept.: Jon. 3:2).
Zodhiates, S. (2000). The complete word study dictionary : New Testament (electronic ed.). Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers.
Again: 33.258 kerugma, n: (derivative of kerussw ‘to preach,’ 33.256) the content of what is preached—‘preaching, what is preached.’ metenoesan eis to kerugma Iwna ‘they turned from their sins when they heard what Jonah preached’ Lk 11:32; ei de Xristos ouk egegertai, kenon ara kai to kerugma emown ‘if Christ has not been raised from death, then what we have preached is nothing’ 1 Cor 15:14.
Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Vol. 1: Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament : Based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition.) (416). New York: United Bible societies.