1 Corinthians 1:26-31 Brothers, think of what you were when you were called.  Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.  But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things– and the things that are not– to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God– that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.  Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”

Yesterday there was a big football game. I didn’t watch very much of it. I found out this morning who won and who lost. The Philadelphia Eagles have bragging rights until the next season begins. They take pride in the fact that they were able to overcome all of their opponents by their own strength and desire and inner resolve. They are the champions.

Victory and Defeat. Those words are used to describe the same thing from different perspectives. Either you gain the victory or you are defeated. And the same is true when we consider what God has done for us in Christ Jesus.

The cross reminds us that Christ has obtained victory through what the world considers to be foolish, weak and lowly things. This victory was obtained through the entire life of Christ, beginning with the fact that He became one of us. And that, of course, is something that the world continues to dismiss as foolishness. To the religious leaders of His day and many of God’s chosen people, Jesus did not appear to be anything special, certainly not the one they had been waiting for, the Messiah.

This passage above was written to the Corinthians because they were a people who prided themselves in their religious knowledge and boasted about it to the world. Paul was trying to remind them that apart from what God had done for them, they were nothing. They were not wise, not influential, not of noble birth. They were not worth choosing. And the same can be said of all of us. God’s Law reminds us that on our own merit, we are nothing in His sight, nothing but defeated and damned without Christ.

When you reach that point, you are prepared to accept the righteousness, holiness and redemption that God has for you. While coming to faith in Christ is something that is in your past, you should not forget about it. Paul encouraged his readers to REMEMBER what they were. You should remember, too. You should daily confess your sins, remember your Baptism, and receive God’s forgiveness. You should rejoice in the foolishness of preaching and the Lord’s Supper, because you know that they are the source of wisdom and forgiveness and life. The very things the world considers foolish, weak and lowly are what God used and uses to bring His salvation to the world.

If you remember, as Paul encourages here, it will change your living, like he wanted the Corinthians to change their living. Afflictions, weaknesses, illness, even death will become reminders of the victory you have through faith in Jesus. God uses things like this to remind us of our own weakness, and that of the world. At the same time, these things remind us of the victory over all things that comes through Christ. Knowing what Jesus has done for you through His death and resurrection, the bad things in life take on a different meaning. Remembering the victory you have in Christ, these things should cause you to look away from yourself and to Christ. You take part in His weakness. You boast in foolish and weak and lowly things because you know the victory Jesus gives.

Someone once asked why do they call it the Super Bowl and proclaim a team World Champions if they know they are going to do it all again next year? While the Super Bowl is played year after year, the Victory that Christ won for us is for all time. It is a done deal. By His death He has destroyed death, and by His rising has brought life and immortality to light. Sin, death and the devil have been defeated. Through faith, His Victory is ours.