Meaning

“Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of ‘the brightest and the best’ among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these ‘nobodies’ to expose the hollow pretensions of the ‘somebodies’? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, ‘If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.’”- 1 Corinthians 1:27-31 The Message

I love the way Eugene Peterson re-wrote the words of Paul in this section of scripture. Paul’s style of writing was so strong and affirming to the Church of Corinth. Look at the third sentence of the passage. Paul was making it clear that God did not send His Son to choose the best of the best, but the willing. He came to give meaning and purpose to those that society chose to ignore. This is the gospel. This is the good news of Jesus and God confirmed that message throughout the rest of the Bible.

However, the message is not just about choosing people who are not the best of the best just to prove a point to those who consider them “higher”, but to show that those who think they are “higher” need to be knocked down a step. God is the only one meant to be lifted up in this world He created. We have meaning, but our meaning is given by God and through His Son Jesus. Our meaning is not defined by social status, clothing, hairstyle, who we know, how many friends we have on Facebook, or how many followers we have on Twitter. Our meaning is given by the One who defines the world. He created the earth and everything that lives on it. He gave purpose to it all. His grace is what defines us. His story of good news is what gives us purpose.

Everyone has a story to tell in this world. The life we have and the story we tell is a gift given to us by God. The only thing we need to remember, and Paul reminds the readers of, is the fact that His story should always be told prior to and throughout ours. Share it with joy and humility. Our life should be a boastful story of God’s awesome redemption and not a boastful story of how God redeemed us to be awesome.