1 Corinthians 1:17-18
New International Version
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. Christ Crucified Is God’s Power and Wisdom 18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
Thursday -September 22
Paul is not trying to undermine the power and importance of baptism. Instead, he is condemning the way the Corinthians had turned baptism into a form of spiritual superiority. They claim special status if a special person baptized them as if baptism depended on the person who did it! What makes baptism so important is not the person who does the physical act of baptism. What, or who, makes baptism powerful and important is Jesus! Jesus died for our sins and in baptism that forgiveness is given to us as a free gift! That sounds so foolish to a world that is built upon status, success, and performance. Free forgiveness through the death of Jesus on a cross that is given through water and the word seems foolish. But in that foolish message God gives the power of the Holy Spirit to save us and give us new life.