The wise man must not boast of his wisdom, nor the
strong man of his strength, nor the rich man of his riches. What then is the
right kind of boasting? What is the source of man's greatness? Scripture says:
The man who boasts must boast of this, that he knows and understands that I am
the Lord. He is man's greatness, here is man's glory and majesty: to know in
truth what is great, to hold fast to it, and to seek glory from the Lord of
glory. The Apostle tells us: The man who boasts must boast of the Lord. He has
just said: Christ was appointed by God to be our wisdom, our righteousness, our
sanctification, our redemption, so that, as it is written, a man who boasts must
boast of the Lord.
Boasting of God is perfect and complete when we take
no pride in our own righteousness but acknowledge that we are utterly lacking in
true righteousness and have been made perfect only by faith in Christ.
Paul boasts of the fact that he holds his own
righteousness in contempt and seeks the righteousness in faith that comes
through Christ and is from God. He wants only to know Christ and the power of
his resurrection and to have fellowship with his sufferings by taking on the
likeness of his death, in the hope that somehow he may arrive at the
resurrection of the dead.
Here we see all overweening pride laid low.
Humanity, there is nothing left for you to boast of, for your boasting and hope
lie in putting to death all that is your own and seeking the future life that is
in Christ. Since we have its firstfruits we are already in its midst, living
entirely in the grace and gift of God.
It is God who is active within us, giving us both
the will and the achievement, in accordance with his good purpose. Through his
Spirit, God also reveals his wisdom in the plan he has preordained for our
glory.
God gives power and strength in our labors. I have
toiled harder than all others, Paul says, but it is not I but the grace of God,
which is with me.
God rescues us from dangers beyond all human
expectation. We felt within ourselves that we had received the sentence of
death, so that we might not trust in ourselves but in God, who raises the dead;
from so great a danger did he deliver us, and does deliver us; we hope in him,
for he will deliver us again.
