1 Corinthians 3:18-23

"Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's."

This paragraph seems to serve as a wrap up for the first three chapters of the book. We remember that there are those who think that they are wise and choose to reject that which they esteeme to be the foolishness of God and of His gospel. The people who reject the all-wise God, calling him foolish, have been deceived and are deceiving themselves.

The way for the wise of this world to know true wisdom is for them to become foolish. That is not to say that they become stupid and ignorant. Those qualities are never esteemed as virtues in the scripture. Instead, they need to realize that what they have falsely labeled as foolishness (i.e. the gospel) is really wisdom and what they had falsely labeled as wisdom (i.e. their own wisdom) is really foolishness. They should accept the wisdom that they had previously rejected. If the wise of this world fail to accept God's wisdom, they are foolish and worthless. The only way to true wisdom is to admit that your own wisdom is foolishness. You must reject your own way and accept the gospel.

But those who are already Christians must not forget the major application to them in these verses. You Christians (who have rejected your own wisdom) continue to understand your own wisdom's futility and do not revert to your worthless human wisdom in your human relationships. Do not behave in a merely human way in your human relationships.

Do not elevate one Christian over another. There are no super-Christians who are worthy of your devotion. We all have rejected our own wisdom and have come to Christ. And we all belong to Christ. Every believer is "Christ's, and Christ is God's." This is both humiliating and exalting. It is humiliating because you cannot extol yourself over others, but it is exalting because you belong to God, the one who is over all.