1 Corinthians 1:30-31 “Our Boast Must Only Be in God”

By Bob DeWaay

Various religions teach works which always lead to boasting. In this passage Paul exhorts us to boast only in God. God must receive all glory for the work of redemption that He has accomplished for us in Christ. We are in Christ by God’s doing. Our status in Christ did not come from comparing ourselves to others, or making grandiose religious claims, it is only from God. Jeremiah 9:23-24 is a key passage about this cited by Paul. If we do not know God, we a truly fools for boasting in anything else. We live a time of shaking and fear. There are various passages in the Bible that make this clear, including the Song of Moses (Deuteronomy 15:1-10), Hannah’s praise to God (1 Samuel 2:1-10) and other incidents of God bring salvation and deliverance and being rightly praised for so doing. We turn to Romans 5 to show the terms of reconciliation with God.

We were all His enemies and facing His wrath. But God reconciles sinners to Himself through Christ. Paul says in Romans 5:2, 3 that we boast in the hope of God’s glory and even boast in our afflictions. For those who know God, afflictions produce endurance. As many are suffering and shaking, we must preach the gospel to the lost and comfort the saints with God’s promises. God reconciles sinners as it says in 2 Corinthians 5:18, 19. We can only boast in what God has done for unworthy sinners.