God Isn't Looking for Aristocrats, Cultured, or High-Born People

For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise....
-- 1 Corinthians 1:26,27

Through the ages, God has always delighted in choosing normal people to do His business. If you consider yourself to be a normal, average kind of person, that means you are just the kind of person God is looking to use! 

First Corinthians 1:26 says, "For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble...." Do you see the word "noble" in this verse? It comes from the Greek compound word eugenes. The first part of the word is the Greek prefix eu, which means well or good. The second part of the word is the Greek word genes, from which we get our English word for the human gene. When these two words are compounded together, the new word portrays people who are well-born or who have excellent genes. 

Is it Wrong to Question Your Senior Pastor?

by Mark Altrogge


The pulpit does not make pastors infallible.

The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the Word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. (Acts 17:10-11)

Why were the Bereans more noble than those in Thessalonica? Two reasons: 1) They received the Word with all eagerness. 2) They went back home and examined the Scriptures to see if what Paul and Silas preached lined up with the Word of God.

The Stubbornness of Hope

Written by Becky Toews

Ten reasons to hope.

“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed….” (Romans 4:18a)

I’m thankful that hope is so stubborn. If it wasn’t, I think I’d be a goner. Many times my circumstances have tempted me to throw in the towel, but each time I find hope popping to the surface and eventually taking over.

Oh, I’ve tried to resist. I’ve let discouraging thoughts smother the “noble, lovely and praiseworthy.” I’ve listened to the whispers of failure more times than I care to remember. I’ve allowed the voice of disappointment become louder than a scream. But with the predictability of a Hallmark movie, I find that after all my rants and raves, hope stands there quietly waiting. She penetrates my protests with the undeniable assurance that it’s gonna be okay.