You are from God and in Christ Jesus.

 You are from God and in Christ Jesus.

1 Corinthians 1:30-31 "You are from God and in Christ Jesus, who came from God and became for us wisdom, righteousness, holiness, and redemption, so as it is written: ‘Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.’"

All salvation takes place in Christ. When a believer dies with Jesus Christ on the cross, God causes them to be born again in a spiritual body. This is receiving new life from heaven and becoming one who is in Christ.

And Jesus came forth from God and became wisdom to us, as well as righteousness, holiness, and redemption. While the Korean translation lists these four as wisdom, righteousness, holiness, and salvation, the Greek Bible divides them into two: wisdom and righteousness, holiness, and redemption. In other words, He became Egenethe Sophia (wisdom), and from that wisdom, these three things emanate. Wisdom signifies Ho Logos. Jesus came forth from God and became wisdom—Ho Logos—to the saints. Therefore, the saints become righteous, holy, and redeemed from sin.

"This is to make it as it is written: ‘Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.’" This statement is also mentioned in 2 Corinthians 10:16-18: "Not that I boast of what I have accomplished by the standards of others, but that I may preach the gospel beyond your own region. Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord. For he who is approved is not the one who praises himself, but the one whom the Lord praises."

Those who boast based on the standards of others are, for example, those who boast of their faith based on the faction of Paul or Apollos. This means that it is problematic to base one's standards on humans rather than Christ. The Apostle Paul was criticized by false teachers in many ways. They claimed that he was gentle in the presence of people but hard-willed when he was away. They disparaged him, saying that while he appeared gravitas in his letters, he was actually weak and inarticulate.

They accused Paul of acting according to the flesh, claiming he was a snob filled with human desires, no different from the people of the world.

In response to such accusations, the Apostle Paul did not fight back in the same manner as his accusers. Although he was angry at being criticized by false teachers, his concern for the believers in the Corinthian church who might be led astray by them was greater. This was because, having barely restored relationships through his letter of tears, he feared that if those relationships were destroyed once again by the lies and incitement of false teachers, the gospel he had preached to them would also be easily lost. Therefore, he actively strove to clearly affirm his identity as an apostle and defend his apostolic office.

In 2 Corinthians 10:12, the Apostle Paul points out the problem of false prophets. "We do not dare to compare ourselves with those who praise themselves. But they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves by themselves, so they are not wise." The problem with false prophets was that they loved to boast and claimed that only they were right. However, the Apostle Paul states, "But we do not boast beyond our station, but according to the limits of the measure God has given us, which extends even to you."

He strived to maintain his spiritual relationship with God and not to exceed his station. He did not boast beyond his station using the labors of others. He did not boast as if he had accomplished what was achieved according to the standards of others. Citing the content of Jeremiah 9, the Apostle Paul tells those who boast that they should boast about the Lord’s practice of love, justice, and righteousness on earth.

Jeremiah 9:23-24 “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, nor the mighty man of his strength, nor the rich man of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this: that they understand and know Me, that I am the LORD who exercises love, justice, and righteousness on earth. I delight in these things,’ declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah chapter 9 describes the sins of Israel in two main ways. First, Israel's sin lay in falsehood and slander. Their tongues, accustomed to lying, unhesitatingly deceived even their own brothers and did not hesitate to slander one another. Their tongues were even described as poisoned arrows capable of killing. This means that while they spoke of peace with their mouths, they harbored thoughts of harming one another in their hearts.

Even if such people spoke of obedience to God, it was nothing but hypocrisy. This was because there was no room for God to enter their hearts, which were filled with falsehood and slander. In other words, even though their mouths spoke of obedience to God, their hearts did not even harbor the desire to know God.

The second aspect of Israel's sin lay in their stubbornness in defying God's word. God gave them laws to observe. The intention behind giving them these laws was not to make them puppets, but rather an expression of God's love to grant them true freedom and guide them to the path of true life. Therefore, the message was to discover Christ and find true freedom through the law. However, they abandoned the law and followed the gods of Baal according to their desires. They rejected the path of true life that they were supposed to follow in defiance of their fleshly desires, needing a god who would satisfy their own desires and glory. Pointing out this sin of Israel, God spoke of two things that Israel must take to heart.

One point is that what God's people should boast about is not their own wisdom, strength, or wealth, but rather knowing God and the fact that God is pleased to practice mercy, fairness, and justice on this earth. In other words, they should boast about having realized God, having the knowledge of God, and having come to possess God's heart.

The point is that what God wanted to engrave in the hearts of the people of Israel was precisely to practice circumcision of the heart. The external circumcision performed on Israel was a sign of the covenant between God and Israel, and a symbol of the promise that Israel, as the people chosen by God to enter into a covenant, would obey and devote themselves to Him. The people of Israel took great pride in circumcision, which was the external mark indicating that they were God's people. However, the point is that they began to focus only on the form, forgetting the essence of that circumcision.

Therefore, when God commanded us to practice circumcision of the heart, He meant to restore the original meaning of circumcision. It is a message telling us not to forget our essence as God's people, but to live in accordance with His will as befits His people.

What believers should boast about today is that God acknowledged that sinners deserving of death died with Jesus upon their repentance, and granted them eternal life by causing them to be born from heaven with resurrection life. This does not mean seeking something to boast about in people, but in God. It means seeking and boasting about the love and grace that come from God. That is the death on the cross and the resurrection. Therefore, the message is to boast that believers have died with Jesus, resurrected with Christ, and been seated in the heavenly places in Christ.