1Co 1:30-31 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, (31) so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
In and of ourselves, even as Christians, we lack wisdom, we still sin and thus are not perfectly righteous, we are not as holy in practice as we should be, and there is absolutely nothing we have done or can do to effect our redemption – that is, to pay for our sin.
And this is why we must look to Jesus.
We are weak, Christ is Almighty. We are so often foolish, Christ is the wisdom of God. If we look at ourselves therefore, we will surely become discouraged. If we rely upon ourselves then the truth is that we will be standing upon shifting sand.
And this is why we must look to Jesus.
Satan is a mighty enemy and incredibly deceptive. Left to ourselves we would fall to him in a moment. But our armor and weaponry are divinely powerful. Why? Because the Lord Jesus is our warrior. Did you ever wonder what the armor of Ephesians 6 is? I can tell you. It is Jesus.
Rom 13:14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
Christ is our helmet, our shield, our breastplate, our foot armor, our belt of truth, and our sword.
So yes, we are nothing – and we need to confess that we are nothing, humbling ourselves and rejecting all boasting. BUT Christ is everything and therefore all wisdom, all righteousness, all holiness, all power – is ours, in Him.
Jas 4:6-10 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (7) Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (8) Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (9) Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. (10) Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.