ng His
leaders God had purposely chosen those reckoned by the world's standards
foolish that He might show plainly the shallowness of what they deem wise.
And so things reckoned weak had been chosen to give the conception of
what true strength is. And things even base, and despised, and not counted
at all had been used that so men might learn the God-standards of wisdom
and strength and honor and of what is worth while. The purpose being that
men should quit glorying in themselves and glorify Him from whom
everything had come, and was ever coming.

The passage has oftentimes been quoted as though God prefers weakness;
never put so bluntly as that perhaps, but plainly meaning that. That of
course is not true. God wants the best we have. He needs the best. And for
leadership often His plans must wait till a man of the sort needed can be
gotten. And gotten frequently means broken, shattered, and then made over
wholly new, that the native strength may be used according to true
standards.

Jacob was chosen rather than his elder brother Esau, not because of
Jacob's goodness but because of Esau's weakness. God was narrowed to these
two grandsons in carrying out the promise to Abraham. Jacob was
contemptible in his moral dealings, but he had qualities of leadership
wholly lacking in his brother. His moral character was a serious
hindrance. God had to handle him heroically before He could get the use of
his stronger mental equipment. Jacob had to get a bad throw-down before he
would be willing to let God have His way. His body must be weakened
before his mental power would yield. That was the weakness of his
stubbornness. Stubbornness is strength not strong enough to yield.

God's Use of Weak Things.

It is true that over and over again God has used men utterly weak and
foolish and despised in the light of life's common standards. He wants men
of the best mental strength, of the finest mental training, and He uses
such when they are willing to be used, and governed by the true
God-standards of life. But talent seems specially beset with temptation.
The very power to do great things seems often to bewilder the man
possessing it. Wrong ambition gets the saddle and the reins and whip too,
and rides hard.

Frequently some man who had not guessed he had talent, born in some lonely
walk of life, without the training of the schools, is used for special
leadership. It takes longer time always. Early mental training is an
eno