The Message Of The Cross
The Message Of The Cross
1 Corinthians 1:18-25
August 24, 2008
When last we studied the Corinthian church,
You will remember that Paul just confronted them for their divisions.
They were each looking for an angle to show who was superior.
Each wanted a reason for boasting as to why
They were more important to the church than someone else.
And of course, this type of boasting never leads to unity.
James 3:13-18 “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”
He could have also been talking about the Corinthian church.
Their jealousy and ambition naturally led to church wide division.
“This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic.”
What the Corinthian church had was not godliness,
But on the contrary all they had was worldliness.
Galatians 5:15 “But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.”
The Corinthian church was literally coming apart at the seams.
And their near destruction was not because of outward persecution,
But because of inward strife.
Paul wrote first to confront that strife.
(10) “Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.”
Paul gave an all out call for unity in the church.
Whatever it took to get unified, the Corinthians were encouraged to do it.
Then Paul closed the section
By figuratively grabbing the face of the Corinthians
And forcing them to focus on what really matters.
(17) “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.”
Paul wanted to make sure they were focused on the main thing.
Well tonight he continues hammering out that same theme.
And it will help us if we will recognize that theme
Quickly tonight before we dive into our present text.
Paul began last week by dealing with division.
But let me assure you that division was just a by-product
Of the real problem at Corinth.
THE REAL PROBLEM WAS ARROGANCE.
The Corinthians had a puffed up attitude,
Particularly in regard to their wisdom.
Due in part to their culture, they were obsessed with looking wise.
Paul will eventually expose that very flaw.
1 Corinthians 3:18-20 “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, "He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS"; and again, "THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS."
THAT IS THE POINT THAT PAUL IS DRIVING TO.
Over the next 2 ½ chapters Paul will be revealing
The same things over and over to the Corinthians.
1) Godly wisdom and worldly wisdom are opposites
2) Worldly wisdom does not achieve godliness
3) Godly wisdom looks foolish to the world
4) You must become foolish to the world to achieve the wisdom of God.
And tonight Paul is confronting, not only the Corinthians,
But any of us who seek to be considered wise in this present age.
WE MUST UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS IMPOSSIBLE
TO BE A FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN AND CONSIDERED WISE
BY THE WORLD AT THE SAME TIME.
WHY? - Because of the message of the cross.
In order to accept that message…
In order to believe that message…
In order to preach that message…
WE MUST BECOME FOOLS
4 things tonight
#1 THE PROMISE OF THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS
1 Corinthians 1:18-19
The Corinthians had a desire to be followers of Christ
Yet still possess their dignity in a Greek culture
That put a high price on philosophy and wisdom.
But according to what Paul writes here,
That is absolutely impossible,
“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing”
If you want to be esteemed for your intellect in this world,
Then perhaps the worst thing you can do is embrace the cross,
Because to a lost and dying world, nothing looks more foolish.
All they see is that you:
Are seeking life through a dead man…
Are seeking freedom through a condemned man…
Are seeking joy from a tortured man…
Are seeking victory from a defeated man…
And for us to look to the cross as our source of victory and hope
Is utterly foolish to a lost world.
In fact, the word “foolishness” translates MORIA
From where we get our word “Moron”.
Jesse Ventura said, “Religion is a crutch for weak minded people.”
And so the world thinks that anyone who would
Trust in that crucified Man for eternal life is a moron.
The world thinks like the OTHER THIEF on the cross.
From his perspective Jesus was in the exact same boat that he was in,
And to look to Him for any sort of help would have seemed utterly stupid.
“the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”
· For those of us who have been redeemed,
· For those of us who have seen the light,
· For those of us who have God’s Holy Spirit,
IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE, AND IS NOT SOME FOOLISH ACT.
BUT IS THE ULTIMATE WORK OF GOD.
· It is the greatest miracle…
It was the cross that allowed for SINNERS TO BE FORGIVEN…
It was the cross that allowed for DEATH TO BE DEFEATED…
It was the cross that allowed for US TO GET TO GOD…
WE LOVE THE CROSS
Colossians 1:19-20 “For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”
Colossians 2:13-14 “When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”
And so Paul rightly said:
Galatians 6:14 “But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”
We see it as the greatest event in the history of the world,
BUT THAT IS NOT HOW THE WORLD SEES IT.
And God intended it that way.
(19) “For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.”
God was not surprised that the world saw the cross as foolishness,
In fact He purposely planned it that way.
His intention was to reveal how utterly useless worldly wisdom truly is.
Men today make so much of their educations
And the three letter suffixes they give themselves as titles.
But for all their earthly knowledge and arrogance,
They will never gain eternal life.
And some day, when eternity unfolds,
God will reveal how utterly foolish their wisdom really was.
THE CROSS WAS INTENDED BY GOD
TO BE PERFECTLY CONTRARY TO HUMAN WISDOM AND LOGIC.
You cannot look wise in this world by clinging to it.
That is why Jesus said:
Matthew 10:34-36 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. "For I came to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; and A MAN'S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.”
That is the promise of the message of the cross
#2 THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS
1 Corinthians 1:20-21
And of course this just follows a natural order.
If “the word of the cross is foolishness”
Then, according to the world, what sort of people actually cling to it?
Fools (morons)
That is why when the Corinthians looked around their congregation,
There were certain types of people that just were not found.
(20) “Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age?”
DO YOU NEED PROOF THAT THE INTELLIGENT OF THE WORLD SEE THE CROSS AS FOOLISH?
Then look around and see how many of those
Brilliant scholars you know actually claim to follow Christ.
The Corinthians lived in a city of philosophers, scribes, and debaters, and yet hardly any attended their church.
All of those people are considered so smart in the world,
And none of them were smart enough to find eternal life.
That is why Paul asks that next question.
“Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?”
And the answer is an obvious yes.
Of all the scientific and mathematic truths that men know,
The fact they never figured out what poor, uneducated, children know proves that are the ones who are truly foolish.
HOW DID THEY MISS IT?
(21) “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God”
Because worldly wisdom never leads to God.
Isaiah 55:7-9 “Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," declares the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.”
Worldly wisdom never leads to God.
Worldly wisdom is all about training man
How to accomplish things within his own ability,
And getting to God is beyond the ability of man.
I WENT TO SCHOOL AND LEARNED A LOT OF GOOD THINGS.
BUT IN SCHOOL I NEVER LEARNED HOW TO GET TO GOD.
You can learn everything there is to know in school
And still not know the most important piece of information in the world.
“For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”
This is one of the greatest things about the message of the cross.
You don’t have to be a scholar to get it.
In fact, most scholars don’t get it.
You don’t have to be a genius, you simply have to have faith.
My dad is a horse trader, the only education he ever received was a diploma from Cebo’s horse shoeing school. He would never be esteemed by the world for his wisdom, but he knows how to go to heaven.
Fools and morons get in,
While scholars and philosophers never understand it.
They are the participants of the message of the cross
The promise of…The participants of…
#3 THE PROBLEM OF THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS
1 Corinthians 1:22-24
No doubt, one would have to ask why it works this way.
WHY DO FOOLS GET IT AND SCHOLARS MISS IT?
“For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness,”
Because they refuse to let go of their arrogance.
“Jews ask for signs”
And certainly Jews are not alone on this problem.
There is an entire movement today that requires a sign.
BUT THAT IS NOT FAITH.
Matthew 12:38-39 “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet;”
They say to God, I don’t believe you until you prove it.
Those who seek a sign do so because
They want some tangible truth that their decision was logical.
They want an “out” to keep from looking stupid.
They also want a story to tell.
“Greeks search for wisdom”
These are the intellectuals of the day.
If it doesn’t make absolute sense they won’t do it.
Above all, they desire to look wise in the world,
And because the cross does not look wise to the world,
They will not embrace it.
You see the cross forces man to trust, not achieve,
And that is very offensive to a person filled with self-love
Who desires to gain some credit for what they did.
They reject the cross because it doesn’t edify the ego.
“For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom;”
And then notice what he says:
“but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness,”
WHAT?
In order to be a faithful follower of Jesus,
Not only do you have to embrace what looks foolish to the world,
But you have preach what sounds foolish to the world.
And let me say the battle is raging on this front today.
Many today would rather preach without preaching Jesus, or the cross.
· They would rather give logical pointers about how God can bless you.
· They would rather give hard facts about why God is a good choice.
They would rather give scientific evidence, or archaeological truth.
Many in our faith have consumed themselves with
“SCIENTIFIC APOLOGETICS”
They actually study more science than they do Scripture
So they will not look stupid when they confront a man of the world.
Let me say this.
We are called to “preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness”
And if you look stupid for doing so, don’t be surprised!
It is not our job to look smart to the world.
That was the downfall of the Corinthians.
If you stray from the message in order to look wise to the world,
Then you are already defeated.
You have just disregarded the only message that can save anyone.
“but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
We preach the cross, not to look smart,
But because God has chosen some to be saved,
AND THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS IS THE ONLY MESSAGE
THAT WILL PENETRATE THEIR HEART FOR SALVATION.
What did Paul say to the Romans?
Romans 1:16-17 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."
We live in a church age that is “ashamed of the gospel”.
They want to save souls by “reason” “debate” and “scientific fact”.
Continually trying to PROVE that Jesus really is a good idea.
BUT IT CANNOT BE DONE.
Henry Barclay wrote, “Not very many people have ever been argued into Christianity. Often our arguments do more harm than good. The only way to convince a man of the supremacy of Christ is to confront Him with Christ. On the whole it is true to say that it is not argumentative and philosophical preaching and teaching which have won men for Christ; it is the presentation of the story of the cross.” (Barclay, Henry: “The Gospel of John, volume 1 revised edition” The Westminster Press, Philadelphia, PA; 1975, pg. 92)
But in our day men are so consumed with holding their dignity
That we leave the gospel on the shelf and try to match wits with the lost.
PREACH THE CROSS!
· Man is sinful
· Jesus died, bearing our sin
· By repentance and faith, you can be saved.
You may find that many will mock you as a fool.
But if you omit it, you will never lead a man to true salvation.
For the same message that is mocked by the world
Is also “the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
To those who are “the called”.
You see the promise of the message of the cross – it is foolishness
You see the participants of the message of the cross – it is the fools
You see the problem of the message of the cross – it makes you look foolish
#4 THE PERFECTION OF THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS
1 Corinthians 1:25
Don’t you just love that statement!
The message of the cross appears foolish to the world,
But it is wiser than it appears.
“Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men.”
Even God on a “dumb day” is smarter than men.
Where else can you find a plan of salvation so wise?
Every man that ever created a plan of salvation
Came up with essentially the same thing.
· Learn what your god wants…
· Do what your god wants…
· Hope your god lets you in to its heaven…
Every single religion on the face of the planet holds those attributes.
That is the best that man could come up with.
And yet the cross is far exceeding to that in wisdom.
While those religions say “EXALT YOURSELF,
The cross of Jesus says, “HUMBLE YOURSELF”
While those religions say “BE SUFFICIENT”,
The cross of Jesus says, “BE SUBMISSIVE”
While those religions say “DO”,
The cross of Jesus says, “DONE”
The wisdom of the cross is that wicked man can be saved
Despite having already fallen far short.
Romans 3:23-24 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;”
Beyond that:
“the weakness of God is stronger than men.”
Men think the cross is a weak plan for salvation.
But it is men who are really weak.
Their best plan places the hope of salvation upon their shoulders.
That is a weak plan.
But through the cross, we don’t place our hope in ourselves,
But on the back of the omnipotent God.
Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.”
Hebrews 6:19-20 “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
The message of the cross is stronger and wiser
Than it appears to the world.
In fact, it is the only way of salvation.
Acts 4:12 "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved."
DO YOU UNDERSTAND PAUL’S EMPHASIS TO THE CORINTHIANS?
They were boasting in men, and what they had done.
By doing so, they were nullifying the message of the cross.
By continually striving to maintain their credentials
As wise and deserving people
The Corinthians were actually forfeiting the message of the cross.
Walking in arrogance like we have accomplished anything,
IT IS A SLAP IN THE FACE TO THE WORK OF JESUS.
Those who embrace the cross are saying:
I am nothing, Jesus is everything…
I deserve death, Jesus died in my stead…
I am a sinner, Jesus is my Savior…
Those who truly embrace the cross withhold no glory for themselves.
And that is what Paul wanted the Corinthians to do.
Let go of your arrogance. It is causing division,
And there is no place for it while carrying the cross of Jesus.
Be willing to be a fool for the sake of Christ.
Take the cross to the world, it is the only message that saves.
Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”