The Message of the Cross

grace and peace be multiplied to each of you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord it is my privilege to be here with you to worship God in the beyond of the word and an even greater privilege to open God's Word for you this afternoon if you would take our copy of God's Word and turn with me to first Corinthians chapter 1 would you indulge me and stand with me for just a moment for the reading of God's Word from first Corinthians chapter 1 father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ we thank you for your word that is the lamp for our feet in the light for our pathway we pray now that you would open our eyes that we may behold wondrous things from your word give us understanding and we will obey your word and keep it with our whole heart help me to speak your word with faithfulness clarity authority passion wisdom humility and freedom and as the seat of the word is planted and watered we look to you alone for the increase I reserved for you the highest praise and full credit for the fruit that shall come from this time in Jesus name Amen 1st Corinthians chapter 1 beginning at verse 18 for the word of the Cross is folly to those who are perishing but to those who are being saved it is the power of God for it is written I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and the discernment of the discerning I will fort where is the one who is wise where is the scribe where is the debater of this age has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world for since in the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe for Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom but we preach Christ crucified a stumbling block to the Jews and folly to the Gentiles but to those who are called both Jews and Greeks Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God for the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men amen he may be seated I want to label the message the message of the Cross the message of the Cross a church inscribed the words of 1st Corinthians chapter 1 verse 23 on the outside wall of their historic downtown building we preach Christ crucified over time IV grew up the wall and obscured the last word in that statement so that only the words we preached Christ were visible and over time without no-one really noticing in the church IV continued to grow up that wall until it covered the next-to-last word so that the passerby could only see the words we preach that is a sad parable of the contemporary church there is no shortage today of preaching and preachers but Christ crucified is obscured if not conspicuously absent a person can attend the church for weeks months even years and hear multiple messages about financial prosperity physical healing personal success love connections social justice part send politics and many other user friendly subjects without hearing one clear presentation of Christ crucified to be fair most pastors and congregations do not abandon the message of the Cross intentionally it is often subtle like Ivy creeping up the wall the church has a sincere desire to reach people but leaning over to reach the world the church is prone to fall in as a result if you're not careful there is no real distinction between the church and the world we preach but the message of the Cross is muted I submit to you today that the best thing the church can do for the world is just let the world be the world the Christianized worldliness does not make the world Christian let the world be the world and to let the world be the world the church must be the church what does it mean for the church to be the church the primary central and definitive mark of the true church is the faithful proclamation of Christ crucified the message of the Cross is what distinguishes the church from the world that's the big idea I want you to get from first Corinthians chapter 1 verses 18 through 25 in this passage you will find Paul taking shots at the Jews and the Greeks but they are not his real targets the text is a rebuke to the church at Corinth the church at Corinth was a troubled Church the vision was arguably the most important problem at least it is the problem that Paul addressed first in chapter 1 verse 10 Paul writes I appeal to you brothers by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that all of you agree and that there be no divisions among you but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment the Corinthians were divided into tribes around particular leaders modeling the pastoral humility we desperately need today Paul refused to be a leader of a tribe that divides the Church of Jesus Christ in chapter 1 here verse 17 Paul writes for Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel and not with words of eloquent wisdom let the craw left the cross of Christ be emptied of its power Paul's corrective for the party spirit in the Church of Corinth was preaching but it was not merely the act of preaching that would make the difference faithful preaching carefully guards the message of the Cross in 1st Corinthians chapter 1 verses 18 through 25 Paul shows us that the message of the Cross is what distinguishes the church from the world Gordon fee comments here one can scarcely conceive of a more important and more difficult passage for the church today than this one it is difficult for the very same reason it was in Corinth we simply cannot abide the scandal of God doing things his way without our help and to do it by means of such weakness and folly how does the message of the Cross distinguish the church from the world consider three answers from first Corinthians the one verses 18 through 25 first Paul teaches that the message of the Cross determines eternal destiny the message of the Cross determines eternal destiny verse 18 says for the word of the Cross is folly to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of God this eighteenth verse is the thesis statement of the paragraph in a real sense it is the key statement of the section if not the whole letter I agree with har site who said there is a challenge in almost every word in this verse but in a real sense everything hinges on the phrase the word of the Cross that this phrase corresponds with the words of human eloquence in verse 17 Paul is saying that true preaching must always prioritize substance over style what is the message of the Cross it is what Paul calls in verse 23 simply Christ crucified it is the truth of the saving power of God in the atoning work of Jesus Christ at the cross this simple message of a crucified Messiah divides mankind the world categorizes people by race gender status but the gospel demands that we view people from the perspective of eternity every person will spend eternity somewhere either heaven or hell there is no other option an eternal destiny is determined by one's personal response to the message of the cross the message of the cross divides the human race into two groups Paul contrasts these groups here to force the Corinthians and us I believe to wrestle with this fundamental question which side are you really on verse 18 says for the word of the Cross is folly to those who are perishing Paul uses here the most common and the strongest word for folly it is to look at reality with a distorted perspective because one fails to take God into account some 14 verse 1 says The Fool has said in his heart there is no God but fools also can acknowledge the reality of God but with a warped perspective of their sinful hearts this is the response to the message of the Cross to those who Paul says are perishing this is the destiny of the unbeliever they are perishing eternal punishment under the righteous wrath of God is the destiny of those who do not believe the message of the Cross this is what is at stake as we preach and notice that Paul does not say they will perish they are perishing not on the verge of perishing they they are perishing 1st Corinthians chapter 7 verse 31 says for the present form of this world is it's passing away the one who does not believe the message of the Cross is doomed John chapter 3 verse 18 the word says whoever believes in Him is not condemned but whoever does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God there are only two categories of eternal destiny for the word of the Cross is folly to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of God notices Paul mentions those who are being saved he uses this plural pronoun us placing himself on the same level as his readers he says we are being saved using the same emphasis as those who are perishing we are being saved he does not say this to suggest in any way that the eternal destiny of the true believer is in question it is not John chapter 10 verses 28 through 30 Jesus says and I give them eternal life and they will never perish and no one will snatch them out of my hand my father who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of my father's hand I and the father are one we have been saved through faith in Christ and we will always be saved through faith in Christ yet at the same time we are being saved it is the sanctifying work of God to conform us to the image of his son it is the will of God to have the Spirit of God use the Word of God to make the children of God look like the son of God and for those who are being saved the message of the Cross is the power of God notice that the natural contrast here would be between folly and whiz but here Paul contrasts what man deems to be foolish with the power of God true wisdom he is saying is only found in the saving power of God at work at the cross Romans chapter 1 verse 16 Paul says for I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes to the Jew first and also to the Greek we naturally associate salvation with the love of God and the grace of God and the mercy of God but it is ultimately about the power of God and Paul says that the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ does not merely contain power or exercise power or demonstrate power it is the very power of God for salvation more than any more than just another theory of human philosophy Paul wants to make it clear that the message of the Cross is the saving power of God for those who believe in Christ the the message of the Cross separates the church from the world because it is this message that determines eternal destiny but secondly the message of the Cross declares true wisdom the message of the Cross declares true wisdom what is true wisdom this is the central question of the text as this term is used some eight times in this passage the Corinthians were impressed with the notion of wisdom it was in a real sense the root cause of the division in the church their concept of wisdom was more than a philosophical issue wisdom conveyed honor and power and status and on this basis the Corinthians lined up behind particularly ders in so doing Paul wants them to see that they are lining up with the world human wisdom and divine wisdom are in direct opposition Paul says to the Corinthians here and says to us pick a side he gives three reasons in verses 19 through 21 why we should choose the true wisdom declared in the message of the Cross he first says God destroys human wisdom in verse 19 Paul writes for it is written I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and the discernment of the discerning I will fort as Paul begins to lay out his argument about what true wisdom is he begins with scripture scripture is the foundation of his argument it is written it's more than an introduction to a biblical reference he will give it is an announcement of biblical authority the wisdom of God is found in the world of God human wisdom cannot be overcome in our day without an unwavering confidence in the sufficiency of Scripture second Timothy chapter three verses 16 and 17 says all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching for reproof for correction and for training in righteousness that the man of God may be competent equipped for every good work I repeat we cannot overcome the false wisdom of the age without an unwavering confidence in the sufficiency of God's Word it is on the basis of this confidence affirmed at the end of 2nd Timothy chapter 3 that Paul will charge Timothy in the beginning of chapter 4 to preach the word and be ready in season and out of season appealing the scripture to make his case Paul refers to isaiah chapter 29 verse 14 where the Lord says I will again do wonderful things with this people with wonder upon wonder and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish and the discerning men shall be hidden in a military crisis the counsel of israel's wise men was to form a political alliance with Egypt but but God doesn't need to make alliances to take care of his people the Lord would divinely intervene to defeat the enemy and in so doing God destroys human wisdom drawing from the record of God's faithfulness to Israel Paul establishes a biblical precedence he is saying the cross is not a new strategy God always finds a way to destroy human wisdom Psalm 33 verse 10 says the Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing he frustrates the plain of the people here we have a picture of the great reversal man proposes but God disposes in every situation God has the last word Isaiah 40 verse 8 says the grass withers the flowers fade but the word of our God stands forever God destroys human wisdom likewise God makes human wisdom foolish in verse 19 Paul used the scripture to show how God destroys human wisdom and then in verse 20 he directly challenges the advocates of human wisdom with four questions where is the one who is wise where is the scribe where is the debater of this age has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world I'm tempted to spend time here doing intensive word studies to identify the wise and described and the debater of this age the wise may refer to the Gentile philosopher or not the scribe here may refer to the Jewish scholar or not the debater may refer to the Greek sophist or not wherever you altima claim about the detailed identity of these terms is ultimately speculative these general terms are just meant to cover all of the representatives of the ancient intelligentsia he just kind of cause all of the so-called smart people it says where has it got you the most important thing maybe the note in the series of questions is the reference to this age in the third question ultimately it applies I think to the wise and the scribe and the debater it is a reference to the transitory nature of human wisdom and it is why we must reject the wisdom of the world in the economy of scripture that which is most valuable is that which lasts the longest first John chapter 2 verse 17 since then the world is passing away along with this desires but whoever does the will of God abides forever Paul says the problem with all of the world's smart people because that is just of this age their claims won't stand the test of time which leads them to the fourth question has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world and this rhetorical question declares what God has accomplished in the cross of Christ God verse 19 has destroyed human wisdom but moreover he says here God has made foolish the wisdom of the world he is not just destroyed it he has made it foolish Paul was not merely saying that God has made worldly wisdom look to be foolish or appear to be foolish no God has actually transformed you wisdom into utter foolishness God by the cross has made the wisdom of the world empty futile and worthless I hope you get in this Paul challenging the Corinthians pick aside pick the cross stay with the cross the wisdom of this world profits nothing God destroys the wisdom of this world God makes the wisdom of this world foolish and then he says God does what human wisdom can not do verse 20 he says God makes foolish the wisdom of the world how exactly does he do that verse 21 answers for since in the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom it pleases God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe this verse begins with two conjunctions for since that introduces a passionate explanation of the way God has made worldly wisdom foolish and the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom does not mean unsaved unredeemed people cannot recognize certain truths about God but he is saying here man cannot think his way to God you can spend a lifetime accumulating human wisdom but your learning will not produce a true relationship with God God has designed it that way in Matthew chapter 11 verses 25 and 26 Jesus responds to the growing hostility toward his message and messianic claims by pausing and saying to his father I thank you Father Lord of Heaven and Earth that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children yes Father for such was your gracious will as the people reject his messianic claims Jesus does not become downcast he praises God for the sovereign mystery of salvation in that those who you think would get it don't and those who you think are least likely to get it do and then he has a big explanation for why it happens that way it's just God's gracious will the verse 1 you went here Paul says it this way it pleased God by the folly of what we preach to save those who believe the verb pleased it's crucial to understanding the verse it's God's inscrutable decree it is God's free and sovereign grace it is God's divine election good pleasure and eternal purpose if the world could know God through wisdom man could take the credit so God chose a way that would ensure that he would receive all the glory God saves those who believe the folly of what we preach 80 Robertson nicely clarifies here that the foolishness of preaching is not the preaching of foolishness but Paul is not calling preaching here foolish but but what we preach Christ crucified this crude method of torturous death deemed to be a curse by the Jews its foolishness by worldly standards 1st Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14 says the natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God for they are folly to him he's not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned yet by the folly of what we preach God saves those who believe John chapter 1 verses 11 through 13 has terrible news that sits right next to wonderful news the terrible news is in verse 11 he came to his own and his own people did not receive him but the wonderful news is to all who did receive him who believed in his name he gave the right to become the children of God who were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God and so the message of the Cross separates the church from the world because this message of the Cross determines eternal destiny it declares true wisdom thirdly the message of the Cross the mine's Christian ministry the message of the Cross defines Christian ministry verse 18 Paul declares that the message of the Cross is clearly what distinguishes the church from the world those who are perishing and those who are being saved in verses 19 through 21 Paul explains how true wisdom is only found in the message of the Cross not the empty wisdom of this sinful world in verses 22 through 25 Paul now shows us how the message of the Cross should shape ministry verse 23 States pause philosophy of ministry in four words we preach Christ crucified and these closing verses are just a challenge to us pastors to preach Christ crucified faithfully and to preach Christ crucified confidently first brothers we should preach Christ crucified faithfully a preacher stood on the corner calling sinners to repent and believe no one paid him any attention except the curious little boy mister he said you know you're not influencing anybody out here don't you yes I know answered the preacher so why do you keep preaching the boy axed the preacher Acts because I don't want them to influence me in a very real sense this is Paul's attitude toward ministry he faithfully preached Christ crucified even though it was a message that was not approved or accepted by the world he says Christ crucified is not a message that the world approves look at verse 22 for Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom this is more than a criticism of Jews and Greeks it is a summary of human idolatry Jews demand signs they expected the Messiah King to be a political hero to overthrow the occupying powers of Rome and establish his capital in Jerusalem and usher Israel again into economic prosperity they expected the Messiah King to use divine power to overthrow Rome as Moses defeated the Egyptians in John 6 verse 30 they asked Jesus what sign do you do that we may see and believe what work do you perform they asked that question after he had fed 5000 with loaves and fish just proof that no sign would satisfy them so Matthew chapter 12 verse 39 and 40 Jesus says an evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth while Jews demanded science Greeks sought wisdom that they searched for truth through logic and reason and philosophy this was true of the Gentiles in general but it was particularly true of the Greeks especially their philosophers Luke notes in Acts chapter 17 verse 21 now the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time and nothing but telling and hearing something new because of these two ideologies idolatry signs and wisdoms the world will not accept the message of the cross Christ crucified is not a message the world approves or accepts he affirms that again in verse 23 but he begins by declaring but we preach Christ crucified though it's a stumbling block to Jews and folly to the Gentiles here he is reminding us brothers the pastor is a herald and we do not have editorial control over the message we must faithfully proclaim the message of the King we must preach Christ crucified this had a raw sense of scandal in the day that Paul wrote these words long before the cross was sentimentalized over the centuries of the church but yet it is no more scandalous in our day this is not the message that the world wants to hear many instances it is not the message that people on Sunday morning want to hear but if the church is to be the church we must preach Christ crucified Christ crucified Christ crucified if you preach Jesus as the Christ without the crucifixion it'll make a lot more sense to the world and if you preach the crucifixion of Jesus without claiming him to be the Christ it will make much more sense to the world Christ Crucified doesn't make sense but Paul refused to compromise the message of the cross Paul here could have even blunted them the edge a little with a reference to the resurrection after all he did not remain of the cross God raised him from the dead but the language Paul uses here presents Christ as the perpetually crucified one he is reminding us that Calvary is the main event of the Christian faith it is by Christ crucified that guilty sinners are made right with the holy God as his blood and righteousness opens for us a new and living way to God we preach Christ crucified it's a stumbling block to the Jews and it's folly to the Gentiles notice here in verse 23 how Paul suddenly shifts from Greeks to Gentiles maybe indicating that the cross is foolishness not merely to the Greeks but to all Gentiles ultimately it is scandal and folly to everyone who does not believe the world does not accept the message of the Cross but we must determine brothers to give the world what it needs not to cater to what it wants Paul says it best as you go down to chapter 2 verse 1 and I when I came to you brothers did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom for I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling in my speech and my message we're not implausible words of wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God may God help us to preach Christ crucified faithfully may God help us to preach Christ crucified confidently verses 22 and 23 make it clear that Christ crucified is not a message that the world approves or accepts yet verse 24 and 25 give us two reasons why we can and should preach Christ crucified with confidence one reason is the call of God the effectual call of God verse 24 says but to those who are called both Jews and Greeks Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God turning his attention from the Jews and the Greeks Paul here now introduces another category of people the called these are those who are being saved verse eighteen those who believe verse 21 here he calls us the called this is not merely the external call of the gospel it's the sexual call of sovereign grace Paul explains that in the next paragraph as he challenges them to pick a side he says remember what God did when he called you verse 26 for consider your calling brothers not many of you were wise according to worldly standards not many were powerful not many were of noble birth but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong God chose what is low and despised in the world even things that are not to bring to nothing things that are so that no human being might boast in the presence of God for his glory God calls to himself those who would be saved through faith in Christ and note how Paul says here in verse 24 that this divine called transcends racial and ethnic groups the call of God does not erase the identity of Jews and Greeks but it no longer defines who they are Jews and Greeks become one through faith in Christ who is the power of God and the wisdom of God or we constantly face the temptation to pursue racial reconciliation without the message of the Cross it is human wisdom it betrays the cross and it is doomed to fail but brings true believers together is Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God as the crucified and resurrected one Christ is the power of God likewise Christ is the wisdom of God Colossians chapter 2 verse 3 says in Christ our hidden all of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge by faith in Christ Jews and Greeks are made one believing Christ to be the power of God and the wisdom of God several years ago our predominantly black congregation merged with a predominantly white congregation in our city to 100 year old Baptist churches married one another and during the process I went to the church to meet with that congregation and field questions from the members it was a long session I answered questions I thought I wouldn't be be answering answered a lot of questions about names and positions and music and programs and who's gonna get what classroom when I was asked are you gonna continue to let us do the beast feasts I just lifted my hand up in confusion as I answered the question one dear old lady saved me she rescued me she stood up and she just asked me some fundamental questions about what I believed about the Bible and when she finished asking her questions and I answered her questions about what I believed at the barn to the congregation and functionally ended the meeting and said well he believes what we believe what else does that ask without oversimplifying a complex issue the simple question that simple old lady's question is the fundamental answer to racial harmony in the church what do you believe about Jesus Christ to those who are called both Jew and Greek Christ is the power of God and Christ is the wisdom of God we can be confident because as we preach and after world stops God is calling the elect to himself in that good news and he does so with exhaustive sovereignty this is what verse 25 is trying to indicate when it says the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men this is the ironic Providence of God there is no foolishness in God and there is no weakness in God this is sins sinful man's blind perspective on the message of the Cross the world views the cross as foolishness not wisdom the world views the Cross as weakness not strength a God is wise enough and strong enough to own man's perverted analysis of his saving work and turn it on man's head if God is foolish his foolishness is wiser than man Isaiah chapter 55 verses 8 and 9 cents for my thoughts are not your thoughts neither 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 higher than your thoughts if God is foolish his foolishness is wiser man and if God is weak his weakness it's stronger than man when commentator noted here if the feeblest powers put forth surpass the mightiest powers of man how great must be his might if the powers of man who rears works of art who levels mountains and elevates the valleys if the power which reared the pyramids be asked nothing with when compared with the feeblest putting forward of divine power how mighty must be his arm how vast that strength which made and which upholds the ruling worlds how are his people in his hand and how easy for him to crush all his foes to death the weakness of God is stronger than men and the foolishness of God is wiser than men so that he would get all of the glory down at the cross where my Savior died down where for cleansing from sin I cried there to my heart was the blood applied glory to his name I am so wondrously saved from sin Jesus so sweetly abides within there at the cross where he took me in glory to his name Oh precious fountain that saves from sin I am so glad I have entered in there Jesus Saves me and he keeps me clean glory to his name come to this fountain so rich and sweet casts that poor soul at the Savior's feet plunge in today and be made complete glory to his name glory to his name glory to his name father I pray that the church would be the church that you would help us to be faithful Shepherds who point our congregations to truth and holiness and unity by the message of the Cross help us to be reminded of the gravity of this message that determines eternal destiny the truth of this message which declares true wisdom from above the true wisdom of God it may it shape our ministry that faithfully and confidently we would preach the person and work of Jesus Christ to your glory amen

Channel: Together for the Gospel (T4G)

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Length: 53min 36sec (3216 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 21 2018