The message of the cross
1 Corinthians 1:18-30; 3/24/2024; BCBC/IOUC; Brother Mike Lei
Good morning. Today’s message is “The message of the cross.” You will notice that the Chinese and English titles do not exactly match each other. If the Chinese title matches the English title, it should be: 十字架的信息. The English title is based on the NIV translation. The Chinese title is from the CUV translation. The Chinese title used the words 道理, which can mean the “reasoning or principle.” If we see both the English and Chinese translation, then we can understand that the message of the cross is the reasoning or principle of the cross. Or you can say it’s the logic of the cross. The Greek word used is actually logos, which means is translated in John 1:1 as the Word (道). The Word道 is referring to Jesus. Before we get too deep, let’s read today’s verses in 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 together in Chinese and English:
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” 20 Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. (NIV)
Let’s pray before we begin.
Peter Scott , born in 1867, was the founder of African Inland Mission. He tried to preach the gospel in Africa but contracted malaria and had to go home. In his second attempt, he was very happy that his brother John joined him. However, his brother John died a few months later from fever. As he buried his brother all by himself, he rededicated himself to keep preaching the gospel. When he got sick again, he returned to England totally discouraged. But after visiting the tomb of the great African missionary David Livingstone, he was inspired to go back to Africa, ready to lay down his life for the gospel if needed. He went back to Africa with a new team and died less than 14 months later of blackwater fever at the age of 29. In northern Germany, two Moravians got into a boat, ready to sell themselves into slavery in the West Indies, never to come back again, so they could preach the gospel there.
What is it about the gospel- “the message of the cross” that is worth all the sacrifices endured by Christians in these past 2,000 years? Why did they want to sacrifice so much to tell others this message? Is it really worth the cost?
What is so special about the message of the cross that makes it worth all the cost? It started from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is God, coming from heaven to earth to take on flesh, emptying Himself of all the glories of heaven, becoming fully man to experience suffering as a human being, while still being fully God, to accomplish the work of salvation by being crucified and died on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. Then, He was resurrected on the 3rd day and sent out His disciples to preach the gospel – the good news. Today, we will look at the message of the cross: 1. Christ: The power of God. 2. Christ: The wisdom of God. 3. Christ: Our righteousness, holiness, redemption
Christ: The power of God
First of all, the message of the cross is the power of God for our salvation. 1 Corinthians 1:18 says, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” The message of the cross is the message of the gospel – which is the message of the good news. The good news message of the cross shows us the power of God’s love. The power of God’s love saves us. The power of God’s love changes us. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” None of us deserved to be saved. But the Son of God, Jesus Christ already came from heaven to earth to die on the cross for us 2,000 years ago. Before we even knew Him, while we were still dead in our sins, He has paid the penalty for our sins. While we were still enemies of God, having no interest in God, maybe not even acknowledging that God exists, Christ has reconciled us to God through His death on the cross (Romans 5:10). Who has the power to change the hardest hearts? Only God’s love can.
I’ve heard Rev. Simon Lau, who established the Gospel drug rehab ministry Operation Dawn in Taiwan, shared his testimony about his past drug addictions and gang fights, because I’m a volunteer teacher in the local Operation Dawn ministry. I translated this testimony from an online Chinese article about his ministry. Let’s listen to the original Chinese version first: “In 1984, Pastor Minhe Lau was sent by Operation Dawn Hong Kong from Hong Kong to Taiwan to develop the Gospel rehab ministry, with his newly wed wife. Over the past 20 to 30 years, Pastor Lau has not only developed 13 drug rehab centers in Taiwan, but has also expanded Chinese Gospel drug rehab centers to six countries in North America and Asia. Anyone who has met Pastor Lau will be moved by his urgent and fiery passion to help people get rid of drug addiction. It turns out that this very caring pastor had an unforgettable past. He once indulged in tobacco, alcohol and drugs, and joined a gang. Stealing, robbing, cheating, drug dealing, and fighting were commonplace. However, after he heard the gospel and believed in Jesus, not only did he quit drugs, but his life was completely turned around. Hearing his testimony is always moving to see how God changed his life.”
Everyone who has been saved by the love of Christ has a story to share about the power of God in their life. The message of the cross shows us that the Lord Jesus Christ is the power of God to save us and to change us.
Christ is the power of God, not only because He created the world and holds the world together by His power (Colossians 1:16-17). Christ being God has infinite power, He is omnipotent. Yet, why did Paul say in 1 Corinthians 1:25b “ and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.”? When was God ever weak? Why is this important? It is important because this is the message of the cross. God displayed His power to us even in what the world may see as weakness.
This is unimaginable, but God chooses to reveal Himself to us through weakness. God came to the world as a baby, not as Superman. Dr. Yarbrough, the current President of Dallas Seminary puts it this way: “The omnipotent, in one instant, made himself breakable. He who had been spirit became pierceable. He who was larger than the universe became an embryo. And he who sustains the world with a word, chose to be dependent upon the nourishment of a young girl…God slept in the manger because of love.”
Jesus came to the world as a baby. His earthly parents had to take him and escape to Egypt because the King at the time wanted to kill all the boys around his age, to get rid of Him, who he thought would take his throne. This is why “the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” The message of the cross is that Christ is the power of God, displayed through His sacrificial love and sacrificial weakness, so we can be saved and be changed by the power of His love and by the power of His weakness in His first coming.
Christ: The wisdom of God
Second, the message of the cross is that Christ is the wisdom of God. The wisdom of God is that we can be so rich even though we can be so poor. Christ showed us this truth through His life. 2 Corinthians 8:9 “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” We have been made rich through Christ by receiving all the spiritual blessings. Because we have already been made rich spiritually, we can give up worldly riches so that others may also be made rich in Christ. Amen?
In the book Happiness around the world: the paradox of happy peasants and miserable millionaires, the author writes about the studies made around the world on the measure of happiness. They found that within a country, the people who are wealthier are on the average happier than the poor ones, but additional income yields a lower increase in happiness at the higher income levels. Isn’t this what the Bible teaches us about those who pursue money? 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” Their pursuit of more money will yield less return in happiness. So, the Bible tells us to be content with what we have, as long as we have food and shelter we can be happy. 1 Timothy 6:8 “But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.”
In the research cited in the book, they found that one country Afghanistan has higher average happiness scores than Latin America, where living conditions are better, as compared to the world average. This may mean either that the Afghans are naturally cheerful people or that they have adapted their expectations downwards in the face of very difficult living conditions. How do we have joy as Christians? Can we gain happiness by downgrading our expectations in this fallen world? I think yes. Jesus has already told us that in this world we will have troubles (John 16:33) As Christians, we are not surprised by troubles. We can find happiness and peace in the Lord at all times. We can be happy because we are looking forward to our unimaginably bright future inheritance in heaven and not at the present circumstances on earth. We can keep our eyes focused on the mission of God on earth.
The message of the cross is that Christ is the wisdom of God. But His wisdom is not worldly wisdom. That is why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:25a, “For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom.” Who would be foolish enough to give up all their riches? Yet, that is what Christ did when He came into the world. And Christ also asked his followers to give up anything that will keep them from following Him, including worldly riches. It may look foolish to deny ourselves the things that other people see as valuable, for the sake of Christ. But what may seem foolish is the wisdom of God, because what is eternal is what lasts and that is the wisest choice we can make it our life. In Christ, we not only receive the godly wisdom to live in this world, but also wisdom for the world to come. Hold on to Christ and you hold on to wisdom.
Christ: Our righteousness, holiness, redemption
Finally, the message of the cross is that Christ is our righteousness, holiness, and redemption 1 Corinthians 1:30 says, “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.”
As I was thinking about this message, I remembered a song I loved as a young Christian. It talks about the kindness of God that leads us to repentance. I looked up the song online to see if I can use it for this message. Then, I saw the name of the writer for the song. I’m not familiar with her name, so I looked up her name and found that her name has changed. She had left the Christian music industry many years ago while she was a young adult and went into the secular music industry. Also it looks like she has left the church. I’ve been reading her story and interviews. Here are some things she said.
I was put in a position where I was supposed to live my life as an example for other people. There was so much pressure to be—not exactly perfect, but a very weird version of perfect.
I feel at this point in my life that I can worship in a Buddhist temple just as well as in another kind of church. I might as well be in New Mexico looking at the mountains. I don’t feel I have to adhere to a certain regimen or routine or dogma.
As I read her story, I just thought about our young people who grew up in church. Do they really understand the message of the cross? Do they also feel the same pressure as this lady? This song-writer shared how she did not want to live up to the image which her Christian music company wanted her to have. How about the young people at church? Do they get tired of trying to live up to the image that they think the church wants them to have? I hope our young people really understand the gospel. I want to make it very clear that the gospel is for sinners. If you are not a sinner, you don’t need the gospel. But we know that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, except 1 man, that is Jesus Christ. We all need the gospel. We don’t come to church to show others how committed we are, how good we are, how holy we are, how righteousness we are. We come to church because the church is the spiritual family God has given to us. It is the gift from God to help us experience Christ’s love and to grow in Christ. Just like your natural family is a gift of God, whether you like it or not. Maybe you feel church is a burden, like there are so many things you need to do to keep up a good image. Maybe the young people will do their best to live up to the standards that they have been taught. They may get excited for a while thinking they can live up to the standards. But what if they can’t live up to the standards that they think the church requires of them? Will they quit and walk away, because they feel ashamed about themselves? Maybe they will think: “Why feel ashamed when you don’t have to be ashamed, just say goodbye to church and all the people there that you have to face?” This is where I just want to shout No! That is not the gospel! That is not what church is about! You have missed the truth of the message of the cross. The message of the cross is Jesus! Jesus is our righteousness! Jesus is our holiness! Jesus is our redemption! Anything else you depend on will lead you to abandon the faith because you are not basing your faith on the right things in the first place. The message of the cross means we can be free from trying to keep a perfect image in front of others. The message of the cross means we can be free from the fear of admitting our weaknesses. The message of the cross means we can be free from the fear of rejection when we fail.
We need to say to the prodigals: “God is the father who is always there looking for you to return. No matter what you have done, no matter how far you have strayed from the Christian life, there is always a welcome party waiting for you when you return. The church is always your spiritual family. We are here for you. We look forward to celebrating with you when you return.”
In the book The Prodigal God, Timothy Keller reminds the reader that there are actually 2 lost sons in the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32. Both the younger son and the older son were lost in their own ways. The younger son no doubt was lost when he asked for his father’s inheritance up front, left home, and spent it all away on wild living. The older son stayed home and did all the things he thought his father wanted him to do. Yet, when his younger brother repented and came home, he became so angry that his father would so easily forgive his brother and even hosted an extravagant party to celebrate his return. He said to his father, “ ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’”(Luke 15:29b-30) Can you sense the anger in the older son’s voice? This reminds me of Jonah and how angry he was when the Ninevites repented. How would you feel if you are the parent and your child said this to you? Would you feel very hurt? Would you say, “Didn’t you do this because you love us? Because we are your parents?” The older son revealed what was in his heart. He never saw himself as a son. He always saw himself like a slave. “All these years I’ve been slaving for you.” That is why the father reminded him in Luke 15:31 – “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.” For those of us in church, do we think like the older brother? Do we have this slave mentality? Do we think that by coming to church, doing all the things the church wants us to do (attending small groups, joining Zoom class, memorizing Scriptures, giving offerings – all these are good things) makes us better than other people? No, we are no better, because at the end of the day, as Christians, we are all sinners saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. No amount of good works, no amount of sacrifices can replace Christ. In Christ Jesus alone is our only hope for righteousness, our only hope for holiness, our only hope for redemption. There is no righteousness, no holiness, no redemption apart from Jesus Christ. Because Christ is our righteousness, our holiness, our redemption, we can get up when we fall. Because Christ is our righteousness, our holiness, our redemption, we have a love relationship with the Heavenly Father through our faith in Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit guides us and leads us and helps us to live a holy and righteous life. Amen?
If you have never trusted in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, would you like to receive the gift of eternal life today? Please pray this prayer with me if you want to receive the gift of eternal life.
Dear Lord Jesus Christ, I know I am a sinner and do not deserve eternal life. But, I believe You died on the cross for my sins and rose from the grave on the third day to give me eternal life. Lord Jesus, come into my life; take control of my life; forgive my sins and save me. I repent of my sins and now place my trust in You alone for my salvation and receive You as my Lord and Savior. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Let’s all pray.