THE FOOLISHNESs OF THE CROSS
“Dead Men Laughing”
1 Corinthians 1:18 (NASB) For 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.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25(p.130)
Here at Easter time the focus is on the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But all too often the message of the cross gets lost in the shuffle. The message of the cross is the message of life and that is what I want us to hear today.
Before we can understand Paul’s message to us we have to understand spiritual death. Ever since the original sin of Adam back in the Garden of Eden every person is born spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1) - that is, they have no capacity to have a relationship with God.They are spiritually separated from God. This is why each person needs spiritual life. God desires each one of us to be made spiritually alive, to have eternal life and live with Him forever.
The message of life is what God says must be believed in order to receive this eternal spiritual life. The message of the cross must be believed.
Paul tells us that the word,message or story of the cross is foolishness to those that are perishing. Those who are perishing are those who are spiritually dead – those are without spiritual eternal life –those who are destined for eternal death. Eternal death speaks of being separated from God forever in the Lake of Fire – it is also called the Second Death in Revelation 21:8. This is not annihilation, it is a conscious suffering.
The message of the cross is the true Gospel that brings eternal spiritual life if believed:
Romans 1:16 (NASB) 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.
In Romans 1:16 “salvation” means “delivered.” The deliverance here means two things:
- to be delivered from this Second Death, and
- to be delivered to eternal life
In other words, those “who are perishing” {destined for the Second Death} can now have “salvation” {eternal life} and they get this life by simply believing Jesus Christ for it. This is how God’s “power” works.
Look back at v.18b in the text. Beloved, I do not want you to miss this fact: under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit Paul breaks down the world of human beings into just two classes of people:
- Those who are perishing (lost: lost now and for all eternity)
- Those who are saved
These are only two types of people in the world! Everybody in group 2 was once in group 1. See Matthew 7:13-14: the broad way and the narrow way – no “on the way” type! No “in-between” type!
v.18-20: Foolishness means that unbelievers – those without eternal life – consider this truth of the Gospel message of life that must be believed to be silly and even absurd. They do not think it makes sense. By their own “wisdom” {human viewpoint thinking or the “wisdom”– thought systems – “of the world”, v.20b} they cannot accept that one receives eternal life by simply believing Jesus for that life.
Many times they do not think that they even need such life because by their “wisdom” and “cleverness” they figure they will live in some wonderful happy forever but certainly not in the Lake of Fire. They think they have nothing to be saved from!
v.21:Man’s best thinking cannot come to know God experientially – that is, to have a spiritual relationship with Him. But the situation is not hopeless! God has a message that is preached (proclaimed), a specific message that will “save” (remember our definition above) if it is believed.
God has established a means by which one can receive this salvation if they will believe it.
Let’s get our word meaning right: biblically, the word “believe” meansto be convinced that something is true.God is saying that in order to be “saved” (receive eternal life), a person has to be convinced that something is true.
v.22: various people always have ideas as to what they are looking for in spiritual things. The Jews, like many today, wanted to see works of power (miracles) and they wanted a political savior. The Gentiles wanted the message to be an intellectual “smart thing” that affirmed their self-centeredness – they wanted an intellectual savior. Both considered the cross to be a disgrace and foolish. Both considered the idea of death on a cross to be the means by which salvation comes to be laughable.
v.23a: this is how God in His perfect wisdom made a plan whereby sinful man could receive eternal life and come into the presence of a holy and righteous God to live forever. What do we proclaim? Christ crucified!
The work of Christ on the cross is what makes it possible for Christ to offer eternal spiritual life to all who will believe Him for it.
v.23b: because God did not give salvation in the way man wanted it, or thought it should be, the spiritually dead Jews fell over the simple proclamation and the spiritually dead Gentiles thought it was foolish.
Together, the perishing (the spiritually dead) laughed at the message of Christ crucified (His spiritual substitutionary death for us – in our place) so that by faith alone we could receive the free gift of eternal life.
Today the spiritually dead, those who are headed for an eternal separation from God, still laugh at the simple message of life that we proclaim. It is foolishness to them.
v.24-25: Christ is the true power and wisdom to those who believe.It is true power because it takes the power of God to give eternal spiritual life to spiritually dead people. All human power is worthless.
Believers understand that salvation can ever be achieved by works, rituals, human wisdom, or any personal contribution to or cooperation with God.They know that Christ alone can give that eternal life and when they believe Him for it he gives it to them as a free gift.
v.25: the foolishness of God – that God would use the death of Christ on a cross to make your salvation possible. The foolishness of God is His wisdom in making our salvation so simple a young child can understand it and believe.
It is foolishness in man’s eyes because in his pride man wants to qualify for personal salvation; man wants to think that by his “goodness” and religion he can earn God’s approval.
Since the message of life is so simple it seems foolish to man’s thinking.
Beloved, God does not and will not grant eternal life on your terms – you come by His or you do not come at all!
v.25:the weakness of God – crucifixion on a cross seems to be, in human viewpoint thinking, a display of weakness. But in reality it is a display of the true power of God.
The cross makes possible what man through his thinking, his science, his religion, his best efforts can never achieve – eternal life!
Anytime a person thinks that eternal life can be achieved by any means other than as a gift by the grace of God that is received by faith alone, then that person is saying that God’s plan of salvation is foolishness.
The message of the cross simply says that Jesus Christ has already fully paid the penalty for sin by His work on the cross. It was there he did as your substitute. Thus Jesus is the only One Who is qualified to give you eternal life. He gives that life to you on the basis of faith alone.
When you know that you can in no way contribute to your receiving eternal life and that Jesus alone can give you that life then and only then have you believed Him for that life. Are you convinced that this is true?
BY
GRACE THIS IS THE THROUGH MESSAGE TO FAITH BE BELIEVED:
THE OBJECT OF FAITH
IS JESUS CHRIST HE ALONE GIVES NOT
ETERNAL LIFE HUMAN GOOD WORKS
RITUALS OF ANY KIND
TURNING FROM SIN
CONFESSING CHRIST
CHURCH BAPTISM
John 6:47
Ephesians 2:8-9
Eternal Titus 3:5
Life ACTS 16:31
FAITH OR BELIEVE MEANS TO BE CONVINCED IT IS TRUE – I CANNOT CONTRIBUTE TO MY SALVATION AND JESUS ALONE GIVES ME ETERNAL LIFE WHEN I BELIEVE HIM FOR THAT LIFE!
Which do you believe?
SALVATION BY WORKS ALONE
SALVATION BY
CHRIST PLUS GOOD WORKS
INCLUDING
RELIGIOUS
RITUALS
TO BELIEVE EITHER OF THE TWO ABOVE IS TO CONSIDER THE MESSAGE OF LIFETO BE “FOOLISHNESS.”
SALVATION BY FAITH ALONE IN CHRIST ALONE
JESUS
PROMISES INHIM
ETERNAL LIFE FOR THAT LIFE
TO ALL WHO
BELIEVE
John 3:16 (NASB) "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
John 3:36 (NKJV) He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
John 14:6 (NKJV) Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
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