“Christ’s Cross Is Foolishness to the Lost but Godly Power to the Saved”
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our
Lord [Amen.]
“When the woes of life o’ertake me,
Hopes deceive, and fears annoy,
Never shall the cross forsake me;
Lo, it glows with peace and joy.”
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
427:2)
Epistle
Reading................................................................ 1
Corinthians 1:18-25 (esp. 18)
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.
Prologue: The cross is at the same time the most despicably
disgusting instrument of death … and the most divinely delightful instrument
of life. The Reverend Rudolph F. Norden captured the meaning of that when
he wrote the following in a devotion entitled “Toxic or Tonic?”: “What John
the Baptist offered to the people around him … was both a toxic and a tonic.
First, he proclaimed the Law in all its sharpness. His message of judgment
and repentance was poison to those who didn’t want to repent. They were now
worse off.
“But John also preached the Gospel, and this was a tonic for sin-sick
souls. His message in brief was this: ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes
away the sin of the world!’ (John 1:29). He testified that Jesus the Christ
was to be offered up [on the cross] for the sins of all people. Christ is
still proclaimed to us as the Good Physician whose blood cleanses, whose
Word heals troubled hearts, whose comforting presence is a tonic to
life-weary persons.” (Rudolph F. Norden in Each Day with Jesus: Daily
Devotions through the Year. Copyright © 1994 Concordia Publishing House,
St. Louis, MO. Page 184.) After all, “Those who see only foolishness in
the cross deny its power to save them from eternal destruction. The cross
is the instrument of God’s salvation.” (The Lutheran Study Bible.
Engelbrecht, E. A., Gen. Ed. Copyright © 2009 Concordia Publishing House,
St. Louis, MO. Page 1948.)
History tells us that “When Michelangelo contemplated painting his
great picture of the crucifixion, he had the story read to him from each of
the gospels while he sat blindfolded. He listened till his spirit was
[filled] with the spirit of the narrative, and then he took palette and
brush and did the work that made his name immortal. It was the sight and
thought of the cross that inspired him.” (Encyclopedia of Sermon
Illustrations. Compiled by David F. Burgess. Copyright © 1988 Concordia
Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 54.)
Well, while the cross inspired Michelangelo to paint the most
famous of all his paintings, for other people it’s a ridiculous and mostly
meaningless item, at best only a piece of decorative jewelry. So, what’s
the difference between those who are inspired by the cross as the most
significant religious symbol to be revered and those who consider it to be
nothing more than a silly item of only monetary value? Today’s sermon text
answers that question by declaring that …
“Christ’s Cross Is Foolishness to the Lost but Godly Power to the Saved.”
In addition to today’s Epistle Reading, the apostle Paul wrote the
following statements regarding the cross. To the Galatians he wrote: “But
far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by
which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Gal 6:14-15
ESV) To the Ephesians he wrote: “For [Jesus Christ] himself is our peace,
who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall
of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments and ordinances, that he
might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace,
and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby
killing the hostility.” (Eph 2:14-17 ESV) To the Philippians he wrote: “For
many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk
as enemies of the cross of Christ.” (Phil 3:18-19 ESV) And, to the
Colossians he wrote: “For in [Jesus Christ] all the fullness of God was
pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things,
whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” (Col
1:19-20 ESV) Add to those statements this one that was written to scattered
Hebrew Christians: “… let us run with endurance the race that is set before
us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the
joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is
seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb 12:1-2 ESV) Today’s
Old Testament Reading even referred to that cross-focused message: “And the
Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pose, and everyone
who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.’ So Moses made a bronze serpent
and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the
bronze serpent and live.” (Num 21:8-9 ESV)
Some may be thinking, “Well, duh! I know that. Why doesn’t the
preacher tell me something I don’t already know?” My answer is, “What is it
that you really know and, perhaps more importantly, how did you arrive at
your knowledge?” After all, the emphasis of all this is that …
I. God Revealed His Salvation Wisdom To You; You Didn’t Arrive At This
Knowledge Yourself. (19-21)
19For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
20Where 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? 21For
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.
The author of the Lutheran Hour Ministries devotion for January 15,
2009, wrote the following: “Looking back on my life, I have to admit I have
done some foolish things.
“Possibly you join me in admitting to doing things which, when
undertaken, seemed like a good idea, but in retrospect were very foolish.
“That could certainly be said of Italy’s Ivece Plattner, who, when his
Porsche got stuck on a railroad track, decided to try and save his beloved
car. A good idea? Sure! But Plattner ran toward an oncoming train and
tried to flag it down. He succeeded; the car was saved. Unfortunately,
Plattner, who never got off the tracks, died.
“Then, there is Adelir diCarli who tried to break the record for the
longest time flying with the support of party balloons. diCarli was trying
to raise money for a truck stop in Brazil. Another good idea? Absolutely!
Unfortunately, the winds took diCarli out to sea, and without someone
following him, he also died.
“These men made tragic choices. Even so, their decisions are not
nearly as terrible as those made by people who choose their wisdom over the
Lord’s plan of salvation.” (LHM Daily Devotions Ref: LHM0011378A-0018222#.
1997-2008 Lutheran Hour Ministries. All rights reserved. Lutheran Hour
Ministries, St. Louis, MO 63141.)
Saint Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome: “Oh, the depth of the
riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments
and how inscrutable his ways!” (Rom 11:33 ESV) In addition, he also
informed them that “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all
ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness
suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them,
because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his
eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the
creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are
without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God
or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their
foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools … .”
(Rom 1:18-22 ESV)
What all that means is that, because your wisdom and understanding
are sin-stained and hopelessly flawed, you “cannot by [your] own reason or
strength believe in Jesus Christ, [your] Lord, or come to Him.” (Luther’s
Small Catechism with Explanation. Copyright © 1986, 1991 Concordia
Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 17.) You cannot achieve your own
salvation. People who think they can work out their own salvation
themselves with their personal accomplishments, good works, and
self-deceived futile philosophies are trapped by the devil in what’s known
as the Theology of Glory. Such Satan-inspired efforts only lead to eternal
damnation in the fiery pits of hell forever separated from the Source of
life, Yahweh Himself.
But God the Holy Spirit in His infinite and compassionate mercy
and grace “called [you] by the Gospel, enlightened [you] with His gifts,
sanctified and kept [you] in the true faith.” (Ibid.) Almighty God rescued
you from your sin, from Satan, and from sin’s result—death itself—with His
only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ. The Good-News message that makes up the
Theology of the Cross is that Christ lived for you the holy life God demands
of you but you can’t accomplish; Christ suffered for you the devastations of
sin that you deserve but desire to escape; Christ died for you the atoning
death on Calvary’s cross that satisfied almighty God’s just and righteous
anger against you because of your disobedience; and Christ rose from the
dead for you to pave the way to everlasting life with Himself in heaven. It
all comes down to the simple and yet most significant fact that …
II. Christ Himself Is Divine Power and Wisdom. (22-25)
22For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23but we preach Christ
crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24but to those
who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom
of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of
God is stronger than men.
Where are Christ’s Godly power and wisdom made known? Saint Paul
revealed them in His seemingly foolish preaching of “compassion, kindness,
humility, meekness, and patience,” (Col 3:12 ESV) instead of the more
popular and desired fame, fortune, and self-dependence. They are made known
in your individual and unique weaknesses as Saint Paul revealed when he
declared about his own “thorn in the flesh” that “Three times I pleaded with
the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace
is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore
I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of
Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with
weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am
weak, then I am strong.” (2 Cor 12:8-10 ESV)
The deceased Swedish Lutheran pastor Bo Giertz explained it this
way: “… it is now obvious that the talk about the cross is God’s power of
salvation for those who receive it in faith. It’s something that affects
us, something that shows it’s a reality by intervening in our lives. We can’t
see God. However, we can encounter Him in such a way that there is no doubt
who we’re dealing with. That happens through the Gospel.” (Bo Giertz in To
Live with Christ: Devotions by Bo Giertz. Copyright © 2008 Concordia
Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 448.) You see, that Good News comes
to you in the sometimes seemingly insignificant Sacraments of Holy Baptism
and Holy Communion, the declaration of Holy Absolution, and the reading and
hearing of God’s Holy Word. That Good News tells you that God forgives you
all your sins, He heals your sin-sick souls, and He mercifully and
graciously gives you everlasting life with Himself in the glorious mansions
of heaven!
Today’s Gradual succinctly summarized all that with the statement
from our Savior’s lips, “So must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever
believes in him may have eternal life.” (St John 3:14b-15 ESV) And today’s
Gospel Reading further detailed that wonderful message with our Savior’s own
words: “‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly,
truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies,
it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. And I, when I am
lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.’ He said this to
show by what kind of death he was going to die.” (St John 12:23-24, 32-33
ESV)
In conclusion, therefore, “One of the earliest annual celebrations
of the Church, Holy Cross Day traditionally commemorated the discovery of
the original cross of Jesus on September 14, 320, in Jerusalem. The cross
was found by Helena, mother of Roman Emperor Constantine the Great. A
devout Christian, Helena had helped locate and authenticate many sites
related to the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus throughout
biblical lands. Holy Cross Day has remained popular in both Eastern and
Western Christianity. Many Lutheran parishes have chosen to use ‘Holy Cross’
as the name of their congregation.” (Treasury of Daily Prayer. Scot A.
Kinnaman, Gen. Ed. Copyright © 2008 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis,
MO. Pages 721f.)
So it is that we celebrate Holy Cross Day because, after all,
“Christ’s Cross Is Foolishness to the Lost but Godly Power to the Saved.”
We do so, realizing and asking what we prayed in today’s Collect:
“Your Son, Jesus Christ, was lifted high upon the cross that He might bear
the sins of the world and draw all people to Himself. Grant that we who
glory in His death for our redemption may faithfully heed His call to bear
the cross and follow Him … .” You can pray that with sure and certain
confidence because …
I. God Revealed His Salvation Wisdom To You; You Didn’t Arrive At This
Knowledge Yourself. (19-21) and
II. Christ Himself Is Divine Power and Wisdom. (22-25)
As you do so, keep in mind that “The cross does more than merely
announce the legal acquittal of guilty sinners; it is a power that produces
inner transformation and creates a new and vital personal fellowship with
God. The all-too-human point of view passes away, and we begin to look at
life from God’s point of view. Our philosophy, our outlook, our way of
thinking and living become more and more divine because we are new creatures
in Christ.” (Encyclopedia of Sermon Illustrations. Pages 54f.)
God grant it all for the sake of Jesus Christ, His humble Son, our
holy Savior. [Amen.]
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
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