The Cross: The Power of God - Lenten Midweek Sermon

 

1 Corinthians 1:10-18

 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. ¹¹ For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. ¹² What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” ¹³ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? ¹⁴ I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵ so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. ¹⁶ (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) ¹⁷ For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

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.

The Cross: The Power of God

I was talking to a man at the gym years ago.

-        He was talking new age-y spirituality … because he knew I was a Christian pastor – poke the bear

-        I was able to get the conversation to a place where he wasn’t just being provocative

-        “I think Jesus was a great teacher and all, I just don’t believe that one man’s death can pay for the sins of the world.”

“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.”

The cross doesn’t look like power. It looks like failure. It looks like something went horribly wrong with the plan.

-        Heroes aren’t supposed to die.

-        Gods aren’t supposed to bleed.

No wonder the Corinthians were so divided. They were used to prestige, power, and glory. They were Romans. They conquered and brought law and order to the lands. They brought philosophy, knowledge, and technology to improve the lives of those they had defeated. The idea of the cross was foolish to them.

But there is wisdom in Christ’s teachings. There are impressive displays of power in His ministry. And there were preachers who could present those teachings with eloquence and power. The Corinthians divided – some to pursue their own pleasure, and others to pursue prestige and power in their religion.

Friends, the desire for power has not left humanity. It continues to tug at our hearts, and it tempts us to put our hopes in a government that supports Christian teachings. Broadly speaking, on the right side of the political spectrum, the temptation is toward a type of works righteousness – enforcing biblical morality with laws, justice without mercy, and an emphasis on God’s orderliness. Again, broadly speaking, on the left side of the political spectrum, the temptation is toward forced generosity toward the poor, an emphasis on mercy that overlooks accountability, and an emphasis on freedom to do as one wishes. What they have in common is the use of power to achieve their goals.

When Christians fall to using power to advance the kingdom of God – whether conservatively or liberally – we lose the kingdom. God’s power was not displayed in domination and control, but in the cross where Jesus laid down His life to freely pay for sin and lovingly draw people into salvation, repentance, and a new life in Him.

The cross is foolishness to the powers that be. But it is the power of God on full display and the God-Man, Jesus of Nazareth, the only holy human being, bears the sins of all people of all times and of all places and allows them to be nailed to the cross in His body. He died our death, that we might live in Him.

The power of the cross is the power of God’s love to take hearts that are dead in trespasses and make them beat with the rhythm of his love. It is the power of God to take minds that are dark in transgression and enlighten them with His holiness. It is the power to free those enthralled by temptations of the flesh so that they might live, not for themselves, but for their neighbors in Christ’s love.

The power of the cross is the salvation of the human soul – a death that wins everlasting life.

Make no mistake, the cross is still seen as foolishness by many in our world. But for us, it is a precious and beloved symbol. Precious and beloved because it points us past the symbol to a real cross where our very real savior, Jesus, died for us that our sins might be forgiven and our souls be saved for everlasting life in glory.

This text is clear, the cross calls us to unity in Christ. It is not a false unity, a veneer of niceness and getting along. It is a hard unity that is rooted in Jesus’ death, the message of sin and forgiveness, of disobedience and redemption, of rebellion and reconciliation. The unity of the cross is the message of repentance and the kingdom of heaven. The unity of the cross is in being buried with Jesus in baptism to walk in newness of life – a holy life guided by God’s Word. The unity of the cross is a word of sacrifice – first Christ’s sacrifice to atone for our sins, and then our struggling sacrifice to take up our crosses to love our neighbor and share the hope of Christ in the lives we lead.

People will exert a lot of energy to make the world work the way we want it to work. Our hearts are drawn to power – often with the good motive of “making the world a better place.” But our power is tainted by our sin – whether it is the power of government, or the power of the earthly church to force conformity. The power of the cross transforms hearts and minds, gives new life, and shapes lives with holiness in love … the love that moved Jesus to lay down his life on the cross. We live in that love daily, and we are shaped, marked, defined, and known in the cross. Amen.