The Scandal of the Cross

Newsletter article for February 2000

© 2000 Rev. Paul A. Wolff

1 Corinthians 1:20-31 (NIV)
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 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. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. 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. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”

Haven't we had enough scandals lately? Surely if this is a true scandal, then it can't be very good, but what is so scandalous about the cross? These are probably the kinds of reactions you might have when you hear of the "scandal of the cross," but this is a true teaching from Holy Scripture which is given for our benefit. It is, however, a hard teaching, and as the Scripture passage above shows it is not appreciated by everyone.

Simply put, the "scandal of the cross" is that as Christians we put our faith in a man who was killed as a common criminal before he seemingly accomplished anything great in his life. We call ourselves "Christians" to honor Jesus as the Christ (the chosen one of God) even though the man himself seemed to be defeated, disgraced, disinherited, and worst of all, dead.

To those who don't believe in Jesus this sounds ridiculous (scandalous, even). They say, "Who would put their faith in such a disgraced savior, except children and fools?" Because of our sinful nature, if we had a choice, we would prefer a God who is more of a show-off. We want a God who not only is all-powerful, but who isn't hesitant to demonstrate his great power and maybe who will sweep us off of our feet and carry us with him to victory over our enemies. Or we want a God who will empower us to overcome our enemies and prove that we are on the right side, and they (poor chaps) are on the wrong side.

This is the seduction of those religions which promote the false messages such as "name it and claim it." Who can resist the allure of the idea that God is a "too rich by half" candyman who only gives out his goodies to those who ally themselves with him? Many times it is not enough for us to be on the winning team, but we must teach our enemies a lesson. Many people are willing to let God get a little of the glory as long as we get our share, too. These messages are very popular with many people (even some Christians) because we respond to what we want to hear, but that's not how God works.

The truth is scandalous. The truth is that there are no good people who deserve God's rich blessings. The truth is that each one of us deserves to be hanging on the cross instead of Jesus. It's scandalous. Who wants to hear that? No one, I'm sure. This is not a very uplifting message. This is not inspiring, nor is it empowering, nor is it self gratifying. And rather than dig a little deeper for the good part of the message, most turn away and go somewhere else to hear a less scandalous message, where someone will tell them "what their itching ears want to hear." (2 Timothy 4:3)

The scandal of the cross really is good news, for those who listen and believe. We are certainly unworthy of God's blessings, and His forgiveness, and the riches of heaven (or even the blessings this life for that matter), but remember that it is Jesus who hung on that cross. It wasn't me, and it wasn't you, and it won't be you or me in the future either. Jesus took our place when he hung on the cross, so that you or I won't have to suffer for our sins.

The further scandal is that not only the good, righteous, upstanding citizens get to enjoy the eternal blessings of paradise, but also the poor, the sinners, the criminals, and everyone who acknowledges their sin and trusts in Jesus to forgive them. In fact, only those who are sorry for their sins and trust in Jesus will receive the paradise promised by Jesus. But while the word "only" sounds restrictive, it isn't. It takes no effort to believe in Jesus, and everyone can do it. It is certainly a lot easier than hanging on a cross for eternity, and that's no scandal. It is because of God's grace that He provides this salvation to everyone, no matter how good or bad they are.

Jesus paid the price for our sins, and thank God that He did because none of us could afford the price. Our sins belong to Him now so if we love Him and trust in Him He will take them away to where they can't hurt us. It's scandalous to have to admit your guilt and sin, but there's no scandal in being forgiven. There is nothing to be ashamed of in being an adopted child of God.