The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing

 

The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing

 

1 Corinthians 1:18-20 "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. For it is written: 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and frustrate the understanding of the intelligent.' Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of this world foolish?"

Regarding what is translated as the "way of the cross," the Greek term is *Ho Logos* of the cross. *Ho Logos* (Ὁλόγος) is Christ who dwells within the hearts of the saints. The *Ho Logos* dwelling within the hearts of the saints becomes the most important purpose of salvation. Proclaiming this is precisely the Gospel.

What is recorded refers to a quotation from Isaiah 29:14. In the Old Testament, the word of God was translated as "wisdom," but in the New Testament era, it is translated as "Logos," or the word. In the Old Testament era, Jehovah God spoke through the Bible, but in the New Testament era, He became incarnate, entered directly into the hearts of believers, and enabled them to understand the meaning of the word through the Holy Spirit. However, here, "wise people" refers to those within the church who read the Bible and claim to know God's will. It signifies religious wisdom. During the time of the early church, Jews were primarily the subjects of such wisdom.

Although rabbis and scribes among the Jews are wise regarding the Scriptures, a wisdom far superior to theirs has been revealed. That is precisely the Ho Logos (Christ, the Word). The Christian Gospel is the proclamation of the Ho Logos, who dwells within the hearts of believers. However, this method appears foolish in the eyes of the scribes. While the scribes study theology for a long time, the point is that in the New Testament era, the Ho Logos enters the hearts of believers to reveal the Word of Truth. Therefore, when they are told to believe in and accept the Ho Logos, the Jews consider it absurd.

The Jews conceive of God appearing through signs. The wisdom sought by the Greeks is a humanistic ideology. However, the core of Christianity is the preaching of the Gospel concerning Jesus Christ, who died on the cross and resurrected. The Gospel signifies that Jesus died on the cross and resurrected; when a believer believes that they have died united with the Jesus who died on the cross and have resurrected united with the resurrected Christ, Christ, who is the Word, enters into the believer's heart and dwells therein—this is the Ho Logos. When the Ho Logos dwells within the believer's heart, God's power and wisdom flow from that believer. This implies that God's power is not merely what humans imagine.

The Logos, who dwells in the heart, calls those who deny themselves and are united with Jesus Christ, who died on the cross, to the life of resurrection. Thus, He abolishes the thinking of legalists who believe they can do something on their own.

Citing Isaiah 29:14, the Apostle Paul speaks of the Jews who pretend to be wise, using the verse: "Therefore I will again do marvelous things among this people, marvelous and most marvelous things; the wisdom of the wise among them will vanish, and the understanding of the discerning will be obscured."

Throughout their entire history, the people of Israel never once officially abandoned God. Except when they were taken captive, they always offered sacrifices and observed the feasts. However, God was angered because their offering of sacrifices did not extend to the point of dedicating their hearts and lives, but rather the act of offering sacrifices became the goal itself; furthermore, it was carried out not by serving God alone, but by serving other idols. Toward those living such double lives, God points out their rebellion and speaks to the people who pretend to be wise.

Isaiah 29:15-16: “Woe to those who try to hide their plans from the Lord! They walk in darkness, saying, ‘Who will see us? Who will know us?’ Your rebellion is great! Shall the potter be regarded as clay? Shall the formed thing say to its maker, ‘He did not form me’? Shall the molded thing say to its maker, ‘He has no understanding’?”

Today, church community leaders steeped in legalism mix their own thoughts with the Gospel given by God's grace and preach it to believers as if they were wise men. They speak of the "Way of the Cross," but the Way of the Cross spoken of in the Bible is that the blood Jesus shed upon His death on the cross serves to remove the sins of the world. However, the foolish ones think that merely believing in the name of Jesus frees them from all sin, when those who believe in Jesus should consider that they, too, have died to sin with Him.

Furthermore, the foolish believe that while they receive forgiveness for their sins upon death through union with Jesus who died on the cross, this only forgives past sins; they believe that present or future sins must be forgiven again through the blood of Jesus. This is why believers repent of their sins daily and seek forgiveness through the blood of Jesus who died on the cross. Consequently, the cross that these believers look upon becomes foolish to them. They view the cross according to their own preconceived notions. This is no different from the sin of worshipping idols while believing in God in the time of Isaiah.

The death on the cross is intended to give resurrection life to those who enter into that death. This means that one must not remain on the cross. Anyone who speaks of Jesus as God the Son is acting as if they regard Jesus as an idol. It is like believing in both God the Father and God the Son. This is the same principle as believing in both God and an idol. Jesus is not God, but the one who was born as the Son of God to eliminate all the sins of the world and carried out His ministry.

The death of Jesus ultimately serves to signal the existence of the resurrection. To those who enter into Him, He grants holy resurrected life. For those who believe based on their own thoughts and faith, the message of the cross ultimately becomes foolishness. This is what the Apostle Paul is pointing out.

The core of the Christian gospel is the death on the cross and the resurrection. The two cannot be separated. This should not be considered merely an event of the past or something that will happen in the future. Believers must realize that the death on the cross and the resurrection take place on a continuum of the past, present, and future. This means that the saint's death with Jesus is a death in the past, present, and future, and that Sangdo's resurrection with Christ is a resurrection in the past of 2,000 years ago, the present, and the future.

Therefore, when the Logos (Christ, the Word) comes into the heart of a saint who possesses resurrected life, that saint becomes the Kingdom of God. This is the way of the cross and the gospel.