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
The cross of Jesus Christ is usually met by two responses. One is that of rejection and a declaration that the gospel is foolishness. The other is one of embrace, gratitude, and power for the saving of souls. So what is it that precipitates these two very opposite reactions? Scripture has much to say on the topic.
- Some people prefer sin
This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
John 3:19-20
Some people like living in sin. They embrace sin and darkness. They operate out of a rebellious spirit. They hate the gospel because it presents them with the need for repentance and change in behavior. And although the change that comes into our lives as a result of receiving salvation by faith is the best possible life, they view their current situation as more pleasing and inviting. These people hate the Light (Jesus) because they know that the Light will expose their deeds for what they are…evil. They fear this exposure, so they run from any attempt to present that Light to them. Christians will often repel others for this very reason. As believers, we are living, breathing, reminders that this kind of defiant lifestyle is contrary to the truth of God’s Word. These people will often avoid contact with Christians, the Bible, and the activity of the church. But ultimately they are not avoiding believers themselves rather they are avoiding exposure to what brings conviction and to what challenges their very way of life, making them feel uncomfortable and uneasy.
- Some people have been deceived
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
Some people view the cross as foolishness because they are being deceived. We have a spiritual enemy and his desire is to keep people from the gospel. This can be done in a number of ways, not limited to but including, keeping people busy, distorting their thinking by convincing them that they need not be involved with the church and other believers, and making sure that the pages of scripture are never read. A lack of exposure to the truth will breed misguided thinking rooted in selfishness and deceit. When life becomes all about ourselves, we can know that we have been blinded in our hearts and in our minds.
Paul reveals to us the motivation behind the enemy’s attempts to deceive. The goal of his deception is “so that they might not see the light of the gospel…” Jesus also explained this same phenomenon when He spoke the following words:
Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved.
Luke 8:12
We are in a spiritual battle and the enemy is real. This enemy is actively working to keep the gospel away from people “so that they will not believe and be saved.” So as these people continue to live under the blinding deception of the enemy, they miss out on the saving grace of God found in the cross of Jesus.
- Some people simply do not believe Jesus is the only way
And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.
Acts 4:12
While some people love sin more than God and others simply are the victims of the enemy’s deception, there are still those who do not believe that Jesus is the only way. Despite the clear teaching of scripture, these people reject the gospel in an effort to formulate their own doctrine and way of thinking. Perhaps they acknowledge that the Christian faith is right for some but stop short of recognizing that it is God’s only provision of salvation from sin and death. For these people, the gospel is often replaced with religious thinking such as adhering to ritualistic, ceremonial motion as a means of being right with God. But this religious motion does not produce within them the fruit that should flow from a life yielded to the Person of Jesus. The lives of these people seem to be in contradiction to the very religiosity that they espouse. That is because they have never experienced true spiritual transformation accompanied by receiving the gospel and necessary for conversion and salvation to have taken place. So their lives remain void of any spiritual growth or fruit because, at the root of their existence, they continue to reject the gospel.
But while rejection of the gospel remains a reality in the lives of many, there are those who are saved. These are the ones that admit their sin, recognize their need for a Savior, and gladly receive the gift of eternal life by faith in Jesus Christ. And at the point of acceptance come spiritual transformation and the receiving of the Spirit of God into one’s life. It then becomes the presence of God in this regenerated life that makes the difference. A saved individual desires the things of God. The study of God’s Word, involvement in the church, and fellowship with like-minded believers are now the order of the day. And while born again believers in Jesus Christ remain imperfect, for we still live in the flesh, we are, however, saved, redeemed, and reconciled to God. And all of this is possible because of the cross of Jesus Christ. We now live in spiritual freedom, giving ourselves room to succeed and to fail but knowing that through it all, we will be delivered from condemnation and death. The cross of Jesus Christ…what does it mean to you?
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.
Romans 1:16
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