The Foolish Gospel

1 Corinthians 1:17-30, ESV

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. 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. For it is written,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”

Where 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? For 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. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

The Foolish Gospel

Some of you here today are fools.The rest of you are going to be offended.

Some of you in this room are foolish enough to rejoice in what I am going to say today, and you will be encouraged and strengthened by it.

The rest of you - the worldly-wise ones - will be offended by what I have to say.

BUT MAYBE, and this is my prayer, some of you who are wise will become fools this very day. And if you do, the gates of heaven will open wide and God himself will receive you with open arms.

I want to try to do two things today:

I want to remind you of something from God’s Word

I want to invite you to celebrate and embrace and share that truth in a fresh way and let it change your life and the lives of those around you

The Christian Gospel is Foolish and Offensive to the World

A. Why do I say that the gospel is foolish and offensive?

1.                   The Gospel is GREAT right? So could be foolish and offensive about  a loving God saving helpless people at the highest possible cost to himself and giving them hope and joy and peace and eternal glory and making them into new and better people?

2.                   God describes it that way in his book a) foolish 
b) a stumbling block c) a rock of offense d) weak
 e) low 
f) despised 
g) the stench of death

3.                   But the truth is that most of the citizens of this planet all through history have found the Gospel of Christ incredibly foolish and offensive.

4.                   Countless people throughout history have been and are being and will be persecuted even to death for confessing and sharing this gospel.

5.                   Even in our very safe and insulated society we know by experience that people find the gospel to be offensive and foolish. 
a) If you’ve attempted to share the gospel with people, you know that.

B.What is it about this message, which has revolutionized innumerable people’s lives and shaped the course of history, that people find foolish and offensive?

1.                   The message of the gospel teaches the polar opposite of some fundamental things that are hard-coded into humans to believe - I call this the World’s Gospel.

2.                   When I say the “World’s Gospel” I’m obviously making a very broad, sweeping generalization. I’m referring in general to some common themes that we can see in virtually all of the world’s religions and philosophies, both formal and informal. There will obviously be some exceptions out there, but in general I think my observations about the “World’s Gospel” hold true.

3. I want to compare three main tenets of the World's Gospel with what God says about each of those subjects in the Bible.

4. By doing this I think we’ll see very clearly why the World finds the Gospel of Christ to be foolish and offensive.

C. THREE key ways the World’s Gospel conflicts with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

1. The View of Human Nature:

a) The World Says:

.                                        (1)  At worst people are flawed, but are basically good at the core

.                                        (2)  At best people are mostly good, even divine, but have some flaws that need to be 
overcome.

.                                        (3)  God cherishes us and accepts us because of our basic goodness and thus we are all God’s children.

.                      b)  But the Gospel of Christ Says:

.                                        (1)  People are NOT basically good. People are radically and pervasively evil.

.                                                          (a)  “...all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even
one.” (Romans 3:9-12, ESV)

.                                                          (b)  And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. (John 3:19-20, ESV)

.                                        (2)  God does not look at us in our wickedness and cherish and accept us for who we are. Rather, he sees us as corrupt, filthy, abhorrent and deserving of hell:

.                                                          (a)  For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. (Psalm 5:4-6, ESV)

.                                                          (b)  He will render to each one according to his works: ...for those who are self- seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil (Romans 2:6-9, ESV)

.                                        (3)  Does this seem like this would be offensive to people? ABSOLUTELY!

.                                                          (a)  We HATE it when people say bad things about us.

.                                                          (b)  And we especially hate it when it’s true and we don’t want to admit it.

.                                                          (c) “people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.”

2. Salvation
a) World’s Gospel Says:

    (1) It is universally accepted that things are not as they should be with    humanity and that people individually and/or corporately need to overcome their flaws in order to attain a higher level of existence.

.    (2)  And due to our basically noble nature, it is believed that we are capable of overcoming our flaws and making the kinds of changes in ourselves that are needed to accomplish this.

.    (3)  Certainly outside forces (divine aid, human assistance, natural and cultural beauty, education, etc.) can help us accomplish this, but the responsibility for self- improvement ultimately rests upon the individual.

.    b)  Christ’s Gospel Says:

.                      (1)  We are entirely incapable of remedying the awful state that we are in.

.                                        (a)  Our crimes are too heinous for us to earn their pardon.

.                                        (b)  Our filth is too deeply engrained for us to wash it away

.                                        (c)  Our debts are too monstrous for us to ever repay the slightest portion

.                                        (d)  Our brokenness is too complete for us to heal ourselves

.                                        (e)  Our deadness of spirit cannot by ourselves be revived.

.                      (2)  If that weren’t bad enough, even though God has made a remedy for our problem, we are also entirely incapable of availing ourselves of that remedy unless God touches our hearts to see the problem, understand the solution and reach out for God’s help.

.                                        (a)  The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:14, ESV)

.                                        (b)  And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (Ephesians 2:1-5, ESV)

.    c)  Tolerance vs. Intolerance

.                      (1)  For the most part, the world’s religions do not lay down exclusive absolute claims.

.                                        (a)  Either they see their way as being the BEST way to attain salvation but they allow for other ways (“all roads lead to the top of the mountain”).

.                                        (b)  Or the alternative for not attaining salvation is just a less good version of heaven. (Everyone’s a winner. Some people will win the GRAND PRIZE and others will have to settle for the CONSOLATION PRIZE).

.                                        (c)  Either way, the world does not claim that people must follow a certain path or else be damned.

.                      (2)  God’s Gospel is absolutely intolerant of any other viewpoint.

.                                        (a)  In recent years this aspect of the Xian gospel has been steadily climbing society’s Offense-O-Meter.

.                                        (b)  In our culture perhaps the greatest sin is to claim that what you believe is THE TRUTH and that other conflicting beliefs are WRONG.

.                                        (c)  It’s even worse if you also claim that whoever doesn’t submit to your viewpoint will suffer the worst consequences imaginable.

.                                        (d)  The claims of the Bible are VERY exclusive

i) We claim that our God, YHWH, is the ONE TRUE GOD and that all of the other “gods” of the nations are not gods at all, but are worthless idols.

II.

.    ii)  We claim that YHWH is the Maker, Owner and Master of everything and everyone that exists and that all his creatures owe him allegiance, obedience and worship.

.    iii)  We claim that there are only two types of people: either you are his beloved servant or you are his hated enemy. And because all humans are ALL sinful rebels, we are ALL his hated enemies.

.    iv)  We claim that there is only ONE way for sinful rebels to be forgiven by the King - by repenting of our treason and trusting in the person and work of his son, Jesus.

.    v)  We claim that, apart from this one way of salvation, all people will remain enemies of God and will be unimaginably tormented by God in Hell for all of eternity.

.    vi)  The Bible allows for no other categories, no other options, no wiggle room.

(e) This makes the Christian Gospel VERY OFFENSIVE to the spiritually dead world!

So What?


A. Why is the Christian Gospel better than the World’s Gospel?

1. When you compare the two side by side, like we just did, you might think that the World’s Gospel seems better. It seems more positive, more affirming, more up-beat, more respectful, more inclusive, more attractive, etc.

2. I agree. That is why the Gospel of the World is so WIDELY accepted and advocated for while the Christian gospel is so universally rejected as narrow-minded, offensive, judgmental, and exclusivist.

3. But what if the world’s gospel is a LIE and the Christian Gospel is TRUE!

.                      a)  For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, (1 Timothy 2:5, ESV)

.                      b)  And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12, ESV)

.                      c)  That’s a SUPER IMPORTANT little detail, because ignoring truth because you don’t like it and making up “your own truth” that you feel better about is SERIOUSLY DANGEROUS BUSINESS - the more serious the issue, the more dangerous it is

.                      d)  CANCER ILLUSTRATION: If I get a pain in my gut and the doctors do tests and find out it’s cancer, which would be the better message:

.                                        (1)  “Oh, don’t worry, you’re OK. You’ve just got indigestion from too much stress. You just need to relax, be good to yourself and think positive thoughts about yourself to get your stress levels down and you’ll be just fine.”

.                                        (2)  “I’m sorry to tell you that you’ve got a very aggressive form of cancer and left untreated you won’t have long to live. While the treatment is admittedly very unpleasant, this is a very treatable form of cancer, and you’ll be sure to beat it if we start right away.”

.                      e)  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, ESV)

4. This is why the current trend in the church today to steer away from the hard things in the Bible in an attempt to avoid seeming harsh and judgmental and to focus only on the positive aspects of the gospel is not only UNWISE, it is UNLOVING both towards people and towards God!

.    a)  I GET that nobody likes to be the bearer of bad news-I’m sure doctors don’t like giving out cancer diagnoses.

.    b)  But, sadly, lots of “Christian” churches today, in name of “staying positive” and “winning people to Christ”, are becoming increasingly very UN-Christian!

.                      (1)  The God they worship and follow and present is really NOT the God of the Bible, but one of their own making who is more easily acceptable by unbelieving people.

.                      (2)  The gospel they preach is not the foolish, offensive Gospel of Christ that saves sinners, but a Christian-Humanism hybrid gospel which is no gospel at all and leaves sinners worse off for hearing and accepting it, because it gives lost and dying people false comfort that they are ok.

.                      (3)  The result is that we are filling our churches with “converts” who have never really met the ONE TRUE GOD, who have not been regenerated by the HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD and who have not repented of their sins and embraced THE GOSPEL OF GOD.

.    c)  Going back to the cancer illustration:

.                      (1)  What we are doing by changing our message to make it more palatable for unbelievers?

.                                        (a)  We are downplaying the life and death nature and implications of the cancer diagnosis

.                                        (b)  We are withholding the known cure from these dying people and instead are enrolling them in stress management groups

.                      (2)  We are sentencing them to death

.                      (3)  Tell me now: How is that loving? How is that honoring to God? How is that Christian?

.                      (4)  Doesn’t it behoove us to tell the truth to a dying world, even though many of them think it is foolish and offensive?

B. So this morning, as you’ve heard me describe the Bible’s foolish and offensive message of Good News, what is your response?

1. UNBELIEF

.                      a)  Is your response some version of:

.                                        (1)  “Sheesh! What a Debbie Downer!”

.                                        (2)  “I can’t believe he thinks that people are as bad as that!”

.                                        (3)  “Sure, I’m not perfect, but I’m not THAT BAD! I’m better than A LOT of people.”

.                                        (4)  “And anyway, I’m working on my issues. I’m trying to improve myself and my world.”

.                                        (5)  “And besides, I don’t think that God is that angry with us that he would punish us in 
hell forever! I think God is a God of love and forgiveness.”

.                      b)  If that’s kind of where you’re at then, for you, the Gospel of Christ is foolish and 
offensive.

.                                        (1)  You do not believe God’s Gospel because you can’t. According to Scripture, you 
literally don’t have the ability to accept this message.

.                                        (2)  I just want to tell you that we care about you. I encourage you to give serious 
consideration to what we have talked about today and I pray that someday God will open the eyes of your heart so that you would see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ and turn to him for help.

2. BELIEF


a) Or maybe as I described the Gospel of Christ today you (maybe surprisingly) weren’t 
offended by it. Maybe as I was talking to your ears God was talking to your heart and inwardly - MAYBE FOR THE THOUSANDTH TIME; MAYBE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER - your heart cried out, YES - that’s right!

.    (1)  YES! I am filthy.

.    (2)  Yes, I am rebellious.

.    (3)  Yes, I am broken.

.    (4)  And yes, - I need God to SAVE ME!

b) If that is your heart today -

.    (1)  Rejoice! Because, as Jesus said to Peter when he made his famous profession of faith: “Blessed are you! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” Be glad for you are one of God’s Favored Fools!

.    (2)  And if that’s you today Respond! - MAYBE FOR THE THOUSANDTH TIME; MAYBE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER - come to Jesus in faith and he will save you to the uttermost. Bring your pain. Bring your guilt. Bring your sin and shame and leave them at the foot of the cross.

.    (3)  AND establish a battle plan for how you will hold fast to this glorious, foolish, offensive good news. For the combined forces of Sin, Satan and Society are relentlessly trying to hiss into your ears the ancient words of that Old Serpent: “Did God really say...?” Hold on to this Gospel that is the power of God and the wisdom of God and the glory of God to we who are being saved as if it were your life. BECAUSE IT IS.