This past Sunday we talked about not being ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, since Paul says just that in Romans 1:16, For I am not ashamed of the gospel ... . And we noted that shame is a powerful emotion of pain associated with guilt or shortcoming or impropriety (see John Piper's Living by Faith in Future Grace, p. 131). Shame can be appropriate or "well-placed" (as Piper calls it) or inappropriate or "misplaced." Appropriate shame is when we feel bad for the public guilt of being caught in an immoral activity. Inappropriate shame is when we feel bad for something good or something that honors God and Christ. Paul is saying that feeling ashamed of the gospel and therefore, being afraid of identifying with Christ is misplaced shame: a shame for something that is good - because the gospel is "good news," indeed, the greatest news ever! But one of the things that makes us ashamed to express our hope in Christ is that we fear being thought of as foolish. We don't want to be "fools for Christ." But we must come to grips with the reality that the gospel of Jesus Christ appears foolish to us until God opens our eyes to see the wisdom and power and glory of God in the cross of Jesus Christ. But until God opens people's eyes to the glory of the cross of Christ, we shouldn't be surprised if they see us as foolish. As I mentioned on Sunday, we sing about the cross (and wear the cross and display the cross) as if it is something that should easily be seen as an symbol of hope and glory. If we take a portion of the words of a popular song (The Glory of the Cross) and change a couple words, maybe it will make us think more about what we are singing.
What wisdom once devised the plan
Where all our sin and pride
Was placed upon the perfect Lamb
Who suffered, bled, and died?
The wisdom of a Sovereign God
Whose greatness will be shown
When those who electrified Your Son
Rejoice around Your throne
Repeat chorus:
And, oh, the glory of the chair
That You would send Your Son for us
I gladly count my life as loss
That I might come to know
The glory of, the glory of the chair
© 2000 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI). Words and music by Bob Kauflin
If our Lord Jesus had come to earth in the 20th century and died in an electric chair in order to be obedient to the point of death, even death in a way that only the worst criminals in our society die, would we be surprised if the watching world thought it strange that we would sing about an instrument of death for "the worst of sinners"? May God help us not to be ashamed of the glory of the cross, even if it sounds foolish to a watching world!
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)
4 comments:
I love the site
there is alot of great stuff
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Richard H
Thank you for helping us to see where our fear and shame over the gospel comes from. Sure, the gospel does look foolish until God pulls off the scales of unbelief. Then we can see, with grace, the wisdom of the plan of the gospel on our lives. The glory of what the events of the cross have done to bring reconciliation to God Almighty are more than worth the risk of a "foolish" reputation with men. We need not feel shame over the events that give us joy in Christ forever, with Him. We can, or dare I say must, be God pleasers and not man pleasers. Whose opinion matters, anyway.
I was interviewing Elijah on his thoughts for the upcoming trip and his final comment was "preach the true gospel".
I think he's been paying attention to you!
more more more!!!
I would love to see more of the stuff we've talked about the last couple sundays in regards to how everyone knows God, they simply choose to deny Him.
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