The Message of the Cross
 
 
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
 
Sometimes the packaging is better than the product.
Are being saved.
He paid a debt He did not owe because we owed a debt we couldn't pay.
Today we live in a culture where people tend to think they've done no wrong.
We're as tempted as anyone to listen to the wisdom of the world.
You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
(John 8:32 NKJV)
Definable, defendable, objective truth.
 
1. Let's not confuse popular opinion with Biblical truth.
  • We're selective in the ideas that influence us.
  • You can talk yourself into believing just about anything.
  • "I have a problem with your experience. That kind of thing doesn't fit my theology."
  • "Did it ever occur to you that maybe God is bigger than your theology?"
2. Let's not confuse campaign promises with a genuine accomplishment.
  • So they tended to follow those who promised signs and wonders.
  • We tend to find proof in matters that, in reality, prove nothing.
  • See how they changed.
  • They suddenly experienced a radical transformation.
  • The greatest proof of the power of God is the changed life.    
3. Let's not be so easily convinced.
  • Say it in a convincing way, and I'll buy it.
  • They could make bad appear to be good.
  • "Just make me laugh and I'll believe anything you say."
  • We need to be not quite so easily convinced by what we hear.
  • The same thing can happen when churches become more focused on success than ministry.
  • There's a big difference between the world's wisdom and God's wisdom.
  • Power.
  • The gospel was, and is, power.
  • The truth has a way of transforming those who embrace it.
  • Truth has a way of changing those who embrace it.