And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
1 Corinthians 2:1–5 (ESV)
We live in an age when popular voices and opinions spread as fast as any Californian wild fire. With one click we have the ability to select an echo chamber best suited to our own personalized sensibilities. This wasn’t always the case of course. There was a time, in the not so distant past, when one had to attend a political rally or local church, read a newspaper column or collection of books, or sit through a lecture to discover new ideas and thoughts. Now we just stare at a backlit device and within seconds we’re able to unearth something new to itch our narrow ears. Yet, the apostle Paul gave the solution so clearly just a short two thousand years ago, “I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” To even begin to contemplate the call of discipleship, we must first come to a firm and absolute resolution. There can be no two ways about it. We either embrace the entire and complete message of the gospel or immerse ourselves in our own version of hellish compromise.
The message Jesus came to teach and proclaim is one of complete surrender to the cross. To live as He lived in all His poverty, sorrow, suffering, and yes, even the divine joy of obedience. Sadly, this remains inexplicably lost on today’s Christian church. The high cost of following Jesus is generally spoken of in ignorance. More commonly, it’s obliquely referred too as if the call to repentance is just something that goes without saying. We invent all sorts of “…plausible words of wisdom” in a vain attempt to avoid the central message of Christ. Namely, everything must go. Who we are, the things we like do, the food we enjoy eating, the career we choose, the spouse we select, the fun which occupies our spare time, and even the Christianity that comforts our existence, must be nailed firmly to the cross and fully put to death. Nothing that resembles us or me or I can remain. Nothing!
The mark of a true disciple of Christ is found in the scars. When Jesus appeared for the second time to His disciples, the doubter among them examined the marks and trauma of crucifixion etched on our Savior. It was these telltale signs alone which convinced Thomas that Jesus was Lord. Likewise, the gospel of the cross which offends our sinful hearts is the only way by which God has chosen to forever change a man. When we resolve to allow the power of the Holy Spirit to crucify who and what we are and pursue whole-heartedly the mystery of hopelessness, then and only then can we begin to understand what it means to be a Christian.