The Power of the Cross

Returning to the Cross Sermon Series

“The Power of the Cross”

KEY PASSAGE: 1 Corinthians 1:17-25 (NASB)

Father God, I pray that You bless the rest of the church service, and may Your name be glorified and praised [both] now and forever. Fill this place with Your peace, joy, restoration, encouragement, and Your presence. Bless our congregation abundantly, and may we experience the Power of the Cross. In the name of Christ our Lord and Savior, with thanksgiving, we pray, and everyone says, Amen. You may be seated.

TITHE and OFFERING

We will call on the ushers to pass around the offering plates so we can collect our tithe and offering. The worship team will lead us [again] with a song as we collect our tithes and offerings.

PRAYER FOR TITHE and OFFERING

Gracious heavenly Father, as You have freely given us all things, we now freely give unto You the substance of our hands. I pray that You accept and bless these gifts as a token of our sincere worship of You. In the name of Christ our Lord, we pray. Amen.

WELCOME

Welcome, everyone, to our Sunday Worship Service. Please stand up, greet some folks around you, and welcome them to worship. Our first-time visitors, please stand so we can see you. We also welcome all who join us online.

ANNOUNCEMENT

·  Wednesday Night [Remember] is our Bible Study Connect at 7:00 p.m. Please join us this Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. for a time of learning, fellowship, and spiritual growth. We are almost done with the Book of First Corinthians. We have two chapters left, and we will start the Book of First Samuel next month.

· Our Corporate Meeting is every Saturday at 8:00 a.m. If you have a prayer request, please complete the online or in-person prayer request form so we can pray for you.

· Men’s Breakfast is on Saturday, May 3rd, at 10:00 a.m. at the church. I encourage all the men to please join us for Men’s Breakfast! It is a great time to fellowship and have meaningful conversations with like-minded men. I encourage you to come and connect with other men.  All the weekly activities for the church are posted online on the church’s website.  

DECLARATION of FAITH in GOD

Let us stand and say the Declaration of Faith in God together. Please remain standing as we pray.

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

Please close your eyes, and let us pray.

Our Father who art in heaven, we acknowledge Your presence. Our head, the Lord Jesus, watches over those of us who worship. I pray that our hearts will be prepared as we prepare ourselves [for the sowing] of the seed of the good Word of God. I pray that You will bless Your church in a very special way. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray. And everyone said Amen.

SERMON INTRODUCTION

I am sure most of you have seen the old [Dra-Cue-La] Dracula movie filled with warning shadows and suspense. The movie captured a powerful symbolic moment when the Cross triumphed over darkness. It is very interesting how even in pop culture, the Cross becomes a striking representation of ultimate victory, purity, and power that evil cannot withstand. The images in the movie align beautifully with the theological concept of the power of the Cross, symbolizing Christ’s victory over sin, death, darkness, and the forces of evil. It speaks to the triumph of light over the darkness and the eternal hope in Christ Jesus.

SERMON EXPOSITION

Our sermon series is called “Returning to the Cross”—our primary concern is that far too many of us today have distanced ourselves from the Cross, or we have turned the Cross into something that it was never meant to be … a piece of jewelry or a symbol on a building or a steeple indicating that it is a church. Not that any of those things are wrong, but there is no power in jewelry, and there is no power in symbols that stand alone.

But there is Power in the Cross; the Cross is the sign or the symbol of the accomplishments of the sacrificial work of Jesus Christ. The Power of the Cross is not the power of two wooden sticks [horizontal and vertical] crossing over each other. That is not where the power is; the power is in the Person Who died on the Cross, why He died on the Cross, and what was accomplished in His death on the Cross. That is the Power of the Cross. [Watch This] The Power of the Cross is attached to the Person of Jesus Christ. As Christians, we hold onto the Cross, not the crucifix. There is Power in the Cross because no one is on it, but its work continues to be effective in our lives and the church today.

SERMON EXPLANATION 1

Paul writes to the church at Corinth and wants to talk to them and us today about the “Power of the Cross.” A power that, if we were ever to understand and utilize it, we would also experience [it] in our Christian lives and our church. There was a problem in the church of Corinth; by the way, there were many problems. This was a New Testament church that was in a messy situation. Paul starts out discussing some of the issues that the church was facing, and you will notice that throughout the book, Paul discussed one messy situation after another in the church of Corinth, but one of the issues that he jumps off with is this division … dissension – disagreement; fighting among church members.

 The church of Corinth is a prime example of how the early church wrestled with human flaws while navigating its calling and purpose. Despite being blessed with all spiritual gifts, the church of Corinth struggled deeply with division, immorality, and misunderstanding of core Christian teachings. Paul’s letters to the Corinthians are remarkable because they address this “messy situation” head-on. Paul urged the church of Corinth to unite under the power and message of the Cross. Their struggles serve as a timeless reminder for all churches today.  No matter how gifted or established a church may seem, drifting from the Centrality of the Cross invites confusion and disagreement.

Paul brings up the issue the church is facing in verse 10: “Now I urge you, brothers and sisters [brothers and sisters means they are already saved], by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and the same judgment.” “ For I have been informed concerning you, my brothers and sisters, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you.” “Each [one] of you is saying, 'I am with Paul,' or 'I am with Apollos,' or 'I am with Cephas,' or 'I am with Christ.”

There were glitches in the church, and a party split. One group says, ‘I follow Paul’; another group says, ‘I follow Apollos’; another, ‘I follow Cephas’; Another says, ‘I follow Christ.’” These splits weren’t just personal preferences—they revealed a deeper issue of spiritual immaturity and a failure to grasp the unifying power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And they were a divided congregation, not of the same mind and spirit. Everybody had their point of view, so they would line up behind whoever was the leader of that point of view—‘I agree with Paul’s teaching and ministry philosophy.” … “I agree with Peter because of his boldness and clarity in proclaiming Christ.” “I agree with Apollos because of his zeal for the Word of God and deep understanding of the Scriptures.” And then, the real spiritual folks like some of you here in church today… I agree with Jesus because He is the Son of God.

SERMON EXPLANATION 2

So, there was fighting, contention, disharmony, and disunity in the church at Corinth. In verse 17, after identifying this problem, Paul brings up the Cross. “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made of no effect.” Paul’s concern was that the Cross of Christ would be voided out. Jesus has already died and He has already risen, but for Paul, the Cross of Christ was still working even though it had already taken place. Paul makes it clear that it is possible for the work of the Cross to be voided out in the life of the believer, and even in the life of a local church.

SERMON ILLUSTRATION

We have all written canceled on a check or voided on a check. We have cancelled out whatever the amount is on the check. A check gets voided for one of the following reasons: First, there is no money in the bank account to back up the check. Or a check can be voided because there is plenty of money in the bank account to back it up, but you don’t want to pay for it. The Cross of Jesus Christ is full of power. Voiding never occurs because the Cross is empty of its resources. But Paul says in verse 17 that the Cross can be voided out. In other words, the Power of the Cross can be cancelled out. In our personal lives, our families, and in our churches. I want to suggest today that many of us Christians are living under a ‘voided Cross’, a cancelled Cross. Paul is concerned that the Cross is not working on behalf of Christians. In verse 18, “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.” Paul says the Cross is the Power of God! There is power in the Cross.

If you want to see that power, that power is attached to the Cross. If you want to see God working, the work you want to [see] from God is connected to the Cross! If I am not experiencing the power, there has been a ‘disconnect’ with the Cross. In my experience, the Cross has become voided out or rendered ineffective. Something has created a ‘disconnect’ between me and the Cross. And so, we must “Return to the Cross.” The role of a preacher or a pastor in the pulpit is to preach the Cross, and the believer’s responsibility is to bear witness to the Cross.

SERMON EXPLANATION 2

The Cross exists for one reason: to address sin! Jesus Christ died on the Cross for the forgiveness of our sins. But that is not the only reason Jesus died on the Cross. In verse 18, Paul says, “To those of us who are being saved.” That is a different group of people from those who need to get saved. People who need to get saved are sinners. They need to trust Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins and the gift of eternal life to get saved. But please notice that Paul is not writing to people who need to get saved. Paul is writing to folks who are already saved, and they have trusted Jesus Christ. The word saved means to be delivered or rescued; that is what the word saved means. It means deliverance or rescue from something. Romans 10:13 says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

When you got saved, God delivered you from hell. When Jesus Christ was nailed on the Cross, He was not only nailed on the Cross for our forgiveness, He was also nailed on the Cross for our victory and our deliverance. The Christians at Corinth were not being delivered. They still had that same old mess going on that they had when they were non-Christians. They had the same old defeat going on that they experienced when they were non-Christians.

The Cross of Christ had been voided out. In other words, no withdrawals were coming from the Cross account. Void … was written all over the Cross. You and I can void out the power of God in our lives. And the power of God, Paul says in verse 18, is tied to the Cross. When we neglect the Cross, rely on human wisdom, or prioritize worldly values, believers can unintentionally void the Power of the Cross by disconnecting ourselves from the deliverance and strength that flows from Christ’s sacrifice and death on the Cross. Verse 18 says, ‘The Word of the Cross is foolishness!’ Paul says that the word of the Cross will sound meaningless and won’t make sense to you.  

You are here this morning in church because you trusted somebody who died two thousand years ago. Who claimed to be the Son of God, lived a perfect life as your substitute, which became your hope and future for heaven! Far too many Christians no longer look at the Cross as foolishness for heaven; we look at the Cross and we consider it foolishness for earth. Why? Because we void out the work of the Cross. We have this powerful thing, the Cross, that is, the work of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, that is ready, the account of the Cross is full, and it is ready to bring deliverance in history as it will bring eternal life forever. We have written void on the Cross, even though the Cross is full and has power. We come to church every Sunday and write a check that God won’t cash because it is written ‘Void’ on the Cross. And so, we are not experiencing the Power of the Cross in our lives, church, and families.

SERMON EXPLANATION 3

For it is written, verse 19, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the understanding of those who have understanding, I will confound.” Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has God not made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God, the world, through its wisdom, did not come to know God, God was pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believed. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, 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 mankind, and the weakness of God is stronger than mankind.” That is a powerful statement that highlights the difference between human wisdom and divine wisdom

What is Paul saying? Here it is: The church at Corinth was a mess and was not experiencing the power of God because they had become disconnected from the Word of the Cross. They were disconnected from the Word of the Cross because of this interference of human wisdom into the church. They had brought the thinking of the world into the church, which voided the work of the Cross. And so, they were not experiencing the power of God. Because of human wisdom, God will not cash in the Power of the Cross in our lives and the church.

When you bring human wisdom into the church, that is, the world’s point of view … When you bring the world’s point of view into your life, into your home, into your church, what you have done is cancel out, not the content of the Cross but the power of the Cross at work in you.

Paul says God intentionally, on purpose, rejects the wisdom of the world as foolish because man’s point of view is disconnected from God. When the church service is over, the power of God preached is lost when folks get to the parking lot because they return to the human point of view, which God says He is intentionally going to make foolish. We have the most intelligent people in the world today! Is our world a safe place today? Where are the brilliant people? Folks who are educated with a lot of knowledge. It is highly possible and likely that the more educated you are, the dumber you become … because what you may have done is accumulated human wisdom.

God did not save us because we were so smart. That is why we pray to the same God at church and experience the same fellowship and salvation, because it has nothing to do with human wisdom and intelligence. God never needed human wisdom in the past, and He doesn’t need it right now. Those who believe in the Power of the Cross are saved, which is the message of salvation.

See, that is the danger of education. Don’t get me wrong, I am for education, I am for learning as much as you can, learn about everything you can, because all truth is God’s truth. But the danger of education is the thought that ‘Now I know independently of God.’ It is better to have a less educated person with the mind of God filled with the Holy Spirit than a more educated person with the mind of human wisdom.   

SERMON APPLICATION 1

Our position as a church has always been ‘God’s Word will have the last word.’ The reason why husbands and wives can sit across the dinner table day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year and be fighting each other is because the world has joined them together at the dinner table, and the Word of God does not have the final say. When the wisdom of God has the final say in our lives and church, we can appeal to the Cross of Christ for power, deliverance, and victory.

SERMON ILLUSTRATION 3

The wisdom of this world is constantly changing, and the reason is that God makes them foolish. Have you noticed? There is always something new—a technology, a gadget, a new drug, a new medical device, a new something [something]—because man’s wisdom is always changing. But God has never changed. God is in the business of cancelling the foolishness of the world. You take your [car] to the car wash because it is dirty. Your car goes through the automatic machine and comes out clean on the other end. Now let me ask a question: how many of us instruct the folks at the carwash on how to use the machines to wash our dirty cars?

We know what we do at the carwash. We follow the instructions at the carwash, put your car in neutral, and wind your windows up. And then they say, ‘We will take it from here.’ They connect your car to the belt, and it moves through the machine, and your car comes out cleaned. How can you come to the house of God, dirty, and leave dirty, when the power of God [when the Power of the Cross] is supposed to cleanse you, deliver you, and give you victory? It is because you are telling God how to clean you up! Something that you don’t do at the car wash, but you do it with God. You come to church in the house of God and tell God to His face how to clean you, deliver you, and give you victory. God writes void every time you pray because the Cross of Christ has been demoted and the wisdom of this world has been elevated over the Power of the Cross.

SERMON EXPLANATION 4

Verse 19, Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14. He says, “The way I am going to deliver Israel is I am going to show My wisdom in confusing the enemy.” Do you know how many times God delivered the people of Israel by confusing them with what the enemy was trying to do? In 2 Chronicles 20, King Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah faced a vast army. As they praised and worshipped the Lord, the Bible says, God ambushed their enemies, causing confusion and leading them to destroy one another. In Judges 7, God used Gideon and just 300 men to defeat the Midianites by confusing their camp with the sound of trumpets.

God intervened for the people of Israel by confusing the enemies. Some of us keep cancelling out God’s intervention because we promote and elevate human wisdom over the Power of the Cross. We are not living the victorious life as God intended, so we need the message of the Cross. The message of the Cross—Notice, Paul says in Verse 17, “I did not come to you with cleverness of speech.” He says in verse 18, “The Word of the Cross.” Jesus had already died, but Paul kept talking about the message of the Cross. Paul says this message of the Cross is still relevant for the believer today because it is the power of God for those of us who are being saved—those of us who are in the process of sanctification.

FAITH APPEAL, CALL to ACTION, and ALTAR CALL

God’s grace has called us, and we have responded by faith and realized Christ is God’s power and wisdom. Not the Christ of the manger, or the Christ in the temple, or the Christ in the marketplace, but the living Christ of the Cross. And it is in the death of Christ on the Cross that God has revealed the foolishness of human wisdom and the weakness of human power. We are called into fellowship because of our union with Jesus Christ; He died for us, we were baptized in His name, and we identified with Him on the Cross.

My challenge to you and me is a simple one. We must reorganize our thinking to experience the power of the Word of the Cross, because God no longer has to compete with human wisdom in my life and your life. May we reassess our thinking and ask the Holy Spirit whether we need a reorganization in our thinking; whether we are bringing the world’s viewpoint into the church, our lives, our homes, our marriage, and expecting the power of God to be involved with that. The Power of the Cross is still active today, but it can have no effect in our lives or the church when the world’s and human wisdom dominate the message of the Cross. God bless you!

If you are here today and don’t know Jesus, I want you to come to the Cross, give your life to Christ, and trust Him to be your Savior. If you need prayer, please come forward so we can pray for you.  Let’s stand on our feet.

BENEDICTION [CLOSING PRAYER]

Let us pray.

Thank You, Father, for our fellowship today, for the message on the Power of the Cross that was so clear to us. We thank You that our confidence is not in human philosophy but in You, Your Son Christ Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.. We give You the praise and glory for that. And Lord, if there are some here today who do not know You, who are still holding to human philosophy, [to human wisdom and accomplishment] Oh God, I pray that the Holy Spirit of God would break the bondage of that philosophy and free their heart to seek Christ Jesus. Those of us who are Christians help us never to fumble the revelation of God [The revelation of the Power of the Cross] by mixing with it the words of human wisdom and the wisdom of this world. I pray that You keep this church pure, holy, and sanctified. We give You all the praise and glory in Christ’s holy name, we pray. And everyone says, Amen.

God bless you. We will see you next week at 10:30 a.m.