Introduction.

1. Satan's greatest and most unrelenting attack on the church comes in the form of false teaching. False teaching has fractured and divided the church into hundreds of denominations. Countering false teaching was part of the daily work of the apostles. The epistles of the New Testament address the plague of false doctrines that had entered the church and destroyed its peace, unity, witness and assurance. The false teaching of the Judaizers crept into the churches and caused divisions and factions. The Apostle Paul in his first epistle to the church at Corinth counters the false teachings that were damaging the church's daily ability to glorify and enjoy God.
   
   
2. The supreme authority on all matters of faith and life is the Word of God. Any congregation that does not strive to know, understand and apply the Scriptures is vulnerable and susceptible to the plague of false teaching. False doctrine affects the message of the cross in a disastrous way. Listen to Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:17, ‘For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, ??not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.' The word that is translated as made of no effect (kenoo) really means; to disembowel and leave empty. Listen to Paul's strong words about those who tamper with the substance of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
   
   ‘If we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.' (Galatians 1:8)  When Paul says he did not come with wisdom of words he is making it clear that he is not like the Greek orator who eloquently delivers his argument with cleverly disguised philosophical presuppositions. Paul's preaching was in simple terms which could not be misunderstood. His preaching was clear so it could be understood by those who were uneducated and those classified as ‘men of learning.' The great theological issue that the early congregations of the church faced remains the issue we face as a congregation, i.e. what is the message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ? Listen to 1 Corinthians 1:18 ‘for the message of the cross is foolishness to ??those who are perishing, but to us ??who are being saved it is the power of God.'

1. To believe or not to believe the message of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ?

1. We need to take careful note of the fact that Paul calls the gospel message the message of the cross. The crucifixion of the Lord Jesus is at the very heart of the Gospel. The crucifixion of Jesus is a historical event with massive spiritual implications and eternal consequence. Jesus' crucifixion was a very public matter. It took place during the celebration of the Passover when Jerusalem was overcrowded with visitors. He was crucified in a very prominent place, the hill of Calvary, which was strategically situated outside the city gate so that those coming to the city would see his broken body on the cross. Many thousands witnessed the crucifixion of a man known as Jesus of Nazareth. There are very few who doubt that the crucifixion of Jesus is a historical fact.
   
   
2. What is the significance of the death of Jesus? From a human point of view it was travesty of justice, it revealed the corrupt nature of the Sanhedrin, the weaknesses of Pontius Pilate, and the fickleness of the Jewish people. An innocent man was executed simply because he was hated without cause. What human eyes could not see was the great spiritual significance of the crucifixion of Jesus. What did the death of Jesus mean in the eyes of God? What impact did Jesus' death have on Satan? What are the consequences of his death for sinners? What has the death of Jesus to do with you and me?  Does the death of Jesus have any relevance for me?  If there is a message in the gospel that is of great importance for my life, then those who know that message have an obligation to tell me the message simply, plainly and unambiguously so that I can respond to it. If there is a message for me from my Creator, I need to hear the truth about what my Creator did and said.
   
   
3. The message of the Gospel of Jesus is not something created by men and women. The disciples did not meet for a ‘brain-storming session' and come up with an elaborate explanation of what the death of Jesus signified. God revealed the significance of Jesus death to the disciples and anchored the interpretation of his death in the Scriptures of the Old Testament. Listen to Jesus' response to two followers who saw Jesus' death only in human terms, ‘O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into his glory?' (Luke 24:25-26) Jesus then beginning at Moses and all the Prophets expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. The spiritual significance of his death was revealed in the Old Testament long before the event took place. Isaiah 53 is probably the clearest passage in the Old Testament that spells out the work of the Messiah as God's suffering servant. The Gospel message is a message revealed by God. Listen to Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:1-3, ‘Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel ??which I preached to you, which also you received and ?in which you stand, ?by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you-unless ??you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.'  What did the death of Jesus mean? Exactly what the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament declared. Paul's custom was to go to the Synagogue and argue from the Scriptures as to the real meaning of Christ's coming, death, resurrection and ascension. The Gospel message is not a leap in the dark, but message revealed by God and anchored in the Scriptures of the Old Testament.
   
   
4. The Gospel message is not simply answering the questions of who, what, when, where and how. It focuses on the answer to the question: ‘Why did Jesus Christ die on the cross?' It is the answer to this question that makes the message of the cross so vitally important and very relevant to everyone. The answer to this question is the heart of the Gospel. We need to be aware that because this is at the heart of the message it will be the issue attacked most by false teaching. According to Paul there are only two possible responses to the Gospel, the first is that it is foolishness to those who are perishing and secondly that it is the power of God unto salvation to those who believe.
   
   
5. It is important to note the eternal consequence of message of the cross. Those who hold it as being foolishness are perishing, while those who believe are being saved and will have full salvation. The word foolishness really deals with an attitude. J I Packer expresses this attitude as ‘the short-term self-indulgence which marks out the person who doesn't think about long-term priorities and goals but lives on a day-to-day basis, asking, "What is the most fun thing to do now?" A foolish attitude refuses to look at the long-term matters of life and focuses on the moment and the maximum amount of pleasure to be drawn from that moment regardless of the consequences. Paul makes it clear that this foolishness is the opposite of believing. If you do not believe you are being foolish. If you regard the message of the Gospel as foolishness it simply means that you do not believe that it offers you something that is necessary or pleasurable, it's a waste of time and deals with matters that are not relevant to you; you are disregarding the issue of eternity. To think of the Gospel as foolishness means that you do not care to think about the consequences of offending Christ in the greatest possible way. To consider the Gospel as foolishness means that you deny the reality of hell and do not believe that there is a serious consequence to ignoring God. If you do not believe once you have heard the Gospel message, then your response can only be described as foolishness. 

2. The message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that is to be believed.

1. The question I have not answered is; ‘What is the message of the cross?' Before I actually answer the question I would like to make a rather obvious observation; the cross was a terrible method of execution reserved for violent and ruthless criminals. The message is about a person who was executed in public. Today's equivalent of the term of the cross would be of the electric chair or firing squad. There ought to be something shocking about a personal message for you from an execution that took place about two thousand years ago.
   

2. What is the message of the cross?  The answer is relatively simply, yet enormously profound. The message of the Gospel can be summarised in 5 points.

1. The cross of Jesus declares that sin really matters.      

   As the cross throughout the Roman Empire proclaim that those who broke the law would be punished so the cross of Jesus declarers that your sin really matters. Your sin makes you a criminal in heaven's court. What is sin? Sin is the want of conformity unto or the transgression of, the law of God. The cross acknowledges that you like the rest of mankind are guilty of defying the Law-Giver and breaking his holy law. Sin is not believing God, not worshipping him alone, not giving him honour and glory. God cannot and will not overlook even the least of your sins. Your sin really matters; it has separated you from God. You are not free to approach him or come into his presence. Your sin makes you unacceptable and offensive to God. Your sin must be punished, it cannot go unpunished, as it has violated and offended the perfect holy nature of God. The cross of Jesus declares that your sins really matter and deserve the maximum punishment. The cross of Jesus is a symbol of what you are and what you deserve. In the pure eyes of God you are a criminal who deserves the most severe punishment possible. Do you believe this or is this foolishness to you?

2. The cross of Jesus announces that sin brings condemnation and death.

   What can a justly convicted criminal do to remove his convictions? The fact of what he did condemns him. What can a guilty man sitting on death row do to overturn his sentence? All he can do is plead with the governor to have mercy on him. Your sin stands as condemning fact; you cannot wipe away the reality. The law of God make no provision for overcoming sin by good works or some form of sacrificial act. There is nothing you can do to undo your sin or remove its consequences. The fact of your sin condemns you to die the second death which is separation from God, cut off from his grace, mercy, love, goodness, kindness and gentleness, and given over to his wrath. The cross of Jesus says that you are condemned to die; you are sitting on death row waiting the day of your death. Do you believe this or is this foolishness to you?

3. The cross of Jesus proclaims that God is just.

   God is a God of love, but that does not mean he is not a God of justice. The holiness and veracity (truthfulness) of God makes it impossible for him to not hate sin and punish it. Today the emphasis upon the love of God has been so excessive that the justice of God has been forgotten. Listen to what James Boyce says abut the justice of God: ‘The justice of God differs in no respect from this attribute as seen among his rational creatures; except that his justice must be perfect while theirs is imperfect, and his must be impartial, while theirs is partial. These differences, however, exist in the exercise of justice, and not in the thing itself. They arise from the limited knowledge, reason, and perception of right and wrong among men, and from the extent to which they naturally yield to their prejudices and passions. In the all perfect being, however, justice has none of these deficiencies, and must be exercised according to its strictest nature, and in every conceivable from of perfection. To all, therefore, he must deal out the most absolute justice, whatever they deserve; only what they deserve, and the full measure of their deserts.' No one can escape the justice of God. God knows your every sin, and as your Judge he will deal with you justly. Do you believe this or is this foolishness to you?

4. The cross of Jesus reveals the great grace of God.

   1. Only God could take action to set sinners free from the dreadful grip of sin and its terrible consequences. We always need to remember that God has no need. In and of himself God is perfectly content, fulfilled, loved and satisfied. Saving sinners was not due to a need God had in himself. God's choice to save sinner was due to the exercise of sovereign free love. God chose to set his love upon sinners and reconcile them to himself. There was nothing about you or me that merited the love of God; he simply set his amazing love upon us. Having made this sovereign free choice God in perfect conformity to his perfect and holy character undertook to pay the full cost of saving sinners from sin and all its consequences. God in love took costly action in that he gave his only begotten Son to be the propitiation for the sins of his people.

   2. According to Ephesians 1:4 God chose those who would believe before the foundation of the world. He entered their names into the Lamb's Book of Life. Before God said ‘Let there be light' the Book of Life containing the names of God's children had been written and sealed. Grace was earmarked for everyone whose name was written in the Book of Life by the finger of God. Among men it is said, ‘Greater love has no man than this, than to lay down his life for his friends.' How much greater is the love of the Creator who became a man and gave his life to save guilty condemned sinners while they were still his enemies? More than that God lavished his love on unworthy sinners and adopted them as sons and made them co-heirs with Christ Jesus. Our God is indeed the God of all grace. God took action to deal with your sin by sending Jesus to give himself as a sacrifice of atonement; to wash you in his blood and clothe you in his righteousness.

   3. The grace of God defines the glory of his love. God the Son the Lord Jesus Christ suffered and died in the place of all whom the Father gave to him to be his people; he bore their sins and suffered the full consequences of their sin. Our guilt, sinful record and the judgment of condemnation we justly deserved was imputed to him and he gave himself as our substitute. His perfect and holy record was imputed to us; we were washed in his blood and clothed in his righteousness. Everything in us (past, present and future) that is offensive to God was put to Christ's account and he suffered the consequences of God's wrath. Do you believe this or is this foolishness to you?

5. The cross of Jesus brings us a promise from God.
   The promise in the cross of Jesus is whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. To all men and women in the world God's promise is; ‘if you believe Jesus Christ and obey him, you will have eternal life.' Everybody who believes Jesus will have eternal life. Eternal life does not emphasise duration of life, but the quality of life; a life lived in face to face fellowship with God. Sadly this offer of salvation has been distorted by false teaching, and today the promise is held out with a formula of easy believism. To believe Jesus does not mean to say the sinner's prayer in order to get immunity from hell; the consequences of your sin. If you believe Jesus; you are convinced that he is God the Son and worship him, you are convicted of your sin and repent with soul sorrow, you are fully acknowledge that only Jesus can save you from your sins and their terrible consequences, you submit to him as Lord and give your life to obedience, you anticipate his coming and seek to glorify him. Note that I did not say believe in Jesus, but simple that you believe Jesus; trusting him for who he is and all that he has done and is doing for you, and in you. You believe the risen living LORD and submit to him. Is this how you believe? If it is not then your response to the message of the cross is foolishness.

Conclusion.

If your present state can be described as believing then you can be sure that you are being saved by the power of God. If your present state is that of being foolish then you need to wake up to the fact that you are perishing and will soon know the total misery of being eternal subject to the wrath of God.