“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”
1 Corinthians 1:18
When Galileo, the great astronomer, theorized that the Earth revolves around the sun, which we know now to be fact, he was put to death because what he had claimed was considered a heresy. Ignaz Semmelweis, the Hungarian scientist, claimed that washing hands before medical procedures would reduce infection and fatality rates. He was committed to an asylum because his claims were so outrageous that his peers thought he was crazy. Now, a doctor would never even think of beginning a procedure without washing their hands.
These are just two examples of people who were called crazy for speaking the truth. What they discovered went against the grain of society, and for that, they were rejected. Not only were they rejected, they were punished for their ideas. Of course, now we know that they were right, but that doesn’t change the fact that back then, everyone thought they were fools.
The same can be said of the gospel. The world doesn’t like the gospel, it goes against the grain of society. In fact, it goes against the entire nature of the desires of the human flesh. For those who haven’t discovered it to be the truth, it is nothing but foolishness. Not because it’s incorrect or made up or inconsistent, but because it’s not what they want to hear. They perceive it to be foolishness, just like Galileo’s peers did when he claimed the earth revolved around the sun, and just like Semmelweis’s peers when he told them to wash their hands. However, that makes it no less true.
For those who believe, who have experienced Christ and know the gospel to be true, it is powerful. When Galileo figured out that the earth revolved around the sun, it opened up a new world of understanding for astronomers. When Semmelweis figured out that washing hands could prevent infection, it made the practice of medicine infinitely safer and better. The truth, no matter what resistance it is met with, is powerful.
The truth of the gospel is much more powerful than either of these examples, obviously, but they serve well to illustrate the point.
The gospel is the power by which we are all able to be saved from the death that our sin has condemned us to. The gospel is the power that washes that sin away and makes us pure and clean before God. The gospel is the power of love and grace and mercy. The gospel is the power of a personal relationship with the God of the entire universe. The gospel is power, no matter how many of your peers consider it folly.
Prayer:
Father,
Let me never doubt the truth and the power of the gospel. I pray that the world will come to know you and not to doubt the truth of Scripture. I pray that we who know the truth will share it with the world, regardless of their resistance.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
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