Foolishness.

I recently an article in NY Times Magazine entitled "The Evangelical Crackup" that featured local pastors' (including mine!!) thoughts on the state of Christianity in regards to Politics, left vs. right etc. Great article I thought.

They interviewed one pastor whose well, one of those. Christian and mad as hell about it. Uses the old "The Idea of the Cross is offensive to people" to be utterly obnoxious. Obviously, with this phrase in his back pocket, the more folks he pisses off (not mind you, by calling out sin, but by simply being an arrogant a-hole), the more jewels in Heaven he gets.

The idea of the Cross is offensive to people. I don't know about that. It wasn't to me. It wasn't to him. 1Cr 1:18 says that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. Foolishness. The Message of. What's the message? You're a sinner (with all that entails - maybe this is where he gets caught up in the message, "offending" people), and the Son of God, took the weight of your sins upon his back and died. I could see how that might seem foolish.

So if that message is foolishness to 'non-christians', what do we have left to offer them? If they don't or can't hear us, what do we have left? The actions of the cross.