How can the cross be a sign of salvation? It was an instrument of execution! How can a man’s death on a cross help us? You can understand why, as Paul said, people have considered the message of the cross to be “foolishness.” (I Cor. 1:18)

But when we truly see what is happening on the cross, it becomes for us, as Paul went on to say, “the power of God.” (I Cor. 1:18) What Christ does on the cross is far more than what people often look for from God. We typically look for God to toss down some answers to our immediate troubles. On the cross, Christ enters into our human condition and takes our whole human trouble upon himself. Christ immerses himself in our fallen state and identifies himself with us—in order finally to transform our human condition. In Christ, we receive, not a few short-term answers, but a new and eternal future.

In Christ, we receive, not a few short-term answers, but a new and eternal future. Share on X

So no matter what sort of trouble or sorrow or pain we may face, when we look to the cross, we see that we are not alone. Christ has joined himself with us. And if Christ is with us, we have hope! As we put our trust in Christ, we can find that his saving action on the cross is indeed “the power of God.”

Sunday’s Scripture Readings
I Corinthians 1:18–25
Philippians 2:6–8

A photo posted by UMC of Kent, Ohio (@kentmethodist) on Feb 4, 2017 at 1:20pm PST

About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.