"Singing Our Faith: The Power of the Cross" - Sermon for the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost

Singing Our Faith: The Power of the Cross
Pentecost 8
July 19, 2015
Grace, Mankato, MN
1 Corinthians 1.18-31

In 1867, US Secretary of State William H. Seward negotiated the purchase of Alaska from Russia. Some people supported the purchase, thinking it weakened both British and Russian as rivals to American commercial expansion. Many others, however, thought the $7 million price tag too steep. The purchase became known as Seward’s Folly. That is, until 1896 when gold was discovered in the Klondike region. The rest, as they say, is history.

So it is that some observers of the early Christian movement may have used a similar epithet for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ: “God’s Folly.” It would be one that the Apostle Paul appears to wear gladly. Today we are “singing our faith” with The Power of the Cross, a song written by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend in 2005 and sung by Getty’s wife, Kristyn. There is a couple of firsts today. This is the first time we’ve repeated authors of a song this summer and it will also be the first time we sing this song here. The song was suggested by Marlene Roede, who says: “There is so much "power" in this song that it reminds us of all Jesus gave for us so we may have eternal life with Him. Yes - this is the power of the cross!”

Indeed, Keith Getty thinks the heart of the Christian message is in the second verse: “bearing the awesome weight of human sin.” The song reaches its climax with the Easter message in verse four. (By the way, the song originally had 19 verses; thankfully, Getty and Townend cut it back to a manageable four.) From our previous exploration of their work, we know that the Getty/Townend crew cares deeply about songs that have biblical integrity and are sing-able for congregations. They often use English and Irish folk tunes to do so. In The Power of the Cross that means knowing that you have to go through Good Friday to get to Easter. For us, it’s important to admit that, 2000 years later, we either romanticize the cross such when we make cute jewelry, or we ignore the cross altogether by focusing on the resurrection. In other words, there is no resurrection without the crucifixion

In fact, Paul, the writer of the letter to the Corinthians, says the cross is the whole point. The crucifixion is not just some human mistake that God has to do an end-around to fix. The cross is the way God has chosen to both embarrass humanity and embrace it at once. It is the cross where God foolishly allowed himself to be hung, where his love and mercy are shown. It is the cross where God turns an instrument of shame and humiliation into one of forgiveness. It is through the cross where we learn once for all that we don’t ever come to God. Rather, God always comes to us.

The cross is where we definitively see that God turns human wisdom on its head as folly. Think about it: we actually believe that what I and every pastor do each week changes lives. Preaching the cross is not a career booster nor does it win friends and influence people. The cross says the things the world values, such as power, authority, and money are not the important things to value. The cross says that the people Jesus really cares about are those who get shoved to the edge of society. The cross says God’s power is made perfect in weakness and that we are to lose our lives to same them. If anyone wants to follow Jesus, she must deny herself and take up her cross.

What’s even more foolish is that you all come back each week to hear it and you dare to believe it. Who would be so foolish as to buy a couple of lots and turn them into community gardens to feed the hungry instead of making more parking spots? Who would be so foolish to give up Sundays to feed the hungry at Salvation Army? Who would be so foolish by giving five Wednesdays and countless hours so children could learn the same? Who else would say that our reason for getting together is to live and work to serve others? The mystery of the cross isn’t the question of why there aren’t more Christians. Perhaps it’s why there are so many. But, that’s God’s wisdom for you and that’s the power of the cross. Amen.