For millennia the gospel of a crucified savior has offended people, and it continues to do so to this very day:
- Some are offended at the suggestion that a crucified savior was the actual Messiah of the Jewish people.
- Some are offended at the suggestion that a crucified savior was the prophesied and most authoritative prophet of God.
- Some are offended at the suggestion that a crucified savior offered himself for the sins of all of humanity.
- Some are offended at the suggestion that a crucified savior was offered for any supposed sin of humanity.
- Some are offended at the suggestion that a crucified savior was a part of God’s plan to redeem mankind to himself.
- Some are offended at the suggestion that a crucified savior is offensive.
Fact of the matter is, this crucified savior knew that he was an offense (Matthew 13:57), and so did his preachers (1 Corinthians 1:18-31), but the real shame comes from a “church” that is offended by the offense as much as the world. EA
“Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.” Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone,” and “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.” (1 Peter 2:4-8)
Amen! And yet some will remove “of Christ” from their sign because “some find it offensive.” (Max Lucado, for one.) Does Christ find THEM offensive?
Yeah, it’s true that many in “Christendom”, even those who have drifted away from the truth they once stood in, are indeed ashamed of the very Christ that gives them their “endom” to begin with. I believe all must be leery of motives when it comes to distancing his/her self from the name of Christ, for to distance ourself from Jesus means that Jesus will distance himself from us (Matthew 10:32-33). The church never went out of its way to be offensive, but neither did it compromise the doctrine of God because it turned some off (1 Corinthians 10:32-33; Revelation 2:20-25).