For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is God’s power to us who are being saved. For it is written:  I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will set aside the understanding of the experts. Where is the philosopher? Where is the scholar? Where is the debater of this age? Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolishness?For since in God’s wisdom, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of the message preached.  1 Corinthians 1:21 HCSB

I must admit that I enjoyed the humor of the hit comedy, The Big Bang Theory. But for all the smarts those guys possessed, they were very foolish when it came to Christ. While God wasn’t always mentioned in the show, they made it clear that they believed the theory of evolution. Of course the name of the show was, The Big Bang Theory, so of course we would expect that, silly geniuses. Now as Christians, we believe in our own Big Bang Theory. We believe that God said it and Bang, it came into existence!

I’ve told you many times that I don’t consider myself to be the sharpest tool in the shed. I know that any and all wisdom that I possess comes from God. Proverbs 3:7 warns, “Don’t consider yourself to be wise; fear the LORD and turn away from evil.” When we think we are all that and a bag of chips as my friend likes to say, we fail to humble ourselves. We fail to understand that wisdom is God given.

Now when you think about it, the whole Bible seems like a bunch of foolishness right? I mean the earth was created in six days. A talking snake destroyed the bliss that Adam and Eve shared in a beautiful garden. God talked to Moses through a burning bush. Moses had a stick that became a snake and then a stick again. Hungry lions allowed Daniel to remain the night in their den unharmed. Fire did not destroy three young men who refused to worship a false god. Many battles were won against all odds. And then when we get to the gospel, well that’s just crazy, right? But I believe. I believe that a young virgin gave birth to our Lord and Savior. I believe that this young King was born in a lowly manger. I believe that He lived a life without sin to set an example for all of us. He modelled how we should live. He loved His enemies and prayed for those who persecuted Him. I believe that He went to the cross to die a miserable humiliating death to save sinners like you and me.

So for any of those overeducated fools who refuse to believe in such foolishness, I say, “It’s not too late.” Lee Strobel was once that way and when he set out to prove that the gospel was just a bunch of folklore, He ended up proving that it was true. He documented his studies in the Case for Christ which is in book form and has also been made into a documentary and a movie.

So today as we prepare to celebrate Christ’s resurrection, I am telling you that I will cling to that Old Rugged Cross. What may sound like foolishness to you makes perfectly good sense to me. I am unable to save myself from the sins I have committed, but praise God, He sent His Son to do that for me (John 3:16). His Son loved me, little old me, enough to die in order that I may have eternal life. He loved me enough to pay my ransom so that I may be released from the bondage of my sin and be allowed to spend eternity in my heavenly home with God the Father and my loved ones that have gone before me.

Tomorrow we will celebrate an Easter different from any that we have ever known. Some will watch services on line. Some will go to church and remain in their cars. Some may meet in small groups. But we will all cling to that notion that some consider to be foolishness. We will cling to that Old Rugged Cross.

As the song says, “To the old rugged Cross, I will ever be true. It’s shame and reproach gladly bear. And they’ll call me someday to my home far away where His glory forever I’ll share.”  I encourage you today to open your heart up to the foolishness and folly that is the gospel. Trust in Him. Your vast knowledge in physics, chemistry, trigonometry and world events will be useless when your days on earth are through. But, if you have clung to the cross, you can lay your trophies down. You can rest in Him for eternity and exchange that old cross for a crown.

Have a wonderful Easter!