Sunday, May 17, 1998
Sunday, May 17, 1998
For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but
to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18
NRSV)
An old story comes to us from Alexander the Great's conquest of the Persian Empire. In that
conquest Alexander's soldiers overran the palace of Darius the king. Looking for
things to steal, one soldier came upon a leather bag containing the crown jewels of Persia. The
stones were worth millions. However, the ignorant soldier dumped them on a
rubbish heap, saving only the leather bag. He ran around the camp telling the other men about the
marvelous bag he'd found to carry his food.
How often in life we throw away jewels and keep only the leather bag. We do it when we
embrace pleasures at the sacrifice of our bodies, when we sacrifice our marriages to
satisfy our lust, when we ignore our children in the search for material security, when we sacrifice
our souls in our love affair with the world. The great tragedies of life can be summed up like this:
We threw away jewels and kept only the brown leather bag that they came in.
So it is with religion. We make such a to-do about the trappings of religion and ignore that which
is vital. Paul made no such mistake. He knew what was central, essential, irreplaceable--it was the
cross of Jesus Christ and all that cross signifies.
Prayer: Loving God, every time I see the cross of Jesus Christ, may I be reminded of
your gift of forgiveness, given out of love. Amen.
Ronald Newhouse, Texas, USA