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OUR DAILY BREAD             Friday, July 7, 1995
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READ: 1 Corinthians 2 
                
                     A FOOLISH CROSS?

         "The message of 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

Crucifixion is one of the most excruciating forms of
death that the depraved human mind has devised.  It is
difficult for us to comprehend that the Son of God
could be murdered in such a hideous manner.  Yet today
the cross is often used as nothing more than a mere
ornament or something that is worn by people who attach
no meaning to its rich spiritual significance.

But I know of one cross that may cause people to  
ponder its meaning.  It stands outside a church in
Old Greenwich, Connecticut, and is made of raw,
unpolished steel.  When it rains, red rusty drops roll
off that cross like blood.  On sunny days in winter,
rust-red holes dot the snow at its base.

What goes through the minds of those who pass by that
weathered symbol?  More important, what is their
response to this message?  Is the cross foolishness
(1 Cor. 1:18), nothing more than a fashion trend?  Or
does it bring to mind the blood Christ willingly shed
for our redemption?

Paul said that the "wisdom of this age" cannot grasp
the mystery that is God's plan of salvation.  It is
only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we
can understand the "foolishness" of the cross (2:13-14).

What does the cross mean to you?

                                -- Vernon C. Grounds

        When I survey the wondrous cross
        On which the Prince of Glory died,
        My richest gain I count but loss
        And pour contempt on all my pride.

                                -- Watts

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            THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
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   The cross reveals man's sin at its worst
         and God's love at its best.
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THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:  Psalms 133-136

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