Renovating Your Mindናሙና

I once heard a pastor give an entire message about the founding father of his church. From a public speaking standpoint, this man nailed it as the message was well-thought-out, engaging, humorous, and eloquently spoken. From a biblical standpoint, this man failed miserably, as he never once mentioned the name of Jesus Christ. Though this man delivered a good message that tickled the ears of man, the truth is that it was a powerless message that changed no one, saved no one, and ultimately bore no fruit of eternal value. 

The apostle Paul came across something very similar when he shared the mes­sage of the cross with the Jews and the Greeks. The Jews rejected this message because they were looking for a powerful sign; the Greeks rejected it because they were looking for logical wisdom. In the eyes of the Jews and Greeks, the message about a Messiah who was crucified to save man from his sin was neither powerful nor logical; it was just foolishness. 

The temptation for Paul would have been to come up with a message that was attractive to both the Jews and the Greeks, one that would tickle their ears, but as Paul wrote to the Romans, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation.” Paul clearly understood that there was only one mes­sage that would truly change lives and cultures, and that was the message of the cross. 

Prior to Christmas Eve 2003, the culture in my family was very different than it is now. We did not hug; we did not say “I love you”; we did not show emotion, and we never shared anything personal. This was not my parents’ fault, mind you; it was how they were raised, and how their parents were raised, and how their par­ents’ parents were raised. For more than one hundred years the culture in my family remained the same until Christmas Eve 2003. That was the night that I shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with my family. 

To my knowledge, no one received salvation that night; but as time progressed, the culture in my family slowly began to change. We soon began hugging one another and telling each other “I love you”; we began sharing what was going on in our lives and even started showing emotion. As time went on, we started praying together and eventually had a family Bible study on Sunday afternoons. The most important thing that came out of that night, though, was the fact that over time, each member of my family gave their life to Jesus Christ. 

It truly is an amazing thing, when you consider the fact that more than one hundred years of conditioned behavior was radically changed when the gospel of Jesus Christ was shared. So, believer, if you want to change the lives and the cul­ture of your family, your coworkers, and your community, preach Christ crucified (1 Corinthians 1:21). Only the message of the cross has the power to change and transform because only the gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God to salvation.