Offence of the Cross: The great offence of the gospel, the scandal that the natural heart cannot endure, is this, that everything a man does is defiled. Every thought, every motive, every deed bears the stain of sin. It tells man the truth about himself, that his heart is unclean, his motives corrupt, and his deeds polluted. It leaves him with nothing to offer and nowhere to stand, save in the mercy of God. And because of that, nothing he does can ever make him acceptable before God. That is the offence. It was the same in Paul’s day as it is now. The heart struggles to accept that all its goodness amounts to nothing, and ever seeks to insert some condition, some effort, some trace of self that might help complete what Christ has already finished. Man absolutely refuses to believe that his righteousness has no value before God.
But this is the very thing the cross forbids. The cross proclaims that man has nothing to offer. It leaves no room for self-importance, no space for merit, no contribution for human pride. The natural heart recoils from that. It wants to believe that at least in part, perhaps in obedience, or in repentance, or in faith itself, there is something to commend me before God. “Surely,” the sinner insists, “my sincerity, my moral effort, my devotion must count for something.” Yet the “cross” answers back, no, all that matters is Christ!
From the root of his being, man’s righteousness is defiled. Even his finest virtues, when set beside the holiness of God, emit the stench of corruption. The cross exposes this illusion and proclaims that acceptance with God cannot be earned, supplemented, or maintained by human effort. It rests wholly, immovably, and eternally in the finished work of Christ alone.
This is why the gospel message provokes such hostility. Tell a man that apart from Christ he is lost, and you will touch the nerve of his pride. He is not offended because he loves truth, but because he loves himself. He cannot endure the thought that his goodness counts for nothing. Immediately he protests, “I am not deserving of hell!” or “surely you don’t mean that good, kind, selfless people, my grandmother, my neighbor, are condemned without Christ?” Yet that is exactly what the gospel declares. Without Christ, the goodness of the best stands on the same ground as the wickedness of the worst, both spring from a heart estranged from God. Without Christ, there is no life, no righteousness, no hope. That is the glory and the offence of the cross, that man is nothing, and Christ is all. “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14. MPJ