Boasting In The Cross Of Christ

The cross of Christ, according to A.W. Tozer, “is the most revolutionary thing ever to appear among men. The cross of the Roman times knew no compromise; it never made concessions. It won all its arguments by killing its opponents…It spared not Christ, but slew Him the same as the rest. He was alive when they hung Him on that cross and completely dead when they took him down six hours later. That was the cross the first time it appeared in Christian history. After Christ was risen from the dead the apostles went out to preach His message, and what they preached was the cross. And wherever they went into the wide world they carried the cross, and the same revolutionary power went with them. The radical message of the cross transformed Saul of Tarsus and changed him from a persecutor of Christians to a tender believer and an apostle of the faith.¹

The cross reminds us of the death and suffering of Christ. He died. He was crucified. In his death he paid for humanity’s sins so that whosoever will believe in him will not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). The cross then is the gospel. It is the good news that Christ gave himself for our sins to deliver us from evil (Galatian 1:4). Christ died in the place of the sinner. “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is the message of Christianity, celebrated as Easter. Paul calls the cross the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16-17).  Any other message apart from the message of the cross or the gospel is another gospel or a different gospel.

In Galatians 6: 14, the apostle Paul spoke about boasting in the cross of Christ: “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ”. What does Paul mean? To boast in something is to make it the object of self worth and trust. The context of Galatians is helpful to appreciate Paul’s words. Galatians was written to a church infiltrated with contradictory teachings to the gospel. A band of false teachers have descended on the church and promoting the law of Moses as a means to salvation. Paul doesn’t mince with words, he addressed the issue decisively calling that different gospel

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel – not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or and angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:6-7)

Strong words and rightly so. When the gospel is at stake, everything else is at stake. False teachers must not be allowed to run rampage over Christ’s church. And that’s precisely what Paul did. He defended the gospel and went after the false teachers with strong words: “As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:9)

Have Faith In Christ Alone For Salvation

Throughout Galatians, Paul takes on false teachers. He called them people pleasers (Galatians 1:10; 6:12a). He charges them of avoiding persecution for the cross of Christ (6:12c). They were law breakers (6:13a). They were selfish, self-serving, self-righteous and self-preserving. Paul distances himself from them: “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus…” (Galatians 6:14a) 

In contrast to the false teachers, Paul’s trust and hope will not be in himself or his morality. He will boast in the cross of Christ, his faith will be in the work of Christ on the cross alone. Sinners are not saved by their morality or obedience. Rather, sinners are saved by looking at the finished work of Christ alone: For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation (Galatians 6:15). Dear reader, where is your trust? In you and your morality or in Christ Alone?

In Christ, the sinner has been freed from their sin and reconciled to Christ. This must be a great source of joy for anyone who has come to faith in Christ. You are reconciled to God and not condemened

Be Crucified To The World

The cross of Jesus Christ defines our relationship with the world. How must a Christian conduct themselves in the world? We are saved, yet still have a battle to deal with the residues of the desires of the flesh. Paul says in Galatians 5:19 that he is dead to the world—that is its passion and sinful desires. The Christian is called to holiness, called away from darkness and into light. To boast in the cross of Christ will then mean we do not find pleasure in the sins of the flesh and constantly bringing our desires in check by the Spirit A true believer will not comfortably continue in sin. This doesn’t mean sinless perfection. But it means sin should not be the habit of a believer. You should be worried if you are a Christian and living in habitual sin. Why? Because you have been born of God and the Holy Spirit has changed your heart and planted new desires in you.

God has infused in your soul holy desires and those holy desires must shape your every life.

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you:[a] sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry (Colossians 3:15)

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed (1 Peter 2:24)

Christians do not live to fulfil the desires of the flesh and in that sense, they have been crucified to the world and the world to them

Walk By The Truth

The matter addressed in Galatians is a core Christian doctrine, justification by faith. And it is the only means by which sinners will have peace with God (Romans 5:1). Paul in Galatians declares this peace on anyone who walks by this truth: “And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God” (6:16)

The word rule here is the same word from which we get the word canon. A canon is a standard or doctrine by which we live. We can profess merely with our mouths justification by faith alone, but when it comes to truly live it out, we are found wanting. Paul pronounces peace and mercy on anyone who walks by this doctrine of justification by faith.

Truly, there is no greater joy in life than to walk by the truth of God’s word. And I invite you, if you haven’t tasted this joy to come and taste and see that the Lord is good.

Suffering For Christ

Suffering is rarely a Christian message. We do everything in our power to avoid it. Paul brings Galatians to a close by pointing to his suffering for the gospel: “…I bear on my body the marks of Jesus” (Galatians 6:17). The message of the cross is a message that attracts persecution. The gospel has always been met with persecution (5:11).. And that’s the main reason the Jews in Galatia will not preach the true gospel to avoid the persecution (6:12b).

Many have had to exchange their lives for the gospel. Many are making great sacrifices for the sake of the gospel. We may not all face intense persecution for the sake of the cross. But it is a certainty that everyone who names the name of Christ will suffer one persecution or the other. And when that time comes, we must be ready. Jesus himself said if anyone will come after him, let him take up his cross and follow him. Today, many tell us Christians are not to suffer. But that’s a different gospel. Even as Christians, we may come to a point of making certain choices that may deny us certain comforts of life. Therefore let us all be ready when called upon to suffer for the sake of Christ (Philippians 1:29).

I close where Paul closes. He invokes blessings upon the people: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.” (Galatians 6:18). Indeed the blessing of God remains on those who look to Christ alone

Notes:

A. W. Tozer, The Radical Cross: Living The Passion Of Christ (WingSpread Publishers: Pennsylvania, 2009), 19