Galatians 6:14a

But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Introduction

We have just celebrated the resurrection of our Savior. Why go back so quickly to the sadness and horrors of the cross of Calvary. There are two reasons. The first reason is obvious. This is the scheduled communion Sunday for our congregation. Secondly, because, unapologetically, Christianity is the religion of the cross. Make no mistake, its central point and subject matter is the cross and the blood of Jesus. As I have said many times before, take the bananas out of banana pudding and you will have a pudding – but just not a banana pudding. Take the cross and the blood of Jesus out of Christianity and you will have religion, but you certainly will not have Christianity. Some have said the gospels are the story of the cross. The main character of this story is the incarnate, risen, and exalted Son of God who shed His blood and died upon the cross.

In the closing sentences of this letter, Paul takes the pen himself and begins to write in large letters. He admonishes the Christians to stop petty squabbling and to stop excessive bragging or boasting about things that have no eternal consequences. Some were bragging excessively about their family name, their pedigree, the fact that they had been circumcised, and their social affiliations. This excessive bragging caused division and unrest. The circumcised Jews who had accepted Jesus as the Messiah thought they were more spiritual than the Gentiles who had accepted Jesus but had not been circumcised. In the process, Paul explains how impactful the cross was to him and how it should be for every Christian. Paul said the only thing he would brag about in excess constantly would be the impact the cross had on his life. Of the many ways the cross can impact us, let’s look at three, and then we will celebrate Holy Communion.

Exposition

1. The Cross Is Where Free Will Is Given A Chance To Correct Itself.

(God Gave Humankind Free Will.)

(Free Will Was Used To Rebel Against God.)

(The Rebellion And Disobedience Began In The Garden Of Eden.)

(After The Original Sin, God Did Not Take Away Our Free Will.)

(Free Will Can Now Be Used To Accept The Plan Of Salvation.)

(Whosoever Will, Let Him Come.) (Whoever Implies Free Will.)

(John 4:14; John 11: 25-26; Romans 10:13; 1st John 4:15; Revelation 22:17.)

2. The Cross Is Where Our Values Change.

(Philippians 3:5-6.)

3. The Cross Is Where Healing Begins.

(Isaiah 53:4-5.)

Closing Thoughts

Christians have bragging rights. We can brag about the goodness of God. We can boast about how the blood of Jesus protects us every day. Because of His saving work on the cross, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Because of His work on the cross, we can now have victorious worship here on earth and greater victorious worship when we all get to heaven.

End Note

The word “glory”, which is a verb, used in our text is not the same word in the Greek when applied to God. The word in our text means to brag or boast excessively. The word in our text is kauchaomai. The word used to glorify God is always a form of the word doxa, from which we get the word doxology.

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