J.A. Matteson
The content and effect of the message of the cross upon the heart testify to its origin and truth. "For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man" (Gal. 1:11). Your base inclination is to esteem that which is dazzling; the cross is unsettling. Your base desire is for affirmation; the cross condemns. Christ informs you that that which you presumed to be true is false, and that which the world declares as false is true. Through the gospel the wisdom of God is revealed, brilliantly setting forth the inverse relationship between grace and the depraved wisdom of men. The gospel of Christ is antithetical to the wisdom of man and left to themselves men of corrupt mind would categorically reject it. But when grace illumines the heart to the majesty of Christ all else gets turned upside down. And a man would die a thousand deaths before denying the truth revealed in him. Intensely personal is the call of God, and no two mens accounts are identical. Yet the effect of grace is identical in that the work of the Spirit brings forth life from that which was dead, faith from unbelief, bearing witness to your spirit that you are a legitimate child of God. So offensive is the message of cross that its origin from heaven is obvious for those enlightened by it. Sinners would never devise something so hideous to the desires of their fallen nature.
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