Determined to Know.
Christ crucified. Here Paul gives us an uber-concise, two-word definition of the good news he preached in Corinth. A person: Jesus. And an event: crucifixion—this person and this event becoming the animating realities of Paul’s life. So much so, in fact, that Paul claims he made this person-event matrix his sole focus during the year he spent among the Corinthians. While the statement may sound hyperbolic, the point remains: Paul kept the main thing the main thing. And the main thing was Christ crucified.
Paul’s comment comes in the middle of a rebuke, the apostle addressing quarrels in Corinth; a chest-puffing contest that’s erupted in his absence. Brothers, he hears, are competing for position, one boasting, “I’m from Cephas,” while others retort, “We’re from Christ.” Like children bickering over whose team’s better, these siblings lost sight of the gospel’s center—a crucified carpenter, despised and rejected. When a king’s crucifixion signifies his kingdom, shouldn’t his citizens stop squabbling over status? Paul’s readers are wandering from reality, seduced by earthly glory, buying into the world’s value system by prizing prestige. Acting as their spiritual father, he reorients his children, reminding them that they follow a crucified King.
What happens when we experience such gospel amnesia? How do our lives and communities suffer when we forget we’re citizens of an upside-down kingdom, one in which weakness is power and folly is wisdom? Do we begin overlooking character flaws in the presence of great talent? Are we more likely to backstab a brother as we climb the leadership ladder? Do we discredit the opinions of those less educated, downplay the convictions of those less credentialed? Forgetting our crucified King puts us in lockstep with the world, pursuing vain glory, neglecting our delightful duty to love God and neighbor duly.
Only the reminder of Christ crucified could silence the Corinthian quarrel. And only this sacrificed Savior can unshackle us from our enslavement to status seeking. We must remain vigilant, following Paul’s example of keeping the main thing the main thing. We do so when Christ crucified becomes not just an article of faith, but also a pattern for life. Following a crucified King means living a cruciform life—one shaped by the self-sacrificing example set by our Savior. “Take up your cross,” he calls, “and follow me.”
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