“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is the power of God to us who are being saved.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Today’s post will represent something of an update of a continuing conversation I’ve been having via the comments section of several different posts now with a skeptical friend. Most of it you can find here and here. It has been a learning experience for sure. It has also been a reminder of several different things including the importance of clarity and kindness in our interactions as followers of Jesus with the unbelieving world around us. Perhaps more than anything else, though, it has served as a demonstration of just how true what the apostle Paul wrote here toward the beginning of his first letter to the Corinthian church really is. Let’s talk about why.

I was watching one of the latest episodes of Abbott Elementary last night. It’s a show about a poor, inner-city school in Philadelphia. Format-wise, the show is a mockumentary in which a camera crew (who we never see, but who are routinely acknowledged by the cast and the occasional guest) is filming what life is like for five teachers, the custodian, and the principal. All seven of them (as well as pretty much every character in the series) are caricatures that are all quirky and fun in different ways. The writing has been pretty good so far as the show is into its third season. It has rightly – and accurately – lampooned several different aspects of life in public schools (especially under-funded inner-city schools). It carries a pretty strong progressive bias, especially through the eyes of one teacher who is young, gay, and painfully white among the otherwise all-black staff, but it hasn’t come across as anti-conservative or even anti-Christian in any way, just pro-progressive which, honestly, is a nice change for a major network sitcom today.

In any event, the plot of the episode was about an attempt to get the school named an historical landmark in the city. The efforts get derailed when an activist group shows up at the ceremony and decries the school’s namesake as a racist. After some effort, the main cast members manage to find a direct descendant of the founder who appears to check off all the properly progressive boxes so as to satisfy the critics. When they try again to have the ceremony it’s all going well right up until he takes the mic to say a few words. He thanks the crowd, decries his great, great-grandfather’s racist views, promotes racial equality and climate justice, and then assures the gathered crowd of students and community members that they will achieve these goals from one side of the world to the other.

Immediately all the eyebrows of the main cast shoot up to their hairlines as that’s not how a person typically talks about the world. Yes, it turns out he was a Flat-Earther all the time. As the main character of the series assures the students that the world is round like a globe, the crazy guy responds as he’s being dragged away from the mic, “Of course it’s not. Have you ever seen a map?”

I started laughing when he said they were going to save the world from one side to the other and kept right on laughing into the next commercial break. The scene was hilarious not least because of the reaction of the teachers and school board members. It was also a bit of a lightbulb moment for me. As Christians, that’s about how the skeptical world reacts to some of the things we believe. It has certainly been the case over the course of my conversation with my skeptical friend who has variously accused me of drinking the Kool-Aid, abusing my children, and indoctrinating my congregation. When he’s related parts of our conversation on his own blog the accusations have been even more colorful than that.

And, honestly, I don’t blame any of them. If I was operating from the same basic worldview that my skeptical friend and his blogging community are using, I’d look just as crazy to me as I do to them. If you’re reading this and consider yourself a follower of Jesus, you’d look about the same way. And they’d probably accuse you of some of the same things.

Think about it. We believe in a supernatural God who is described as doing some pretty wild things. He’s described as tacitly approving, giving permission, and outright commanding things that seem horrible when detached from their context and filtered through a modern, skeptical worldview lens. Our whole worldview hangs on the event of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Science tells us pretty confidently that people can’t be raised from the dead. (Unless they’re zombies, and then that’s a different matter that usually happens in massive numbers and not just one guy.) Our whole framework for making such a claim is a collection of ancient documents that skeptics have picked completely apart, or so they confidently tell us. Then there are our major doctrines. Some of those are downright offensive.

So does this mean our whole worldview is little more than a bunch of nonsense? Well, consider the rest of what Paul had to say in this passage: “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing…” Quick side note: they are perishing because in their rejection of God they are separating themselves from the only source of life in the world. If you cut yourself off from life, then death is the only other option. This doesn’t mean anyone who rejects God is going to simply drop dead where they stand. That’s obviously not the case. God is far more patient with people than that. Life is always an option as long as there is breath in our lungs.

Continuing… “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is the power of God to us who are being saved. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will set aside the intelligence of the intelligent.’ Where is the one who is wise? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the debater of the age? Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolish? For since, in God’s wisdom, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of what is preached. For the Jews ask for signs and the Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles. Yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God, because God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.”

So, what does Paul mean? He means that to the skeptical observer who really isn’t much interested in believing in the first place, the Gospel is going to come across as little more than nonsense. Offensive nonsense at that. Okay, but does that mean it’s wrong? Not at all. Rest assured that the comprehensive case for the truthfulness of the Christian worldview is strong. This doesn’t mean that a handful of skeptics who mostly came to prominence in the wake of 9/11 and who are master rhetoricians can’t make a case that’s really pretty compelling to folks who haven’t spent much time actually studying Christian theology. Not a few folks with almost no background in the faith have stumbled upon their work and that of their disciples and been totally taken in by their arguments. And yet the case for Christianity still stands firmly. Have confidence in that. There’s evidence aplenty, stronger evidence in fact than for most other ancient historical claims. In addition to that, there are multiple other lines of reasoning from various philosophical disciplines that all point to the reasonableness of the faith.

Hear me well, though, in the mind of a committed skeptic, none of that is going to make much in the way of difference. They’re still going to think you’re as nuts as the Flat-Earther from Abbott Elementary. That’s okay. Let them. The foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of people.

Just in case you feel like you want to go looking to have these kinds of conversations, though, here are a few things to keep in mind. First, if you’re not confident in your own faith and in your ability to be able to respond to clever arguments and engage on some of the tough questions of Old Testament history that will be set before you (and possibly even thrown in your face), you’re probably wisest to stay away. If you are going to swim with the sharks, you’d better know what you’re doing, or you’ll get eaten.

Second, there’s no substitute for kindness and generosity and humility in your approach. If you’re not able to maintain that, don’t bother engaging. You won’t convince anyone of anything except that you’re a jerk, and you’ll get yourself all flustered and frustrated in the process. My friend shared how one Christian commenter finally got so frustrated that he called him the “spawn of Satan.” Rest assured, that wasn’t a particularly convincing tactic except on the point that the guy was a clueless jerk who wasn’t confident enough in his belief to be able to make arguments instead of insults.

Third, you’re going to want to have on some pretty thick skin. You can’t take anything personally…even the personal stuff. If you do, it’ll show, and they’ll win the argument by default. Remember: your beliefs are weird and maybe even offensively weird to them. For some people, until they experience the patient, consistent love of Christ applied over time, they’re not ever going to give Christianity any kind of meaningful consideration. They’re likely as confident in their position as you are in yours. Arguments don’t win those kinds of debates. Love does.

Fourth, remember that it’s not your job to convert anybody. If you set the truth before them with humility and grace, and they don’t respond, that’s okay. Jesus made clear that their rejection is of Him, not you. You can keep building a relationship with a smile on your face, or you can agree to part amicably. Remember something else Paul said: so far as it depends on you, live at peace with everybody. All you have to do is bear witness and demonstrate the love of Jesus. Everything else is on His shoulders.

Fifth and finally for now, have fun. You really don’t have anything to lose here. Don’t take yourself seriously, take the Gospel seriously. The hope you have in that is pretty amazing. And the love that you have experienced is big enough for you to keep giving away to others and it won’t ever run out. So, keep on loving the one anothers around you. And if they raise an argument or objection you haven’t considered and don’t know how to answer, remember that you don’t have to know everything to trust in God’s goodness. Lean into what you have experienced and with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego smile and say that even if God doesn’t give you all the answers on this side of eternity, you’re still going to trust in Him.