The Gospel Without Horns!
Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms. By. DuncanWhen the great reformer, Martin Luther, was brought before the Diet of Worms (assembly at Worms, Germany) to recant his writings he was asked to answer their questions non cornutum, ‘without horns’. The assembly wanted a straightforward answer without cunning or trickery. It was then that Luther gave one of his most famous quotes “Unless I am convicted by scripture and plain reason–I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have so often contradicted each other–my conscience is held captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen.” After such a statement no reasonable person would be left uncertain of what Luther was trying to say here. He had no intention whatsoever to recant anything that he said regarding the popes and councils of Rome. If Luther in this account took great pains and risked his life to hold strong to his convictions, how much more should we preach the gospel of Jesus Christ in our churches non cornutum. God’s word in 1 Corinthians 2 seems to speak to this issue.
Before we take a look at the text at hand it will be helpful to review the context in 1 Corinthians 1. Following Paul’s introduction and plea for the church in Corinth to be united by Christ and not to become followers of men, he goes on to give us a wonderful account of what true godly wisdom looks like. Starting in verse 18 he says “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God. For it is written ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart” (1 Corinthians 1:18,19 ESV). Paul expounds further on this text to show us what the Jews and Greeks thought true wisdom to be was no wisdom at all. He even goes on to use hyperbole in verse 25 “For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” Paul is not implying that God can be either foolish or weak. That would be completely outside of God’s divine attributes. Verse 26 to the end of chapter 1 tells us what he means. The people whom God chooses to use, from the standpoint of the world, look like the least qualified people. However, God is really putting the world to shame by who he chooses to serve him. The entire world has changed by a few fishermen that decided to follow Jesus one day. Consider the following verses.
1 Corinthians 1:27-29 “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.”
Now that we have an idea of what godly wisdom looks like, how are we to preach the gospel with godly wisdom?
Take a look at the following verses starting in chapter 2.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”
There are a few phrases in this passage that I want to draw to our attention. They are “lofty speech” and “wisdom of men”. Paul claims that when he was last in Corinth he did NOT preach the gospel to them with lofty speech nor with the wisdom of men. In other words, he preached the gospel to them non cornutum, ‘without horns’. In order to preach Jesus Christ and him crucified, Paul was not going to resort to the vague philosophies of men. Greek philosophy was very prevalent and many would have looked up to philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. My intention is not to give an overview of what these men got correct or incorrect in their thinking compared to the word of God but to simply point out that the ideas of these men were what the world sought after as wisdom. The complex and sublime ideas of these famous historical figures excited the minds of people during the time of the early church. This is not how Paul wanted to get the message of Jesus across. He wanted to be clear, concise and above all, truthful.
One of the major dangers that Paul brings up in preaching the gospel with lofty speech is explained in verse 5 “so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” If Paul, who was very well educated, came preaching with much pomp and looking to make himself out to be intelligent in his speech, the gospel message would be smothered by his presentation and the hope of men would not rest on Christ but instead on the wisdom of Paul. Does this mean that Christians are to be anti-intellectual? Not at all! It is vital that we study the word with much passion and diligence. God reveals Himself in His word to be known, not for us to confess faith in Christ and then never open up our bibles again. After his conversion, Paul himself went to go study for three years before starting his ministry “I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus” (Galatians 1:16,17). The major point of 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 seems to be that the way we present our message matters. Are you preaching the world and yourself or are you preaching Jesus Christ and him crucified? Remember the words of John the Baptist “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30).
What does this mean for us today? The distractions of Greek philosophy that plagued the early church are not as big of an issue for us today, although one could argue that there is still an influence that lingers. However, it is my regret to say that there are other temptations in the church today that distract from the message of Christ. It has become increasingly more prevalent today in the church to endorse the idea that if we do not appeal to the culture and entertain those who come to our church then our message will not reach anyone. Pastors today are pressured into believing that they must entertain their congregation with long drawn out stories with a humorous punch line at the end in order for anyone to listen. Sermons have become more topical and pragmatic (i.e. What does the bible tell me about who to marry). Even the songs we choose to sing put less of an emphasis on worshiping God with doctrinal/theological clarity and more about what will attract our culture to the church. To be clear, I am not saying that contemporary music must never be sung at church, I am referring more to the message and clarity of the lyrics themselves. We have turned church more into a transaction than an environment to worship God in spirit and in truth. Just as the philosophical ideas of the early church can drown out the gospel, the way we conduct worship in church today can do the very same thing. The way we do worship in the church must be non cornutum.
To be fair to those who conduct church in this way, let me assure you that I am not questioning the sincerity of their faith or motives. True Christians want people to be saved. What I am asking is simply to examine our methods and to think about what scripture says about the gospel.
Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes”.
From this verse and the previous verses in 1 Corinthians 2, Paul truly believed that it is the simple message of the Gospel that saves people. There are many talented people out there who can draw a crowd, sing like no other, and be prolific and entertaining speakers. Those are all great talents that can be used for the glory of God, but they will save no one apart from the powerful message of the gospel. That is why Paul’s main goal was to preach Jesus Christ and him crucified.
We were dead in our trespasses and sins.
Romans 5:12 “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned”
But there is good news.
Romans 5:18 “Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.”
And now, because of this great news, we can rejoice in this glorious truth.
Romans 8:1,2 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”
All of this was possible because of Jesus Christ and him crucified.
Galatians 3:13 “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”
With such a rich treasure that we have in the gospel of Jesus Christ, how should we promote it? How do we ensure this message penetrates the hearts of those who do not know Christ? Jesus himself tells us in the following passage.
Mark 4:26-28 “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself”
Christ simply says that we are to keep sowing the seed of the word and God will cause the harvest to happen. This is the power of God through the word. He needs no assistance or help. All He asks is that we faithfully sow the seed and God through the power of the Holy Spirit will cause the growth in the hearts of those who hear. One may not be a great speaker or understand everything about the gospel but as long as it is done with clarity God can use it.
What steps can we take as the church to ensure we are sowing faithfully?
If you are a pastor, the most important step you can take is to trust God’s simple gospel message, that we are sinners in need of a savior. Sometimes the best way to do this is to just preach through a book of the Bible faithfully and with clarity to the best of your ability. This is all the Holy Spirit needs to convict us of our sins and point us to Christ. If you are a worship leader, search for music that proclaims the wonders of the gospel and the work of Christ in the clearest manner possible. Let there be no question in the minds of the congregation of who they are singing about. And if you are a typical churchgoer who is very involved but may not be in a leadership position, I want you to pray for your pastor and church leaders. Pray that they will have discernment and a desire to preach Jesus Christ and him crucified non cornutum, to lead worship in a manner that is worthy of the God we believe but never drowning out Him or His message with distractions. Also, examine and think about what you are seeing every Sunday. Leaving a church is the last thing I want anyone to have to do, but if the gospel is not being preached week after week, it may be something you have to consider. The local church is one of the most important aspects of the Christian life and if we are not being fed or led to worship God in a manner worthy of Him, it can be detrimental to our spiritual well being.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. May not copy or download more than 500 consecutive verses of the ESV Bible or more than one half of any book of the ESV Bible.”
