Paul is, for the most part today by us who profess Christianity, respected as a great man of God, but during his life, he was not so well respected by many preachers, especially those of Jewish decent. Paul differed in matters of faith with many Jewish Christians. Paul preached that salvation is achieved through Christ in obedient faith to the gospel. Those that opposed him taught that the Gentile Christian, in order to fully attain salvation, must submit to the regulations and rituals of the Law of Moses, most particularly circumcision. Signs of this conflict mark much of Paul's writings to the early church.

One such example is the letter to the Galatians. The churches of Galatia were being infiltrated by Jewish preachers teaching them to practice circumcision. One of the preachers attached Paul to their doctrines, perhaps pointing to the fact that Paul recently circumcised Timothy. (Acts 16:3 ) They attempted to fool the Galatians into thinking that they were preaching nothing different than what the apostle Paul preached.

Paul, in his letter, rectifies this by stating, “But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed.” (Gal 5:11 ) If Paul's preaching was so in-line with the teaching of these Jewish preachers, why would Paul still experience persecution by their hands? He further reasons that if he had been preaching the same doctrine as they were, the offense of the cross would be removed.

This statement is a very interesting statement. The word “offense” comes from a Greek word which means to trap or to trip up. We have an English word which comes from the original Greek word, that word is Scandal. The cross was a “Scandal” to many of the Jewish preachers. It was something that tripped them up and caused them to stumble. So, what Paul means is that if he was preaching circumcision and works of the Law of Moses as a means to salvation, then why are they still being tripped up and stumbling over the cross?

We learn a very important lesson about the nature of the cross. There can be only two outcomes from the preaching of the cross, either we will accept it or we will stumble over it. If we accept it, we will be extremely blessed. If we reject it, we will stumble to our own destruction. Peter spells this out in his first letter by quoting three prophecies from the old prophets: Isa 28:16 , Psa 118:22-23 , Isa 8:14 . He says, “'Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.' So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, 'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,' and 'A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.' They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.” (1 Peter 2:6-8 )

The cross brings us either an offense or it brings us blessings. It is offensive to those who disobey. Stumbling is the destiny of the disobedient. For the obedient, the one who believes, Peter says, “They will not be put to shame.” What he means is that if you lay your obedient trust in the promises of God through the cross of Christ, you will not be disappointed. You will find great blessings in the cross. So, the choice is yours! Will the cross be a stumbling block to you? Will you be disobedient and stumble? Or, will you be obedient, placing your trust in the cross of Christ for the salvation of your souls?