The Cross...

Lake Eyre (800x532)

The message of the cross is foundational to our Christian experience.

The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:18 states, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those who are being saved it is the power of God."

Rather than the opposite of foolishness, which is wisdom, Paul chooses the term, power of God. The Gospel or Good News is more than good advice, telling us what we need to do, nor is it simply information about God's power, it is God's life-giving power!

In Romans 1:16 Paul declares, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes.”

The gospel is more than head-knowledge; it is the amazing power of God that radically transforms people's lives.

A wonderful illustration of the miraculous transforming work of the gospel is the Lake Eyre Basin, which is one of the largest drainage systems on a global scale. The Basin covering an arid and semi-arid part of the Australian continent spans four states and territories. When the rains arrive the river beds and surrounding countryside are remarkable transformed by the life-giving water. Vegetation springs to life and wildlife multiplies. The scale of the transformation is exemplified by the filling of the usually dry Lake Eyre, the fifth largest terminal lake in the world.

All this reminds me of Geoff Bullock's song, The Great Southland,

This is our nation, this is our land
This is our future, this is our hope
A land of reaping, a land of harvest
This is our land, this is our home


This is the great southland of the Holy Spirit
A land of red dust plains and summer rains
To this sun-burnt land we will see a flood
And to this great southland His Spirit comes


This is our nation, this is our land
This land of plenty, this land of hope
The richest harvest is in her peoples
We see revival, his Spirit comes


This is our nation, this is our land
This lucky country of dreams gone dry
And to these peoples, we see a harvest
And to this land, revival comes


The message of the cross is the life-giving power of God that can dramatically transform a dry and thirsty soul and transform a nation.

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