Odious or Glorious?

"What was shameful, even odious, to the critics of Christ, was in the eyes of his followers most glorious.… There is no greater cleavage between faith and unbelief than in their respective attitudes to the cross. Where faith sees glory, unbelief sees only disgrace. What was foolishness to Greeks, and continues to be to modern intellectuals who trust in their own wisdom, is nevertheless the wisdom of God. And what remains a stumbling-block to those who trust in their own righteousness, like the Jews of the first century, proves to be the saving power of God (1 Cor. 1:18–25)."


— John Stott
The Cross of Christ
(Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1986), 40

HT: Of First Importance