March 17 Daily Devotional

"The scandal of the Cross"

There was a time when it was true to say of the masses of the people that ... they recognized the truth of the Gospel ... but failed to put it into practice. They may have gone further and objected to its stringent ethical and moral demands. But even then they were paying tribute to it and merely putting up defenses for their own sin and weaknesses. The gospel in those days was recognized as presenting the highest and the best way of life....

That was once the position. But it is no longer so.... The general attitude towards the gospel has changed completely; ... today it is being actively attacked and opposed. Indeed, we have even reached a stage beyond that; it is being ridiculed and dismissed. The claim today is that it is something which no educated, reasonable person can possibly accept and believe. It is placed in the category of folklore and superstition....

All this can be proved, it is contended, by the advance of knowledge, the result of scientific discovery, and the light which psychology has thrown on human nature and its strange behavior. Certain aspects of the moral teaching of the gospel are accepted and praised, though some would even reject that; but as for the central claims of the gospel ... all these things are rejected with contempt and sarcasm....

Salvation is to be found, according to the modern man, in the full use of the human capacities and powers which can be trained by knowledge and education. Man must save himself; man can save himself.... And if anyone ventures ... to say that the gospel is the only hope for mankind, ... he would be roared at as a lunatic or a fool.

Nevertheless, that is precisely and exactly what we assert today, as Paul did so long ago.... We do not hesitate to state that the only hope for men is to believe the gospel of Christ.

The Plight of Man and the Power of God, pp. 76-9

---

“Text reproduced from ‘A First Book of Daily Readings’ by Martyn Lloyd-Jones, published by Epworth Press 1970 & 1977 © Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes. Used with permission.”

Comments on D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, A First Book of Daily Readings

"These gems of evangelical truth, biblically based, help the reader to understand this world in the light of the Word." —Church Herald

"Christ-honoring, thought-provoking discussions" —Presbyterian Journal

"Few daily devotional books offer as much substantial insight as this one." —Christian Bookseller

"...will help to either open or close your day." —Evangelize