“For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2 ESV).

Dear friends of Jesus, St. Paul’s words cut straight to the marrow. In a world fascinated with novelty, personality, and spiritual technique, Paul narrows everything down to one blazing center: “Jesus Christ and him crucified.” The Greek is striking—Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν καὶ τοῦτον ἐσταυρωμένον—“Jesus Christ, and this One having been crucified.” Not merely Christ in general, but Christ as the Crucified.

This is the beating heart of Lutheran theology. Luther famously wrote in the Heidelberg Disputation (1518), “Crux sola est nostra theologia”—“The cross alone is our theology.” God is not found in speculation, moral improvement, or mystical ascent. He reveals Himself where He seems most hidden: in weakness, suffering, blood, and death. A theology of glory looks for God in power; a theology of the cross finds Him hanging on the cursed wood.

St. Paul’s resolve is profoundly pastoral. To “know nothing” does not mean ignorance of the rest of Scripture, but that everything is interpreted through the lens of the cross. The Law exposes our sin; the cross answers it. The Law accuses; the cross absolves. As Luther says in his Galatians commentary, “The cross alone is our theology,” because there we see both the seriousness of sin and the magnitude of grace.

This crucified Christ is not far off and away. He delivers Himself concretely … in means. In Holy Baptism, we are buried with Him into His death (Rom. 6). In Holy Absolution, the crucified Lord speaks forgiveness into our ears. At the Altar, the Body given and the Blood shed—τὸ σῶμα…τὸ αἷμα—are placed into our mouths for the forgiveness of sins. The cross is not past tense only; it is present gift.

Professor Emeritus Dr. David Scaer often emphasized that Lutheran theology is decisively objective: Christ for you. Not your experience, not your decision, but His finished work. To preach Christ crucified is to preach certainty—atonement accomplished, wrath satisfied, sinners justified.

So, we stand with Paul. In the pulpit, in the hospital room, at the graveside, in the catechism class: nothing but Jesus Christ—and Him crucified. Because there, and only there, is life.

Prayer: Crucified Lord Jesus, fix our hearts upon Your cross. Keep us from every theology of glory and anchor us in Your saving wounds. Deliver to us daily the forgiveness You won and keep us steadfast in Your Means of Grace; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Your Servant in Christ,

Rev. Richard S. Cody
Fourth Vice President
Missouri District