There is something utterly scandalous about boasting in the cross. It’s not what the world expects. When you think of “boast,” images of trophies, accolades, or self-promotion may spring to mind, but God’s only boast is the very instrument of shame and cruelty—the cross. Paul put it bluntly in Galatians 6:14: “But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This isn’t just some pious expression; it’s the heartbeat of grace theology and the sharp edge of God’s wisdom.
You might wonder, why would God’s boast be a brutal execution device? The answer lies deeply rooted in right division—understanding that God’s ways and Paul’s message to the church age (the mystery administration) center on grace through faith alone in Christ’s finished work. The cross shows that every claim to our own righteousness, every human achievement, falls flat before the perfect righteousness imputed to us through Christ’s sacrifice.
The Cross: God’s Paradoxical Source of Glory
Look, the cross is paradoxical. It’s divine power revealed through apparent weakness, wisdom unveiled through seeming folly. The world’s measuring stick for power includes domination, wealth, and success. But Paul makes it clear: “The Jews ask for signs and the Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 1:22-23). This message turns worldly wisdom upside down.
From the standpoint of the flesh, boasting in the cross is ludicrous. Why would anyone boast about something so ignominious? Yet, from God’s perspective, this shameful death is the ultimate display of His grace and wisdom. It exposes man’s sinfulness and God’s love all at once. The cross doesn’t just symbolize sacrifice; it is the emblem of total reliance on God’s grace, not our deeds.
Boasting in What Destroys Our Pride
There’s a brutal honesty about boasting in the cross—it strips away every last shred of human pride and self-sufficiency. When you truly grasp grace rightly divided, you realize this isn’t about us cleaning up our act or earning God’s favor bit by bit. It’s about believing what Christ did once for all. Boasting in anything else diverts from the point.
Think about it: pride loves accomplishments, status, moral “wins.” But the cross mocks all that. It says, “Forget your skeletons hiding in the closet, your religious points, your moral self-righteousness. None of that saves you.” If boasting in the cross is our only boast, then boasting in ourselves is null and void.
My soul finds peace here because this grace reminds me I’m accepted not for who I am, but because of who Christ is, and what He’s done. This reality tosses religious works and human attempts to impress God out the window. To me, that’s freeing and humbling all at once.
Relying on the Finished Work
One of the most game-changing aspects of right division is recognizing that Christ’s finished work on the cross is entirely sufficient. There’s nothing leftover for us to add—no penance, no self-imposed purifying rituals, no special programs or experiences. Because God boasts only in the cross, our boasting must die too.
Paul wrote in Romans 3:27, “Where is boasting then? It is excluded.” If God’s boast is the cross, humility is the believer’s posture. It’s a daily reckoning with what Christ has accomplished and what I have accomplished: nothing apart from Him.
Have you ever felt like you have to “earn” your place before God? Or maybe you’ve wrestled with moments where you thought your effort might sway His opinion of you? That tension evaporates when you live anchored in the grace of the cross. Grace means the balance is tipped once and for all toward mercy, not merit.
How This Shapes Our Walk
When the cross is our boast, it influences everything. It affects how we relate to others. No longer do we view ourselves as superior because we “work harder at holiness” or have a longer prayer life. Instead, grace produces humility because we know we stand only by grace through faith.
And grace rightly divided calls us to live by God’s revealed will for the church age—where we don’t add law, tradition, or self-effort to Christ’s finished work. It shapes our understanding of sanctification, not as a grind to earn favor but as a grateful response to what God has already done.
Living with the cross as our boast means we aren’t shackled by trying to prove ourselves; we walk in freedom, peace, and confidence in God’s acceptance. It frees us from despair when we mess up because our position is secured by the cross, not our performance.
The World Needs This Boast More Than Ever
In a culture obsessed with self-promotion and achievement, boasting in the cross is countercultural. It’s a message that cuts straight through the noise: you can’t earn God’s love, it’s a gift purchased by Christ’s sacrifice. The cross exposes self-righteousness and invites us into a new identity where grace outweighs guilt and shame.
No boasting in credentials, spiritual experiences, or works can stand before this God-to-man statement. The cross declares a finished transaction—a divine exchange where Christ’s righteousness counts as ours. This is the message that every grace believer holds dear because it embraces God’s unilateral grace and the believer’s freedom.
If you want to deepen your walk with the Lord and revel in this grace, I encourage you to seek daily wisdom and encouragement. There’s nothing like the power of God’s Word to reveal these truths—check out some inspiration at Verse for Today’s scripture and meditation guide to fuel your faith.
The cross isn’t just a relic of old history or a symbol for Sundays. It’s the only boast the Creator can claim, and through it, we find peace. It’s a relentless reminder that at the core of life’s battles and the complexity of spiritual growth lies one simple, unshakeable truth: God’s grace reigns supreme because Christ’s cross defeated sin and death once and for all.
Stand firm. Boast in the cross. No other boast comes close.