根據我所聽來的和所讀到的，我相信，許多宗教領袖們目前要將基督教的精神和科學、哲學和每一個自然和理性的東西協和一致的努力，是因為他們不了解基督教的精神而且也不了解科學和哲學。
基督教體系的核心在於基督的十架和它的神性矛盾（譯者注：如愛與公義）。基督教精神的動力呈現於對於墮落人類行為的憎惡，而非與其同流合污。十架的真理就展現在它的對立中。教會的見證，最有效力的在於作宣告而非作解釋，因為福音並非針對理性而是信心。我們對可被證明的東西不需要信心就能接受。信心是來自神的特性而非來自實驗室或邏輯的證明。
十字架蒼勁地矗立於與自然人相對的地位；祂的哲學與未重生的心靈的運作是背道而馳的；所以使徒保羅可以很不客氣地說：對那些要淪亡的人傳講十字架的道是愚蠢的。嚐試在十架的信息和人類墮落的理性之間找到共同點是等同於緣木求魚，如果堅持下去，最終的結果就是一個破損的理性、一個毫無意義的十字架和一個無作用力的基督教。
但讓我們把整件事情從理論的高地放下，僅僅觀察一位真正的基督徒，看他如何實踐基督及其使徒的教導。請注意那些矛盾：
基督徒相信在基督裡他已經死了，但他卻比以往更活潑，並且完全期待永遠活下去。他行在地上，卻安坐於天；雖然生於塵世，但在重生之後，他發現此地已非吾家。正如夜鷹，在空中是優雅與美的化身，在地面卻笨拙難看；同樣，基督徒在天上之處顯得最為得體，卻難以適應他所出生的社會。
基督徒很快就領悟到：若想作為天之子在人間得勝，就絕不能隨從世人的常規，而必須反其道而行。為求安全，他將自己置於險境；他捨棄生命以得著生命，若試圖保全性命，反而有失去的危險。他下降，為要上升；若拒絕下降，其實早已沉淪；但當他開始向下，正是攀升的開始。
他最軟弱時最剛強，最剛強時卻軟弱。他雖貧窮，卻有能力使他人富足；但當自己變得富足，那使人富足的能力便告消失。在他給出最多之後，他所擁有的最豐盛；在他佔有最多之時，他所擁有的最貧乏。
他可能在、也常在自覺最低微時最為高超，在罪感最深重時最覺清白。當他知道自己一無所知，便是最有智慧；當他積累了最多知識，所知便最少。他有時藉著「無為」而成就最多，靜立不動時卻行得最遠。在沉重之中，他仍能設法喜樂，即便憂傷，心中仍存歡欣。
基督徒身上矛盾的特性不斷顯現。 例如，他相信自己此刻已經得救，卻同時期待未來的拯救，並歡然仰望那將來的救恩。他敬畏神，卻不懼怕祂；在神面前，他感到全然被覆沒、被瓦解，然而天下之大，他無處比此更願停留。他知道自己的罪已得潔淨，卻仍痛苦地意識到，在他肉體之中毫無良善。
他以無比的愛，去愛一位他從未見過的；儘管自身貧窮卑微，他卻能與萬王之王、萬主之主親密交談，且絲毫不覺有何不妥。他深感憑自己本身，簡直比虛無還不如，卻毫不懷疑地相信自己正是神眼中的瞳仁，永恆之子為他道成肉身，死在羞恥的十字架上。
基督徒是天國的子民，並對那神聖的公民身份首先效忠；然而，他也能以一種熾烈的摯愛去愛他地上的國度，那份強度曾讓約翰·諾克斯如此祈禱：「神啊，將蘇格蘭賜予我，否則我寧死。」
他欣然盼望不久將進入那上頭的光明世界，卻不急於離開今世，甘願靜候天父的召喚。他無法理解，為何挑剔的非信徒要因此指責他；在他看來，這一切在當下的境遇中如此自然、合理，毫無矛盾之處。
此外，這位背負十架的基督徒，既是個徹底的悲觀主義者，又是世上獨一無二的樂觀主義者。
當他注視十字架時，他是悲觀的——因為他知道，那落在榮耀之主身上的審判，在同一舉動中也定罪了整個自然界和全人類。他拒絕基督之外一切屬人的盼望，因他深知人最崇高的努力，不過是塵土堆疊於塵土。
然而，他又是平靜、安穩的樂觀主義者。如果十字架定罪了世界，基督的復活便保證了善終將在全宇宙取得最終勝利。藉著基督，萬物終將歸於美好，基督徒正等候那圓滿的結局。
令人難以置信的基督徒！
The current effort of so many religious leaders to harmonize
Christianity with science, philosophy and every natural and
reasonable thing is, I believe, the result of failure to understand
Christianity and, judging from what I have heard and read, failure to
understand science and philosophy as well.
At the heart of the Christian system lies the cross of Christ with
its divine paradox. The power of Christianity appears in its
antipathy toward, never in its agreement with, the ways of fallen
men. The truth of the cross is revealed in its contradictions. The
witness of the church is most effective when she declares rather than
explains, for the gospel is addressed not to reason but to faith.
What can be proved requires no faith to accept. Faith rests upon the
character of God, not upon the demonstrations of laboratory or logic.
The cross stands in bold opposition to the natural man. Its
philosophy runs contrary to the processes of the unregenerate mind,
so that Paul could say bluntly that the preaching of the cross is to
them that perish foolishness. To try to find a common ground between
the message of the cross and man's fallen reason is to try the
impossible, and if persisted it must result in an impaired reason, a
meaningless cross and a powerless Christianity.
But let us bring the whole matter down from the uplands of theory and
simply observe the true Christian as he puts into practice the
teachings of Christ and His apostles. Note the contradictions:
The Christian believes that in Christ he has died, yet he is more
alive than before and he fully expects to live forever. He walks on
earth while seated in heaven and though born on earth he finds that
after his conversion he is not at home here. Like the nighthawk,
which in the air is the essence of grace and beauty but on the ground
is awkward and ugly, so the Christian appears at his best in the
heavenly places but does not fit well into the ways of the very
society into which he was born.
The Christian soon learns that if he would be victorious as a son of
heaven among men on earth he must not follow the common pattern of
mankind, but rather the contrary. That he may be safe he puts himself
in jeopardy; he loses his life to save it and is in danger of losing
it if he attempts to preserve it. He goes down to get up. If he
refuses to go down he is already down, but when he starts down he is
on his way up.
He is strongest when he is weakest and weakest when he is strong.
Though poor he has the power to make others rich, but when he becomes
rich his ability to enrich others vanishes. He has most after he has
given most away and has least when he possesses most.
He may be and often is highest when he feels lowest and most sinless
when he is most conscious of sin. He is wisest when he knows that he
knows not and knows least when he has acquired the greatest amount of
knowledge. He sometimes does most by doing nothing and goes furthest
when standing still. In heaviness he manages to rejoice and keeps his
heart glad even in sorrow.
The paradoxical character of the Christian is revealed constantly.
For instance, he believes that he is saved now, nevertheless he
expects to be saved later and looks forward joyfully to future
salvation. He fears God but is not afraid of Him. In God's presence
he feels overwhelmed and undone, yet there is nowhere he would rather
be than in that presence. He knows that he has been cleansed from his
sin, yet he is painfully conscious that in his flesh dwells no good
thing.
He loves supremely One whom he has never seen, and though himself
poor and lowly he talks familiarly with One who is King of all kings
and Lord of all lords, and is aware of no incongruity in so doing. He feels that he is in his own right altogether
less than nothing, yet he believes without question that he is the
apple of God's eye and that for him the Eternal Son became flesh and
died on the cross of shame.
The Christian is a citizen of heaven and to that sacred citizenship
he acknowledges first allegiance; yet he may love his earthly country
with that intensity of devotion that caused John Knox to pray "O
God, give me Scotland or I die."
He cheerfully expects before long to enter that bright world above,
but he is in no hurry to leave this world and is quite willing to
await the summons of his Heavenly Father. And he is unable to
understand why the critical unbeliever should condemn him for this;
it all seems so natural and right in the circumstances that he sees
nothing inconsistent about it.
The cross-carrying Christian, furthermore, is both a confirmed
pessimist and an optimist the like of which is to be found nowhere
else on earth.
When he looks at the cross he is a pessimist, for he knows that the
same judgment that fell on the Lord of glory condemns in that one act
all nature and all the world of men. He rejects every human hope out
of Christ because he knows that man's noblest effort is only dust
building on dust.
Yet he is calmly, restfully optimistic. If the cross condemns the world the resurrection of Christ guarantees the ultimate triumph of good throughout the universe. Through Christ all will be well at last and the Christian waits the consummation.
Incredible Christian!
