David R. Nichols, from Decision’s Devotional of 22 March:
At Easter many Christians would rather ponder the Resurrection than the Cross, because to them the Resurrection is God’s greatest display of power. But in the words of the Apostle Paul, “The cross is … the power of God‚” (1 Corinthians 1:18, NIV). It is wisdom out of foolishness. It is a reversal of human expectations concerning religion and a relationship with God.
The Cross is still the symbol that embodies the shock value of this fact: God became a Man and was willing to die for us. Because it reverses human sensibility and noble intentions, the Cross can guarantee results only on its own terms. The terms of the Cross are simple: unconditional surrender. Because God the Son was willing to enter into an unconditional surrender to a death that He did not deserve, He sets the pace for a unique revelation of God. He provides this for human beings who deserve judgment. Jesus, unlike many human leaders, did not tell His followers to do something that He was unwilling to do. He tells us to do what He was willing to do: Go to the Cross.
At the Cross we find that we must repent, because unlike Jesus, who was sinless in Himself, we are sinful. In repentance we die to the love of sin and are liberated to live lives of victory in Christ. It is then that we can truly appreciate the glory and the power of the Resurrection. That is how the foolishness of the Cross becomes the power of God.