Not ashamed?

The purpose of this chapter has been to show that God’s purpose is revealed not only in the fact of his Messiah’s death, but also in the mode of his death. We have attempted to say something about the depth of shame and ungodliness attached to crucifixion as a method, and to explain how much audacity and courage were required of the early Christians to proclaim a crucified Messiah to a world that could have been expected, then as now, to find such a message insupportable. Martin Hengel describes his research into “the constantly varying forms of abhorrence at the new religious teaching.” He shows us why such a highly educated, well-born person as Paul would feel constrained to say, “I am not ashamed of the gospel.”—Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 104 (emphasis original)