Archive for the ‘Trinity’ Tag
When the Son Comes to Rule at Papa’s Right Hand
Filed under: By John Stonecypher, Scripture Paraphrases, Trinity | Tags: Bible, Christianity, Jesus, Matthew, Perichoresis, Prophecy, Trinity
Leave a comment A Christ-centered, Trinitarian paraphrase of Matthew 24.1-31
(1) The disciples were all like “Oooooo” and “Aaahhhh” about how grand the temple was. (2) Jesus said: “Don’t be so easily impressed by this big pile of rocks. It’s going down; the whole thing—KABLOOEY!
(3) Later as they were hanging out on the hill, they asked him: “When is that going to happen? How will we know that you’ve come to the Father? How will we know that this present evil age has ended and that the Age of the Messiah has begun?
(4) Jesus answered: “Don’t let anybody trick you. (5) Lots of people are going to say “Look at me! I’m the Messiah!” Lots of people will fall for it, but my coming will not be like that.
(6) Don’t freak out when wars happen; in the time before the end of this evil age, such things are par for the course. (7) Wars, famines, earthquakes (8) are just how it begins. (9) Before this age ends, you Twelve will be hated, betrayed, tortured, and killed because of me.
(10) Many will lose sight of the gospel. They will betray and hate one another. (11) They will fall for get-religious-quick schemes. (12) They will live without healthy boundaries, and they will experience the consequences — cold and frightened hearts. (13) But not you guys. Stick with me, and you will be safe from those perils. (14) You will spread the good news — that I am your king and defender — all over the place. Then this age will end, and the new age will begin.
(15) Watch for the sign of Daniel: The abomination standing inside the Temple. (16) When you see that, get out of town. Head for the hills. Literally. Run into the mountains and hide. Don’t waste a single second. (17) Don’t run back into your house (18) to get your stuff. There will not even be time for that. Just RUN. (19) It will be hard for those who are pregnant or have little kids. (20) It will be even harder if it happens in winter, or on a Sabbath when people are crammed into the Temple courts. Pray that it will not be so. (21) Because that is where it will start — a massacre the likes of which you have never seen. (22) Without Papa’s intervention, absolutely everyone there would die. (23) But he will intervene. He will intervene for you guys, the ones chosen to witness to what you have seen.
(23) Don’t fall for false messiahs. (24) There will be lots of them, complete with fancy tricks. But you know me. Don’t fall for it. (25) Don’t forget I told you this. (26) Don’t follow them to look for me hiding in a cave or basement. (27) You don’t need anyone to tell you where lightning is, because it brightens up the whole sky. Likewise, you won’t need anyone to tell you the Son of Man has come to begin exercising his rule over all things. When the destruction I have prophesied comes to pass, everyone will see it. (28) A hovering flock of vultures is visible to everyone. No one needs to be told about the corpse on the ground beneath them.
(29) In the wake of all this carnage, everything will fall to pieces. Chaos galore! Kings will fall. Society will break down. Thrones will fail. The powers will be shaken to their foundations. (30) When this prophecy comes to pass, everyone will see me vindicated over my enemies. They will see that I truly am what Daniel prophesied — the true Son of Man, now come to heaven to rule at the right hand of the Ancient of Days. They will weep. My enemies in Israel will see what Egypt saw [Isa 19.1] — The Son of Man making war on them from above, bringing their dark schemes to utter annihilation. (31) His messengers will spread out to all corners of the earth, and their proclamation will gather Papa’s children to his arms.
~ John Stonecypher
Where is Jesus Working?
Filed under: By Jonathan Stepp, Christian Living, Evangelism, Grace Communion International, Trinity | Tags: Baxter Kruger, Christianity, Evangelism, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Ministry, Missions, Perichoresis, Theology, Trinity
Comments (2) Everywhere.
Jesus is the union of the Trinity and Humanity. Therefore the Holy Spirit that comes from the Father, through the Son, is at work in our humanity because the Son shares in our humanity as the man Jesus. The Psalmist says:
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in hell, you are there. ~ Psalm 139:7-8
I believe that if we want to discern where Jesus is working, and join him in his work, then we have to see how every aspect of human existence has been embraced, enveloped, and permeated by the life of the Father, Son, and Spirit through the humanity of Jesus. We have to stop trying to divide the sacred and the secular and stop trying to divide the miraculous and the natural.
As most of you know, we at The Adopted Life are big fans of the work the Holy Spirit is doing with the theologian Baxter Kruger. One of the key insights the Spirit has given Baxter is the realization that the modern American church has not been taking Jesus seriously enough in the way we talk about the “ordinary” aspects of our lives, e.g. cooking breakfast for our kids, going to work, and spending time with friends.
If you have not read Baxter’s latest blog post entitled The Spirit’s Presence, I highly recommend that you go read it right now.
Here’s a quote to whet your appetite:
We either see ourselves and others as merely human, with an occasional dash of ‘supernatural’ inspiration, or we see ourselves and others as those included in Jesus Christ and in His anointing in the Holy Spirit. The former will produce pride and incessant striving, followed by more pride, then boredom and burnout, and the divisive minimization of our human existence as we chase the spirituality of the non-human god. The latter will produce dignity and hope, and a regard for one another beyond race, religion, and all prejudice. For we will see ourselves and others as brothers and sisters (blind as we may be) equally included in the Trinitarian life of God. We will look for the Trinitarian life emerging in and through the ‘humanity’ of others, and we will cherish, celebrate and do what we can to encourage its emergence.
We 21st century American Christians are yearning to know where Jesus is working and to join him in his work. But I believe we need to be educated first. We need to be educated to understand how Jesus is universally present, and we need to let his Spirit undo the false divide we have created between the sacred and the secular, before we will really be able to participate intelligently in Jesus’ ministry.
Reading Baxter’s post on the Spirit’s presence will help you in that education.
~ Jonathan Stepp
The $#*% that’s About to Hit the Fan
Filed under: By John Stonecypher, Christian Living, Scripture Paraphrases, Trinity | Tags: Bible, Christian Living, Matthew, Perichoresis, Sermon on the Mount, Trinity
Leave a comment A Christ-centered, Trinitarian paraphrase of Matthew 7:15-27
(15) Beware pious predators who come to exploit your fear and shame in order to lead you down the easy wide road of religion. They are wolves disguised as sheep, but there is no reason for you to fall for their tricks. (16) You will know them not so much by listening to their words but by attending to the fruit they produce. If a plant produces grapes, you know it’s not a thistle. (17) Ask yourself: Is the fruit of the Spirit being produced here? – Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, and self-control? If yes, then you know it’s a healthy tree, a prophet of truth. If no, then you know it’s a sick tree, a prophet of lies. It’s as simple as that. (18) It’s impossible for bad fruit to come off a good tree, or for good fruit to come off a bad tree. (19) The time is coming, and it’s very soon, when the bad trees will be consumed in flames. (20) Keep watch for them, and don’t eat their fruit.
(21) As you watch for the coming of that day, remember: Saying I’m your king is not the same thing as living under my saving rule. You will experience the Triune life only to the extent that you share in my obedience to Papa. (22) When the fire of catastrophe hits this generation, many will call out my name, saying “My king, my king, we have performed so many cool religious tricks for you! Shouldn’t that exempt us from experiencing the awful consequences of our awful behavior? (23) Then I will say: “Look, buddy, whatever kind of privileged relationship you think you have with me, you DON’T. Your actions and their consequences are YOUR business, not mine. If you don’t like the results of your behavior, you might consider behaving in some other way. It’s your choice, not mine. Look me up someday when you’re ready to stop playing this game.”
(24) Everyone who, instead of playing games, thinks and lives in accordance with the truth, is like the guy who built his house on a solid foundation. (25) The hurricane came and pounded that house, but the house survived because it had been built on something real, solid, and enduring. (26) But those who do not hear and believe and act on what I’m saying, they are like the guy who built his house on sand. (27) The hurricane came and pounded that house. It washed all the sand away, and the house collapsed – not one stone left on another. This is not a game.
~ John Stonecypher
How Can We Serve You?
Filed under: By Tim Brassell, Christian Living, Gospel, Trinity | Tags: Christian Living, Christianity, Gospel, Jesus, Perichoresis, Trinity
Comments (6) I am about to enjoy some vacation time and boy do I want and need it!!! Thank You Jesus!
However, in the truth of my involvement with you in the gracious Dance and Dream of the Father, Son and Spirit, part of the reason I look forward to vacation is the anticipation of getting back (after private renewal and recharge!!!) to proclaim the Gospel publicly again! I may be misguided and a little off base in many people’s view (and sometimes my own! Ha-Ha!), but I personally believe that I am doing what I was specifically called and developed to do in the grace of the Triune God! I am called distinctly to participate with Jesus in preaching and proclaiming The Good News of Himself in Relationship with the Trinity, Humanity and All of Creation!
More and more I feel like I can relate with the Apostle Paul as he spoke these words in Acts 20:22-24 (The Message):
22-24“But there is another urgency before me now. I feel compelled to go to Jerusalem. I’m completely in the dark about what will happen when I get there. I do know that it won’t be any picnic, for the Holy Spirit has let me know repeatedly and clearly that there are hard times and imprisonment ahead. But that matters little. What matters most to me is to finish what God started: the job the Master Jesus gave me of letting everyone I meet know all about this incredibly extravagant generosity of God.
And with that one and only Gospel of God the Trinity’s shared Relationship, Communion and Oneness in mind, I no longer believe in doing anything alone! The Father has never done anything alone. Jesus has never done anything alone. The Holy Spirit has never done anything by Himself. In His grace, I, too, want to intentionally participate in and share in that EXACT way of His living!
Those things being noted, HOW CAN WE ON THIS BLOG SERVE YOU??? As Jesus Christ is personally encountering you, and sharing with YOU His self-giving and shared life, what subjects would YOU like to see us address on this blog in the Light of the Gospel of our Adoption into the Trinity in Jesus? What kind of short 15 min. audio messages would help you to help others as you participate with Jesus in reaching out to others in His Education of the Human Race? What questions do you and other have in Light of the fact that Jesus is the Light of the World?
John 8:12, 12Jesus once again addressed them: “I am the world’s Light. No one who follows me stumbles around in the darkness. I provide plenty of light to live in.”
That being the truth revealed in the Person of Jesus, there is no subject we can address and not have Jesus shed some light on it (even though we still see through a glass darkly!)
We are up to the challenge in Jesus – SO, Bring it on!!!
Jesus will help us think, speak and do in His thinking, speaking and doing! Thanks in advance for participating with us in His shared life, and I look forward to growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus with you when I return!
~ Timothy Brassell
P.S. If you would rather bring up your ideas outside of the comment section of this blog, please write us at theadoptedlife@gmail.com .
Great Commission Resurgence
Filed under: By Jonathan Stepp, Evangelism, Gospel, Trinity | Tags: Christianity, Evangelism, Great Commission, Great Commission Resurgence, Jesus, Perichoresis, Southern Baptist Convention, Trinity
Comments (2) Some folks over at the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) are challenging their fellow Southern Baptists to embrace a “great commission resurgence.” You can read their challenge letter here.
As usual, I have some rather critical comments to make.
But before I do, let me just say there’s nothing personal about this. I have many friends and relatives who are in SBC churches and I know they are doing their best to respond to the awesome grace of the Father, in Christ, as the Spirit leads them – just as we all are. I also don’t know anything about the people who created this document, but I’m sure they love Jesus and their families – as we all do since we are all sharing in the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
All I am critiquing here is the actual language of the letter itself.
For those of us who believe that the Spirit is calling the North American Church back to a fully Christ-centered, fully Trinitarian understanding of God, there are a couple of interesting aspects of this document:
1. The only place the document invokes the Trinity is when it quotes the Bible (Matthew 28:18-20) at the very start. The rest of the document is decidedly Unitarian in its language. I’m sure the people who wrote the letter believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, but their vision of human existence and the Church is not a Trinitarian vision.
Consider these stats: The word “God” is used 32 times, far more than any other word for the Divine Being. If, when you say “God” you immediately think of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, then the word “God” is probably okay. But the fact that the document no where mentions the Father – not even once – and only mentions the Holy Spirit in passing references in 2 places, tells me that in this document “God” does not mean Trinity it means “Omnipotent Being.”
The name of Jesus (or the combo “Jesus Christ”) is used 10 times and the title “Christ” is used 9 times by itself. Again, I’m not trying to judge what’s in the hearts and minds of the authors of the letter, I’m simply evaluating the language of the document itself. Based on the language alone we have to conclude that this document is about “God,” and to a lesser extent about Jesus Christ. Nothing in the language of the letter makes it very clear what the relationship is between God and the person Jesus or what the relationship between the two of them has to do with the Great Commission, the Church, or humanity. This letter is not about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who are described in Matthew 28.
2. Since the letter is not Trinitarian it bubbles over with langauge about what people need to do to please this distant, Unitarian God in the sky and do his work. I won’t cite a bunch of stats on this point, I’ll just let you read it (if you want to take the time) and decide for yourself.
I can tell you this, though: if my pastor read this letter to me I would feel like I was being sent on a guilt trip to please the omnipotent deity. I would not feel that I was being baptized in the assurance of the Father who loves me in Jesus and had poured his Holy Spirit into my life. (By the way, that sentence I just wrote is an example of what I mean when I talk about writing in a Trinitarian way instead of just writing about “God.”)
So, what’s my point in all this? Nothing too serious – after all, the guys who wrote this document are just sincerely trying to help themselves and others live out a Christian life. I’m not down on that.
I just want to make the point that when the Bible talks about the Great Commission it talks about baptizing people into the name “of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” I think that if we in the Church want to talk about the Great Commission we ought to use the same Trinitarian language. There is no other gospel than humanity’s adoption into the life of the Father, through the incarnation of the Son, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit – and that’s the good news we’re commissioned to preach.
~ Jonathan Stepp
Listen Up, Posers
Filed under: By John Stonecypher, Christian Living, Scripture Paraphrases, Trinity | Tags: Bible, Christian Living, Christianity, Jesus, Matthew, Sermon on the Mount, Trinity
Comments (1) A Christ-centered Trinitarian paraphrase of Matthew 7.1-14
Beware the temptation to manipulate others by acting like you are better than them. (2) When you do, you’re just teaching people how they should treat you. (3) While you’re busy offering “helpful advice” to your neighbor on how to get the speck of sawdust out of his eye, (4) you have a whole log stuck in your own eye. (5) Listen, poser… Go deal with your log. Once you become a clear-sighted person, your neighbor might even ask you for help with his speck. Until then, mind your own business. (6) When he asks for help, that means he’s ready to receive help. But until then, even good advice is as useful to him as a Bible is to a dog. Pearls are useless and annoying to pigs. So too are pearls of wisdom to people who haven’t asked for them.
(7) After all, that’s how free, distinct-but-not-separate persons relate – We ASK things of one another; we make REQUESTS. You know how it works: You ask somebody for something, and then they give it to you. You knock on the door, and then someone opens it. (8) This is not rocket science. If you want something, ask for it. If you want to find something, look for it. If you want a door opened, knock on it. We relate to our Papa in the same way. (9) Think about your own kids. When your kid asks for a snack, do you give him a rock? (10) Or if he asks for a cheeseburger, do you give him a snake? Of course not! (11) You’re not exactly a star in the sainthood department, but even YOU know how to give good things to your kids. How much more will your Papa, who sits in the driver’s seat of the universe, give to his kids the good things they ask him for! (12) In all your dealings with people, treat them this way, the way you yourself want to be treated. That is Scripture’s wisdom in a nutshell.
(13) There is only one Triune life of love, but there are a thousand ways to avoid it, to participate less than fully in it. These paths are easy; that’s why most people take them. The destruction that is coming on this generation will be the result of the easy paths they choose. (14) There is only one path that escapes that destruction, and it is hard, very hard. It is the way of peace and truth and forgiveness, the way of the Triune life in this world. Only a few are walking that road. Be one of them.
~ John Stonecypher
Life (and Christianity) is for the “Birds”!
Filed under: By Tim Brassell, Christian Living, Gospel, Trinity | Tags: Christian Living, Christianity, Jesus, Perichoresis, Preaching, Spiritual Formation, Spirituality, Trinity
Comments (4) Everywhere I turn, lately, that is the message I have been getting!
On this very blog, in the form of a Trinitarian paraphrase, John Stonecypher translated Matthew 6:25-30 in the following way:
(25) The secret is this: Just chill out. Really. Don’t even stress about the necessities of life, like food and clothing. To worry is to be out-of-touch with the real world. (26) Birds know this. They don’t even have jobs; they just enjoy feasting every day from Papa’s own hand. Can you imagine the possibility that he cares for you at least that much? (27) Worrying – even about the basics of life – is a complete waste of time. (30) Flowers live for a day, and Papa clothes them wondrously for that whole day. Can you imagine the possibility that he just might take such good care of you? Can you look outside your blindness, see with my eyes and glimpse the truth?
So THAT’S why the birds fly so freely (and the flowers grow so beautiful and quickly), they are “allowing” the Father to take care of everything and meet every need!
I am currently in a class at Grace Communion Seminary entitled “The Practice of Ministry”, and guess what one of the main reading assignments is? That’s right – a book entitled The Crucifixion of Ministry! In this book we are being taught that there is only one ministry, the ministry of Jesus Christ. We are not called to have or do our own ministry, but only to participate in Jesus’ ministry as He (Jesus) does it! Andrew Purves quotes Thomas Merton from his book entitled New Seeds of Contemplation, and writes,
“How does an apple ripen? It sits in the sun.” That was Merton’s metaphor for Christian piety. We are to abide in, rest in, and have our home deeply in Jesus. It is that easy… One of the most difficult aspects of piety is learning that in a sense, there is nothing we need to do. ~ The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 119.
Talk about a pastoral ministry and life yoke that is more easy! UNDERSTATEMENT!
Finally, I have been re-inspired in my 2nd reading of Robert Farrar Capon’s book The Foolishness of Preaching with these helpful thoughts resulting from the scandal of the Gospel:
For in the end, nothing counts, and nothing alone counts, in the drawing of his Love and the voice of his Calling. Even your faith doesn’t matter. I mean that. Your faith may make a difference to you – to your enjoyment of the divine comedy you’re selling tickets to, and the hilarity of your pitches for it. But it doesn’t matter to God. He’s assured you that he’s brought the scenario of creation and redemption to its conclusion all by himself, without assistance from you or anybody. You may believe in him or not believe in him. You may trust him on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and decide he is full of baloney on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. And on Sunday, you may proclaim your faith in him, or prattle on about your erudition, or indulge your talent for quoting second-rate poetry. Or you can call in sick. But none of it will hold even an unlit candle to what he has done for you. ~ The Foolishness of Preaching, pp. 28-29
It is probably by grasping this subject that GK Chesterton is quoted as saying, “Angels fly because they take themselves lightly.”
Ha-Ha! I think I am finally getting the point and want to live more and more like the birds! How about you????
~ Timothy Brassell
The Assurance of Communion
Filed under: By Jonathan Stepp, Christian Living, Gospel, Trinity, Worship | Tags: Christian Living, Christianity, Church, Communion, Eucharist, Gospel, Jesus, Perichoresis, Trinity, Worship
Comments (5) Does communion bring you assurance or anxiety?
A lot depends on how communion is conducted by those leading it. Communion can be given in such a way as to baptize the souls of the congregation in assurance or in anxiety.
The Holy Spirit is speaking assurance to peoples’ souls.
He is assuring them of the communion they have with the Father in Jesus. If our celebration of communion speaks – by words and actions – of this same communion then we are in step with the Spirit and the souls of those who participate will be assured in their Father’s love for them.
There are ways of taking communion that can contradict the Spirit’s work of assurance.
The most common way that I have seen the Spirit contradicted in communion is by leaders who talk about our “responsibilities” with regard to communion. These speeches, as I have heard them, run the gamut from relatively short jabs to long diatribes. The themes range from lectures about “examining yourself” and being sure you are repentant to guilt trips about evangelism and saving people from hell. I understand where some pastors think they are getting this sort of thing (from 1 Cor. 11, for example) but the Bible was not written to contradict the person of Christ. If we find ourselves quoting the Bible and talking about ideas that contradict the absolute assurance of Jesus’ identity as the union of the Trinity and humanity then we are misusing the Bible.
The assurance of communion is really quite simple.
Communion is reassuring because it is all about who Jesus is and how he is totally for humanity, on our side, and sharing with us the communion of the Trinity. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are communion. In Jesus, humanity has now been included in that communion. The fact that Jesus is human – he is flesh (bread) and blood (wine) – is our assurance that we are liked, love, and accepted into the life of the Trinity.
~ Jonathan Stepp
Insider Trading, The Jesus Way
Filed under: By John Stonecypher, Christian Living, Scripture Paraphrases, Trinity | Tags: Bible, Christian Living, Matthew, Perichoresis, The Sermon on the Mount, Trinity
Comments (3) A Trinitarian, Christ-Centered Interpretation of Matthew 6:19-34
(19) I have an insider investment tip for you: Your 401(k) isn’t as solid as you think; it’s tied up in assets that have no future, so get out now. (20) Earth, Inc. is getting taken over by New Creation Corp. It’s a done deal, but most people don’t know about it yet. In the end, New Creation will be the only stock worth owning anyway, and it’s 100% guaranteed against depreciation and theft. It’s time to start dealing in the currency of the future – Love.
(21) By the way, your investment portfolio perfectly reveals what you actually believe in. (22) Your whole body lives according to whatever it is you fix your eye upon, whatever it is that fills your vision. If your eye is healthy and clear, fixed on the things that matter, you get filled up with truth, and you live according to reality. (23) But if you fill your vision instead with a bunch of products you want to purchase, it blocks out the light, and you live in the dark. (24) I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking about ‘balancing’ your devotion to Papa and to Mammon. You can forget that idea right now. There’s no such thing as a person who makes sacrifices at both altars. You have to choose. Pick your god and quit waffling.
(25) The secret is this: Just chill out. Really. Don’t even stress about the necessities of life, like food and clothing. To worry is to be out-of-touch with the real world. (26) Birds know this. They don’t even have jobs; they just enjoy feasting every day from Papa’s own hand. Can you imagine the possibility that he cares for you at least that much? (27) Worrying – even about the basics of life – is a complete waste of time. (28) Flowers know this. Do you see them raising and shearing sheep, spinning yarn and weaving clothes for themselves? (29) Yet not even the most super of supermodels is so well-dressed. (30) Flowers live for a day, and Papa clothes them wondrously for that whole day. Can you imagine the possibility that he just might take such good care of you? Can you look outside your blindness, see with my eyes and glimpse the truth?
(31) So again I say, chill out about things like food and drink and clothing. (32) Those who worry about such things don’t know the first thing about reality. What’s real is the simple fact that YOUR DAD is in the driver’s seat of the world, and he’s well aware of your needs. (33) Take all that energy you used to spend worrying, and spend it on New Creation instead. Share in my work of setting the world right by earthing the Triune life within it. And along the way, you and me, we’ll dress like flowers and eat like birds. (34) We will face today’s challenges today and tomorrow’s challenges tomorrow.
~ John Stonecypher
Sacrificial Self-Giving . . .
Filed under: By Tim Brassell, Christian Living, Trinity | Tags: Christianity, Ministry, Perichoresis, Stephen Seamands, Trinity
Comments (6) . . . is at the heart of Christ’s ministry and consequently all Christian ministry … which … is a participation in his ongoing ministry.
So writes Stephen Seamands in his book Ministry in the Image of God – The Trinitarian Shape of Christian Service. Continuing, Seamands says:
Certainly, this is a neglected emphasis in current teaching and preparation for ministry, especially in North America. Can you imagine an advertisement in a Christian magazine urging those considering preparation for ministry to choose a particular college or seminary because ‘we will prepare you to die’? In an age dedicated to self-fulfillment and enamored with success, who wants to hear about sacrifice and self-giving?
Contrast this to the preparation for ministry currently taking place in the underground seminaries of the Chinese house churches. ‘To escape from the police,’ a house-church leader told an American pastor, ‘we teach our students how to jump out of a two-story window so they won’t break their legs when they hit the ground.’ In their seminaries, it is assumed that being in ministry will involve suffering and persecution, perhaps imprisonment or even death.
Continuing again:
Though sacrifice and self-giving in ministry may have been emphasized more in past eras than they are now, because of the nature of human sinfulness they are notions resisted in every age. We often define sin in terms of outward actions contrary to God’s law… However, lawlessness is not the essence of sin. According to scripture, sin lies beneath our actions.
Sin is ultimately rooted in an inward attitude, a deep seated self-centeredness, an evil heart out of which sinful actions flow (cf Mark 7:21-23).
This self-orientation, so deeply entrenched in every one of us, is threatened by sacrificial self-giving and opposes it at all costs. We need, then, to come to terms with our self-centeredness and God’s remedy before the Trinitarian pattern can be realized in our ministry. (Seamands, pp. 82-84)
Or in our relationships, homes, jobs and churches!
Not the most pleasant topic to think on, but it sure might explain why you are REALLY having so much trouble in your marriage, and in your family & extended family, on the job, among your friends, and even in your church, huh? It too often explains my troubles!
Holy Spirit, help us embrace Who You are as revealed in Jesus, that we might know who we are in Him and experience His exact Sacrificial Self-giving with all people and things!
~ Timothy Brassell