Month: January 2017

The Bible Through Hispanic Eyes

“This is what we mean when we say that the Bible is good to us. It is not so much that we interpret the Bible, as that the Bible interprets us in a radically new and ultimately affirming way! The Bible tells us no matter how crushed we might be, that we are a royal priesthood! The Bible tells us no matter how rootless and homeless society might make us feel, that we are part of God’s own family, and of the great home that God is building. The Bible tells us, no matter whether we have green cards or not, that we are citizens of the New Jerusalem. Thus, when you see us walking to church early on a Sunday morning, and wonder at the loving tenderness with which we cradle our Bibles in our arms, know that we do this not out of some fanatical bibliolatry, but simply out of love and gratitude, because indeed the Bible has been good to us!”

– from Justo L. Gonzáles in Santa Biblia: The Bible Through Hispanic Eyes. 

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God’s Mission – Our Mission

Our mission (if it is biblically informed and validated) means our committed participation as God’s people, at God’s invitation and command, in God’s own mission within the history of God’s world for the redemption of God’s creation.

from “The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible’s Grand Narrative” by Christopher J. H. Wright

http://a.co/dIV1Dwq

God Knows the Best Way to Touch Us

“God sees according to his wisdom, so he can make an impression on each soul in the best, that is, most effective, way. The methods, occasions, and hours are different for all so that one cannot determine it. The Lord takes hold of one in preaching, another in his house, overcomes a third in the street, another again out in the field, and seizes a fifth in the very act of sinning. Therefore, it is not in accordance with the gospel to lay down fixed rules, or to set forth methods and forms in which souls must first be situated, or to expect a coincident method in the seeking and gathering of souls. One must entrust to the Savior’s free grace and judgment how he can and will reach souls.”

– Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf

Verses to Remember

These two Bible verses have been quickened to my heart by the Holy Spirit in every Presidential Administration and are important for every Christian to remember:

“You must not speak evil of any of your rulers.” (Acts 23:5 NLT)

and

“I urge you to pray…for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.” (1 Timothy 2:1-2 NLT)

God and Suffering

If you have a God great and transcendent enough to be mad at because he hasn’t stopped evil and suffering in the world, then you have (at the same moment) a God great and transcendent enough to have good reasons for allowing it to continue that you can’t know.

Keller, Timothy (2008-02-14). The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism (p. 23). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Does Doctrine Matter?

Ironically, the insistence that doctrines do not matter is really a doctrine itself. It holds a specific view of God, which is touted as superior and more enlightened than the beliefs of most major religions. So the proponents of this view do the very thing they forbid in others.

from “The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism” by Timothy Keller

http://a.co/05FXk9B

Relativistic Arrogance

There is an appearance of humility in the protestation that the truth is much greater than any one of us can grasp, but if this is used to invalidate all claims to discern the truth it is in fact an arrogant claim to a kind of knowledge which is superior to [all others]… We have to ask: “What is the [absolute] vantage ground from which you claim to be able to relativize all the absolute claims these different scriptures make?” How could you possibly know that no religion can see the whole truth unless you yourself have the superior, comprehensive knowledge of spiritual reality you just claimed that none of the religions have?
From “The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism” by Timothy Keller

http://a.co/baiDPPL

Robust Religious Beliefs Are Increasing Not Diminishing

Religion is not just a temporary thing that helped us adapt to our environment. Rather it is a permanent and central aspect of the human condition. This is a bitter pill for secular, nonreligious people to swallow. Everyone wants to think that they are in the mainstream, that they are not extremists. But robust religious beliefs dominate the world. There is no reason to expect that to change.

from “The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism” by Timothy Keller

http://a.co/26TpoCi

Christianity and Exclusivity

During my nearly two decades in New York City, I’ve had numerous opportunities to ask people, “What is your biggest problem with Christianity? What troubles you the most about its beliefs or how it is practiced?” One of the most frequent answers I have heard over the years can be summed up in one word: exclusivity.

from “The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism” by Timothy Keller

http://a.co/jbYbuYq

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