~John 3:16 (NIV)~ For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not parish but have eternal life. Question #2: Have you ever considered the Bible from this perspective before? Answer #2: Since a very young age, I have known that Jesus is the main theme of the Bible and that He died for our salvation.
In chapter one of Obey Hendricks ' book, The Politics of Jesus, he contends that the foundation of the bible shifted from personal deliverance founds in Genesis to collective deliverance detailed in Exodus (Hendricks p14.). What prompted the shift? How did it influence Jesus’ ministry and teachings? The answers can be found in the Hebrews’ exodus from Egypt, the years in the wilderness, and the Babylonian exile. In essence, Hendricks sketches the blueprint from which Jesus developed and exercised his political consciousness.
The importance of the Mandate of Heaven was that it help to convince the remaining Shang clan-members that the Zhou clan was justified in seizing power, as well as gain their trust. When the Zhou clan defeated the Shang clan, the chief-deity was renamed to “Heaven”, the monarch was called the “Son of Heaven”, and his rule was referred to as the “Mandate of Heaven”. The Mandate of Heaven’s theory stated that a supreme deity would choose the ruler, and would allow the ruler to remain in power, as long as they stayed a wise, energetic, and principled ruler and guardian of his citizens. It also stated that corruption, insurrection, arrogance, and violence were all reasons why a leader could or should be replaced by a dynasty and leader that
In Mark Jarman’s “Unholy Sonnet 1” the Trinity is represented though vivid images and language to illustrate that comprehending the Trinity is something out of a person understanding. Jarman, to provide the reader with the knowledge that he is talking about the Trinity refers to God in three ways in a single line, “Dear God, Heavenly Father, Gracious Lord” (1). This line shows the use of language to describe the Trinity which is made up of The Father, Son, and The Holy Spirit. Then the author goes on throughout the first half of the poem capitalizing words that relate to God to show each word as a pronoun, “Mother Love and Maker, Light Divine… Oasis That All Sands Are Running Toward” (1,8)
In Methodists and the Crucible of Race Peter Murray offers a review of the historical race relations of the denomination that has been integral to my education and employment the past couple years. Murray’s chronicling explains the events that have caused the modern reality of a segregated denomination contrary to those who still proclaim Methodists as United. Methodists and the Crucible of Race reminds Methodists that while our denomination has made attempts for intercultural ministry, the church still remains guilty of sins of racial injustice throughout history. This insight allows Methodists to end their conformity to culture’s race barriers and attempt counter-cultural conversations of reconciliation and desegregation. In order
Rev Rod Cannon makes a plea to God of thanksgiving and blessing for certain people in our nation. Rev Cannon starts out his prayer by thanking God for the government. Although the government is not where we want it to be today, we she be thankful for it. Without the government, America would be a completely lost nation. We would lose the principle, attributes, and foundations in which our founding fathers established.
The article “Liberal Arts and The Bottom Line” by Lane Wallace suggests that business executives that are being taught more liberal art based courses will be taught how to be a well-rounded human being. Instead of being all about what Wallace refers to as the bottom line, which can do great harm to the economy and the company’s employees, it is presented that business executives that took liberal arts courses are less concerned about the business bottom line and more about the well-being of the people around them. Wallace’s argument that liberal arts shapes a person into a more well-rounded human being is not effectively supported in the article. Being a business executive comes with the responsibility of trying to increase its profits.
When humans are surrounded in an endless chasm of darkness, they find it necessary to grasp onto whatever dim hope may be near them. They find it necessary to set their minds onto a mission or action, however feasible or relevant, and turn all thoughts away from death or despair. Light and dark are words commonly thrown about, usually to describe gradients of color. But humans need light in the sense of comfort, a way out, or the promise of salvation. They have to find this light in life, to turn away from the darkness.
The Shasta and Trinity Forest Reserves were established by President Theodore Roosevelt’s proclamations in 1905. The forests combined administratively in 1954 and officially became the Shasta-Trinity National Forest (Shasta-Trinity or SHF). The Shasta-Trinity, the largest in California, encompasses 2.1 million acres with over 6,278 miles of streams and rivers. It ranges in elevation from 1,000 feet (Shasta Lake general area) to Mt. Shasta with an elevation of 14,162 feet.
John made the choice to not attend church and he added fuel to the fire which only made the trials worse, making him seem sneaky and
Jesus and the holy spirit are just different forms of God. It is up to us how we see them. Our churches may have a certain image of them, but reading this book made me think it is up to ourselves how we see God, Jesus, and the holy spirit. It is easy for us to see Jesus as a handsome, tall, strong man, but he was not. He was just like us, his people.
In chapter two of “Christianity with Power,” Charles H. Kraft discusses the two types of realities: reality and REALITY. He describes “reality” as a human’s view of reality and “REALITY” as what is actually there (as God sees it). Kraft explains that our view of reality is fuzzy and partial compared to God’s view of REALITY. He uses the well-known story of the blind men and the elephant to prove that one’s perspective of the world differs from another. Kraft presents four alternative views of reality.
A short critique - “The Reformed Pastor” by Richard Baxter Richard Baxter’s writings on the “The Reformed Pastor” is a wake up call to every shepherd of the flocks to examine their soul’s condition and their flocks as well. So, the minister, coming into ministry with much infirmity, has before him a great responsibility and yet difficult office to undertake and to accomplish. Every minister’s success in accomplishing God ordained duties and responsibilities depends on the thoroughness of his examination of his own soul – “It is most necessary, therefore, that men of so much infirmity should take heed to themselves, and be careful in the oversight of their own souls.” While he takes care of his own soul diligently, the same way he needs to care for his flocks welfare – soul’s betterment. Richard Baxter’s writing had been a humble yet an authoritative call to reform ministers’ actions and live their lives as if the souls of his flock depend on his actions.
SOME OTHER REFLECTIONS The doctrine of Trinity is the foundation of Christianity. One cannot comprehend God’s creation, salvation, the call to community, prayer, and many other expressions of the Christian faith without it. There are several considerations that Trinitarian Theology alone can make sense of. First, the nature of God is impossible to explain apart from Trinitarian Theology.
While the other gospels emphasize the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven, John instead emphasizes new life found in Jesus. It’s from John that we get Christ’s famous claim “I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me” -John 14:6. Jesus frequently uses metaphors to hint at his identity. John records more of these analogies than any other gospel, giving us some of the most famous word pictures for Christ.