Sermon: The Vocational Gospel--Romans 7-8 (4-23-17)

Bible Blog: Bible-ese

This month in Powerhouse we’re going to start a new series in our “year of the Bible,” called “Bible-ese.” This series focuses on the words we use that get their meaning from the Bible, such as soul, spirit, sin, salvation, atonement, mercy, grace, and messiah. If you’ve been in the Church long enough, you probably think that you know what all of these words mean. The problem, however, is that all of these concepts are rooted in ancient languages and cultures, and they have had thousands of years to develop and change (for better or worse) since they were written down. What we assume these words mean may not be exactly what the Biblical authors had in mind. Let’s look at an example: atonement . The dictionary defines atonement as “reparation for a wrong or injury.” When you atone for something, you are paying for a crime or offense you caused in order to make things right. This is probably how most of us use the word, and this is what we think of when we talk about Jesus atoning f...

Choruses from the Rock (VI), By T.S. Eliot

[I know that I promised blog entries that I haven't delivered yet. I've got plenty of ideas in my head, it's just a matter of finding the time and the motivation at the same time. Anyway, I expect that I'll be ready to write relatively soon, but until then I thought I would tide you over with a section from T.S. Eliot's excellent poem, Choruses from "The Rock". Enjoy!] It is hard for those who have never known persecution, And who have never known a Christian, To believe these tales of Christian persecution. It is hard for those who live near a Bank To doubt the security of their money. It is hard for those who live near a Police Station To believe in the triumph of violence. Do you think that the Faith has conquered the World And that lions no longer need keepers? Do you need to be told that whatever has been, can still be? Do you need to be told that even such modest attainments As you boast of in the way of polite society Will hardly surv...

Works of Love XI: Love Believes All Things

[From Part II Chapter II, " Love Believes All Things and Yet is Never Deceived "] “Love… believes all things.” ~ 1 Corinthians 13:7 “ Love believes everything—and yet is never to be deceived. Amazing! To believe nothing in order to never be deceived—this seems to make sense. For how would a man ever be able to deceive someone who believes nothing! But to believe everything and thereby, as it were to throw oneself away, fair game for all deception and all deceivers, and yet precisely in this way to assure oneself infinitely against every deception: this is remarkable.” [1] When it comes to trusting people, we modern Americans tend to be very careful. We consider it an essential skill, knowing who and when to trust. “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” That proverb teaches us that if I allow myself to be deceived because I trusted when I should have known better, it’s really my fault, not the deceiver’s. And we desperately don’t want to be deceived ...

Theological Fragments

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