Third Week in Advent – Day 2 – God’s Love Working in Us
But how should these points work themselves out into the lives of followers of Jesus? Let me suggest some ideas: Henry Neufeld, Not Ashamed of the Gospel, p. 32-33
-
-
Third Week in Advent – Day 1 – The Christian Identity Card
According to John, as noted in a previous meditation, maybe more than any other New Testament document, breathes the atmosphere of the Old Testament. Even though a dualism between the flesh and the Spirit is pervasive in it, and it utilizes the Greek vocabulary with evident nuance and a broad understanding of its philosophical connotations,…
-
Second Week in Advent – Day 5 – Peace to the Embattled
Significantly, Mark announces the beginning of the Good News (gospel) of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This proclamation stands against any other declaration of good news. For example, Caesar claimed himself to be a “savior” who brought prosperity and peace to the world.Good news, transliterated later into the word “gospel”, comes from the Greek…
-
Second Week in Advent – Day 4 – Conquering Conquest
While it’s difficult to let go of the old, the new beckons us. What is the old? It is what theologian Walter Wink called the Domination System — it’s the system of violence and oppression that enslaves the world.12 But in the death and resurrection of Jesus, that system — that world — has been…
-
Second Week in Advent – Day 3 – Shaping Peace
In this entertaining book for all ages, Squareland enjoys a simple, uniform, conflict-free life of “perfect squares”—until expectations are stunningly upended by change. Suddenly Squares must deal with foreign creatures: Triangles, Rectangles, Circles, Ellipses, Parallelograms, Trapezoids, “Gons,” and such weirdoes. Each shape has its own natural personality and proclivities, so complications, cliques, tensions, and conflict threaten…
-
Second Week in Advent – Day 2 – In What Do You Hope?
Threatened by Amaziah, Amos tells the priest the harsh truth that not only has the sanctuary lost the Spirit of God; it will eventually be destroyed as a result of its choice to serve the king rather than God. In the language of Paul Tillich, the only Ultimate that delivers is the one that stands…
-
Second Week in Advent – Day 1 – Christians for Peace
Regardless of what one thinks of Anabaptism, all true Christians must be for peace. This does not necessarily mean that we must all be pacifists. But even if one believes that violence may become necessary in emergencies, we are all to be peacemakers. The Gospel is a Gospel of peace. God is the God of…
-
First Week in Advent – Bonus – Hopeful Prayer
God has published prayers from angry, exasperated, and lonely people, so that we can know that hope remains for us. Imagine the tragedy if he had published only perfect prayers from perfect people. Alas, such prayers would not be perfect! We need some rough edges, prayers throbbing with powerful emotions. Otherwise, we might be tempted…
-
First Week in Advent – Day 7 – Hope through Loss
Many readers might recognize that the title line of this book emerges from Proverbs 13:12: “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” Although I do not believe that I speak for the experiences of all people, as I say above, I do believe that anyone who has…
-
First Week in Advent – Day 6 – A Continuity of Hope
The authors are not interested in divine knowledge for its own sake. Rather, it is to aid the Colossians in their life together as the church. The gospel is credible only as it is demonstrated by individual saints and the church collectively in the good works that bear witness to God’s kingdom. Christian convictions must…