We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. (2 Corinthians 4:7) Read: Job 34:1 – 36:33, 2 Corinthians 4:1-12, Psalm 44:1-8, Proverbs 22:10-12 Relate: I was climbing one of the cliffs…
Respect for someone else’s religion is not about glossing over the differences but openly acknowledging them and then building reasoned dialogue around them. If I am unwilling to truly discover what someone else believes or acknowledge that we are truly not the same, then I am being the very opposite of respectful.
In the house of God, are we pickpockets or prayer warriors? What exactly is the house of God?
The teacher of the law asked, “Who is my neighbor?” This is a good and very legitimate question. It is one that we each should be asking as well, but I want to flip it for a second. “Who is the Good Samaritan?”
All of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. He gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are…
If we were to read it with a more accurate understanding of some of the idioms and metaphors… let us just say this would not get a PG rating. Solomon was channeling his inner DH Lawrence, not his inner Shakespeare.
Only fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” (Psalm 14:1)
What if it isn’t safe? Does that change our responsibility? Should that change our actions?
The fact we are usually quite rightly seen as something to be avoided rather than emulated says far more about the church than it does the world.
One of the biggest lies that it seems everybody believes:
“God is more concerned with who you are than what you do.”
THE RIVER WALK 