A call to a new Reformation in the teaching and life of Jesus' followers
An implicit point in many discussions of the state of a human being after death, revolve around the theory that we were created with immortal souls, which live on after corporeal death. The belief is that we will all live forever, either in bliss or torment. I did not find any conclusive evidence of this in the New Testament. In fact, the majority of the … Continue reading Eternal destiny, part 3: Eternal what?
The clearest finding I come to from this study was something I had already suspected, but I was still surprised by the preponderance of evidence that came through. This is that the concept of hell and condemnation is used in the New Testament primarily as a warning to those who claim to believe, or who claim God’s privilege. It is not used as a warning … Continue reading Eternal destiny, part 2: Begging the Question
Note: The source New Testament study on which this series is based is now available here I’ve already posted about my aversion to statements of faith in general, and to specific points in the commonly-accepted evangelical doctrinal statements. In the next several posts I want to take on one specific point in Evangelical doctrine that I believe is seriously misguided–the subject of eternal condemnation/hell. As … Continue reading Eternal destiny, part 1
I have been reading N.T. Wright’s book “The Last Word — Beyond the Bible Wars to a New Understanding of the Authority of Scripture.” This is a good read, shorter than usual for Wright, that discusses a number of issues surrounding Biblical inspiration in what I believe is a very healthy light. My quote of Wright in this post, while it links to an online … Continue reading Biblical Literalism according to Wright
It’s not about you.The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness.So begins that modern mogul of megachurches, Rick Warren, in his bestseller “The Purpose Driven Life.” He’s right, of course, though I wish he would have expanded the thought in more directions than he did. But I’m afraid that though millions bought … Continue reading Personal Salvation
Those who’ve been in regular dialog with me for some time now know that I have a long-running issue with creeds or statements of faith. To some extent my issue is with the concept itself–that a creed seems often to be used to define who’s “in,” or more particularly who’s “out” of fellowship with a group, a deity, a religion. While I freely acknowledge my … Continue reading A word about creeds
We have it all wrong when we invite people to follow Jesus. The typical Evangelical invitation to Christ is, of course, summed up most fully in the so-called “Four Spiritual Laws.” In short, they are (and partially in my own words): God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life; Because you are sinful, you can’t experience God’s plan for your life; Jesus … Continue reading Atonement as Evangelism???
I have just got to promote this article by N.T. (Tom) Wright, bishop of Durham in England: http://www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/page.cfm?ID=334 Thanks to my friend Ben for sharing it. Wright has outlined so many things in this piece, that have also been bugging me, that I don’t even know what highlights to quote. It’s long and a bit heavy at times, but seriously, take the time to digest … Continue reading Required reading by N.T. Wright
One of the things that originally got me on the subject of what the Bible actually says about itself was my frustration about how people in the church use it. . .and these are things I have encountered in a wide variety of Christian settings, not just evangelical/fundamental ones. I refer here to the devotional rituals described by some as “time with the Lord” or … Continue reading Spiritual Innoculation
While looking for the source of the quote in the previous post, I came across the entire text of Vernard Eller’s compilation of the writings of Johann Christoff Blumhardt and Christoff Heinrich Blumhardt, Thy Kingdom Come: A Blumhardt Reader. This excerpt from the section entitled “The Bible” is relevant and interesting: People speak much these days about “the inspiration of scripture”; and this is good. … Continue reading A different take on Inspiration – Blumhardt