The Surprising God

This is part 2 in a series exploring Gerald Rau's book  Mapping the Origins Debate . For other posts in the series, click a number: 1 , 3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 . Six origins models In this post we'll overview Rau's six origins models. They fall into two groups: evolutionary models (of which there are four) and creationary models (of which there are two). We'll note points of agreement and disagreement, due to multiple factors that will become more evident as we proceed through the series. photo credit: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie Evolutionary models If the origins debate is to be productive, a key issue has to do with agreeing on what is meant by key terms. One such term is "evolution," which is used in various ways, sometimes referring to a philosophy as much as a process. That philosophy is  naturalism , "the conviction that everything can be explained by natural causes" alone, an idea closely related to  materialism ...

This is part 1 in a series exploring Gerald Rau's book Mapping the Origins Debate . For other posts in the series, click a number:  2 , 3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 . What does this topic have to do with incarnational, Trinitarian theology? Principally this: the Triune God, who created the cosmos, now sustains it moment by moment. As noted in Scripture, "In him [God], we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28). There is no distant, uninvolved, deistic God here. The Triune God revealed to us in the person and work of Jesus Christ is one who has been and continues to be involved with his creation in the most intimate, personal way. However, in his grace, God does not, through his involvement, dictate all that happens to his creation as though he was a puppeteer manipulating his marionette. Rather, in love and for love (real relationship), God grants his creation (humankind included) freedom to develop --or in the words of science (which need unpa...

For other posts in this series on the book  Life Together , click a number:  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 , 8 . This is the ninth and concluding post in a series examining Dietrich Bonhoeffer's classic book on Christian community. His focus in the last chapter is the practice of confession within the church. Scripture admonishes followers of Christ to "Confess your faults one to another" (James 5:16 KJV). But as Bonhoeffer notes, many Christians neglect this instruction to their detriment: "He who is alone with his sin is utterly alone," and this despite being together with others in worship, prayer and fellowship. Without confession as part of the practice of the community, its fellowship "permits no one to be a sinner... everybody must conceal his sin from himself and from the fellowship." The result is people gathered together, yet living alone "in lies and hypocrisy" (p110). Confession leads to truth and liberation This ...

For other posts in this series on the book  Life Together , click a number:  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 , 7 , 9 . The previous post  in this series noted Bonhoeffer's call for the practice of meekness as essential to the health of a faith community. He goes on to discuss the related practices of listening to one another (Christians, particularly Christian leaders, too often speak before listening, p97), helping one another, and bearing one another's burdens--including one another's sins though the practice of unconditional forgiveness (p102). The Ministry of the Word When these ministries of grace are in place, "the ultimate and highest service can also be rendered, namely, the ministry of the Word of God to others." Because this ministry is often abused within the church, Bonhoeffer gives this warning: [Speaking the Word is] that unique situation in which one person bears witness in human words to another person, bespeaking the whole co...

It's now September, which means that Advent, followed by Christmas, is not far away. It's likely that those who lead the church in worship are already preparing. This post may be of help.  The Advent/Christmas season celebrates (in this order), the future, present and past "comings" of the incarnate Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ ("advent" from Latin "adventus," means "coming"). These celebrations begin a new cycle in the church's annual worship calendar in much of Western Christianity. For an incarnational, Trinitarian perspective on the meaning of this important season, together with other resources to help with preparation, click here . (Note: the first Sunday of Advent in 2014 is November 30).

For other posts in this series on the book  Life Together , click a number:  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 , 6 , 8 ,  9 . In chapter 4 , Bonhoeffer addresses the topic of ministry within Christian community. He begins by noting an evil that quickly arises in community: a spirit of competitive, self-justifying judgmentalism. It arose early on among Jesus' own disciples: "There arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be the greatest" (Luke 9:46). Because this spirit quickly destroys fellowship, "It is vitally necessary that every Christian community... face this dangerous enemy squarely, and eradicate it (p90). But how? Bonhoeffer suggests several remedies, all related to spiritual disciplines that help us minister (serve) in truly Christ-like ways. We'll cover two of these disciplines this time and more later. 1. The discipline of holding one's tongue According to Bonhoeffer, an important and effective antidote for the insidious poison of...

For other posts in this series on the book Life Together , click a number: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 7 ,  8 ,  9 . So far, Bonhoeffer has emphasized the corporate practice of the spiritual disciplines. Now he addresses our time alone: Let him who cannot be alone beware of community . He will only do harm to himself and to the community. Alone you stood before God when he called you; alone you had to answer that call; alone you had to struggle and pray; and alone you will die and give an account to God. You cannot escape from yourself; for God has singled you out. If you refuse to be alone you are rejecting Christ's call to you, and you can have no part in the community of those who are called.... But the reverse is also true: Let him who is not in community beware of being alone.... If you scorn the fellowship of the brethren, you reject the call of Jesus Christ, and thus your solitude can only be hurtful to you.... Only in the fellowship do we learn to be rightly alone, and o...

Jacob Arminius John Calvin Unfortunately, some try to force-fit Trinitarian theology into the continuum that exists between Calvinism   and Arminianism . Doing so overlooks (or at least oversimplifies) the history of Christian theology, which goes back to the Apostles and from there flows in multiple streams, including Orthodox streams in the East; and Catholic, Reformed, Lutheran, Anglican, Episcopal and other streams in the West. Contrary to common misunderstandings held by some (many?) Western Protestants, Calvinism and Arminianism are not the only theological "games in town." Trying to locate Trinitarian theology within the continuum between those dueling theologies is like trying to force the proverbial square peg into a round hole. The result, often, is badly misinformed criticism of Trinitarian theology. Martin Luther In a recent post on The Gospel Coalition (TGC) blog, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) professor Douglas Sweeney showed how try...

For other posts in this series on the book  Life Together , click a number:  1 ,  2 ,  3 , 4 , 6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 . Last time in this series reviewing Life Together , we noted Bonhoeffer's exhortation for churches to practice together the spiritual disciplines. He mentioned first  praying the psalms together . Now we'll look at his emphasis on the communal practices of Scripture reading, hymn singing, praying and partaking of the Lord's Supper. In these ways, the community of believers, by the Spirit, share together in their Lord's love and life. Reading Scripture together According to Bonhoeffer, "Holy Scripture...is God's revealed Word." He regards this Word as an integrated whole, comprised of both Old and New Testaments. The Word is connected by "inner relationships...of promise and fulfillment, sacrifice and law, law and gospel, cross and resurrection, faith and obedience, having and hoping," through which, through the Spirit, we are g...

For other posts in this series on the book Life Together , click a number:  1 ,  2 , 3 , 5 ,   6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 . In Life Together, Bonhoeffer emphasizes the importance to the church of the corporate use of spiritual disciplines. He begins by emphasizing the importance of praying the psalms together, noting New Testament exhortations for churches to "speak to yourselves in psalms" (Ephesians 5:19) and to "teach and admonish one another in psalms" (Colossians 3:16)" (see p44). Christ's prayers on our behalf Bonhoeffer's view is that through the psalms, God speaks (the psalms, like all of Scripture are "God's Word"). And so, Bonhoeffer appropriately asks this: "How can God's Word [in the psalms] be at the same time prayer to God?" (p44). His answer is that we should interpret the psalms as the prayers offered by the man Jesus (the living, incarnate Word of God) to his Heavenly Father on behalf of the Body of Christ (th...

Randy Bloom Addressing the often-overlooked link between theology and mission, this post quotes (with minor edits) from chapter one of GCI's "Church-Next Training Manual" by Randy Bloom, faculty member at Grace Communion Seminary and regional director for Grace Communion International. The Trinity: Loving Communion According to Scripture, there is one God who reveals himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; three distinct yet unified Persons sharing the same essence, nature, and will. Father, Son, and Spirit live in a perfect, mutually dependent relationship of love. An ancient theological term used to describe this loving communion is perichoresis. Perichoresis attempts to express the interpenetration and co-inherence of the three persons of the Trinity. Perichoresis refers to the eternal “movement of love between the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” which is expressed in the outworking of God’s purpose to reconcile and renew the world. The perichoret...

For other posts in this series  on the book  Life Together ,  click a number: 1 , 2 ,  4 ,  5 ,   6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 . While writing this series on Bonhoeffer's book, Life Together, I've been reading Strange Glory, a life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Charles Marsh, who provides important historical context . He shows how Bonhoeffer wrestled to grasp the essential nature of the church in the face of what the Nazis were doing to co-opt the German-Lutheran Church into its evil schemes. Sadly, many bishops and pastors cooperated. Theirs was a badly misguided view of the essential nature of the church. Through his experiences in Nazi Germany and elsewhere (including exposure to the Black-African church in America), Bonhoeffer came to understand that the church is a spiritual , rather than a psychic  (human/experiential) reality. He learned that the church is "created...by the Holy Spirit," with its basis being "the clear, manifest Word ...

In earlier posts (click here  and here ) examining Aaron Root's book The Relational Pastor , we noted that a key attribute of effective pastors is empathy --the ability to join Jesus in his place-sharing "feeling with" others. Empathy is also essential for true Christian fellowship--the topic of our current series exploring Bonhoeffer's Life Together. Here is a video that helpfully defines empathy. Enjoy (and embrace!).

For other posts in this series on the book  Life Together , click a number: 1 , 3 ,  4 ,  5 ,   6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 . Last time in this series exploring  Life Together, we noted that Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote during a time when the German Lutheran Confessing Church had to go underground in order to survive. Such times remind us of just how precious the Christian fellowship is that we, in easier times, tend to take for granted. Bonhoeffer comments: It is easily forgotten that the fellowship of Christian brethren is a gift of grace, a gift of the Kingdom of God that any day may be taken from us... It is grace, nothing but grace, that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brethren (p20). The value of the church, is that it is "community through Jesus Christ and in Jesus Christ... A Christian needs others because of Jesus Christ... A Christian comes to others only through Jesus Christ" (p21). In Christian community, we come toget...