ROMANS/COLOSSIANS
I am not sure how to go about this post. I am facing another overwhelming topic – mostly I am limited because this idea is active and dynamic. Every time I try to grab at one aspect of it I quickly become distracted, drop it and run after another – kind of like a little kid in a toy store…or a candy shop…or an amusement park.
The topic has to do with the connection between our physical bodies and our relationship to an invisible God. In outline form, here is what I would like to communicate:
1. What we choose to do with our bodies is powerful, and makes us who we are.
2. What we choose to do with our bodies is superficial, and does not make us who we are.
3. Why God became man – to allow us to be who we are.
Okay so to expound on point number one: What we do with our bodies is powerful, and makes us who we are…
What I am mostly referring to in this is addiction, or habit. When a person begins to smoke, he may at first be moderate, but eventually he will be unable to say “no” to smoking. When a person has unhealthy eating habits, they may at first be a choice, but these choices will turn in to cravings that need to be satisfied. A lot of college students (my self included) have an addiction to caffeine. All of these habits may seem insignificant and not worthy of discussion, but the principal behind them has deeper implications.
In Romans Paul says that when we engage our bodies in sin, we will become enslaved to it. If a husband is angry with his wife, and instead of working through this anger he hits her, he is habituating his body to this response. It will become more and more difficult to not hit her, because he is becoming enslaved to it. Instead of rationally controlling his body, his fury is controlling his body. What he originally chose to do has become who he is.
I believe this topic is especially relevant in light of the ongoing debate about sexual rights and preferences. This is a topic which I am inexperienced in discussing, and apart from arguments I have heard from others, have little insight in to. So here are some of my initial personal thoughts. Actually, they aren’t even my original thoughts, they are Paul’s. In the first chapter of Romans, Paul writes a passage about people who do not believe in God. He describes them as wicked and foolish, as worshipping other gods. Yet the only sin which he describes in detail is sexual sin. The passage reads:
“Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God have them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves ... For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error” (1:22-24, 26-27).
Notice that these people did not begin as enslaved to their desires. Notice also that what caused their enslavement was not in the practices themselves. Rather, it was the fact that they were foolish – rather than worshipping a glorious God, they worshipped images of him. In another childlike analogy: That is like choosing pictures of ice cream, instead of ice cream itself. So the real issue behind homosexuality is that we foolishly chose that which is less glorious, and then become enslaved to it. This is not what we were meant for, there is something better. This is bigger than our bodies.
Stay with me – this topic develops and is hopefully clarified by connecting Paul’s next letter, Colossians, with Romans. In Romans Paul has demonstrated that the choices we make with our bodies will enslave us to them. In Colossians Paul is writing to people who are trying to become “good people” by disciplining their bodies – they are acting as though sticking to regulations concerning their food, drink and holidays has the power to recommend them before God.
Why would the church at Colossae be tempted to purify their outward flesh? Maybe it is because they see their addictions, and believe that they only signify outward behavior. We want to know an invisible God and as physical beings try to approach him by correcting our external conduct.
Here lies the dichotomy: while our physical sins have the power to create addictions in our bodies, righting this behavior is not as simple as changing our external behavior. Yes, knowing God is related to our bodies, but not in the way we understand it to be. We think that becoming good is a matter of changing external habits, that homosexuality is a matter of sexual preferences, but we are more deeply human than our physical bodies and desires. If the ultimate goal in our lives is to cure ourselves of bad habits, like smoking, eating junk food, etc. then we are missing out. God’s design for humans is not so shallow.
Paul redirects our understanding by showing us the appropriate relationship between bodies and godliness. He describes Christ -- “in whom the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily”. God became man to show us what being man really is. Paul says that the old man is not the one who is concerned with external practices; “these are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ” (2:17) The old man is instead the one who walks in “sexual immorality, passion, evil desire and covetousness…anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk” (3: 5, 8). Likewise, these outward principles do not create any real change; they only have “an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh” (2:23). The one who puts off the old man is enabled to walk in compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forbearance, love, peace and gratitude – he has become a new man.
2.26.2007
2.17.2007
Glory Glory!
II CORINTHIANS
There are some days when I am struck by how meaningless life is. I wake up, hounded by the routine of my thoughts and anxieties - the same cycle of guilt, confusion and rationalization begins in my first moments of consciousness. I am sure that all of my readers, and likely all of humanity, can relate on some level to the stagnation of life.
Maybe it is your third year at the same job, with the same coworkers, the same pace, the same tasks.
Maybe it is the loneliness that characterizes your goings to and from school, errands, and home.
Maybe it is the fatigue from holding yourself up to an invisible standard and realizing that you still have not reached it.
Maybe it is the apathy which colors your perception, has numbed you to any excitement, and has claimed you as a cynic.
These feelings are real, they are legitimate and trying to battle them is tiring. Some may not be as contemplative and so may not dwell on or analyze these emotions, but they are still true. All that is meaningless, is meaningless. To say otherwise is absurd and I am not going to try to write meaning into tasks or happiness into melancholy.
The trouble is "we were meant to live for so much more" (Quote: Switchfoot). There is a Magnificence in life that transforms our monotony into melodrama. There is not any independent meaning in our unvaried, uneventful biographies, but behind or beneath them there is that which is enthralling.
Every religion recognizes this heartfelt need to live for more, and offers some way to access this glory -- whether it be hours of meditation to reach Nirvana, sacrificing your life to please Allah, or a lifetime or being good to get to Heaven. Christianity also admits a desire to live for that which is great and glorious. Yet we recognize a problem in this design:
In the Old Testament, Moses went on top of Mount Sinai and God's glory came to him. When he came down from the mountain, bearing God's Commandments for the Israelite people, his face was radiant because he had communed with Majesty. He had to wear a veil over his face because the people could not look at it.
The trouble is that often, this glory is veiled to us. We look at our own inadequacies and shy away from anything better than us; we are comfortable enough in our fear and it seems easier to not believe that anything greater exists. We don't realize the possibility or the potential in daily life, don't think that we could ever draw near to some invisible worth behind our lives. We are tired of searching for meaning.
We can not see the glory in this life because we are separated from it by our humanity -- not just the fear of our failings, but our failings themselves. We can not see anything better than ourselves because we don't deserve to, we aren't good enough to see it. The good news is that through Jesus Christ we no longer have to blindly reach for purpose in our lives. The person of Jesus Christ enables us to draw near to this glory, to praise this glory, to behold it and allow it to transform us. Christ pulls us out of our condemning thoughts, out of our rationalizations and purposeless existence.
Christ covers for our failings and removes the veil between us and Glory. II Corinthians says "Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face...for to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away." Christianity promises a life that has meaning and is relevant because through Christ we can know a Glorious God.
There are some days when I am struck by how meaningless life is. I wake up, hounded by the routine of my thoughts and anxieties - the same cycle of guilt, confusion and rationalization begins in my first moments of consciousness. I am sure that all of my readers, and likely all of humanity, can relate on some level to the stagnation of life.
Maybe it is your third year at the same job, with the same coworkers, the same pace, the same tasks.
Maybe it is the loneliness that characterizes your goings to and from school, errands, and home.
Maybe it is the fatigue from holding yourself up to an invisible standard and realizing that you still have not reached it.
Maybe it is the apathy which colors your perception, has numbed you to any excitement, and has claimed you as a cynic.
These feelings are real, they are legitimate and trying to battle them is tiring. Some may not be as contemplative and so may not dwell on or analyze these emotions, but they are still true. All that is meaningless, is meaningless. To say otherwise is absurd and I am not going to try to write meaning into tasks or happiness into melancholy.
The trouble is "we were meant to live for so much more" (Quote: Switchfoot). There is a Magnificence in life that transforms our monotony into melodrama. There is not any independent meaning in our unvaried, uneventful biographies, but behind or beneath them there is that which is enthralling.
Every religion recognizes this heartfelt need to live for more, and offers some way to access this glory -- whether it be hours of meditation to reach Nirvana, sacrificing your life to please Allah, or a lifetime or being good to get to Heaven. Christianity also admits a desire to live for that which is great and glorious. Yet we recognize a problem in this design:
In the Old Testament, Moses went on top of Mount Sinai and God's glory came to him. When he came down from the mountain, bearing God's Commandments for the Israelite people, his face was radiant because he had communed with Majesty. He had to wear a veil over his face because the people could not look at it.
The trouble is that often, this glory is veiled to us. We look at our own inadequacies and shy away from anything better than us; we are comfortable enough in our fear and it seems easier to not believe that anything greater exists. We don't realize the possibility or the potential in daily life, don't think that we could ever draw near to some invisible worth behind our lives. We are tired of searching for meaning.
We can not see the glory in this life because we are separated from it by our humanity -- not just the fear of our failings, but our failings themselves. We can not see anything better than ourselves because we don't deserve to, we aren't good enough to see it. The good news is that through Jesus Christ we no longer have to blindly reach for purpose in our lives. The person of Jesus Christ enables us to draw near to this glory, to praise this glory, to behold it and allow it to transform us. Christ pulls us out of our condemning thoughts, out of our rationalizations and purposeless existence.
Christ covers for our failings and removes the veil between us and Glory. II Corinthians says "Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face...for to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away." Christianity promises a life that has meaning and is relevant because through Christ we can know a Glorious God.
2.10.2007
Free to Live
I CORINTHIANS
Here is a question: If you could live in any way that you wanted, how would you chose to live?
My first thought is that I would live a relaxing life. I would wake up when my body woke me up every morning. I would make a delicious breakfast, drink coffee and read -- all while sitting in a cozy armchair. I would work during the day -- enough to be kept busy but not enough to be stressed. I would go home, watch Gilmore Girls, spend time with friends and family, make dinner. I would use my free time to knit, listen to music, go for walks, flip through decorating magazines, or make collages. I think.
Actually, in a strange way, if I give myself the freedom to chose the ideal life I become confused - I am not sure why, but the above scene, which I wrote and created in complete freedom, does not seem like it would satisfy me. This is experiential -- have you ever had a Saturday that you used to "do what you wanted", and by the end you still didn't know what you wanted to do? There is a sense in which complete freedom is not beneficial; when left completely to our own discernment we make choices that hurt us instead of making us happy.
In my last entry I spoke of a freedom that Christianity offers -- the freedom to fail. We do not have to strive to become good people, restricted and condemned by the commands in the bible. We have already failed to meet them, we can freely admit our weakness. Another freedom Christianity offers is the freedom to live, and by this I mean Christianity enables us to live the best, most fulfilling life possible.
Allow me to explain: We think the commands in the Bible are bad, that they keep us from having a full and happy life. We think them bad because they're difficult, bad because we are bad at keeping them. But they aren't.
We think that we will be happy if we had more time to relax, if we had people who loved us more intimately, if we had more money -- but by experience we can verify that this isn't true.
So if what I think is good for me isn't good for me, then maybe what I think is bad for me isn't bad for me -- and maybe when humans try to redefine good and bad we are taking freedom a step too far.
The problem with my initial ideal is that it was characterized by selfishness -- a desire to meet my own wants and needs. Other people either serve to this end, or I ignore them. Though deceitfully masked to be satisfying, selfishness sucks the life out of life.
Though Christianity frees us to fail, it does not free us to live however we want. There is still a law governing the universe -- the law of love. If one "virtue" would characterize our actions, thoughts, plans, it ought and needs to be love. This is not meant to burden us, rather, love is the fullness of life. Without it, relationships would become tasks, learning would be a chore -- we would drag our feet to and from work, burdened. But with love, every aspect of life, no matter how menial, becomes vibrant.
Christianity has conquered selfishness and commands love, freeing us to live.
Here is a question: If you could live in any way that you wanted, how would you chose to live?
My first thought is that I would live a relaxing life. I would wake up when my body woke me up every morning. I would make a delicious breakfast, drink coffee and read -- all while sitting in a cozy armchair. I would work during the day -- enough to be kept busy but not enough to be stressed. I would go home, watch Gilmore Girls, spend time with friends and family, make dinner. I would use my free time to knit, listen to music, go for walks, flip through decorating magazines, or make collages. I think.
Actually, in a strange way, if I give myself the freedom to chose the ideal life I become confused - I am not sure why, but the above scene, which I wrote and created in complete freedom, does not seem like it would satisfy me. This is experiential -- have you ever had a Saturday that you used to "do what you wanted", and by the end you still didn't know what you wanted to do? There is a sense in which complete freedom is not beneficial; when left completely to our own discernment we make choices that hurt us instead of making us happy.
In my last entry I spoke of a freedom that Christianity offers -- the freedom to fail. We do not have to strive to become good people, restricted and condemned by the commands in the bible. We have already failed to meet them, we can freely admit our weakness. Another freedom Christianity offers is the freedom to live, and by this I mean Christianity enables us to live the best, most fulfilling life possible.
Allow me to explain: We think the commands in the Bible are bad, that they keep us from having a full and happy life. We think them bad because they're difficult, bad because we are bad at keeping them. But they aren't.
We think that we will be happy if we had more time to relax, if we had people who loved us more intimately, if we had more money -- but by experience we can verify that this isn't true.
So if what I think is good for me isn't good for me, then maybe what I think is bad for me isn't bad for me -- and maybe when humans try to redefine good and bad we are taking freedom a step too far.
The problem with my initial ideal is that it was characterized by selfishness -- a desire to meet my own wants and needs. Other people either serve to this end, or I ignore them. Though deceitfully masked to be satisfying, selfishness sucks the life out of life.
Though Christianity frees us to fail, it does not free us to live however we want. There is still a law governing the universe -- the law of love. If one "virtue" would characterize our actions, thoughts, plans, it ought and needs to be love. This is not meant to burden us, rather, love is the fullness of life. Without it, relationships would become tasks, learning would be a chore -- we would drag our feet to and from work, burdened. But with love, every aspect of life, no matter how menial, becomes vibrant.
Christianity has conquered selfishness and commands love, freeing us to live.
2.08.2007
Free to Fail
GALATIANS
Pardon the odd analogy, but I feel like I am pregnant with an idea that I can't get out. I am honestly overwhelmed by it, and I want really badly to be able to communicate it in a way that people will understand but it is so much bigger than me and I am terrified that I won't be able to do it...
To further add to my literary angst, this is an idea that is revolutionary, an idea that in the past month and a half has flipped my world upside down.....or maybe right side up would be more accurate.
Here is the word, loaded with meaning, with the power to found a country, a religion, a lifestyle: Freedom.
In 1776, John Hancock was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence, a document which asserted America's freedom from the British Monarchy. In 1920 the nineteenth ammendment was passed, giving women the right to vote. Today many continue to assert their own personal freedom -- freedom to pursue happiness, freedom to marry whomever they want, freedom to be independent from their parents, freedom to live according to their personal preferences.
Freedom is far-reaching, and yet if there is one area that seems to frown on freedom it is Christianity. Many see Christianity as a religion of law, a religion that forces you to shape up, a religion that makes you successful. Christianity is perceived as a religion for good people, a religion for non-divorced church attenders. If you want to be a Christian you had better change your lifestyle, stop doing drugs, stop sleeping with your boyfriend, stop wanting to sleep with your boyfriend, stop complaining, stop gossiping, stop tolerating homosexuality and abortion and become a republican. All of these commands imposing on natural human instinct, they are the antithesis of freedom. And none of these commands are Christianity.
I will admit that there is a draw to the "self-help" nature of these commands -- if my life is not going how I want it to, and I know that not being on drugs will make me healthier and thus happier, then I am going to exert effort to stop doing drugs...and because of the benefits it might not seem so imposing. That does not change the fact that these laws are not Christianity: Christianity is not a "fix-yourself" religion.
Why not? Doesn't it make logical sense to adjust behavior that you intuitively know to be better? Someone might say and think this until they try it. Once they try it they will realize that it doesn't work how we want it to. Perhaps someone exerts will-power and has enough self-control to hold their tongue, to not complain. Though they are no longer voicing their cynicism, this will not change the fact that they continue to see life as something to grumble about.
Christianity is a religion that begins when you admit that you can't change yourself. Christianity is a religion for people who thought they were good, and then realized that they are only fooling themselves. It is for those who once thought they were strong, and have decided to humbly admit weakness. It is for those who now see their incompetency instead of their sufficiency.
Christianity frees bad people from striving to be good people. Christianity frees us to fail.
Pardon the odd analogy, but I feel like I am pregnant with an idea that I can't get out. I am honestly overwhelmed by it, and I want really badly to be able to communicate it in a way that people will understand but it is so much bigger than me and I am terrified that I won't be able to do it...
To further add to my literary angst, this is an idea that is revolutionary, an idea that in the past month and a half has flipped my world upside down.....or maybe right side up would be more accurate.
Here is the word, loaded with meaning, with the power to found a country, a religion, a lifestyle: Freedom.
In 1776, John Hancock was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence, a document which asserted America's freedom from the British Monarchy. In 1920 the nineteenth ammendment was passed, giving women the right to vote. Today many continue to assert their own personal freedom -- freedom to pursue happiness, freedom to marry whomever they want, freedom to be independent from their parents, freedom to live according to their personal preferences.
Freedom is far-reaching, and yet if there is one area that seems to frown on freedom it is Christianity. Many see Christianity as a religion of law, a religion that forces you to shape up, a religion that makes you successful. Christianity is perceived as a religion for good people, a religion for non-divorced church attenders. If you want to be a Christian you had better change your lifestyle, stop doing drugs, stop sleeping with your boyfriend, stop wanting to sleep with your boyfriend, stop complaining, stop gossiping, stop tolerating homosexuality and abortion and become a republican. All of these commands imposing on natural human instinct, they are the antithesis of freedom. And none of these commands are Christianity.
I will admit that there is a draw to the "self-help" nature of these commands -- if my life is not going how I want it to, and I know that not being on drugs will make me healthier and thus happier, then I am going to exert effort to stop doing drugs...and because of the benefits it might not seem so imposing. That does not change the fact that these laws are not Christianity: Christianity is not a "fix-yourself" religion.
Why not? Doesn't it make logical sense to adjust behavior that you intuitively know to be better? Someone might say and think this until they try it. Once they try it they will realize that it doesn't work how we want it to. Perhaps someone exerts will-power and has enough self-control to hold their tongue, to not complain. Though they are no longer voicing their cynicism, this will not change the fact that they continue to see life as something to grumble about.
Christianity is a religion that begins when you admit that you can't change yourself. Christianity is a religion for people who thought they were good, and then realized that they are only fooling themselves. It is for those who once thought they were strong, and have decided to humbly admit weakness. It is for those who now see their incompetency instead of their sufficiency.
Christianity frees bad people from striving to be good people. Christianity frees us to fail.
2.01.2007
Lazy Liberty
I & II THESSALONIANS
In the Thessalonian Church, the members were misinformed -- some of them thought that Christ was about to return. This meant that each of them was going to be saved from the earth and taken to Heaven. They reacted accordingly -- essentially they went up on a hill, hung out, enjoyed themselves, and waited for paradise. Paul recognized this as being idle, or lazy, but instead of correcting their behavior he corrected their beliefs. He explained that Christ had not yet returned, that we did not know at what time he would return, and therefore there is still work to be done. Throughout his two letters to the Thessalonians, he devotes a large portion to explain the end times, and really only corrects them on one fault -- their idleness.
What stands out is that the Thessalonican lack of labor seems to stem from misunderstanding one truth.
After class our Professor asked us to write on this question: "As a 21st century person, what is our perception of idleness?"
Now I am not going to pretend that I have a full understanding as to what causes others to be lazy, but perhaps in considering my own tendencies I may illuminate portions of this truth.
What do I mean by idleness? I think idleness could be defined as being willing to settle.
Examples from my life:
Am I going to quit writing this blog and allow my mind to become immersed in the wonderful fourth season of Gilmore Girls? (this sounds utterly glorious right now...) I could probably finish this blog tomorrow, and I deserve to relax, I have had a long day.Am I going to walk in indifferent silence with my friends, passively observing their conversation, or am I going to engage with and enjoy them? Am I going to disengage in class and doodle mindlessly, or engage and enjoy learning? Am I going to sleep in an extra ten minutes so that I am rushed in to the day, or am I going to get up and savor the first (and likely only) moment of stillness, accompanied by a steaming cup of earl grey tea?
I suppose some of you might react and say: "so what - what if I am quiet person? or I don't like school? and I prefer sleep over any caffienated beverage." And to that I would reply -- "Okay, but you probably have other things in your life that you care about. The point is that a lot of times the things we care about take effort; they are not as easily actualized as we first imagined."
There is a truth behind all good things -- they are enjoyed by hard work. Even something like a leisurly vacation to New York was earned by a year at the office. We also live in a country that stands for liberty, taken so far that long-accepted morals are viewed through the lense of cynicism. Essentially, people doubt the value of the law to be anything besides restrictive on their own desires. Taking freedom so far makes it the enemy of hard work. We have placed these truths in opposition to eachother, when in fact they are a part of the same system. We think that hard-work is solely restrictive to our freedom, yet it enables us to pursue good things. Hard-work is actually the pathway to enjoying freedom.
So what theological doctrine do I see this solved by? Actually, by the death and resurrection of Christ.
1. Because of the resurrection of Christ, we have been set free. Not free in the sense that we can redefine the morality of the universe, but free in the sense that we can now pursue and enjoy being good people. Try to imagine an ideal relationship -- Do you wish you could love your boy/girlfriend more? Do you picture being insightful enough to help a friend in confusion and merciful enough to comfort them in difficulty? Normally you would be hindered by indifference or ignorance. But through Christ's resurrection he has conquered these vices and weaknesses; you are now freed to pursue all that is good.
2. Because of the death of Christ, these good things come through hard work. Christ could not have been raised from the dead if he had not died. If we do not die to our laziness and self-indulgence, we will not be able to know the good things we long for.
So there are my thoughts. Why do we work hard and battle idleness? Because that is the only way to have the good that we long for. How is this made possible? Because Christ has freed us to pursue what is good.
In the Thessalonian Church, the members were misinformed -- some of them thought that Christ was about to return. This meant that each of them was going to be saved from the earth and taken to Heaven. They reacted accordingly -- essentially they went up on a hill, hung out, enjoyed themselves, and waited for paradise. Paul recognized this as being idle, or lazy, but instead of correcting their behavior he corrected their beliefs. He explained that Christ had not yet returned, that we did not know at what time he would return, and therefore there is still work to be done. Throughout his two letters to the Thessalonians, he devotes a large portion to explain the end times, and really only corrects them on one fault -- their idleness.
What stands out is that the Thessalonican lack of labor seems to stem from misunderstanding one truth.
After class our Professor asked us to write on this question: "As a 21st century person, what is our perception of idleness?"
Now I am not going to pretend that I have a full understanding as to what causes others to be lazy, but perhaps in considering my own tendencies I may illuminate portions of this truth.
What do I mean by idleness? I think idleness could be defined as being willing to settle.
Examples from my life:
Am I going to quit writing this blog and allow my mind to become immersed in the wonderful fourth season of Gilmore Girls? (this sounds utterly glorious right now...) I could probably finish this blog tomorrow, and I deserve to relax, I have had a long day.Am I going to walk in indifferent silence with my friends, passively observing their conversation, or am I going to engage with and enjoy them? Am I going to disengage in class and doodle mindlessly, or engage and enjoy learning? Am I going to sleep in an extra ten minutes so that I am rushed in to the day, or am I going to get up and savor the first (and likely only) moment of stillness, accompanied by a steaming cup of earl grey tea?
I suppose some of you might react and say: "so what - what if I am quiet person? or I don't like school? and I prefer sleep over any caffienated beverage." And to that I would reply -- "Okay, but you probably have other things in your life that you care about. The point is that a lot of times the things we care about take effort; they are not as easily actualized as we first imagined."
There is a truth behind all good things -- they are enjoyed by hard work. Even something like a leisurly vacation to New York was earned by a year at the office. We also live in a country that stands for liberty, taken so far that long-accepted morals are viewed through the lense of cynicism. Essentially, people doubt the value of the law to be anything besides restrictive on their own desires. Taking freedom so far makes it the enemy of hard work. We have placed these truths in opposition to eachother, when in fact they are a part of the same system. We think that hard-work is solely restrictive to our freedom, yet it enables us to pursue good things. Hard-work is actually the pathway to enjoying freedom.
So what theological doctrine do I see this solved by? Actually, by the death and resurrection of Christ.
1. Because of the resurrection of Christ, we have been set free. Not free in the sense that we can redefine the morality of the universe, but free in the sense that we can now pursue and enjoy being good people. Try to imagine an ideal relationship -- Do you wish you could love your boy/girlfriend more? Do you picture being insightful enough to help a friend in confusion and merciful enough to comfort them in difficulty? Normally you would be hindered by indifference or ignorance. But through Christ's resurrection he has conquered these vices and weaknesses; you are now freed to pursue all that is good.
2. Because of the death of Christ, these good things come through hard work. Christ could not have been raised from the dead if he had not died. If we do not die to our laziness and self-indulgence, we will not be able to know the good things we long for.
So there are my thoughts. Why do we work hard and battle idleness? Because that is the only way to have the good that we long for. How is this made possible? Because Christ has freed us to pursue what is good.
The beginnings of a non-emo blog
Hello! Friends, family, siblings - I welcome you to my new blog. Now, I realize that in some circles, xanga and blogging have become less popular, but I am determined to bring it back to life. Actually, that is not my goal whatsoever.
This blog is partially for school credit but moreso my own initiative. It will probably consist of (hopefully) thoughtful or thought-provoking commentaries on what I have been reading in school for Torrey. I am not sure what this will necessarily look like, but I think there may be times when I don't even mention specifics from the texts, which author provoked my ponderings, etc.
I cannot promise that this will be gramatically correct.
I cannot ensure that it will be amusing.
But it will be decidely regular...this decision was made by my institution, and if I do not comply to this regularity, I will no longer be a part of the institution. So yes, I do guarantee regularity.
Unless this fails. Which is not something I am necessarily afraid of.
So there you have it! I will be posting my first entry soon, maybe even tonight depending on my coherency. I appreciate any comments or lack of interest you might have.
This blog is partially for school credit but moreso my own initiative. It will probably consist of (hopefully) thoughtful or thought-provoking commentaries on what I have been reading in school for Torrey. I am not sure what this will necessarily look like, but I think there may be times when I don't even mention specifics from the texts, which author provoked my ponderings, etc.
I cannot promise that this will be gramatically correct.
I cannot ensure that it will be amusing.
But it will be decidely regular...this decision was made by my institution, and if I do not comply to this regularity, I will no longer be a part of the institution. So yes, I do guarantee regularity.
Unless this fails. Which is not something I am necessarily afraid of.
So there you have it! I will be posting my first entry soon, maybe even tonight depending on my coherency. I appreciate any comments or lack of interest you might have.
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