It is Christmas Eve 2010. A lot has changed in the past year, primarily on a personal level. But, what is, is. Often times in years past I would sit at home alone, drinking coffee and Kahula wrapping Christmas presents into the early morning. So much has changed this year.
Personally, I have grown stronger as a person, though I have been extremely weak at times. Only weak because I tried to control the uncontrollable. I realized that you can only control yourself. You can talk all you want, show people the error of their ways, but ultimately, you cannot force someone to act the way you feel they should act. You cannot force someone to think the way you think. You cannot show a person that has done people wrong when they think they have been wronged. You cannot make a person see the error of their own ways, they can only choose to do it themselves.
People who have wronged others, who think they themselves have been wronged, will never see their errors. They have justified what they have done in their minds, but there is never justification for wronging others. One wrong, real or perceived, is never a reason to harm others.
I do not mean to for this to be a depressing blog, just some thoughts about the year.
I was looking at Facebook and people posting about going to candlelight services tonight, and that is fantastic. I have mixed feelings about some of these people and the churches they choose to attend. It is wonderful that people have found God in their own way, and it is truly a blessing, but it also saddens me to see what some of these churches stand for.
Now, I am not judging, and I apologize ahead of time if I offend some people with this post, if anyone even reads it. But churches in Houston like Lakewood, Second Baptist, and what I call "feel good preachers" are missing something in their ministry and their lives.
These "preachers" talk about doing good deeds and you will be blessed by God. The more good that you do, the more blessings you will receive from God. For me,I don't think God is someone you should bargain with. These people who believe in "feel good" preaching, or "feel good" Grace, miss the glorious feeling knowing that there is absolutely nothing you can do to receive God's Grace and blessings.
WE ALREADY have it. We should do good simply because we want to do good to glorify God. We can choose to do good, or bad, but the level of God's grace in us does not change.
Think about it this way: When you do good, you glorify God. When you do bad, you glorify evil. And we all know who evil is. Who do you choose?
Many times this past year I asked how God could allow certain things to happen. Why did he allow people to do what they did. Even to the point of questioning my own faith. I realized it is not God's fault, we choose our own paths and actions. Everything that people do is by choice.
On this Eve of the day that we celebrate the Birth of Christ, a message: Without the "Word made flesh" we would never have understood God's revelation in full. We would never have understood God's Grace. We would never see, and attempt to understand, the Glory that is the Trinity, one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Remember to Thank God for all that He has done for us. Enjoy family and friends, but remember, it is about Jesus Christ, our Savior, Teacher, and God.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
Twas the night before Christmas
This is my version. I have not written here in a while, and this is not what I originally set this up for, but I thought it would be a good place to post.
For those that don't know, in this version, Rocky, Kylie and Koda are my dogs. Enjoy.
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
not a dog could be heard, only a little snoring was even apparent.
Their bowls were all placed in corners with care
In hopes that Santa would soon leave them treats there.
With Koda snoring on the floor, Rocky and Kylie were all snug in their beds,
with visions of cats and squeaky chew toys dancing in their heads.
And my books cluttering the recliner and I on the couch
had just settled in after a long day shopping out.
When out on the patio there arose such a crash
That I fell off the couch onto my research stash.
Away I flew to check the door
Only to notice the door was ajar.
The moon shining through the humidity,
allowed us to see a site full of pity,
when, to my startled eyes should appear,
but a bruised up sleigh and eight crumpled reindeer.
With the driver sweating and cursing, it gave me pause,
I was shocked to hear these words being spoken by Santa Claus
Rocky and Kylie were guarding the door
While Koda just continued to snore.
Santa threw down his bag looking horribly frazzled,
the reindeer, huffing and puffing, were just dazzeld
sweat poured off this poor figure as if his hair was crying
When out of his mouth a cry came, "Oh lord, with this humidity I think I am dying"
Santa went to his crumpled reindeer to check their condition
They were untangling themselves trying to get into position
Santa asks "You OK Dasher, Dancer, how about Prancer, Vixen?
come on Comet, Cupid, pick yourselves up Donder and Blitzen"
I looked on with eye filled with wonder,
I was really beginning to ponder
With this outburst was Santa mental,
was he going to go postal.
Kylie and Rocky were no longer growling
Koda was no longer snoring
They were just standing side by side staring,
at this red suited human being
Santa got his reindeer all aligned
When he felt a little nudge on his behind
Santa said, "Donder quit, I will be fine"
Then he froze as he heard a chorus of whines
Santa slowly turned around,
looking towards the ground
Where he sees three sets of eyes sparkling
Santa eyes teared up but the sight brought back his twinkling
Santa bends down on one knee and says, "Hello little darlings,
forgive me for my outburst this early Christmas morning."
The reindeer straighten as if to attention
completely shrugging off their former situation.
Rocky walks up to Santa and lifts one paw,
being ever so gentle as not to claw
he pulls himself up to be even with Santa's eyes
to lick off the tears as Santa cries
Kylie walks up to Santa and leans on his side
as if to help Santa carry the heavy burden he has tried to hide.
Santa reaches down and scratches Kylie behind the ear
and says, "Thanks for the help my little dear."
Koda, of the three being the youngest
only knows that Santa is the greatest
Koda's tail was wagging as she was not understanding
What is wrong, on this greatest and holiest of days, why was Santa crying?
Santa looks at the three tails wagging
and says "You are RIGHT! What is the point of this crying?
Today is Christmas, the greatest day of the year!
All this blubbering, how dare I, NO MORE TEARS!"
With that Santa looks at the three gleaming faces.
"Rocky, take care old man, I promise to leave no traces.
Kylie, be sweet, take care of the other two.
Koda, keep smiling and wagging that tail to."
Santa hops up and reaches for his bag.
Grabs for three large bones that would make a dinosaur brag!
He gives each their own special treat, first Rocky
Then Kylie and last is Koda, who when it comes to food is never picky!
The three run off to their corners to hide,
I am in the shadows just beaming with pride.
Santa continues unloading some gifts and puts them under the tree.
I have to hold myself back because I can't wait to see.
Santa notices that there are no cookies on the plate
He looks at Koda wagging her tail and realizes she couldn't wait.
With that he lets out a great "HO HO HO" so loud that I had not heard such before
Santa grabs his bag and heads out the door.
Santa hops onto his sleigh
for there is no more delays.
Santa has millions of more gifts to deliver
and he has never cared if you are not a believer!
He snaps the reigns to his reindeer
he takes off so fast that he could not be any quicker.
He could be heard as he is taking off saying
"Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!"
For those that don't know, in this version, Rocky, Kylie and Koda are my dogs. Enjoy.
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
not a dog could be heard, only a little snoring was even apparent.
Their bowls were all placed in corners with care
In hopes that Santa would soon leave them treats there.
With Koda snoring on the floor, Rocky and Kylie were all snug in their beds,
with visions of cats and squeaky chew toys dancing in their heads.
And my books cluttering the recliner and I on the couch
had just settled in after a long day shopping out.
When out on the patio there arose such a crash
That I fell off the couch onto my research stash.
Away I flew to check the door
Only to notice the door was ajar.
The moon shining through the humidity,
allowed us to see a site full of pity,
when, to my startled eyes should appear,
but a bruised up sleigh and eight crumpled reindeer.
With the driver sweating and cursing, it gave me pause,
I was shocked to hear these words being spoken by Santa Claus
Rocky and Kylie were guarding the door
While Koda just continued to snore.
Santa threw down his bag looking horribly frazzled,
the reindeer, huffing and puffing, were just dazzeld
sweat poured off this poor figure as if his hair was crying
When out of his mouth a cry came, "Oh lord, with this humidity I think I am dying"
Santa went to his crumpled reindeer to check their condition
They were untangling themselves trying to get into position
Santa asks "You OK Dasher, Dancer, how about Prancer, Vixen?
come on Comet, Cupid, pick yourselves up Donder and Blitzen"
I looked on with eye filled with wonder,
I was really beginning to ponder
With this outburst was Santa mental,
was he going to go postal.
Kylie and Rocky were no longer growling
Koda was no longer snoring
They were just standing side by side staring,
at this red suited human being
Santa got his reindeer all aligned
When he felt a little nudge on his behind
Santa said, "Donder quit, I will be fine"
Then he froze as he heard a chorus of whines
Santa slowly turned around,
looking towards the ground
Where he sees three sets of eyes sparkling
Santa eyes teared up but the sight brought back his twinkling
Santa bends down on one knee and says, "Hello little darlings,
forgive me for my outburst this early Christmas morning."
The reindeer straighten as if to attention
completely shrugging off their former situation.
Rocky walks up to Santa and lifts one paw,
being ever so gentle as not to claw
he pulls himself up to be even with Santa's eyes
to lick off the tears as Santa cries
Kylie walks up to Santa and leans on his side
as if to help Santa carry the heavy burden he has tried to hide.
Santa reaches down and scratches Kylie behind the ear
and says, "Thanks for the help my little dear."
Koda, of the three being the youngest
only knows that Santa is the greatest
Koda's tail was wagging as she was not understanding
What is wrong, on this greatest and holiest of days, why was Santa crying?
Santa looks at the three tails wagging
and says "You are RIGHT! What is the point of this crying?
Today is Christmas, the greatest day of the year!
All this blubbering, how dare I, NO MORE TEARS!"
With that Santa looks at the three gleaming faces.
"Rocky, take care old man, I promise to leave no traces.
Kylie, be sweet, take care of the other two.
Koda, keep smiling and wagging that tail to."
Santa hops up and reaches for his bag.
Grabs for three large bones that would make a dinosaur brag!
He gives each their own special treat, first Rocky
Then Kylie and last is Koda, who when it comes to food is never picky!
The three run off to their corners to hide,
I am in the shadows just beaming with pride.
Santa continues unloading some gifts and puts them under the tree.
I have to hold myself back because I can't wait to see.
Santa notices that there are no cookies on the plate
He looks at Koda wagging her tail and realizes she couldn't wait.
With that he lets out a great "HO HO HO" so loud that I had not heard such before
Santa grabs his bag and heads out the door.
Santa hops onto his sleigh
for there is no more delays.
Santa has millions of more gifts to deliver
and he has never cared if you are not a believer!
He snaps the reigns to his reindeer
he takes off so fast that he could not be any quicker.
He could be heard as he is taking off saying
"Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!"
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Division
I mean unwarranted division, in my opinion, of the different sects of Christianity. There are so many different parts of Christianity such as Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, Baptist, etc...and I feel that is why Christianity seems to be losing the worldwide battle. The worldwide battle against secularism, atheism, Islam, and all other religions or beliefs that in some way deny Jesus as the Son of God, our Savior, our Christ.
We are losing because we are divided. Catholics were divided even before the reformation was started by Martin Luther. And ever since, there are splits, from splits from splits that the family tree of Christ's Church should not have any branches, but has hundreds. This is distressing to me.
When Martin Luther started the reformation one of his biggest problems with the Catholic Church was "indulgences". An indulgence is when a person would give money to have their sins absolved. Many denominations today do not do this anymore, not even the Catholic Church, Lutheran, Methodist, and so on. But many are now doing the exact same thing. I hear of many preachers saying that if you want to win God's affection, or win his grace, that you must do all kinds of good deeds including giving all your money to that preacher (I use the term preacher loosely for these people) and God will give you fame, glory and riches. I really cannot name one person that gave all their money to one of these preachers that became rich and famous, they just became poor. They use the story of Job for justification, in error. They completely miss and bastardize the story of Job for their own personal financial gain. This creates great division within Christianity. Greed.
Before I continue, let me address exactly why we should do good. Some people will say "Why should I do something good if I don't get anything in return." To those, I will call selfish. We should do good for goods sake. It is simply the right thing to do. We do things unselfishly, not expecting anything in return, to honor God. If you do good expecting something in return, you are making yourself your own god. Which, I assure you that you are not. There is absolutely nothing you can do to earn God's love. You already and always have had God's love.
Another issue I want to address are these churches that call themselves "bible based" churches. Seriously? I do not understand this concept. All Christian churches are Bible based. They say that anything that is not written in the Bible should not be done. Again, seriously? If this is the case then you are denying all traditions before the Bible was actually written. Do they really think the Bible was written immediately after Jesus died? NO! So, what did the early Christians do? Sit around waiting for the Bible to be written? Of course not. I say, that if you deny tradition then you deny part of Christian heritage. If you deny many writings of the early Church, you deny wisdom and knowledge. And this is where division comes from.
What should we do as Christians? Become educated about our religion and not only spread the word of Jesus Christ, but spread the education. If we do not. We fail again.
We failed God when Adam and Eve sinned. We fail God every time we sin. God never will quit loving us even though we continue to fail God. But if we keep the divisions, we will keep failing God. We are one body in Christ.
These division greatly distress and saddens me.
We are losing because we are divided. Catholics were divided even before the reformation was started by Martin Luther. And ever since, there are splits, from splits from splits that the family tree of Christ's Church should not have any branches, but has hundreds. This is distressing to me.
When Martin Luther started the reformation one of his biggest problems with the Catholic Church was "indulgences". An indulgence is when a person would give money to have their sins absolved. Many denominations today do not do this anymore, not even the Catholic Church, Lutheran, Methodist, and so on. But many are now doing the exact same thing. I hear of many preachers saying that if you want to win God's affection, or win his grace, that you must do all kinds of good deeds including giving all your money to that preacher (I use the term preacher loosely for these people) and God will give you fame, glory and riches. I really cannot name one person that gave all their money to one of these preachers that became rich and famous, they just became poor. They use the story of Job for justification, in error. They completely miss and bastardize the story of Job for their own personal financial gain. This creates great division within Christianity. Greed.
Before I continue, let me address exactly why we should do good. Some people will say "Why should I do something good if I don't get anything in return." To those, I will call selfish. We should do good for goods sake. It is simply the right thing to do. We do things unselfishly, not expecting anything in return, to honor God. If you do good expecting something in return, you are making yourself your own god. Which, I assure you that you are not. There is absolutely nothing you can do to earn God's love. You already and always have had God's love.
Another issue I want to address are these churches that call themselves "bible based" churches. Seriously? I do not understand this concept. All Christian churches are Bible based. They say that anything that is not written in the Bible should not be done. Again, seriously? If this is the case then you are denying all traditions before the Bible was actually written. Do they really think the Bible was written immediately after Jesus died? NO! So, what did the early Christians do? Sit around waiting for the Bible to be written? Of course not. I say, that if you deny tradition then you deny part of Christian heritage. If you deny many writings of the early Church, you deny wisdom and knowledge. And this is where division comes from.
What should we do as Christians? Become educated about our religion and not only spread the word of Jesus Christ, but spread the education. If we do not. We fail again.
We failed God when Adam and Eve sinned. We fail God every time we sin. God never will quit loving us even though we continue to fail God. But if we keep the divisions, we will keep failing God. We are one body in Christ.
These division greatly distress and saddens me.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Trinity Part 1
I called this blog "Trinity Part 1" because I fully expect and intend on revisiting this quite complex subject.
The Holy Trinity is a theology of great significance within the Christian religion. The mystery of the Trinity can be quite difficult to understand and many Christians have a different understanding of the Trinity. This article is a meager attempt at bringing some meaning to my understanding of the Trinity, cultured in and outside of class, and attempting to not be heretical to the Roman Catholic Church nor to Lutherans, Episcopalians, etc…
The Holy Trinity: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is truly one of the great mysteries within the Christian community. The understanding of the relationship between the three persons of the Trinity is confusing to people and has been studied and written about for over 2000 years. My understanding of the Trinity comes from the bottom up, from not knowing the meaning to coming to a fuller, yet forever insufficient understanding, of the Trinity. I say a forever insufficient understanding for the simple reason that I may read, believe and comprehend the tenets of the Trinity, but I, as a human, cannot fully understand this Mystery. This Mystery, as it is understood by the Roman Catholic Church, Lutheran, and many others is such: The Trinity is three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but still one God. As it says in the Nicene Creed, God from God, and the Holy Spirit is begotten from the Father and Son, not created, but begotten. Yet, these three natures are one. Are they three persons? Yes, and no. Is it three Gods? NO! It is one God, but with three natures all with one will. Confusing? Yes, and I hope I have gotten this part correct!
As I have struggled with my understanding I have tried to look at several issues surrounding the Trinity. God is the first person of the Trinity. There is not much to misunderstand about Him. He is God, from the beginning, now and forever will be. God created everything and continually creates everything according to his will. He is forever unchanging, it is humans who change in order to better understand the incomprehensible being of God. God is the Trinity as much as Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
There are many issues that I can look at in trying to understand the Trinity. For instance, Mary, mother of Jesus or mother of God? Both perhaps, as she was the human mother of Jesus, but since Jesus is part of the Holy Trinity, who is God, then understandably, from simple deduction, the term Mother of God fits her quite easily and nicely.
The Lutheran Augsburg Confession speaks of the Trinity and states in Article I,
"Our Churches, with common consent, do teach that the decree of the Council of Nicaea concerning the Unity of the Divine Essence and concerning the Three Persons, is true and to be believed without any doubting; 2] that is to say, there is one Divine Essence which is called and which is God: eternal, without body, without parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the Maker and Preserver of all things, visible and invisible; and 3] yet there are three Persons, of the same essence and power, who also are coeternal, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. And the term "person" 4] they use as the Fathers have used it, to signify, not a part or quality in another, but that which subsists of itself."
The confession continues in Article III by stating about Jesus Christ,
“Also they teach that the Word, that is, the Son of God, did assume the human nature in 2] the womb of the blessed Virgin Mary, so that there are two natures, the divine and the human, inseparably enjoined in one Person, one Christ, true God and true man, who was born of the Virgin Mary, truly suffered, was crucified, dead, and 3] buried, that He might reconcile the Father unto us, and be a sacrifice, not only for original guilt, but also for all actual sins of men.”
As a Lutheran myself, with enormous respect for the Roman Catholic Church, I believe these two sections adequately describe the Holy Trinity, but does not help in the understanding of the Trinity.
Many Christians believe certain tenets of Christianity blindly, without question, but I want to understand why, while also believing. As the Augsburg Confession states the belief, which I recite and believe, I am forced to look further for a better understanding. Saint Augustine wrote an entire book trying to explain the mystery of the Trinity. At the end of his work, The Trinity, Saint Augustine wrote a prayer that stated,
“O Lord our God, we believe in you, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. Truth would not have said, Go and baptize the nations in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19), unless you were a triad. Nor would you have commanded us to be baptized, Lord God, in the name of any who is not Lord God. Nor would it have been said with divine authority, Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one God (Dt 6:4), unless while being a triad you were still one Lord God. And if you, God and Father, were yourself also the Son your Word Jesus Christ, were yourself also your gift the Holy Spirit, we would not read in the documents of truth God sent his Son (Gal 4:4), nor would you, only-begotten one, have said of the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name (Jn14:26) and whom I will send you from the Father (Jn 15:26)”
This I thought is a beautiful expression of the Trinity, and Augustine’s own personal struggle to understand the mystery of the Holy Trinity.
The last couple of paragraphs were recitals of Luther’s confession and Saint Augustine’s understanding of the Trinity. This helps in my understanding of the Trinity, but I have not spoken much about scriptural basis for the Trinity. The Bible is riddled with references to the Trinity, but there are two sections I want to take a quick look at.
The first verse is John 3:31-35. It states,
“He who comes from above is above all others; he who is of the earth is earthly himself and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven bears witness to the things he has seen and heard, but his testimony is not accepted by anybody; though anyone who does accept his testimony is attesting that God is true, since he who God has sent speaks God’s own words, for God gives him the Spirit without reserve. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to his hands.”
This scripture, as my meager understanding allows, is a perfect example of the Trinity being spoken of in scripture. This passage has all three persons of the Trinity. It seems quite complex, yet simple.
A second scriptural passage is also from John 4:21-24 Jesus said,
“Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know; for salvation comes from the Jews. But the hour is coming –indeed is already here—when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth: that is the kind of worshipper the Father seeks. God is spirit, and those who worship must worship in spirit and truth.”
Jesus spoke the truth, and is the Word of God. As this is a short article, I cannot go into the Old Testament and quote from it the Trinitarian passages, but there are many which has helped me to understand the Trinity.
I shall try to draw this article to a close, feeling that I have not adequately explained my journey in understanding the Trinity. I will try however to explain it again. The Trinity is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All three natures of the Trinity are working as one God, not three separate persons, but one person with three natures. God is God, Jesus is God with a human nature and the Holy Spirit works through the Father and Son in creation. Jesus has both Divine and human nature as only God can forgive human sins, but it was Jesus’ human nature that died on the cross for humanity as God cannot die as seen in Jesus’ resurrection. There is but one God, forever unchanging, and Jesus’ human body was born of the Virgin Mary, but he is also eternal.
As Saint Augustine did, let me end with my own prayer:
Father, please forgive my ignorance as I attempt to understand all of your mysteries and give me patience with myself as I work towards that understanding. I pray for your eternal guidance, your redemptive Son, and work through the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Holy Trinity is a theology of great significance within the Christian religion. The mystery of the Trinity can be quite difficult to understand and many Christians have a different understanding of the Trinity. This article is a meager attempt at bringing some meaning to my understanding of the Trinity, cultured in and outside of class, and attempting to not be heretical to the Roman Catholic Church nor to Lutherans, Episcopalians, etc…
The Holy Trinity: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is truly one of the great mysteries within the Christian community. The understanding of the relationship between the three persons of the Trinity is confusing to people and has been studied and written about for over 2000 years. My understanding of the Trinity comes from the bottom up, from not knowing the meaning to coming to a fuller, yet forever insufficient understanding, of the Trinity. I say a forever insufficient understanding for the simple reason that I may read, believe and comprehend the tenets of the Trinity, but I, as a human, cannot fully understand this Mystery. This Mystery, as it is understood by the Roman Catholic Church, Lutheran, and many others is such: The Trinity is three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but still one God. As it says in the Nicene Creed, God from God, and the Holy Spirit is begotten from the Father and Son, not created, but begotten. Yet, these three natures are one. Are they three persons? Yes, and no. Is it three Gods? NO! It is one God, but with three natures all with one will. Confusing? Yes, and I hope I have gotten this part correct!
As I have struggled with my understanding I have tried to look at several issues surrounding the Trinity. God is the first person of the Trinity. There is not much to misunderstand about Him. He is God, from the beginning, now and forever will be. God created everything and continually creates everything according to his will. He is forever unchanging, it is humans who change in order to better understand the incomprehensible being of God. God is the Trinity as much as Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
There are many issues that I can look at in trying to understand the Trinity. For instance, Mary, mother of Jesus or mother of God? Both perhaps, as she was the human mother of Jesus, but since Jesus is part of the Holy Trinity, who is God, then understandably, from simple deduction, the term Mother of God fits her quite easily and nicely.
The Lutheran Augsburg Confession speaks of the Trinity and states in Article I,
"Our Churches, with common consent, do teach that the decree of the Council of Nicaea concerning the Unity of the Divine Essence and concerning the Three Persons, is true and to be believed without any doubting; 2] that is to say, there is one Divine Essence which is called and which is God: eternal, without body, without parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the Maker and Preserver of all things, visible and invisible; and 3] yet there are three Persons, of the same essence and power, who also are coeternal, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. And the term "person" 4] they use as the Fathers have used it, to signify, not a part or quality in another, but that which subsists of itself."
The confession continues in Article III by stating about Jesus Christ,
“Also they teach that the Word, that is, the Son of God, did assume the human nature in 2] the womb of the blessed Virgin Mary, so that there are two natures, the divine and the human, inseparably enjoined in one Person, one Christ, true God and true man, who was born of the Virgin Mary, truly suffered, was crucified, dead, and 3] buried, that He might reconcile the Father unto us, and be a sacrifice, not only for original guilt, but also for all actual sins of men.”
As a Lutheran myself, with enormous respect for the Roman Catholic Church, I believe these two sections adequately describe the Holy Trinity, but does not help in the understanding of the Trinity.
Many Christians believe certain tenets of Christianity blindly, without question, but I want to understand why, while also believing. As the Augsburg Confession states the belief, which I recite and believe, I am forced to look further for a better understanding. Saint Augustine wrote an entire book trying to explain the mystery of the Trinity. At the end of his work, The Trinity, Saint Augustine wrote a prayer that stated,
“O Lord our God, we believe in you, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. Truth would not have said, Go and baptize the nations in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19), unless you were a triad. Nor would you have commanded us to be baptized, Lord God, in the name of any who is not Lord God. Nor would it have been said with divine authority, Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one God (Dt 6:4), unless while being a triad you were still one Lord God. And if you, God and Father, were yourself also the Son your Word Jesus Christ, were yourself also your gift the Holy Spirit, we would not read in the documents of truth God sent his Son (Gal 4:4), nor would you, only-begotten one, have said of the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name (Jn14:26) and whom I will send you from the Father (Jn 15:26)”
This I thought is a beautiful expression of the Trinity, and Augustine’s own personal struggle to understand the mystery of the Holy Trinity.
The last couple of paragraphs were recitals of Luther’s confession and Saint Augustine’s understanding of the Trinity. This helps in my understanding of the Trinity, but I have not spoken much about scriptural basis for the Trinity. The Bible is riddled with references to the Trinity, but there are two sections I want to take a quick look at.
The first verse is John 3:31-35. It states,
“He who comes from above is above all others; he who is of the earth is earthly himself and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven bears witness to the things he has seen and heard, but his testimony is not accepted by anybody; though anyone who does accept his testimony is attesting that God is true, since he who God has sent speaks God’s own words, for God gives him the Spirit without reserve. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to his hands.”
This scripture, as my meager understanding allows, is a perfect example of the Trinity being spoken of in scripture. This passage has all three persons of the Trinity. It seems quite complex, yet simple.
A second scriptural passage is also from John 4:21-24 Jesus said,
“Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know; for salvation comes from the Jews. But the hour is coming –indeed is already here—when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth: that is the kind of worshipper the Father seeks. God is spirit, and those who worship must worship in spirit and truth.”
Jesus spoke the truth, and is the Word of God. As this is a short article, I cannot go into the Old Testament and quote from it the Trinitarian passages, but there are many which has helped me to understand the Trinity.
I shall try to draw this article to a close, feeling that I have not adequately explained my journey in understanding the Trinity. I will try however to explain it again. The Trinity is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All three natures of the Trinity are working as one God, not three separate persons, but one person with three natures. God is God, Jesus is God with a human nature and the Holy Spirit works through the Father and Son in creation. Jesus has both Divine and human nature as only God can forgive human sins, but it was Jesus’ human nature that died on the cross for humanity as God cannot die as seen in Jesus’ resurrection. There is but one God, forever unchanging, and Jesus’ human body was born of the Virgin Mary, but he is also eternal.
As Saint Augustine did, let me end with my own prayer:
Father, please forgive my ignorance as I attempt to understand all of your mysteries and give me patience with myself as I work towards that understanding. I pray for your eternal guidance, your redemptive Son, and work through the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Friday, January 22, 2010
What is life about?
Ecclesiasticus 27:30--Resentment and anger, these are foul things to, and a sinner is a master at them both.
Matthew 5:5--Blessed are those who mourn: they shall be comforted.
What is life about? In the past 6 months or so I have had a couple friends and a couple relatives pass away. That was the reason for my earlier blog about Death. But these deaths have also gotten me to think about life. What is it all about?
In the grand scheme of things, our life is very very short. If you are an evolutionist, our life is minuscule compared to the billions of years since the moment of creation. If you are a creationist, our life is still small since the moment of creation. Regardless, our time on this planet is short. And our time on this planet can end at any time.
So, what is life about? Ask anyone and they will have a different answer. Every religion has a different answer, and atheist have their own. This is my answer.
To be a good person. To live my life the best that I can. To grow. Be kind, not angry. To love anyone that comes into my life whether they deserve it or not. To love God. To follow the teachings of Jesus. To try to leave the world a better place as much as I can. Do no harm. Care for animals. Spread my faith. Care for friends. Honor my parents. Be a good brother, uncle, cousin, friend. Hopefully, be a good father one day. Say kind things even if kinds things are not said to me. Do kind things even if kind things are not done to me.
I do not think life is about accumulating wealth. It is not about being the first at everything. It is not who is best or who has the best stuff. It is about being the best person we possibly can.
Why should we be the best person we possibly can when this life is so short? It is not a fear of God. I do not want to do these things out of fear of going to hell, or purgatory. I want to do these things because it honors God. I am not perfect, I am flawed, but I also try to be humble. I do not want to do these things to earn God's Grace, or earn God's love. We already have these things, it is what we do with them is what matters. God loves us unconditionally and all that we do honors God. What if we do something bad? Then you are hurting God, but he still loves us. God never gives up on us, it is us who gives up on God.
That last sentence struck me as I wrote it. With the deaths recently, I never gave up on God. The more I write here the more I think that God knows I am hurting. I miss Cliff, David, Kerry and Gerald. I miss them all terribly. But I do know that all 4 of them are in a better place. Why do I continue to hurt, it is because I miss them. But I must remember that I have a good life. I have people in my life that do care for me, and I have people in my life that I do care about. I have hurt some in the past and recently, but it was not intentional. For that, I am sorry. And for those that have hurt me, I forgive you. I hope those that I have hurt can do the same.
The title of this blog is "Growing in my Christianity" so how does this relate to that title. Many year ago if this same rash of deaths would have occurred, I do not think I could have handled it. With my strengthening belief in God, I know that this is only a part of our life on this planet. We should be the best person we can be, and that is to follow Jesus Christ. If you are not a believer, just read his teachings and you will understand his message is not for just people 2000 years ago, it is a message that will echo forever.
I am not in the Christian camp that says God has a "plan". I do believe that God knows all and sees all. He is outside of our time. He is in the past, present and future, so naturally God knows what is going to happen before it happens. But, it is our choices, through the gift of Free-Will that only humans truly have, what we do. We make our own choices, our own decisions, God just knows about them ahead of time. He nudges us, gives us hints, gave us the Word made Flesh to follow and obey. We are to make the most of this world and be the best person we can possibly be.
James 1:20-God's saving justice is never served by human anger.
Matthew 18:34-35--And in his anger the master handed him over to the torturers till he should pay all his debt. And that is how my heavenly Father will deal with you unless you each forgive your brother from your heart.
Wisdom 15:1--But you, our God, are kind and true, slow to anger, governing the universe with mercy.
Peace
Dirk
Matthew 5:5--Blessed are those who mourn: they shall be comforted.
What is life about? In the past 6 months or so I have had a couple friends and a couple relatives pass away. That was the reason for my earlier blog about Death. But these deaths have also gotten me to think about life. What is it all about?
In the grand scheme of things, our life is very very short. If you are an evolutionist, our life is minuscule compared to the billions of years since the moment of creation. If you are a creationist, our life is still small since the moment of creation. Regardless, our time on this planet is short. And our time on this planet can end at any time.
So, what is life about? Ask anyone and they will have a different answer. Every religion has a different answer, and atheist have their own. This is my answer.
To be a good person. To live my life the best that I can. To grow. Be kind, not angry. To love anyone that comes into my life whether they deserve it or not. To love God. To follow the teachings of Jesus. To try to leave the world a better place as much as I can. Do no harm. Care for animals. Spread my faith. Care for friends. Honor my parents. Be a good brother, uncle, cousin, friend. Hopefully, be a good father one day. Say kind things even if kinds things are not said to me. Do kind things even if kind things are not done to me.
I do not think life is about accumulating wealth. It is not about being the first at everything. It is not who is best or who has the best stuff. It is about being the best person we possibly can.
Why should we be the best person we possibly can when this life is so short? It is not a fear of God. I do not want to do these things out of fear of going to hell, or purgatory. I want to do these things because it honors God. I am not perfect, I am flawed, but I also try to be humble. I do not want to do these things to earn God's Grace, or earn God's love. We already have these things, it is what we do with them is what matters. God loves us unconditionally and all that we do honors God. What if we do something bad? Then you are hurting God, but he still loves us. God never gives up on us, it is us who gives up on God.
That last sentence struck me as I wrote it. With the deaths recently, I never gave up on God. The more I write here the more I think that God knows I am hurting. I miss Cliff, David, Kerry and Gerald. I miss them all terribly. But I do know that all 4 of them are in a better place. Why do I continue to hurt, it is because I miss them. But I must remember that I have a good life. I have people in my life that do care for me, and I have people in my life that I do care about. I have hurt some in the past and recently, but it was not intentional. For that, I am sorry. And for those that have hurt me, I forgive you. I hope those that I have hurt can do the same.
The title of this blog is "Growing in my Christianity" so how does this relate to that title. Many year ago if this same rash of deaths would have occurred, I do not think I could have handled it. With my strengthening belief in God, I know that this is only a part of our life on this planet. We should be the best person we can be, and that is to follow Jesus Christ. If you are not a believer, just read his teachings and you will understand his message is not for just people 2000 years ago, it is a message that will echo forever.
I am not in the Christian camp that says God has a "plan". I do believe that God knows all and sees all. He is outside of our time. He is in the past, present and future, so naturally God knows what is going to happen before it happens. But, it is our choices, through the gift of Free-Will that only humans truly have, what we do. We make our own choices, our own decisions, God just knows about them ahead of time. He nudges us, gives us hints, gave us the Word made Flesh to follow and obey. We are to make the most of this world and be the best person we can possibly be.
James 1:20-God's saving justice is never served by human anger.
Matthew 18:34-35--And in his anger the master handed him over to the torturers till he should pay all his debt. And that is how my heavenly Father will deal with you unless you each forgive your brother from your heart.
Wisdom 15:1--But you, our God, are kind and true, slow to anger, governing the universe with mercy.
Peace
Dirk
Friday, January 15, 2010
Curse?
I have been thinking about the tragedy in Haiti, and the unfortunate remarks by Pat Robertson. For those that do not know, Pat Robertson said the people of Haiti made a pact with the devil and that is why they are suffering. Pat Robertson said the Haitians made that pact to get rid of the French.
Now, I do not know if this is true or not, but his comment is extremely unfortunate. I do not want to call them dumb, stupid, idiotic, etc...I will just say they were unfortunate and extremely un-Christian. There is no way Pat could know if that was the cause of the tragedy. Did God create the earthquake to punish the Haitian people? Possible. Why not? But, it is not for us to declare and especially not for Pat Robertson to declare. I say it is possible because God has been known to destroy cities. Right?
Our job, and Pat's job, is to mourn the losses and help our fellow man in need. We are to do whatever we can to ease the suffering of the living and respect the dead. We are not to lay blame on anyone, that is being judgmental of which we are not to be. I am not judging Pat, I am saying that his comments were unhelpful.
I did state that they were un-Christian because I do feel they were un-Christian. His comment did nothing to help the people, on the contrary it probably kept some people from donating their time or money. We are to help our fellow man, and his comments did far more harm that good because of his vast following.
This is not the only problem I have with his comments. The additional problem I have is with Pat Robertson himself. Yes, he professes he is a Christian, but the more I read about him he is missing one very fundamental aspect. We are to glorify God in all our actions, but Pat seems to want to glorify himself more than he does God. He says and does things to make himself look good. I just get a feeling that he does what he does to increase his wealth and status, but not working solely to glorify God. Yes, I think Joel Osteen falls in this category also. Please, disagree if you wish.
The more I learn the more I feel compelled to be humble. I profess my belief, I cherish my faith, but I do not feel compelled to gather vast wealth to spread my belief. I feel compelled to lead others to a greater understanding, but that is not for myself. It is something I would enjoy, seeing the great changes in a person as their faith blossoms as it has done within me. But that is only for God, not me.
I am sorry if it seems like I am angry at Robertson and Osteen, I am not. I am thankful that they do try to bring people closer to God, I just feel some of their actions have ulterior motives. I am still learning, and probably always will be.
I want to end with a prayer: Father, we pray for the suffering people of Haiti. Please guide them as they work towards rebuilding their lives and comfort the survivors as they mourn their losses. We pray for protection of the Haitians and special protection for all the aid workers now risking their lives to help their fellow man. Amen
Now, I do not know if this is true or not, but his comment is extremely unfortunate. I do not want to call them dumb, stupid, idiotic, etc...I will just say they were unfortunate and extremely un-Christian. There is no way Pat could know if that was the cause of the tragedy. Did God create the earthquake to punish the Haitian people? Possible. Why not? But, it is not for us to declare and especially not for Pat Robertson to declare. I say it is possible because God has been known to destroy cities. Right?
Our job, and Pat's job, is to mourn the losses and help our fellow man in need. We are to do whatever we can to ease the suffering of the living and respect the dead. We are not to lay blame on anyone, that is being judgmental of which we are not to be. I am not judging Pat, I am saying that his comments were unhelpful.
I did state that they were un-Christian because I do feel they were un-Christian. His comment did nothing to help the people, on the contrary it probably kept some people from donating their time or money. We are to help our fellow man, and his comments did far more harm that good because of his vast following.
This is not the only problem I have with his comments. The additional problem I have is with Pat Robertson himself. Yes, he professes he is a Christian, but the more I read about him he is missing one very fundamental aspect. We are to glorify God in all our actions, but Pat seems to want to glorify himself more than he does God. He says and does things to make himself look good. I just get a feeling that he does what he does to increase his wealth and status, but not working solely to glorify God. Yes, I think Joel Osteen falls in this category also. Please, disagree if you wish.
The more I learn the more I feel compelled to be humble. I profess my belief, I cherish my faith, but I do not feel compelled to gather vast wealth to spread my belief. I feel compelled to lead others to a greater understanding, but that is not for myself. It is something I would enjoy, seeing the great changes in a person as their faith blossoms as it has done within me. But that is only for God, not me.
I am sorry if it seems like I am angry at Robertson and Osteen, I am not. I am thankful that they do try to bring people closer to God, I just feel some of their actions have ulterior motives. I am still learning, and probably always will be.
I want to end with a prayer: Father, we pray for the suffering people of Haiti. Please guide them as they work towards rebuilding their lives and comfort the survivors as they mourn their losses. We pray for protection of the Haitians and special protection for all the aid workers now risking their lives to help their fellow man. Amen
Friday, January 1, 2010
Death
Not the most pleasant of subjects to be talking about, but I am forced to think about it quite frequently lately. I wonder what death means, what happens at the instant of death, and what the afterlife is like. It does not matter who you are, you will die. It is the only inescapable thing in this world. We can avoid many things in life, but death is the only constant that every living being must face. How we face death, whether it is our own, or a family member or friend, it defines us and how we are remembered.
What will I do, what will you do, at the moment of death? What is it like? I hope that I face death with dignity and without fear. I believe it was Martin Luther who said that we should not fear death as fear is the devil’s playground. Satan wants us to fear death because death is the avenue for our soul to become closer to and know God in a way we cannot know in the mortal world. That is exactly what Satan does not want us to be. Satan is forever working to keep fear of death within us because he does not want us to know God.
This does not mean we should seek death, such as suicide, or other means, but we should not fear death. If death means being closer to God why not seek death? Well, we are going to die no matter what, so why seek something that we already have. I am just saying we should not fear something that we cannot change. We should embrace this life and live it honoring God with good actions for every good action we do honors God.
What does death mean? That is really a question I think humans have been dealing with since humans existed. Atheists seem to think that we just cease to exist at the moment of death. Of course, as a Christian, I totally disagree with them. Death is the end of this life and the beginning of a new life with God (if he deems it so). Whether we live with God or not, is our choice. John Calvin got it very wrong in my opinion with his pre-destination theory. Calvin does not allow humans to have a choice in salvation as he believes that God has already chosen who will be in heaven. The problem is “chosen”. God knows all, and he is outside our understanding of time. He knows the past, present and future. God knows who will be in heaven, but it is our choices that bring us to God. We choose what we do because God gave us the gift of free-will. We are solely responsible for our actions, and the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ allows us to become closer to God in heaven. Yes, there is God’s “chosen” people, but that is something entirely different.
While God knows our choices before we make them, it is still our choice. To deny this is to deny God’s gift of free will that he did not give anything else in creation.
Then what is heaven? Heaven is God. It is neither a place nor a specific location as we know it. Heaven is a state of our soul being in total communion with God. Hell is the separation from God. I, for one, want to be in communion with God.
Now, if you do not read any other portion of this blog, I hope you read this portion. It is said that God wrote his laws on the human soul. Such as, thou shall not kill, commit adultery, and so on. I propose that there were other things that God wrote onto our souls for understanding. If you look in history, most cultures have some form of afterlife. Whether it is reincarnation, ghost, etc…there is a form of afterlife. Some people may say we want to believe in an afterlife out of selfish reason because we do not want to face an end to existing. I think that God wrote other things onto our souls and a belief in the afterlife is one of them. Am I supported by scripture? I have no idea, but the coincidence of a belief in something after death by so many cultures leads me to think that the afterlife was written onto our soul for us to believe.
Death is only the end of a mortal life, and the beginning of eternal life. Death, as with many other subjects, is an extremely complex philosophical and theological issue. While everyone will face death, it should not be something we dwell upon. Death is not something we should fear, nor seek, but embrace it when our time comes.
Peace
Dirk
What will I do, what will you do, at the moment of death? What is it like? I hope that I face death with dignity and without fear. I believe it was Martin Luther who said that we should not fear death as fear is the devil’s playground. Satan wants us to fear death because death is the avenue for our soul to become closer to and know God in a way we cannot know in the mortal world. That is exactly what Satan does not want us to be. Satan is forever working to keep fear of death within us because he does not want us to know God.
This does not mean we should seek death, such as suicide, or other means, but we should not fear death. If death means being closer to God why not seek death? Well, we are going to die no matter what, so why seek something that we already have. I am just saying we should not fear something that we cannot change. We should embrace this life and live it honoring God with good actions for every good action we do honors God.
What does death mean? That is really a question I think humans have been dealing with since humans existed. Atheists seem to think that we just cease to exist at the moment of death. Of course, as a Christian, I totally disagree with them. Death is the end of this life and the beginning of a new life with God (if he deems it so). Whether we live with God or not, is our choice. John Calvin got it very wrong in my opinion with his pre-destination theory. Calvin does not allow humans to have a choice in salvation as he believes that God has already chosen who will be in heaven. The problem is “chosen”. God knows all, and he is outside our understanding of time. He knows the past, present and future. God knows who will be in heaven, but it is our choices that bring us to God. We choose what we do because God gave us the gift of free-will. We are solely responsible for our actions, and the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ allows us to become closer to God in heaven. Yes, there is God’s “chosen” people, but that is something entirely different.
While God knows our choices before we make them, it is still our choice. To deny this is to deny God’s gift of free will that he did not give anything else in creation.
Then what is heaven? Heaven is God. It is neither a place nor a specific location as we know it. Heaven is a state of our soul being in total communion with God. Hell is the separation from God. I, for one, want to be in communion with God.
Now, if you do not read any other portion of this blog, I hope you read this portion. It is said that God wrote his laws on the human soul. Such as, thou shall not kill, commit adultery, and so on. I propose that there were other things that God wrote onto our souls for understanding. If you look in history, most cultures have some form of afterlife. Whether it is reincarnation, ghost, etc…there is a form of afterlife. Some people may say we want to believe in an afterlife out of selfish reason because we do not want to face an end to existing. I think that God wrote other things onto our souls and a belief in the afterlife is one of them. Am I supported by scripture? I have no idea, but the coincidence of a belief in something after death by so many cultures leads me to think that the afterlife was written onto our soul for us to believe.
Death is only the end of a mortal life, and the beginning of eternal life. Death, as with many other subjects, is an extremely complex philosophical and theological issue. While everyone will face death, it should not be something we dwell upon. Death is not something we should fear, nor seek, but embrace it when our time comes.
Peace
Dirk
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