Reflections on the loving kindness of the Triune God
God has a soft spot. It’s not a weakness—as if he’s less than divine at this point—but a quality in his Triune relations that allows us to connect with him in uniquely tender terms. Here’s the secret. Say, “Thank you, Lord”—everywhere and all the time! Make it a steady part of your walk, your talk, …
Read More God’s Soft Spot[A technical note: the subscription feed for Spreading Goodness failed and needed to be replaced. In the changeover this post wasn’t sent to most subscribers and needs to be re-sent. But some of you will have seen it already – sorry for any inconvenience!] I’m returning to the ministry of the Spirit in this post—a …
Read More Reflecting on the SpiritI’m returning to the ministry of the Spirit in this post—a favored topic of recent months. The immediate stir this time was a recent invitation to speak on the Trinity. The preparation took me back into Jonathan Edward’s “Treatise on Grace” which is really a discussion of the Spirit. But let me start with the …
Read More Reflecting on the SpiritIn the Genesis creation narrative we read of God’s vocational calling for Adam and Eve. “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth …
Read More Dominion with ChristLet me return to a familiar topic but this time with a new facet in view. How does our Trinitarian faith touch on the question of passions? A book recommendation from a friend stirred my question. C. Kavin Rowe, in his One True Life: The Stoics and Early Christians as Rival Traditions, affirms the traditional …
Read More In Defense of PassionRichard Sibbes, my favorite English puritan (1577-1635), treated human salvation very much as Martin Luther had done in Saxony a century before—mainly as a function of ontology. It shifted the focus away from the more judicial notion of salvation common in his day. In the judicial view Jesus took up the Father’s judgment against sin—death—on …
Read More Three unionsIn his lifetime Richard Sibbes’ (1577-1635) theology changed at some key points. For any who appreciate Sibbes the claim invites some attention. We know he was a lifelong learner and was ready to think for himself. As a pastor and teacher he read widely and explored the Bible both for his teaching and in his …
Read More Our Ultimate EndJesus was asked about the “end of the age” and his answer offered some surprises. “And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one …
Read More Cold loveJames Warren, after the recent US election, cited President Obama as saying, “Trump understands the new ecosystem, in which facts and truth don’t matter.” In the same week we learned that a widely circulated Facebook news item—about Pope Francis endorsing Trump for president—was a bold lie. And, elsewhere, news is now out that the Volkswagen …
Read More The LiarA few years ago I was curious about social networking. How does it work and what does it offer? So I joined Facebook. In the profile page I gave my actual age and social status—I’m an aging single guy. Oh my, was that an awakening! From the start my FB page featured photos of young …
Read More In a Relationship