Holy Spirit

February 8, 2019

Year 4, Day 39 | No Comments

Section of The Last Supper, Leonardo Da Vinci

From the outset of Christianity the person and work of the Holy Spirit have been both overstated and understated, coupled with a fear of excess religiosity and extremism in application. Many references to the God-head of the Trinity are weakest in the accent of the Holy Spirit in writings or discussions. In discussion and writing about God and redemption there are many references to God the Father, and God the Son, but fewer to God the Holy Spirit – if any at all. There was some passage of time from the time of my Christian conversion until I began to grasp the meaning of the Holy Spirit to the application of the works of God in Christ, and from him… Read more

Joy as Attitude

February 7, 2019

Year 4, Day 38 | No Comments

Christians ought to be affirmative about life in any context. Optimism is a factor in affirmation, but not the controlling one. The word, optimism, has taken on some negative baggage in implying that the optimist may not be adequately informed about circumstances related to reality: naivete in the optimist or ignorance. The matter depends upon one’s orientation, attitude toward problem solving, and sense of faith in circumstances, progress and providence. God will win, and that ought to make God’s children persons of affirmation. We affirm the gifts of God, his creation, his will and plans. The Apostle Paul had many experiences that would have done in most persons. The Apostle James simply states: Count it all joy. Scripture includes a… Read more

Memory

February 6, 2019

Year 4, Day 37 | No Comments

Section of Noli me Tangere by Hans Holbein the Younger

These Pages are related to life as it is lived in wealth and poverty, in faith and unbelief, in circumstances of blessing and cursing, in love and hate, in effectiveness and ineffectiveness, in relationships of unity and variance, and so comparisons/contrasts may be listed. They are cast in two large contexts, human and Christian, with Scripture as the main textbook, and have been experienced by me now quite aged, partly self-sufficient and feeling compelled to communicate my take on life, education, work, family, society and Christian faith that makes context for balance and solutions. It is directed especially to the young with the challenge to form life early, especially in the collegiate environment noted for both blessing and loss. The… Read more

Principles

February 5, 2019

Year 4, Day 36 | No Comments

Section of The Descent from the Cross, Rogier van der Weyden, c. 1435

I have often heard zealous persons say that Scripture does not indicate retirement. It surely does. The priest could begin his service to the Tabernacle at 25 years of age. He retired at 50 years of age. He continued personal ministry to the congregation as he felt he might contribute, in the locale in which he lived, and later in the synagogues when that ministry was introduced to the tribes of Israel. It was actually semi-retirement, but not under the stringency of schedule and dislocation that the Tabernacle assignment required. All men of Israel, likely with the exemption of Levites, were conscripts for the military at 20 years of age – to serve when needed. They were mustered out at… Read more

Faith

February 4, 2019

Year 4, Day 35 | No Comments

Faith is a New Testament word used twice in the KJV version of the Old Testament and scores of times in the New. The word faithful is used much more generously in the Old Testament, but even then it appears in the majority of instances in the poetic books. This does not take away the place of faith in the Old Testament, as noted through extensive repetition in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews in the New. The pre-Christian generations utilized faith in a forward thrust that ultimately took a central focus in a messianic expectation. In the advent of Christ as Messiah, the Christian perception added the expectation in the finished work of Jesus Christ. This resulted, for Christians, in… Read more

Know Thyself

February 3, 2019

Year 4, Day 34 | No Comments

Section of Adoration of the Magi, artist unknown

We remember that the emphases of God are often made from a different direction than that from mortals. This relates to values, and values are problematic for mortals. Our reference here is to faithfulness, and the understanding of values in the applications of Christian principles. Judas was unfaithful to Christ and his disciple friends. Demas was unfaithful to Christ and to the Apostle – for a time. Absalom was unfaithful to God and his father, David. Jonathan found a way to be faithful to his friend David, to his father and to God. Jonathan had character and nobility. What a friend Jonathan was, likely to every person admitted to his life. World patterns of faithfulness and unfaithfulness would make a… Read more

Solutions

February 2, 2019

Year 4, Day 33 | No Comments

When a person has arrived at a point of maturity – that point related to self-decency so adjusting to what is in life context, intelligent behavior, contributing to society (others), gaining spiritual perception with related duty, and modeling a life of fulfillment that includes problem solving – what is left to be troubling to the person’s spirit? There are several nagging matters that are seldom discussed, but ought to be. One is the prevailing feeling of personal failures. It takes several directions. If it was poor judgment, say in a business venture, we fuss with self. Why did I not do this or that? Why did I do this or that? The inner debate continues even after learning a lesson. … Read more

Sublimity To Death

February 1, 2019

Year 4, Day 32 | No Comments

The Apostle Paul, growing old and maintaining his views of realism and spiritual integrity, seemed eager toward the end of his life to use his personal, professional and spiritual insights to prepare his closest colleagues to take over his ministries, add their own increasing influence, and contribute to generations in advancing the gospel. That included evangelism and the exposition of the victorious life in faith as outlined in Scripture. It is observed in daily experience. The above verse falls into the context of the preceding verses referring to the hope of Christ. Hope in Scripture refers to immortality, and its certainty in the forerunning experience of Christ’s resurrection. It is referred to in I Corinthians 13:13 as among the greatest… Read more

Monthly Archives: February 2019