The Word and The World
Monday, January 02, 2006
In the beginning
In the beginning….
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being4 in him was life…
John 1:1-4 (NRSV)
Everything in life has a beginning, right? Well almost everything. We know when we had our beginning as sentient beings. I’m assuming we can count backwards approximately nine months from our birthday. I believe that for us to have any hope at examining the world around us and letting the Word of God (Jesus) shine upon it, we need to get one or two things straight, right from the start.
First, I strongly believe that Jesus Christ is co-existant and co-eternal with God the Father. This means that there was never a time when Jesus was not God’s Word. As John wrote: “He was in the beginning…” I also affirm that all things were created through Him.
With that understanding in front of us it gets easier to see how we can hope to hold the Light of the World up to the world. I maintain that since Jesus had a hand in the creation of all things, we can best understand and change the world we live in only when we let him have a hand in how we live and interact with the world. Please note I am not advocating that we withdraw from the world. Instead what I am suggesting is that we jump into the world with both feet.
Jesus did not stand aloof from the people of his time. In fact, he sought out those society rejected and told them the truth of God’s grace, mercy, and love. In the same manner, we are called to be practicing Christians 24/7/365. We cannot take a break simply because our friends do differently. Nor can we draw lines in the sand and condemn others who think or act differently than we do. If anything we are called to continue to love others, even our staunchest foes in life. For to paraphrase Paul, “When we do so it is like pouring boiling oil all over them.”
It is my hope and prayer that through this blog and podcast and your comments, we can together look at the world in which we live. I pray that in the looking we might discover how God is at work and perhaps see how we can be God’s instruments of healing, in the name of our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Merciful God, it is with fear and trepidation that I begin this blog. I pray, Lord, for your guidance and your words as we look at the world around us. Help us to recognize that our spiritual life with you grows deepest, not when we bemoan the sad state of affairs, but when we reach out as your children to make a difference. This we ask in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being4 in him was life…
John 1:1-4 (NRSV)
Everything in life has a beginning, right? Well almost everything. We know when we had our beginning as sentient beings. I’m assuming we can count backwards approximately nine months from our birthday. I believe that for us to have any hope at examining the world around us and letting the Word of God (Jesus) shine upon it, we need to get one or two things straight, right from the start.
First, I strongly believe that Jesus Christ is co-existant and co-eternal with God the Father. This means that there was never a time when Jesus was not God’s Word. As John wrote: “He was in the beginning…” I also affirm that all things were created through Him.
With that understanding in front of us it gets easier to see how we can hope to hold the Light of the World up to the world. I maintain that since Jesus had a hand in the creation of all things, we can best understand and change the world we live in only when we let him have a hand in how we live and interact with the world. Please note I am not advocating that we withdraw from the world. Instead what I am suggesting is that we jump into the world with both feet.
Jesus did not stand aloof from the people of his time. In fact, he sought out those society rejected and told them the truth of God’s grace, mercy, and love. In the same manner, we are called to be practicing Christians 24/7/365. We cannot take a break simply because our friends do differently. Nor can we draw lines in the sand and condemn others who think or act differently than we do. If anything we are called to continue to love others, even our staunchest foes in life. For to paraphrase Paul, “When we do so it is like pouring boiling oil all over them.”
It is my hope and prayer that through this blog and podcast and your comments, we can together look at the world in which we live. I pray that in the looking we might discover how God is at work and perhaps see how we can be God’s instruments of healing, in the name of our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Merciful God, it is with fear and trepidation that I begin this blog. I pray, Lord, for your guidance and your words as we look at the world around us. Help us to recognize that our spiritual life with you grows deepest, not when we bemoan the sad state of affairs, but when we reach out as your children to make a difference. This we ask in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.
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