(Previous article)
So, when the Christ shows up, what does He do, and what kind of response does He require?
Well, two emphases dominate Jesus’ ministry from the very beginning.
Matthew and Mark summarize the first of these with the statement that Jesus began to proclaim that the Kingdom of God was at hand (Matthew 4:17; Mark 1:14-15). Our minds tend to interpret this in light of our modern Christian experience, and probably envision something along the lines …
(Previous article)
We have journeyed through the Old Testament, tracing the hope held out since man decided to pursue life on his own terms. Following it through the millennia, we have seen the hope grow from a glimmer in Genesis 3:15 into a full-blown image with surprising detail. By the time we get through The Prophets, we are able to put together the following description –
He will crush the Enemy who challenged God’s Kingdom on earth.
He …
(Previous article)
So far, this little journey to understand what is going on in Hebrews 10 has turned into an expedition that is in its seventh week. Seems like we have been talking about this forever. In fact, it’s hard to remember why we are here, or where we are going. Wait. What was the question?
Oh, yeah. We are talking about the “pleasure of God’s soul” in Hebrews 10:38-39 –
“But My righteous one shall live by …
(Previous article)
(Note – Some of the material in this article is taken from the previous article – “Looking For ‘The Kingdom’”, and presented here, in the context of the flow of the story.)
There is much background behind Hebrews 10. But we are making progress.
Beginning in the Garden, and moving through Noah, God’s covenant with Abraham, and most recently, His covenant with Israel, given through Moses, we have seen several key developments in the Story –
The …
(Previous article)
Yep. Hebrews 10 is still our destination.
In our re-examination of the story, we have moved from the Garden, through Noah and the Flood, to God’s covenant with Abraham. At this point in the story, we have learned that The One Who Is Coming to crush the Enemy will indeed bring, not simply relief from the curse, but, in it’s place blessing.
And so, Abraham begets Isaac, and Isaac, Jacob. Jacob is renamed “Israel”, and it …
(Previous article)
No . . . I haven’t forgotten about Hebrews 10.
But, if we want to understand the warning found there, it’s going to take more than a quick reading of the text, and a few background comments. For most of us, it’s going to require a significant development in our understanding of what God is up to.
In re-examining the Story, we have begun to see that God is about the recovery of all that was …
(Previous article)
In our pursuit to understand the strong warning at the end of Hebrews 10, we are examining the assumption that the whole Story is about forgiveness and redemption. If these are the only issue, then the warning threatens our eternal security. Are we in danger of “loosing our salvation”? Could we really go to hell if we screw up?
So, we returned to the beginning of the Story, to see if we missed anything.
We started …
When I set out to explore the idea of the “pleasure of God’s soul” last week, I did not anticipate where that would lead. But as I have considered how to explain all that is going on at the end of Hebrews 10, it has become clear that we need to take our time, and let the Larger Story unfold, so that we can understand what brings pleasure to God’s soul . . . and …
(Previous article)
The “pleasure of God’s soul” – There is something unsettling, yet compelling about that phrase. Unsettling because I don’t think of God as having a “soul”. Clearly, He is Spirit (John 4:24). But the idea of Him “having a soul” is somehow foreign. Unsettling also, because it seems that I might have something to do with this pleasure . . . and compelling for the same reason. Also compelling because it seems like a …
(Previous article)
As we continue the journey of learning what it means to “love and hate like God”, I am drawn back to a passage we touched on in last week’s look at the Kingdom – Hebrews 10 & 11 – particularly 10:26-39.
Yet, when I go back and read the passage, it doesn’t quite fit our pursuit as we’ve described it. We set out to find the things we should love because God loves them, and …
