tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post4979759923149824559..comments2021-02-07T10:56:21.628-05:00Comments on Deconstructing Neverland: Keeping our focusMisplaced Honorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07678088467204383307noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-62232903604905499772011-06-06T21:40:04.206-04:002011-06-06T21:40:04.206-04:00Jon,
Thanks for adding to the conversation. I li...Jon,<br /><br />Thanks for adding to the conversation. I like what you've said here. The focus is on Christ as Lord which results in works that proceed from faith. Good balance.Misplaced Honorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07678088467204383307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-7367204509007763102011-06-06T19:20:28.373-04:002011-06-06T19:20:28.373-04:00P.S. Don't quote me on that, or add it to any...P.S. Don't quote me on that, or add it to any statement of faith. Jesus didn't seem to insist His followers wrote it down in the form of a creed or catechism... I'm not sure why, but I should be careful to avoid using permanent ink definition as well.Jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01266729238990589293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-20013458103912497942011-06-06T19:13:32.118-04:002011-06-06T19:13:32.118-04:00Good post, good discussion. I don't see the go...Good post, good discussion. I don't see the gospel of the kingdom as a works based gospel. What makes sense to me is it is an invitation accept Christ as Lord. Who is King? Jesus or Caesar? Who is going to rule your life? The kingdom of darkness or the kingdom of light? Did you know God's power is available to you? You don't have to do everything in your own strength and wisdom. If you allow God to rule in your life, instead of your selfish ambitions He will restore your life to what it was intended to be.<br /><br />There is a healthy dose of both faith and works wrapped up in the gospel of the kingdom.Jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01266729238990589293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-77294226226752987692011-06-06T17:46:02.236-04:002011-06-06T17:46:02.236-04:00I gotcha!I gotcha!Shanehttp://tshanem.posterous.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-20015532857121199482011-06-06T16:32:50.166-04:002011-06-06T16:32:50.166-04:00Alan,
exactly! The two are inseparable and yet I...Alan,<br /><br />exactly! The two are inseparable and yet I have been guilty of separating them and leaning too hard both ways.Misplaced Honorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07678088467204383307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-15332123331433883532011-06-06T16:24:17.927-04:002011-06-06T16:24:17.927-04:00I don't think a gospel without a changed life ...I don't think a gospel without a changed life (including works) would be THE gospel, and I don't think a kingdom without both gospel and changed life would be THE kingdom (i.e., the kingdom of God). However, I've heard plenty of people proclaim one without the other.<br /><br />-AlanAlan Knoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07452247058550736803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-58112609335955974472011-06-06T12:47:11.746-04:002011-06-06T12:47:11.746-04:00Shane,
I say anything worth thinking about is wor...Shane,<br /><br />I say anything worth thinking about is worth discussing and this is certainly worth thinking about.<br /><br />As I understand it, both the change of heart (God's doing) and our faith and trust (man's doing) must happen at the same time. The reason I think they happen at the same time is because the Bible makes both necessary to be saved. To make it a chicken and egg issue is to elevate either God's sovereignty or man's responsibility over the other when both are necessary for salvation.<br /><br />Apart from Christ we are described as dead, blinded, children of wrath. Since the dead cannot bring themselves to life, the blind cannot cause themselves to see and we cannot pick our parents I discern that God must do all of these things for us. As God acts on our behalf, we are saved. We also have the persistent call to repent and believe the gospel of Jesus Christ and when we do we shall be saved. This is something we must do.<br /><br />If I were forced to lean one way or the other I would lean toward the "God acts first" side even if His sovereign act only preceded our response by a millifraction of a nanosecond. I guess that's because I give God a whole lot more credit for His grace than I give man for our ability to understand and embrace Him.<br /><br />Does that help clarify?Misplaced Honorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07678088467204383307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4514316733918143759.post-15016107510897000022011-06-06T10:15:39.109-04:002011-06-06T10:15:39.109-04:00Good post, Bobby!
I once heard someone wonder if ...Good post, Bobby!<br /><br />I once heard someone wonder if God ever thought to himself, "Dude, yeah I saved you but that was 20 years ago! Get over it!" It sort of threw me for a loop, but the more I thought about it the more I wondered if he wasn't right. <br /><br />It's not that we would ever forget what he did for us, but at some point you have to get from elementary school to jr. high and then high school and so on. When kids learn math in elementary school, then move on to Algebra later on, it isn't that they forget that 1+1=2, rather they build on what they learned before. Christ is so much bigger than our salvation, but it all seems to begin there.<br /><br />Having said all of that, I did have one question; hopefully it will make some sense! (If I misunderstood, set me straight!)<br /><br />You said, "We must be born again to treasure, cherish, prize, and supremely value Christ above all things." My question is this: Do we have to be born again in order to do supremely value Christ, or do you think it could be that we supremely value Christ and as a result we are born again? Or maybe being born again is doing both at the same time? Does one really happen before the other? Is this even worth discussing?Shanehttp://tshanem.posterous.comnoreply@blogger.com