Glory, Glory

Glorifying God is an inherent calling for anyone who comes into the body of Christ.  According to Westminster Catechism, the greatest calling of mankind is to “glorify God and enjoy him forever.”  How then, do we best fulfill this great calling? 

      Sure, there are many ways to glorify God.  We glorify him in worship, sharing the gospel, and by obedience to him.  However, all of those “good things” are only good if they are done through faith in God.  Hebrews 11:6 emphatically states, “And without faith it is impossible to please God.” (NIV)  If you think about Abraham, and his righteousness, nothing came separately from his faith.  Genesis 15:6 says, “Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (NIV)   

Notice, the first word after Abram is not righteous, or credit, but rather, Abram believed.  It was through his belief that he was able to be called righteous by God.  Abraham later glorified God through his willingness to sacrifice his only son, and to move his family to a foreign land.  However, those things only glorified God, and pleased him, as Hebrews says, because Abraham believed.  He had faith that God was who He said He was, and would do what He said He would do.  It is our faith in God which allows us to fulfill our greatest calling. ~ Sophia

Hey Einstein!

“Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity states that space is not always the way it appears to us.  Suppose, for example, you did not know the world was round.  Would you think it was?  Probably not.  After all, the earth looks pretty flat all around you.  Thus, you would probably think that the world is flat.  We know that this is not the case, however.  Despite what it looks like from our vantage point, we know the earth is round.”  (Exploring Creation with Physical Science. Wile, Module 11, Pg. 274.)

You may be wondering where I’m going with this.  Well, while I was reading this simplistic explanation of Einstein’s theory in my homework last week, it had me thinking more about theology than science.  This theory reminded me of Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”. (NIV)  By this definition of faith, we see a direct connection between believing that the world is round, despite our inability to see it for ourselves, and believing in God’s sovereignty, despite our inability to comprehend his plans.  2 Corinthians 4:18 states, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”  Both of these verses biblically illustrate the phrase, mind over matter.  We must hold to the hope of the unseen, and trust God over our vantage point.  So often, we’re seeing the world as a flat surface, devoid of hope past our present circumstance.  We get so bogged down by whatever is right in front of us that we miss out on being able to walk in that close fellowship with God that comes through child-like faith.  Matthew 18:3 reminds us to walk in this faith, “And he said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Switchfoot mirrors this concept in one of their songs:  Jon Foreman sings, “Belief over misery, I've seen the enemy, and I won't go back, back to how it was.  And I got my heart set on what happens next, I got my eyes wide it's not over yet.”  In conclusion, we must hold to our belief in the truth and faithfulness of God, over the view in front of us, despite what trials come our way.  We cannot go back to our doubt.  There are better things in store! ~ Sophia Wise

Much more than an arm and leg

 What does it cost to get to the top?  What does it take to get the A+, make the promotion, or get your dream home?  I think maybe it costs much more than time or efforts to get all the physical things we ever wanted, especially if it is at the price of our spiritual goals.  Your joy, peace, patience, and self-control are just a few things that will take a hit if you choose to pursue the riches of this life over heavenly riches.

 Luke 12 shows a powerful illustration of this concept when talking about the man who hoards all his riches and builds bigger barns to store his grains, only to die within the night.  The key to the balance between having possessions and remaining humble in Christ is this:  All of our physical possessions are blessings from God for us to steward and to use for His glory, not rewards that we gain.  Proverbs 3:9 reminds us that our spiritual health is never to take a backseat to worldly riches, stating, “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce”. (ESV)  Again it’s OK to have things, but they mustn’t have you! ~ Sophia Wise

Sanctity of Human Life

Sanctity of Life ~ Naomi Knight

The phrase ‘Sanctity of Life’ has become commonplace in recent decades.  The phrase itself refers to the idea that human life is sacred, holy, precious, and is argued in debates over such problematic issues as abortion, contraception, euthanasia, embryonic stem-cell research, and the "right to die."  Many people put the phrase ‘the sanctity of life’ to issues such as abortion and euthanasia, and, while it definitely applies to those issues, it applies to much more.

Every human being, at all stages of life, with every kind of experience and relationship, are included in the meaning of ‘sanctity of life.’  Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children.”  Society has not done well for its children; it teaches them life doesn’t really have a worth, it is something that can be easily thrown away, as evident in abortion, human trafficking, domestic abuse, and many other evils; in quests to satisfy their own selfish desires. 

People do not realize how important and valuable life is, that humanity has an immeasurable worth, (Matthew 10:41, Romans 5:8) indicating every human being has a value that goes beyond any human attempt to measure.  Humankind was designed in the likeness of God (Genesis 1:27) and set apart from the rest of creation, but because of the fall of man, anything innately holy in man vanished as humanity turned towards dark ways.  God’s image is still present in humankind and this likeness should always be given its due respect, because humanity is far more sacred than the rest of creation.  This is what we ought to mean when we speak of the worth of sanctity of life.  “The real question today is not when human life begins, but, what is the value of human life?” – Ronald Reagan

I.D., Please!

Having to prove our identity has become a crucial part of living in our society.  We are asked to present our identification often.  Driver’s Licenses and Social Security Numbers are just a couple ways of making sure we are who we say we are.  We are also identified on a regular basis in a less concrete way.  We are given identity in the crowd we run with.  Everyone seems to have some kind of stereotype.  Are you the brawny-but-brainless jock, or the puny nerd?  Everyone identifies with something.  Our hobbies, jobs, musical taste, ideas, and ideals all give us personality.  They help us “identify” ourselves.  However, as Christians we’re called to identify with Christ.  Ephesians 4:24 says, “And to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (NIV)  So our nature, our identity, is to be conforming to Christ if we are in Him, right?  Then it doesn’t matter the stereotype, or the jobs we have, and the clothes we wear.  
See, in Christ we are given a new name, and a new identification.  We are children of the Most High God, and although one may be homeless or a slave in this life, we must cling to our heavenly identification above all others.  However, when we try to identify with the hobbies we have, or the car we drive, there will be problems.  We were never meant to have a name for ourselves, but to further Christ’s name.  John 3:30 says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (ESV)  When we identify with the identities of this world, we say that we must increase.  We say that my career, my lifestyle, my hobbies are more important than Christ living through me.  This is an extremely dangerous statement, because God is a jealous God, and doesn’t do well with idols. (Exodus 34:14)  Something will go amiss with those identities, and then the world will come crashing down.  We won’t know who we are unless we find our identity in Christ, the constant, Everlasting One.  In Him we’re no longer basketball players, novel writers, and grocery store clerks.  We are the body of Christ and we claim that name over our identities in this world.  “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:28, NIV) ~ Sophia Wise