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a theological vision for immanuel church – part 2 – reconcile people

This picture was taken by my friend, Mike Midkiff from under the Monroe St bridge.

This is part 2 of Immanuel’s Theological Vision. You can find part 1 by clicking here.

We live in such a fragmented society. At this point, almost every element of society is responding as a victim. Everyone is slighted to one degree or another. Everyone is polarized. As a matter fact, in my 59 years, I have never seen a more volatile moment in our culture’s history. Here are a couple of examples. read more

What Motivates Your Life to Do Good?

Forgiveness

“Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I
will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I looked up my hands. I
will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my
mouth will praise you.” Psalm 63:3 

Yesterday,
I wrote about the amazing gesture of adoration the woman in John 12 gave to
Jesus by pouring a bottle of pure nard, an entire years wages worth, onto His
feet. The follow-up question that must be broached is what would bring about
such an extravagant gesture? What drove her to such an act? read more

Not Doing What the World Says I Should

Anna Blog One Photo

    I’m not sure how to handle
forgiveness. The culture tells me I’m entitled to my grudges, my animosity, my
lifelong hate against someone who wronged me. My friends tell me that I
shouldn’t allow that one person back into my life—much less forgive them. That
it’s idiotic for us to be close friends after the devastating breakup. That the
walls I build are justified.  

    Christ and his kingdom step in and call me quite clearly,
against the expectations of the world, to tell an alternate story. To forgive
seventy times seven, yes, but also to be perfect as my Father is perfect. And
yes, that’s great, and yes, I tell myself that I have forgiven and so fulfilled
the letter of the law but I still hold a seed of hatred in my heart. I beg off
forgiving completely, because they hurt me, they used me, whatever the
situation may be, I’m completely and undeniably justified. read more

I Don’t Want to Hate the Church

Ashley Blog One Photo

 
    I venture to say, based on observations as far as I am able
to see, more people are calling themselves Christians while more Christians are
denying the title for all its negative connotations. Have you heard anyone
claim their faith as “believer” or “follower of Christ” or “Jesus lover”?
That’s dandy, and true. But the term “Christian” has been taken away from us,
much as the symbol of the rainbow has. As a young person learning that I am in
the midst of much needed revelation and change for “the church,” I fear the
negativity toward the church. I fear for non-believers because it will keep
them away, and for believers because of unforgiveness and bitterness toward
those who have been getting it wrong. I fear the anger I’ve seen. I fear more
splitting, more division dangerously close at hand within the whole Christian
body. I pray it doesn’t happen that leaders who are making right changes due to
convictions about how the church has been failing begin to find new titles. I
don’t want to see a new movement rise up again only to lose itself in its
mission once more. I want to see the church be taken back; for the term
Christian to be taken back.  To bring
them back to mean the body of Christ and Christ-like. The only way to know
those meanings is through Christ himself and we find him in the Word, our
Bibles, and in prayer. I think this means we must look at the broken church
with a heart of forgiveness. Jesus saw the broken and flawed and he forgave
them, then said, “now sin no more.” Forgiveness and correction. Jesus was, is, for the church, his bride, so I want
to be, too. Jesus’ heart probably breaks for her, I want mine to, too. Let us
lift the church back up to what it should be, not break it down.

   “And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything
they had… they worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the
Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity- all while
praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord
added to their fellowship those who were being saved.” Acts 2.44, 46-47

The Great Divide

Black-and-white-hands-e1281021939700
By Laura
Race is not an issue that can be ignored, especially not by the Church- the people of God called to make disciples of every nation. In his article “The Color of Faith,” David Van Blema remarks on the gravity of the situation: “In an age of mixed-race malls, mixed-race pop-music charts and, yes, a mixed-race President, the church divide seems increasingly peculiar. It is troubling, even scandalous, that our most intimate public gatherings-and those most safely beyond the law's reach-remain color-coded,” (26). God sends the Church into the world to be His image-bearers, living out the unity, peace, and love that exemplifies life in Christ. In order for the church to begin living out its missional identity, it must realize the ways it has been affected by racial segregation and take a biblical approach to embracing reconciliation and oneness in the body of Christ. 
Throughout the New Testament, Jesus came proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is here. We are living in the tension between the redemptive act of Christ on the cross and the reconciliation of all things to God when Jesus comes again and the world is made new. As Christians, we are to live into the present truth of the Kingdom and join in the redemptive work of Christ here and now. In Revelations 7:9-10, we are given a picture of what the body of Christ will look like after the Second Coming when all is made right: “There…was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb,” (NIV). 
This is the true picture of the Kingdom of God as it was meant to be- diverse, colorful, and unified. This is the beautiful future that God calls us to live into now. David Campbell, a professor at Notre Dame, advocates, “If tens of millions of Americans start sharing faith across racial boundaries, it could be one of the final steps transcending race as our great divider,” (Van Blema, 27). The Church has a great role to play.

Get Low – a disturbing, wonderful movie about angst and forgiveness

Robi and I went to a movie a few nights ago entitled “Get Low.”
It’s a bit of an Indie film starring Robert Duval. 

The story revolves around the character Duval plays who
happens to be a recluse. What he wants is a funeral, but not your normal
funeral.  He want to have one before
he dies. Something that many of us might want…to be spotlighted before we
stop breathing.  The problem,
however, is he can’t find anybody to talk at the funeral–at least positively.  He has been a crotchety old geezer for
too long…or so it seems. read more