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Thank you pastor Greg for your loving service. Hello Dan and WH. I would like to say though that if you knew how flawed The Grand Theory of Evolution is, and took the Old testament literally... ...you would consider Jesus to be the same yesterday today and forever... as in the same as the Old testament wrath... and the New testament wrath.... The wrath and judgment in the Old testament will be the same as the wrath in the book of Revelation. For example the archaeological site for Sodom has been found, Tall El-hammam site, north of the Dead Sea (Genesis 19), if you want to look it up. With a 4-ft tick, ash, high temperature, destruction layer, an anomaly in archeology. The wrath of the Lamb is literal destruction of evil. But again if your presuppositions are that evolutionary science are completely valid, that the Old testament fantastical stories are not real, but rather the Old testament is filled with myth. Then you would reinterpret the New testament according to whatever version of Jesus you might find most appealing, and reinterpret revelation accordingly. And yet I did tithe today to WH. So please don't consider me an enemy.
Thanks for taking the time to write out your thoughts. The "grand theory of evolution" is compelling to me. Whether it's true or not, I believe Jesus to "be the same yesterday today and forever." I also think the wrath of the lamb relates to the destruction of evil. But evil destroys itself. I absolutely disagree with you that accepting science means we "reinterpret the New testament according to whatever version of Jesus you might find most appealing." Rather, what we find in Jesus in the gospel should illuminate both science and the Old Testament-not the other way around. The danger I see in what you're proposing is that you would rather accept a twisted Jesus just so you could hold on to ancient interpretations of the Old Testament-as if Jesus showed us nothing new. Blessings!
The reference here is to Erich Salzmaan. You can find information about him and his work here: whchurch.org/podrishioner-profile-erich-salzmann. Hope that helps!
Positive Aspects: Emphasis on Living in the Kingdom of God: The speaker highlights a central biblical theme-that being part of God's kingdom is about living life as God intended, not merely following religious rules. This idea resonates with Jesus' teachings about abundant life (John 10:10) and aligns with the idea that following Christ is about transforming one's inner life and interactions with others, rather than merely engaging in external rituals. Focus on Love and Self-Sacrifice: The connection between living in the kingdom and living in love is beautifully drawn. The idea that love is not only central to life in the kingdom but also reflects Christ’s self-sacrifice on the cross is deeply rooted in Scripture (John 15:12-13). The speaker's exhortation to "die to self" and reject a self-centered existence mirrors Paul's teaching in Philippians 2:5-8, where Christ's humility and self-emptying (kenosis) are emphasized. Community and Relationship: The speaker’s use of perichoresis to describe human longing for deep, interconnected relationships mirrors a biblical anthropology. Humans are created for community, reflecting the relational nature of God. The sermon rightly points out that we crave to be known and understood, which is rooted in our being made in the image of a relational God. The speaker also highlights the importance of vulnerability and authenticity in relationships, which is both psychologically and theologically insightful. Critiques and Cautions: Use of Perichoresis: While the concept of perichoresis is used correctly when referring to the Trinity-the mutual indwelling of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-the extension of this concept to human relationships and community needs careful nuance. Perichoresis, as traditionally understood, is a unique reality within the Godhead. Applying this term to human relationships, while metaphorically evocative, might risk overextending its meaning and blurring the ontological distinction between God and humanity. While humans are created in the imago Dei (image of God), and our relational nature reflects God's own relationality, the communion we experience with one another is fundamentally different from the perfect unity-in-distinction within the Trinity. In human relationships, sin, brokenness, and individuality remain barriers to the type of perfect relationality that perichoresis implies within the Godhead. A term like "mutual indwelling" could be more appropriate for describing Christian community. Theological Precision on Christology: The speaker mentions incarnation and describes Christ as entering into "perichoresis" with humanity. While the Incarnation does involve God becoming fully human, it’s important to maintain theological precision here. The Hypostatic Union-the union of Christ’s divine and human natures-is a distinct reality from perichoresis, which applies to the Trinity. The Incarnation is about the Second Person of the Trinity assuming human nature, and although God enters into the human condition through Christ, it’s not the same type of mutual indwelling as within the Trinity. The risk in using perichoresis to describe Christ's relationship with humanity is that it might imply a blurring of natures or suggest that humanity participates in the divine essence in a way that violates the Creator-creature distinction. This needs careful clarification to avoid any confusion. The Role of Art and Experience: The speaker does well in describing how art, music, and literature can touch deep human experiences and longings for connection. However, it’s important to emphasize that while these things can reflect truths about our longing for God and relationships, they don’t have the same ontological reality as our relationship with God. Perichoresis in the Trinity is an eternal truth, while human experiences like art and music are transient reflections of that deeper reality. Conclusion: The sermon is deeply engaging and offers profound insights into kingdom living, love, and human relationships. The emphasis on living in love, dying to self, and building authentic relationships is a powerful reminder of what it means to live as part of the Kingdom of God. However, the use of perichoresis should be more carefully restricted to its traditional Trinitarian context to avoid theological confusion. Theologically, it's important to maintain clear distinctions between the divine and human realities and avoid blending categories that apply uniquely to God with those that apply to human relationships. In summary, while the sermon is spiritually enriching and pastorally effective, some theological precision-especially regarding the use of perichoresis and the distinction between Trinitarian relationships and human relationships-would further strengthen its message.
Really great comments, Shawna & Dan! Sorry I missed the live chat, but this was a great deeper dive into Greg's message. My "nugget" has been in my head since Greg's sermon, about the power of life and death that the tongue holds (Prov. 18:21). I so appreciated your examples of good speech and life-giving affirmation and motivation, Dan! This reminds me of the TobyMac song, "Speak Life," especially the music video that shows bad & good examples ☺ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZeBv9r92VQ0.html
Mao Zedong discussed culture, big time. Only thing, Mao didn't use Jesus to promote it. The UN wants this type of "immigration" in the West. The UN are they godly? Do they love Jesus and Christians? In fact, the UN doesn't love people period. Just because their website says it does, does not mean they do. Oh, ok. Not a Trumper, but I am not any of them at all, but I can also see the slander against other Americans as well those that vote for Trump. Once again, he say's he doesn't promote politics but really this guy does, he just doesn't say the name of his politics gives obvious clues what political party he is hinting his "flock" to vote for. My dad fought in WWII real life Nazis. He loved all Americans never said rotten about any one of them. He was a lifelong Democrat, but didn't hate his neighbor because he/she may have voted Republican. If my Dad were alive today, he would regret fighting anything for this nation. He and those like him would regret every bit of it. They did it for nothing. They thought they were doing it to fight Nazis, but they also wouldn't have signed up to do it for Communism as well.
Psalm 51;10 Create in me a clean heart O God; renew a right spirit within me. WHC always puts God and His kingdom first. I love this church and teachings. They keep it Real! To God be the glory! All hail King Jesus! ❤❤❤
Here in 2024. Weeping for Palestine. Many whether Muslim, Jew, or Christian are being tortured, maimed, and slaughtered in the most brutal genocide. Thankful for your message, rightly dividing the Word of God to stand with Jesus, with Truth, with humanity.
Got to keep you honest pastor Greg. Another factor of heating up the oceans is that there's more evaporation, and therefore more rain, and therefore more greening of the Earth, which absorbs more heat and energy and also eats more of the CO2. In the past history of the Earth, whether you use long age dating or short age dating, the oceans were both higher and lower at different times. And yet there was no industrial revolution in the distant past. For example there are fossils buried 10+ feet under the shore water in the Arctic. The ocean level was also higher in the past as well. And the Sahara desert used to be a lush jungle. So could warmer oceans and more evaporation and rain cause deserts to become lush jungles again? That doesn't fit the global warming climate change paradigm, but it was be part of the distant past, and it could be part of the future if the oceans warm. It would be nice if all the facts were presented to the public by the scientific community and the media. Whether science, archeology, history, climate change, politics.
Glad that everyone is safe! Honestly, Wednesday afternoons are better for me, except for yesterday because of preparing for Bill's workshop. Lol. Looking forward to Dan's message about Gentleness on Sunday! <3
Great stuff! I would highly recommend reading the Unseen Realm by Dr. Michael Heiser, and any of his work really. He specializes in what the bible and ancient world believed about supernatural beings.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
What do you do about those who lift Lenin as a great leader as well? Why besides the Tzar family, millions of Russians perished mostly Christians. Inspired by Marx.
Two things. Satan deceives and humans have free will. Most of the time humans fall victim to being deceived. By that influence, humans make horrible mistakes due to free will. If leaders would follow the real Jesus, they would not be deceived by the powers of Satan. They will see right through the deception. This is what happened to Jesus when temptation after the 40 days...He rejected Satan.
Jesus refused to be anything other than shalom in all He did as He walked around on the planet, a true child of God (indeed, the Son of God!), a total and singular focus on "Thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven", not being of the world, a true alien and stranger, even to the point of a violent death. The world in its ways is violent and ugly and reacted with such toward the ultimate shalom-maker. Regardless, in the face of this, Jesus remained as shalom. This is also the call of every follower, those of us who call Jesus Lord. After all, is this still not the way of the world, full of ugliness and violence? Holy Spirit, help us to truly be aliens and strangers.
I saw that with Biden. People expected him to perform a miracle and make a complete transformation. We asked him to do more than anyone is capable of. Not a Superman but a super human.
Yeah it’s just like how we polarize abortion. Clearly abortion is sad like when any living thing dies. Pro lifers are supporting life and pro choicers are supporting life. Why can’t we just support women and fetuses both and not try to criminalize when a fetus dies as wrong. Ya it’s sad, but we can’t control when things die. It according to nature.
The Tzar was corrupt? Please tell you audience what happened to millions of Russians once Lenin/Stalin took Russia over. In fact, had neighbors growing up who were Russian telling me as a kid how their grandparents had to flee Russia. Their most brilliant writers and composers had to flee. If if was so great, why did they have to flee? The estimate that were murdered or sent to gulags between Russia and the surrounding countries were 50 million. Have you seen South Africa today? But I guess these things are necessary in order to get that Communist utopia. By the way America was set up as a Constitutional Republic not a Democracy.
