The line of thought starts with the challenge to see the church as an identity instead of a responsibility. They go on to press the issue with the observation that theology must not only reflect on action; it must also lead to action. The result of theology should be mission.
Perhaps you have some insights on moving from "responsibility" to "identity" as you are led to "action" because you have taken time to reflect on the "theological implications" of the living Word of God. You should know that this is exactly what happened to me as I studied the book of Acts.
I love the old pic of D-twn. Yet I love so much more the way God is continually helping us to be more for His glory as we make His kingdom visible.
I approach this a little differently. In my view, all in reality works toward reason/ philosophy. And all philosophy/reason is meant to further whatever cause you've concluded is the ultimate purpose. And this has been OBVIOUS in my life for quite a while. Hearing this concerns me that most "Christians" aren't true followers of God. A quality that proves Biblical philosophy to be accurate, to my consideration, is what the ultimate state of followership is: nothing in particular: the only concern is moving things forward. Your illustration today ("someone should do something about that") reminds me of how even "Christians" are, and reinforces my suspicion that the road is even narrower than what I like to believe, as cynical as anyone. Getting back to what I was originally getting at--I know it's unrealistic to believe most people will actually start thinking, but I've always found Biblical followership to be the worldview of anyone who processes information honestly and effectively. And being reminded of the mass of every kind of persons(including Christians) who are like that brings my attention to that being evidence for them not being "transformed".
ReplyDeleteTo make it easier to respond--do you think not desiring to move things forward yourself is a "transformed" soul? I'm not sure I do. And if that's the case, we have a HELL of a lot of work that needs to be done.
Interesting thoughts (above). My experience has been a bit different.
ReplyDeleteI DO think the gospel is meant to be transformative. The same old, same old is just what God wanted to bust up when he sent Christ.
I love study, looking at things from different views, trying to understand, reasoning and thinking.
But my experience is that does not happen by thought and study alone. Somewhere, somehow, the teachings, the study, the reasoning, the work and reason lack something. It's rare those things alone are transformative. At some point, we open not just our minds, but our hearts, and then the transformation begins.
If I understand you, Ken, that is part of what you are talking about when you talk about our faith becoming our identity.
Transformation can happen without much knowledge, but I think there is a long term danger in that, as we are like the seeds thrown on rocky ground - we don't have the depth of knowledge and reason to sustain the emotion and open heartedness. So both are vital to a long term, vibrant, transformed life.
Not easy. I like what Ben says, maybe it's a narrower road than we think. I think it is. Not because it has to be or because God is not inclusive, but because so few of us (And I have had my times of failing here too) fail to apply both heart AND mind to it. A sad thought. No wonder Christ weeps. He wants so much good for us.
Well, I don't think one can reason effectively without the right perspective. So, though the heart/ perspective change needs to happen at some point, it may be helpful to know that it's actually the self-sufficient factor for the reasoning: it's how you form premises/ ask the right questions. Most people view reason as a different avenue from perspective, but it's actually the assertive sub-state of it. I'm saying this because so many are intimidated by the task of pursuing reason. It's the most common reason people are stuck at a low level of understanding and, even more, seeing the world as it's designed to be.
ReplyDeleteOne can ignore reason and still come to have the right perspective, but without articulation/ reason, he's not going to further it outside his mind.
Also, Tom, when you list the things that are lacking, is it really those things that aren't useful to you, or is it how you approach utilizing them? I hear things like that said a lot, and it seems they just don't know how to approach things well, whether it's studying books like people/behavior(or vice-versa) or to think logistically instead of "rationally". People may very well need something else at particular times, but itself is invalid reasoning to say that those themselves are what lacking. They are just mere production systems which we dictate.
Thus, I would say, reasoning, in its most bare form, is a divine obligation, since perspective is as much for those around us as ourselves.