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People Of The Passion
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Saturday, 31 July 2010 17:32 |
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Learning to be surprised
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People of the passion |
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The most important lesson in learning to read the Bible is learning to be surprised |
Going into the desert
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Key Words |
Desert Lent Blame Sin Darkness |
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People of the passion |
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We do not like staring the dark side of human nature in the face, because we are not often very well equipped to attend to the dark side even of ourselves. We want to find a scapegoat instead. We need to have someone else or something else to blame, a trait that has been with us from the time of Adam's complaint about Eve to God in the garden (Genesis 3.12). This is a reason for observing Lent.
-It is a time for being in the wilderness, a time for going out into the desert ourselves instead of sending out the scapegoat, a time for wrestling with God and being tested by the devil. It is a time for dealing with the Judas in you and the Judas in me. |
Fasting
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Key Words |
Fasting Sacrifice Material Spiritual |
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People of the passion |
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Fasting is the symbolic giving up of material things so that we can discover the primacy of spiritual things |
Faith in the public domain
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Key Words |
Politics Religion Evangelicalism |
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People of the passion |
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Now, I do not want to deny the good in this. It has its own integrity, I am certain of that; and it captures some- thing of the truth of Christian faith, as many will testify. The trouble is, however, that it does not really have room for politics, management, economics, international affairs, ecology, the workplace the arts and sciences, or the public domain in general -except, of course in so far as these can become areas of evangelistic activity or tools to that end.
But there is a more serious failing than this. What I have in mind is the fact that the effective withdrawal from politics and the public domain which is so characteristic of this kind of religion is itself a political act (however unwitting), with disastrous consequences. Either it fails to challenge and change the political and social status quo or it leaves the public domain open for occupation by forces which may be oppressive and evil. |
Peter and John
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Contrasts Action Meditation |
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People of the passion |
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Peter represents the way of action, John represents the way of meditation |
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