Black Hole

If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! ⏤ Matthew 6:23b

Paul gives us two lists in Galatians 5. One list begins, "The acts of the flesh are..." The other starts with the words, "But the fruit of the Spirit is..." What happens when people are taught that the first list represents godly strength and the second list represents weakness? It's a contradiction that calls for a deliberate pledge of allegiance.

Meeting The Moment

There's a tension in ministry. On the one hand, we need to communicate God's message in ways the world can understand. On the other hand, we must resist conforming to the world. We should always feel this tension. It's not helpful to seek a 'sweet spot' on some godly-worldly scale. Instead, we should imagine what it looks like to be a holy, distinct, worshiping, Jesus-like community in our corner of the world, in our moment. Not in some abstract location. Not in the first century. Not in the 1600s. Not in the 1950s. Here, today.

Shaken, Not Stirred

This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. — 1 Timothy 2:3-4

What is so good? Paul says, peaceful and quiet lives in godliness and holiness (v2). Too often, depictions of God are designed to make us cower, to shake. These only reinforce a natural response to God's greatness. But the Father's words to us are, "Do not be afraid." He would rather that we be stirred by his goodness and love, that we would know reality and experience peace and quiet in his presence.