Monthly Archives: September 2012

The “Roman Road” – there is more than one.

There are any number of mnemonic devices for remembering Bible verses, and for remembering and communicating the central points of Christianity. The “Apostles’ Creed” is about the earliest, and I think still about the best. “The Four Spiritual Laws” is one I remember from my teens and early twenties.

Many of us, perhaps most of us who seriously entered an Evangelical understanding of Christianity 40 or 50 years ago will remember  “The Roman Road” as it lays out the work of God in Jesus through six verses in the Epistle to the Romans.

Romans 3:10  “As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one…’ “

Romans 3:23  “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…”

Romans 5:8  “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 6:23  “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 10:9  “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Romans 10:13,  “for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ “

I think, though, that there is another “Roman Road” spelled out. I have often seen the journey described as the road humanity takes/has taken when we refuse to look to God. But I have discovered that here, as in most warnings, they are not only for “those OTHER people” … Christians, too, are vulnerable. This “Roman Road” leads to deception, self-deception. I know very closely at least two, who think themselves devout Christians yet have fallen into this road.  I am one of them. Continue reading

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“For I know the plans I have for you…”

“In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt, and a monument to the Lord at its border. It will be a sign and witness to the Lord Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and he will rescue them. So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge the Lord. They will worship with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them. The Lord will strike Egypt with a plague; he will strike them and heal them. They will turn to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal them.

In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, ‘Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.’ “

Isaiah 19:19-25

This passage from the prophet Isaiah came up this morning. It raises so many thoughts relative to the news of the day that one’s mind flies from one idea to the next, trying to capture it all. But among all the thoughts of great prophetic deeds done thousands of miles away, there is one thought supremely close at hand.  I want to stick with that. Continue reading

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Book Review: “Unabashedly Episcopalian” by Andy Doyle

Well, I just finished my weekend reading, a new little book entitled
“Unabashedly Episcopalian” 
written by the Rt. Rev. C. Andrew Doyle,
9th Bishop of the Diocese of Texas (Episcopal)

Before a review, something of a disclaimer:

First, Bp. Doyle is my bishop.

Those who know me well will know what an amazing statement that is.
Continue reading

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On the Redeemer and the Exodus, through Psalm 105 (with thanks to Lisa Tenney)

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!

Sing to him, sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!

Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

Seek the Lord and his strength;
seek his presence continually!

Remember the wondrous works that he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,

O offspring of Abraham, his servant,
children of Jacob, his chosen ones!

The beginning of Psalm 105

 This morning, the daily reading app (at YouVersion.com, of which I am quite fond, btw) on my phone served to me Psalm 105 which starts with this marvelous call to praise God.

I read it in the context of reading a post from another long-time member of Houston’s Church of the Redeemer (Episcopal) Lisa Tenney. Her thoughts were a joy to hear; and as I began to read this Psalm of praise and exhortation to   praise God for His mighty acts, I could not help but put the two together.

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Understanding the Voice of Pain

Time for a long, rambling bit of pop psychology. I am much more comfortable thinking of the big-picture mysteries, but there is a valid claim against that. While I happily affirm and declare that every point of theology and doctrine has implications as to how we must live, that does not mean that we (and I) will actually make the connection. It’s one thing to take good notes in the lecture hall, but if I can’t get the project to work right in the lab section, I probably did not understand it as well as I thought. Real life is where the theology is lived out. This is where it happens.======

I have noticed both in myself and others a linking of experience and interpretation, bound in lock-step, where they should not be linked. Indeed, I am surprised that we and I do it so readily, almost automatically as first response.

The first condition is the experience of pain; emotional, spiritual or physical. As I try to think through what I want to say, I find it almost impossible to confine myself to a few sentences. But that is probably OK. You know about pain. Everyone does. Continue reading

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