A God who Speaks

Adam and Eve–Idolatry in the Fall

Ian Johnson July 11, 2021 10 Comments

When the first humans, who already knew all good, chose to disobey God and experience evil, they initiated every kind of idolatry known to later generations. This included worship of created things, of themselves, their own wisdom and their own desires, of their bodies, and, most importantly, of a false picture of the true God as miserly and hostile toward us.

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Repentance of the Ninevites and Unrepentance of Israel in Matthew 12:41

Ian Johnson June 28, 2021 2 Comments

Jesus contrasted the Jewish leaders, who refused to hear his words, with the Ninevites who repented at the preaching of Jonah and put away their bloodshed and violence.

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Repentance, in the Weaker Sense, in the Parable of the Two Sons

Ian Johnson June 24, 2021 2 Comments

As the parable of the two sons in Matthew 21:28-32 shows, repentance is merely changing our minds so that we start to do what the Father asks. Repentance does not require remorse, payment of a penalty, or even in all cases a spoken apology, and the forgiveness that it produces cannot be sold.

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Matthew 5:8–Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Ian Johnson June 21, 2021 1 Comment

Matthew 5:6 and 5:8 speak of the state of hungering and thirsting for righteousness, which leads to purity of heart because God satisfies the hunger. The result of purity of heart is being able to to “see” God, to perceive his presence and work, even in the present time.

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Matthew 5:3–Blessed Are the Beggars!

Ian Johnson June 18, 2021 2 Comments

Only beggars qualify to enter the Kingdom of the heavens around us, where God is king and his power supplies. The self-sufficient are disqualified by their own inability to fully trust in God while trusting in themselves.

God's rationality, Must Trust God to Enter, Peril of Seeking Power, Peril of Seeking Respectability, Repentance, The Kingdom of the Heavens, Trusting sight over God's words, What is sin?

Beggars, God's power, helpless, Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of the heavens, Poor, poor in spirit, powerless

God’s Working with Us is Not About Our Present, Temporary Happiness or Comfort

Ian Johnson June 16, 2021 11 Comments

To enter God’s kingdom, moment by moment, I must repent of my claims of ownership of my own life. Instead, I must be willing to do things His way, even if it is His will that I crash and burn in this world. He is reality. His unseen Kingdom will one day be seen, and it will eventually be obvious to everyone that His reward is more real than anything in this world.

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The “Winning” Faction may be Heretical

Ian Johnson May 31, 2021 2 Comments

Because the truth remains true even if no one believes it, it does not depend on human power relationships. Therefore, it is not safe to label people “heretics” because they disagree with us concerning doctrines that were imposed on our ancestors by right of conquest or that disagree with teachings honored by political leadership or majorities today.

A God who Speaks, Authority Contests, Church purpose versus church growth, Denominationalism, Divisions in the Church, God Speaks to Us, God's Voice, Heresy, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Peril of Seeking Power, Personality cults, Truth and Falsehood, Victory

Falsehood, heresy, Political determination, Right Doctrine, Right of conquest, Truth

Some Other Issues Affected by the Question of Whether and How God Speaks

Ian Johnson May 20, 2021 1 Comment

The question whether God still speaks impacts a number of other issues, ranging from the nature of a believer’s relationship with God, to the miraculous, to church offices and authority.

A God who Speaks, God Never Stopped Speaking, God Speaks to Us, God's Voice, In prayer, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Prophecy, The Bible, Through Jesus, Through others, Through the church, Uncategorized

Church Offices, conformity, God speaks, God's Word, God's words, miracles, personal relationship, Spiritual Gifts, Voice of God, Word of God

Introduction to the Word and Voice of God

Ian Johnson May 17, 2021 4 Comments

This post is the beginning of my attempt to focus on the question of how God speaks (or permits Himself to speak) to us today. It presents a summary of the various positions commonly held, from which discussion will proceed in later posts.

A God who Speaks, God Acts by Speaking, God Never Stopped Speaking, God Speaks to Us, God's Voice, Prophecy, The Bible, Through Jesus, Through others, Through the church, What is God's Word

cessationism, competing positions, continuationism, God speaks, summary, Voice of God, Word of God

Brief Introduction to the Politicization of Christianity and its Consequences–From Jesus to 312 CE

Ian Johnson April 3, 2021 2 Comments

A brief summary of the course and causes of the transformation of Christianity from a faith that offered individual friendship with God into a politicized tool of social control up to 312 CE.

A God who Speaks, Background Information, Church purpose versus church growth, Compulsory Christianity, God Speaks to Us, God's Existence and Nature, Historical Background, Peril of Seeking Numbers, Peril of Seeking Power, Peril of Seeking Respectability, Purpose of the Church, Replacing Relationship with Morality, Social control and statecraft, Transcendence

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Adam and Eve–Idolatry in the Fall

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Repentance of the Ninevites and Unrepentance of Israel in Matthew 12:41

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Repentance, in the Weaker Sense, in the Parable of the Two Sons

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Matthew 5:8–Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

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Matthew 5:3–Blessed Are the Beggars!

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God’s Working with Us is Not About Our Present, Temporary Happiness or Comfort

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The “Winning” Faction may be Heretical

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Some Other Issues Affected by the Question of Whether and How God Speaks

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Introduction to the Word and Voice of God

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A God who Speaks

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