A Fitting Response when Sinners See God’s Glory

What is the proper response to seeing God? When we consider His glory, holiness, righteousness, faithfulness, power, knowledge, patience, and grace, what’s the right way to react? To add another factor, when we take this vision of God, and put next to it a realistic vision of who we are, then what’s a fitting response? What do sinful, limited, selfish, weak, broken, flawed, and impure creatures like us do before the infinite and almighty God?

Seeing God’s holiness and glory, and recognizing our sinfulness and frailty, is why people in the Bible commonly respond in humility and brokenness.

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Two Personal Bible Study Worksheets

Here are two worksheets to guide you through a study of God’s Word. These don’t rely on the inductive method but provide questions for reflection on God through Psalm 103 and Psalm 104.

Psalm 103: Forget Not All His Benefits

Psalm 104: God’s Glory in Creation

You can find additional studies for personal or group use on my Other Writings page or Bible reading plans I’ve created can be found here.

Bible Reading Plan: September 2019

Bible reading plans help answer the question, “What should I read today?” Rather than randomly flipping open the Bible and reading whatever page you open, it’s helpful to read through a whole book of the Bible. Starting this Sunday, my church will read through 1 & 2 Peter and James during the 30 days of September. You can download the reading plan and suggested questions for study here.

7 Ways to Shepherd Children

How would you describe your style of parenting?

Some parents take a Hands-off approach. They shy away from being an authority and give lots of freedom and allow their kids to make their own decisions and discover who they are. Some parents adopt a Friendship style where the goal is to be your kid’s BFF. Others act like a Coach, offering good advice, steering children in the right direction, focusing on educational and career goals, and cheering them on. And then some practice the Helicopter approach. Stressed-out, fearful, chopper parents tower over their children, suffocating them by not giving any breathing room or freedom.

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Communion Meditation: Rest for the Weary

(Below is a Communion Meditation I shared at my local church. This was one way to remember and rejoice in Christ through Communion, not a detailed explanation of it.)

With August upon us, it’s back-to-school time. With things launching at school and in the church, things are extra busy. The to-do list piles up even while other things get neglected, which leaves us feeling guilty or distracted. The demands of life don’t go away when things get busier. There’s still our house to clean or repair work needing done, cars to fix, bills to pay, emails to respond to, books to read, families to spend time with, relationships to invest in, friends to stay in touch with, parents and siblings to not neglect, and neighbors to reach out to.

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Resources on Complementarianism Applied

This Sunday, our church begins a four-week series on biblical manhood and womanhood. That could raise dozens of questions to answer and a person’s understanding of manhood and womanhood is applied in many ways. There’s a lot we won’t get to cover, but we’ll consider what it means to be made in God’s image, what biblical manhood and womanhood looks like, and how that applies to singleness and roles in marriage. Our church holds to the theological position known as complementarianism, and this will show up throughout the series.

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Favorite Quotes from Made for More

Whether it’s one of her excellent books, thoughtful twitter threads, or an insightful online essay, Hannah Anderson is always a great read.

In my last post on what it means to be an image-bearer, I referenced her book Made for More: An Invitation to Live in God’s Image. It answers the theological questions about being made in God’s image while helping us to practically live them out. If you’re wanting to learn more on the topic, or if you hear people talk about the imago Dei and have no idea what they mean, I’d recommend starting with her book. Here are a few of my favorite quotes.

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What Does it Mean to be an Image-Bearer?

“The glory of God is a human being fully alive; and to be alive consists in beholding God.” Irenaeus

“Thus humans may be said to have a reflexive identity. In some sense they find meaning outside themselves by virtue of what they reflect.” Richard Lints

There are few questions more significant than what it means to be an image-bearer of God. It’s at the heart of what it means to be human. It governs our ethics, calling us to see every person (not just those like us or those we like) as valuable and treat every individual with dignity, respect, and honor. It helps us answer questions like these:

  • Why do we exist? What is our purpose?
  • What makes human life valuable?
  • Where does our worth, dignity, and value as human beings come from?
  • How should I talk to, treat, interact with, and relate to this person or group?

Identity has (rightfully) received more attention in recent years. We all want to know who we are. Every human person’s identity question (Who am I?) is fundamentally answered by what it means to be created in God’s image. We must factor in how sin scars, mars, and wrecks the image of God in us without eliminating it, and then how in Christ we’re remade into God’s great design for us as his image-bearers, but we can start with some simple thoughts on what it means to be an image-bearer.

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