The Kingdom of God is the central proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ, and it stands in contrast with the fallen ways of darkness, sin, and oppression in the world's empires. The Kingdom of God is more than a worldview, because it is a ontology (way of being), not just an epistemology (way of knowing). It is transformative. There's a lot to it; it's not just one shallow idea to…
“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. (Mark 14:6) Coming to Jesus fundamentally changes our entire being and existence in this world. This new life we live is in the power of God, rather than Satan (Acts 26:18). We have been delivered from darkness into Christ’s Kingdom (Colossians 1:16). We have been born again (John 3:3). We are now children of…
“Everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig treeAnd no one shall make them afraid.”They’ll be safe in the nation we’ve madeI wanna sit under my own vine and fig treeA moment alone in the shadeAt home in this nation we’ve made.” This is one of the most beautiful lines in the musical, “Hamilton”, sung by George Washington’s character. It is a reference within a reference - Washington wrote something very…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YJxC5YAzhk
Anabaptism has long existed on a spectrum. Presently, groups as culturally distinct as the Old Order Amish and as theologically and socially liberal as the Mennonite Church in the Netherlands all consider themselves to be under the umbrella of Anabaptism. In this article we will limit ourselves to America, and to the center-right of this spectrum, somewhere between the Old-Order groups and the assimilated ones. For those North American conservative Anabaptist insiders,…
Sexual holiness is not merely the absence of lust but the overcoming reality of love... Avoidance of the human beings that supposedly “cause” lust only cements in one’s mind that that other people exist solely as objects of sexual possession and fantasy. The Violence of Lust and Pornography by Rebekah Mui This series has thus far examined the way of Christ the Shepherd in contrast with the way of thief and adversary,…
the way of empire is taking, the way of the kingdom is giving. Empire takes the bodies and dignity of others to cement its power, but Christ literally gave His body for us. Lust, Love the Doctrine of Two Kingdoms by Rebekah Mui This series explores sexuality and lust through the lens of the doctrine of two kingdoms, asking "What does love and sexual holiness, modeled after Christ, looks like in contrast…