Category: Spiritual Theology

The theology of spiritual growth & sanctification

judgement

Why Will God Destroy Unbelievers?

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The New Testament makes it abundantly clear that God will punish and destroy those who have not followed him (for example, see Matt. 7:13-14; 7:19; 13:40-42; 25:30; 25:46; Mark 9:47-48; Luke 12:46; 13:28; 16:22-24; 20:47; Rom. 2:5-10; 2 Thess. 1:6-9; Heb. 6:8; 10:26-27, 39; James 5:20; Jude 1:13; Rev. 11:18; 20:15.) This may be the more difficult to accept than any other teaching in Scripture. Why would God issue a sentence of destruction on billions of people? Consider the fact that they lived their whole lives without ever pursuing the opportunities they had to find God in Christ. To begin with, God created humans in such a way that they are responsible to seek him. Acts 17:26-27 explains: “And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they Continue Reading →

Problems In Theological Education – Where Is The Theology Of Maturity?

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This post is a response to an article that a friend referred to on Facebook. You can find the article here but it is not necessary to read it to understand this post. The article addresses weaknesses in theological education. This post is focused on critique more than my usual posts. Problems in theological education are issues I have thought about for a long time. My summary observation is that the split between doctrine and practice that developed in the Middle Ages still has a big grip on Christian theological education (“TE”) and is crippling TE. In fact, the problem seems to be growing. The author of the article says that TE should help students become “the kind of people who are disciplined into humility” etc. so that they can love God and the world. But the reality is that theological education puts only a minor emphasis on this. Read Continue Reading →

Christ focus

Christ-focus Will Transform You

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The three desires to see Jesus, to be like him and to be united to God are the most prominent desires in the history of Christian spirituality. In fact, these three desires will be fulfilled after Jesus returns. We will experience a threefold progression. We will see Jesus which will instantly detonate an explosion of love in our hearts. Filled with love and fully opened to him, he will give us new bodies and transform us into his image. We see this two-fold progression in 1 John 3:2 which explains that “when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (ESV). Then comes the third and final change. Once we are Christformed then Christ will “present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing” (Eph. 5:27, ESV). We will be a pure bride fit for the groom and Continue Reading →

Reaching The End Of Your Character – Part Two On The Will

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This is part two on the will; you can find part one here. How do we know when it is time to let go of activating our will in a particular area of our life? We need to learn when we have reached the limits of our character. This is an important principle for understanding how our will cooperates with God’s will. The basic idea is that when we want to correct a fault or when we try to make progress in an area there is a point at which we cannot go further because we do not yet have the character to do so. God has not yet transformed us enough. For example, we may not be patient enough, or a habit is too strong, or we don’t have enough faith. Once we reach the end of our character then we need to wait for more grace from God Continue Reading →

The Balance Between God’s Will And Ours – Part One On The Will

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Of all the dimensions of a human it is the will that most hinders our growth. It is not too difficult to grow in our knowledge of God and even fully embrace his truth. We can even develop a powerful desire for God and find our emotions directed towards God.But when it comes to the will we easily avoid making hard decisions. Unfortunately, there is no growth in maturity without developing a robust will. Embracing truth and desiring God do not produce maturity without activating the will. And in cultures where self-control is neglected and people are taught to just go with what they feel then the problem of the will becomes even worse. When God regenerates us in Christ we begin with an infant New Adam will. This will needs to grow through exercise like a muscle. If you had a dramatic conversion then perhaps you will enjoy a Continue Reading →