I have written a short booklet on Christian identity that came out of two talks I did for Russ Smidt at Epping. Here is the introduction...... do you want to keep reading?
Introduction
It is a joy to be human. This is especially true when we compare ourselves to our canine friends. I, for one, am glad that I am not a dog. A dog can’t reason like humans can. A dog can’t prize things for their real worth. A dog doesn’t contemplate the universe. A dog can’t think about things in relation to God. And a dog certainly doesn’t reflect upon their identity. So, aren’t you glad you are not a dog?
But if you’re not a dog then who are you? How on earth do we figure this out? Our natural tendency as human beings in this world is to look around at the creation to figure out an answer to this perplexing question. It is my hope that in reading this you will come to see something extraordinary, something truly amazing, and something that will cause you to again reflect upon your identity.
God has revealed who we are in Christ.
This is the central truth that I am communicating. In order to help us we will concentrate our efforts from the book of 1 Peter. Why chose 1 Peter to focus on?
The main tension that runs behind 1 Peter is how much do the readers conform to the culture and dominant values of the day? As well as, what are the boundaries of maintaining a Christian distinctive in a hostile society? It is fair to say that the tension of these original hearers is our tension too. Our Australian society is not one where we easily accept the uniqueness of Christian characteristics but we are all for conforming to the Australian culture. Who wants to be branded un-Australian? It is into this type of melee that 1 Peter is written and has much to say to us even today. Peter’s response to these questions is to re affirm who they are in Christ and in doing so shows us as readers 2000 years later who we are in Christ.
There are only two chapters in this book. The first outlines how we see ourselves and the second flows out of it, how we see other people. The two are intimately connected as we will see in the course of our journey together.
It is a joy to be human. This is especially true when we compare ourselves to our canine friends. I, for one, am glad that I am not a dog. A dog can’t reason like humans can. A dog can’t prize things for their real worth. A dog doesn’t contemplate the universe. A dog can’t think about things in relation to God. And a dog certainly doesn’t reflect upon their identity. So, aren’t you glad you are not a dog?
But if you’re not a dog then who are you? How on earth do we figure this out? Our natural tendency as human beings in this world is to look around at the creation to figure out an answer to this perplexing question. It is my hope that in reading this you will come to see something extraordinary, something truly amazing, and something that will cause you to again reflect upon your identity.
God has revealed who we are in Christ.
This is the central truth that I am communicating. In order to help us we will concentrate our efforts from the book of 1 Peter. Why chose 1 Peter to focus on?
The main tension that runs behind 1 Peter is how much do the readers conform to the culture and dominant values of the day? As well as, what are the boundaries of maintaining a Christian distinctive in a hostile society? It is fair to say that the tension of these original hearers is our tension too. Our Australian society is not one where we easily accept the uniqueness of Christian characteristics but we are all for conforming to the Australian culture. Who wants to be branded un-Australian? It is into this type of melee that 1 Peter is written and has much to say to us even today. Peter’s response to these questions is to re affirm who they are in Christ and in doing so shows us as readers 2000 years later who we are in Christ.
There are only two chapters in this book. The first outlines how we see ourselves and the second flows out of it, how we see other people. The two are intimately connected as we will see in the course of our journey together.
1 comment:
Yeah, we definitely want to find out who we are and how we see others. And no, I wouldn't like to be a sea urchin or a hamster.
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