christology - Discipleship.Network - The Reimagine Network2024-03-29T07:17:42Zhttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/forum/topics/feed/tag/christologyChrist and the Cosmoshttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/forum/topics/christ-and-the-cosmos2022-07-23T12:00:18.000Z2022-07-23T12:00:18.000ZSalvatore Anthony Luisohttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/members/SalvatoreAnthonyLuiso<div><div dir="ltr">Last week NASA published an article entitled "NASA’s Webb Delivers Deepest Infrared Image of Universe Yet". One can read this article and see the picture it is about here: <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2022/nasa-s-webb-delivers-deepest-infrared-image-of-universe-yet" target="_blank">https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2022/nasa-s-webb-delivers-deepest-infrared-image-of-universe-yet</a></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">The article says:</div><div dir="ltr"><div><div> </div><div><strong>Webb’s image is approximately the size of a grain of sand held at arm’s length, a tiny sliver of the vast universe.</strong></div><div> </div><div dir="ltr">That picture of "a tiny sliver of the vast universe" contains dozens and dozens of galaxies, each of which contains a myriad of stars. (Astronomers estimate that the galaxy in which we live, the Milky Way, contains between 100 billion and 400 billion stars.)</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">When you look at it, think of those facts with what the Bible says about the Lord Jesus Christ:</div><div> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>The same was in the beginning with God.<br /> </strong></div><div><strong>All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—John 1:1–3 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div> </div><div><strong>For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether <em>they be</em> thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:</strong></div><div><strong>And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Colossians 1:16–17 (AV/KJV)</strong></div></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>And [God said to His Son], Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Hebrews 1:10–12 (quoting Psalm 102:25–27) (AV/KJV)<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">These facts may cause us to feel insignificant before Him:</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><div><div><strong>When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;</strong></div><div><strong>What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?</strong></div></div><strong>—Psalm 8:3–4 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">But we may not feel insignificant if we think of <em>how</em> He visited us:</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—John 1:14 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">The Word visited the son of man as <em>the</em> Son of man (Matthew 18:11; Mark 10:45; Luke 9:56; John 3:13)!</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr">For even though Solomon, one of the sons of David, spoke rightly when he said:</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who <em>am</em> I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>[. . .]</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built!</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—II Chronicles 2:6 and 6:18 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Yet it is true that God became manifest in the flesh as <em>the</em> Son of David, and did dwell with men on earth, and was contained not only in a house, but, at His birth, in a manger--and offered up Himself as a sacrifice for sins (I Timothy 3:16; Matthew 22:41–46; Luke 2:7; Hebrews 9:24–28)!</div><div dir="ltr"> </div></div><div dir="ltr">And if this is true of Him:</div></div><br /> <strong>He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by <em>their</em> names.</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Psalm 147:4 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Then surely it is also true that He knows not only the number of us, but knows each of us by name, too.</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Thus we see good reasons for the Scriptures to say that both His glory and His mercy are "above the heavens" (Psalms 108:4 and 113:4).</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Furthermore: if this is true of Him:</div><div dir="ltr"><div><div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens: <em>when</em> I call unto them, they stand up together.<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Isaiah 48:13 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Then surely it is also true that we should heed Him and respond to Him when He calls us.</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">And if this is true:</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Mark 13:31 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Then surely it is also true that we should heed, believe, and trust all of His words.</div><div dir="ltr"> </div></div></div></div><div dir="ltr">And if the following are true:</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Psalm 19:1 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.</strong></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Psalm 97:6 (AV/KJV)<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">Then surely it is also true that we should declare His glory and righteousness.</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr">In conclusion: surely these exhortations are right, just, and proper:</div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong>Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light.<br /> </strong></div><div dir="ltr">[. . .]</div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><strong>[Praise the LORD] Kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth:</strong></div><div><strong>Both young men, and maidens; old men, and children:</strong></div></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>—Psalm 148:3, 11–12 (AV/KJV)</strong></div><div> </div></div><div dir="ltr"><strong>Amen!</strong></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><strong><u>Questions for consideration</u></strong><div dir="ltr">1. What does the fact that all things were created by Christ mean to you?</div><div dir="ltr">2. What does the fact that all things were created by Christ make you feel?</div><div dir="ltr">3. What does the fact that all things were created for Christ mean to you?</div><div dir="ltr">4. What does the fact that all things were created for Christ make you feel?</div><div dir="ltr">5. What does the fact that He by whom all things were created became one of us and dwelt among us mean to you?</div><div dir="ltr">6. What does the fact that He by whom all things were created became one of us and dwelt among us make you feel?</div><div dir="ltr">7. Do the facts related in this article affect your perception of Christ? If so, how? If not, why not?</div><div dir="ltr">8. Do the facts related in this article affect your attitude toward Christ? If so, how? If not, why not?</div></div></div>Seeing Ever More of Christ Evermorehttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/forum/topics/seeing-ever-more-of-christ-evermore2022-02-05T09:00:38.000Z2022-02-05T09:00:38.000ZSalvatore Anthony Luisohttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/members/SalvatoreAnthonyLuiso<div><div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> While searching in Google Books for a certain remark of the ancient Church Father <strong>Gregory of Nyssa</strong>, I came across the following words of Hans Boersma on page 77 of his book <em>Seeing God: The Beatific Vision in Christian Tradition</em> (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2018):<br /> </span></div><div><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>I will argue that, for Saint Gregory, human souls find their telos when in union with Christ they become ever purer, in an ever-increasing growth in the beatific vision. Gregory was a theologian always in search of Christ, and though he was convinced that he had indeed found him, his desire to see Christ impelled him still further. For Gregory this theological longing was grounded in his understanding of the beatific vision: the eschatological future of perpetual progress (<em>epektasis</em>) within the life of Christ means that already in this life Gregory set his desire on seeking the face of God in Jesus Christ.</strong></span></div><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> Some readers may find re-reading this excerpt with the following definitions to be helpful:</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">telos: "an ultimate object or aim" (Oxford Languages)<br /> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">beatific vision: "the direct experience of God by those in heaven" (Oxford Reference)<br /> </span></div></div></div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">eschatological: "relating to death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind" (Oxford Languages)</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> Attend especially to this sentence:</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Gregory was a theologian always in search of Christ, and though he was convinced that he had indeed found him, his desire to see Christ impelled him still further.</strong><br /> </span></div></div><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> Of course, the sense in which Gregory sought to "find" and "see" Christ in this world was not physically, but mentally and spiritually. Through knowledge and understanding, he sought to have a greater and greater perception of the Son of God. (During His earthly ministry, thousands of people saw the Lord physically, but relatively few saw Him spiritually: that is to say, relatively few who saw that He is the son of a woman also saw that He is the Son of God (Matthew 11:25–27 and 16:13–20; John 9:39–41 and 12:37–41; I Corinthians 2:6–16).)</span></div><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> Note that Gregory believed that all Christians—those who have found Christ and are in union with Him—should do the same: not just theologians, such as himself.</span></div><div><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> Gregory knew that purity is related to the ability to see God because the Lord Jesus taught that in the Sermon on the Mount: "Blessed <em>are</em> the pure in heart: for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8). He desired to seek "the face of God in Jesus Christ" because the Lord Jesus taught that to see Him is to see God (John 12:44–45 and 14:7–11): a vital truth which he also knew from passages of the Epistles, such as II Corinthians 4:3–6, Colossians 1:15 and 2:9, and Hebrews 1:3.</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> These other passages of the Scriptures are also related to such seeking, seeing, knowing, understanding, and perceiving:<br /> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Psalm 27:4 and 8<br /> </strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Psalm 63<br /> </strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Psalm 105:4</strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Jeremiah 9:23–24</strong></span></div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Jeremiah 31:34 (quoted in Hebrews 8:11)</strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Hosea 6:1–3</strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>John 17:3</strong></span></div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Philippians 3:7–11<br /> </strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> How can we seek and see Christ now?</span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> The following ways are fundamental:</span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">1. Listening to, reading, studying, and meditating upon the Scriptures (John 5:39)</span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">2. Listening to, reading, studying, and meditating upon scripturally-sound texts (e,g, books, articles, sermons, lectures, poems, hymns, and prayers) about Christ</span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">3. Prayer</span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">4. Living with Christ as one of His disciples, which entails following Him, listening to Him, learning from Him, trusting Him, and obeying Him</span></div><div dir="ltr"> </div><div dir="ltr"> </div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong><u>Questions for consideration</u><br /> </strong></span></div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">1. Do you desire to seek Christ to see Him more and more? If so, why? If not, why not?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">2. If you do desire to seek Christ to see Him more and more, how do you desire to do this?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">3. Do you seek Christ to see Him more and more? If so, why? If not, why not?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">4. If you do seek Christ to see Him more and more, how do you do this?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">5. Do you agree that "Blessed <em>are</em> the pure in heart: for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8)? If so, why? If not, why not?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">6. Do you desire to become purer in union with Christ? If so, why? If not, why not?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">7. Would you like to ask God to purify you? If so, why? If not, why not?</span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;">8. Do you desire the beatific vision? If so, why? If not, why not?<br /> </span></div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>Note:</strong> One good book about Christ is <em>Christ Is All!</em>, by David Bryant. You can learn about it from the article "Free book offer: Christ Is All!", which is accessible here: <a href="https://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/profiles/blogs/free-book-offer-christ-is-all" target="_blank">https://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/profiles/blogs/free-book-offer-christ-is-all</a></span></div></div></div>Gregory of Nyssa and Christhttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/forum/topics/gregory-of-nyssa-and-christ2022-01-10T10:00:19.000Z2022-01-10T10:00:19.000ZSalvatore Anthony Luisohttps://reimaginenetwork.ning.com/members/SalvatoreAnthonyLuiso<div><div class="bi6gxh9e"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" style="font-size:12pt;">Hans Boersma says the following about the ancient theologian and Church Father <strong>Gregory of Nyssa</strong> (c. 335 – c. 395) on page 77 of his book <em>Seeing God: The Beatific Vision in Christian Tradition</em> (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2018):</span></div><div class="bi6gxh9e"><span style="font-size:12pt;"> </span></div><div class="bi6gxh9e"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" style="font-size:12pt;"><strong>I will argue that, for Saint Gregory, human souls find their telos when in union with Christ they become ever purer, in an ever-increasing growth in the beatific vision. Gregory was a theologian always in search of Christ, and though he was convinced that he had indeed found him, his desire to see Christ impelled him still further. For Gregory this theological longing was grounded in his understanding of the beatific vision: the eschatological future of perpetual progress (<em>epektasis</em>) within the life of Christ means that already in this life Gregory set his desire on seeking the face of God in Jesus Christ.</strong></span></div><div class="bi6gxh9e"> </div><div class="bi6gxh9e"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" style="font-size:12pt;">Sounds good, no?</span></div><div class="bi6gxh9e"> </div></div>