God’s holiness is so intense that impurity in His presence is dangerous, as seen in stories like Moses and the burning bush, Isaiah’s vision in the temple, and Ezekiel’s river vision. Jesus demonstrates a different expression of God’s holiness throughout his ministry. His holiness and power don’t condemn the impure but transform and heal those approaching him in faith.
God is a covenant God who made a plan from the beginning to show His faithfulness to humanity.
The wisdom of God is seen in his perfect acts, from Creation to Jesus’ death and resurrection and in between, all God does flows from his infinite fullness of wisdom.
Often when we think of the justice of God, our minds go to an angry, vengeful God who executes judgment on the wicked. However, a closer look at scripture shows us that justice is action taken on behalf of the vulnerable. Throughout the entirety of the Bible, we see God’s heart for the outcast, orphan, and downtrodden. From the mosaic law to the sermon on the mount, it is clear that God’s heart is for those who cannot help themselves. As Christians, we must follow and embody the heart of God, taking on the cause of the vulnerable and making it our own.
The revolutionary understanding of God’s nature as love sets Christianity apart and should guide our interactions with the world. Jesus provides the full and true understanding of God: Jesus shows us the mature working-out of love. In Jesus, God and love are linked accurately, intricately, indissolubly.
Old humanity dies with Christ & becomes new humanity exemplified by Mercy, Generosity, Forgiveness & Love.
Paul teaches us there are two cultural pressures tempting us to compromise our faith: the worship of many gods (that Jesus conquered on the cross) and the observance of the Jewish laws (that He fulfilled). As believers hidden in Christ, we take off the pressures of our culture and rest in the easy yoke of our Savior.
Paul does not see his imprisonment as punishment but as his participation in Christ’s suffering as Messiah. Our challenge is to see our own hardships as joy.
Relationship with Christ is the point and the plan of the gospel. When we have Christ we have everything. Everything we pray about concerns Christ because he is in everything and all things are held together through him.
Paul is imprisoned and writes a letter to a group he has never met and a church he did not found. The church is going well, but experiencing cultural pressure. Paul gives two prayers to the church: 1. Grow in wisdom & understanding. 2. A poem about the Messiah.
