Advent, Christmas, Theology
John Beeson
Glory to God in the Lowest!

Last week on The World and Everything in It George Grant considered “The Wisdom of paradox.” He concludes his reflection,  that Christmas is “the greatest and most remarkable paradox of all is revealed: He who was infinite, was yet an infant; He who was eternal, was yet born of a woman; He who was almighty, was yet nursing at His mother’s breast; He who was upholding the universe, was yet carried in His mother’s arms. Thus, Chesterton exclaimed, ‘Outrushing the depth of the fall of man is the height of the fall of God. Glory to God in the Lowest.’”

“Glory to God in the lowest.” What a mind-bending truth.

Glory to God in the Lowest!
Christmas, Theology, Advent, Church, Hospitality
John Beeson
The Faithfulness of God of the Manger

Recently we had someone over and as the night came to a close Angel warmly offered, “Let’s do this again soon!” I wilted as I processed just how many things were on our calendar in the coming month. Just like Angel did, I wanted to be with them again and soon, but her invitation made me flinch.

 

My wife Angel and I are very different people. Angel brings light and life everywhere. People are drawn to her, and she is drawn to people. One of the many things I love about Angel is how she gets caught up in a moment with people. In that space, it’s not unusual that she shares hopes with those we are with of spending more time together. And she means it: there is no doubt of her genuineness.

The Faithfulness of God of the Manger
Advent, Christmas, Theology
John Beeson
A Humble God?

“I don’t compare myself with anybody, but nobody is better.” Michael Jordan

“They say the sky’s the limit, but I think my potential is beyond it.” Jay-Z

“I won’t be happy until I’m as famous as God” Madonna

“I won’t be a rock star. I will be a legend.” Freddie Mercury

“We’re more popular than Jesus now.” John Lennon

We tend to expect that greatest among us are also some of the most arrogant. And why wouldn’t they be? For many who make it to the top of their field, we can see how that arrogance can be a driving force for their greatness.

A Humble God?
Christmas, Forgiveness, Theology
John Beeson
The Just and the Justifier

God became flesh.

Let that sink in. Christianity asserts that God—sovereign, immutable, omnipotent, other—the eternal God who has no beginning and end—became a human being.

 Because many of us have had exposure to Christianity from our early years, it is easy to miss how massive the theological implications of the incarnation are. The incarnation lays the groundwork for a God who chooses to participate in his creation. The incarnation denies the existence of an abstract and distant God, unmuddied by his handiwork.

The Just and the Justifier
Advent, Christmas, Theology
John Beeson
The Theology of the Manger

“God did not, as the Bible says, create man in his own image; on the contrary, man created God in his own image.” Ludwig Feuerbach dropped this theological bombshell three years before Friedrich Nietzsche’s birth. Feuerbach, a name forgotten by most, but who influenced Nietzsche, wrote these words in his book, The Essence of Christianity (1841). He argued that human beings project their own attributes and desires onto an imagined deity, creating God in their own image. This for Feuerbach, is the essence of Christianity (and indeed all religions), the deification of our human ideals. “What man wishes to be, he makes his God… God is the outward projection of a man’s inward nature.”

The Theology of the Manger

Blogging

Want to Join the Team?

Want to Join the Team?

On November 3 my first book will hit the shelves. Whether you know it or not, you’ve been an important partner in writing this book. The book is co-authored by my friend and fellow blogger, Benjamin Vrbicek and it is on the topic of blogging. Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World is a guide for bloggers or aspiring bloggers, pointing them back to the goal of Christian blogging and providing helpful practices and tips.

For those of you who have an itch to write, I hope this book provides a nudge and a road map. For those of you who have friends who are bloggers or who might blog, I hope that you consider gifting this book to them as an encouragement.

You’ve been here with me through this journey of blogging and I would be honored if you would consider joining our Launch Team. Here is what it will mean.

If you are willing to serve on the launch team, we will send you a digital version of the book in the next few weeks to give you time to read it before its November 3 launch.

Another blog? Why?

Another blog? Why?

Why does the world need another blog? I suppose for the same reason the world needs another church. Those of us who play very minor roles in God’s kingdom could step aside for those who are more gifted, who have larger platforms, and who devote more time to something like a blog than a run-of-the-mill associate pastor at a small large church in a small large town.

But just as we don’t encourage our people to flip on TBN on Sunday morning or put up a screen and run the best of John Piper and Tim Keller on our platform during our services, I have the audacity to believe that God has the purpose for even those small stones that build up his holy house (1 Pet 2:5). 

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