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Knowing God
One page reflection on Romans 1:1-32
Paul opens the book of Romans by greeting the Church of Rome. He’s saying that he longs to be with them, but circumstances have not allowed him to be. In verse five he talks about bringing the obedience of faith to all nations. This is his call to preach to both the Jews and the Gentiles in Rome.
Paul wants to go to Rome so badly but he is not able to. He wants to meet the believers so that he can impart spiritual gifts on them and watch them grow, but also so that he can learn from them. Paul states that when he comes, he is coming for the Jews and the Gentiles.
Verses 16 and 17 are verses which really stood out to me. He tells the Romans, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation
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3) Needs to offer a coherent presentation of the revelation of God in light of new knowledge (Science and Philosophy).
4) Has to provide practical help for Christian living (ethics/worship).
Theology asks 5 basic questions – What? Why? How? So What? What Else?
The Nature of God
- What must be true of God for God to be God?
- God must be one, God must be necessary, God is unlimited, God must be the ultimate source of everything, God must be worthy of worship.
Divine Attributes – anything that can finish the sentence “God is ___”
- These attributes are generally concerned with either God’s power, or God’s
Before I start the paper there are a few points that must be established. First is a clear definition of Philosophy of Religion, which is the area of philosophy that applies philosophical methods to study a wide variety of religious issues including the existence of God. The use of the philosophical method makes Philosophy of Religion distinct from theology, which is the study of God and any type of issues that relate to the divine. Now there are two types of theology, Revealed and Natural Theology. Revealed Theology claims that our knowledge of God comes through special revelations such as the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and the Koran. Saint Thomas Aquinas indicates that Revealed Theology provides what he calls “Saving Knowledge”, which is knowledge that will result in our salvation. Now Natural Theology is our knowledge of God that one ascertains through natural reasoning, or reasoning that is unaided by special revelations. Saint Thomas noted that this type of reasoning can provide knowledge of God’s nature, or even prove his existence, but can never result in the person attaining salvation for as he states, even demons know that God exists. A note must be made before we press on; as one might notice Natural Theology is akin to philosophy of religion in the sense that both use human reasoning in their attempts to explain the divine. The main difference between them of course is the range of the topics considered.
Paul’s response was concerning ecclesiastical and doctrinal controversies. These Jewish-Christians were teaching false doctrine to the Gentile members. They taught that to be saved one must be circumcised and observe the ritual requirements of the law. Paul believed a Gentile did not need to go through the ritual requirements of the law, Gentiles were welcomed into the church through baptism professing faith in Jesus the Christ. In Acts 15:24-29 the Apostles and elders of the church did call the Gentiles to live within the moral teachings of the law, most specifically to avoid idolatry and sexual sin and counseled them on kosher restrictions when eating with others who were Jewish so as not to offend and complicate ministry amongst the Jewish communities. The account in Acts actually attest to the controversies of Gentile reception in the church and what their obligation to the law would be. This is the problem Paul is trying to rectify in
In this passage, Paul first addresses the fact that he did not want to return to the church at Corinth and bring pain upon them again. Paul had a previously painful situation with this church. We are not told the specifics of the current situation which caused Paul to write to Corinth, but we know that Paul was very sensitive in dealing with the matter. He did not desire to harm them or bring sorrow upon them.
Unlike the other churches like Galatians, when Paul writes to Romans, he is writing to a group of Christian converts that he has never actually met before. Despite not knowing his audience personally, his message to the Romans is similar to that of the Galatians- a bad destiny comes to those who do not remain faithful and follow evil and God determines the fate of those who have faith. Near the beginning of Paul’s incredibly long letter to the Romans, he warns them outright of their destinies if they reject all that is true and commit sins, proclaiming, “But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for
Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians was both his way of showing gratitude and to give further instruction to his early Christian followers on how to maintain their faith in Jesus Christ, they now all possessed. The Thessalonians had not always been followers of Christ they were previously Gentiles who then converted to Christianity. Paul gave thanks and further instruction to the Thessalonians so that they could stay prepared for the Advent. I believe that Paul was aware that the followers of Christ what be subjected to temptation and suffering for spreading the Gospel. The Gentiles and Satan could have a great influence on followers of Christ if they are not prepared. Paul knows the struggle of being converted and in result prepared the Thessalonians through ministry and prayer.
When looking at the common theme that Barth develops in God Here and Now, it becomes apparent for the need of congregation to justify, ratify, and promote the Bible as the living word of God. When and where the Bible constitutes its own authority and significance, it mediates the very presence of God through the congregation. Encountering this presence in the Church, among those whose lives presume living through the Bible’s power and meaning. Barth states that the Bible must become God's Word and this occurs only when God wills to address us in and through it. The Christ-event is God's definitive self-disclosure, while Scripture and preaching are made to correspond to him as a faithful witness becomes the perfect statement according to Barth (Barth, 2003, p. 61).
According to the passage 1st, I observed that the people in power were the Romans who were polytheistic. They completely rejected the idea on only one God or Christianity. The people who didn’t follow the beliefs of the Romans were usually poor and had no use for when they lived in the middle east according to the passage. Paul would preach to the poor about the savior Jesus Christ (according to the passage) .
My initial reaction to watching “ For The Bible Tells Me So” was feeling confused. I was confused because all the things I was taught was being challenged with a different point of views. Several bible verses about the acts of homosexuality that was mentioned in the movie were shedding a different light on my understanding. Also, I feeling like I can relate to a statement Chrissy Gephardt said, she knew of two things that were an abomination, suicide, and homosexuality. I was aware of those labeled abominations too but never did and depth research to see if in fact those were true statements. I felt a slight trigger of feeling sadness. I felt sad because there are so many people that base their negative decisions on how to treat LGBT people
A wonderful description of the nature of God’s existence that includes the absolute possession of characteristics that have to be uniquely God was said, “First, God must exist necessarily, which means that God’s existence differs from ours by not being dependent on anything or anyone else, or such as to be taken from him or lost in any way. God has always existed, will always exist and could not do otherwise than to exist. Also, whatever attributes God possesses, he possesses necessarily” (Wood, J., 2010, p. 191).
Throughout passages in Paul's letter to the Romans, there are many themes that we have seen before in his other letters to the Corinthians, Galatians, and Thessalonians. Paul's passage in Romans 8:1-17 is a summary of all of his main thoughts that he wants every Christian to live his or her life according to. Paul uses references of the "Spirit" and the "Flesh" to communicate his ideas.
“Most Christians would rather die than think; in fact they do” (White, 17). This quote from Bertrand Russel is thought provoking and a most appropriate way to start a book on using your mind for God. A Mind for God by James Emery White is a fantastic piece of literature that delves deep into what it means to truly follow God with your mind. In just under one hundred pages White explains why, how, and what we need to follow God with all of our mind. “And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27, ESV).
I have always been one to spend my time watching things that others wouldn 't think to watch. I have seen things like “The Wind Rises” by Hayao Miyazaki, “Queen” by Vikas Bahl and my favorite “Mary Kom” by Omung Kumar. From documentaries to animes, to silent films. I have dabbled in a little of everything so far. I am known to watch a few of these to pass my summer as well. So, when it came time to watch the foreign film “The Lives of Others” directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, I was fully aware of what to expect. From the subtitles to funny English accents, to sharpening my skill of being able to read the words and focus on the action at hand. You could say I 'm somewhat of an expert in those areas. Thank you anime! The movie was
As human beings, we have to be able to reflect on our lives and recognize things we have learned and events we have gone through. Particularly as social workers you really have to know yourself and understand your experiences may not be the same of others and have to be open to others stories. But nevertheless I will be focusing and reflecting on my life, events from my childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. Exploring stages of life that I have confronted for example attachment theory, initiative versus guilt, and Individual-Reflective Faith.
I called Cornelia the following day and she asked me out on a date – it was to attend a prayer group that following Friday. It was then when I encountered and started to get involved with a Church ministry named “La Nueva Alianza” (“New Covenant”). I was encouraged to allow the Holy Spirit to be more active in my life. Because of God 's merciful Spirit, I proceeded to develop—through prayer, Scripture reading, and the Sacraments—a closer relationship with the Lord and a stronger appreciation and adherence to the teachings of the Church. Since then, I have had a passionate desire that God’s people come to know Him and love Him more fully. This desire is not only what has driven me to serve His people, but what made me receptive to becoming Director of La Nueva Alianza Ministry
At the mention of “Divine Revelation”, my thoughts on it before were very narrow and simple. Back then, I would have mostly thought of revelations that occurred during the time when Jesus Christ was still alive. I had this expectation that the revelations would be mostly relating to the prophecies that we know from the bible, or what the church is constantly saying is the message of God.