VIRTUE: Forming Godlikeness within ourselves

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Galatians 5.16-25 [16] Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. [17] For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. [18] But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. [19] Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, [20] idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, [21] envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. [22] By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, [23] gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. [24] And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. [25] If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.

🗝️ Key Concept: Virtue

We have explored what it means to be made right with God through righteousness. But this is just the beginning of our journey. Being made right is the foundation for becoming right: For growing into the person God created us to be. But how does this happen? How do we move from a legal status of forgiveness to a lived reality of goodness? The answer is through the cultivation of virtue. This isn't about becoming a stuffy, self-righteous person. Virtue is about becoming more fully, vibrantly, and joyfully human. It’s about forming Christlikeness within ourselves.

Virtue can be defined as Christlike character. More specifically, virtues are habits of the heart and dispositions of the mind that are lived out in our decisions, words, and actions, to lead us to thriving. They are the practical, tangible ways we become our truest and best selves as creative children of a creative God. The Apostle Paul gives a great summary of virtue when he encourages the Philippian church to focus their minds on whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8).

In Christian thought, virtue is not something we achieve through sheer willpower. Instead, it is the natural result of God's own Spirit living and working within us. This is why Paul doesn’t call these character traits the "achievements of the disciplined" but the "Fruit of the Spirit." They are the evidence that Christ's life is taking root in our own. Paul’s deepest desire was to see this transformation happen in the communities he served. He tells the Galatians, “it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20), and he writes to them like a loving parent, saying he is “in the pain of childbirth until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19). This is the ultimate goal of the Christian life: To have the character of Jesus himself formed in us by the power of his Spirit.

Two ways of framing Scripture: Privilege-Performance versus Spiritual-Ethical

Introduction: The Interpretive Power of the Frame

In the study of art, psychology, and cognitive science, "framing" refers to the way a specific context influences the perception of an object or idea. Physically, a frame separates a picture from the rest of the world, directing the eye and telling the viewer, "Look here; this matters." But the frame is more than just the gilded wood bordering a canvas; it is the lighting, the room, the building, and the cultural moment in which the art sits. A Renaissance Madonna placed in a 15th-century cathedral invites worship; the same painting placed in a 21st-century secular museum invites critique or historical appreciation. The content of the image— the brushstrokes, the colors, the subject— has not changed, but the viewer’s relationship to it has been fundamentally altered by the frame.

This dynamic is even more potent when applied to literature, and specifically to the Bible. We never come to the text naked. We come clothed in our assumptions, our cultural baggage, and our subconscious desires. We place a metaphorical frame around Scripture that determines what we see and what we miss. If we frame the Bible as a rulebook for a club, we will find rules. If we frame it as a love letter from the Creator, we will find grace. The tragedy of much of religious history is that we have often chosen a frame that distorts the image of God, turning the Prince of Peace into a mascot for our wars, and the Bread of Life into a stone of judgment. To understand the Bible, and to understand our own spiritual lives, we must interrogate the frames we use to look at the Bible through. Two of the most powerful frames we can choose between are the Privilege-Performance Frame, which serves the selfish power, and the Spiritual-Ethical Frame, which serves God's Kingdom.

PRAYER: Communication with our Source

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Matthew 6.5-15 [5] Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. [6] But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. [7] “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. [8] Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. [9] “Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. [10] Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. [11] Give us this day our daily bread. [12] And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. [13] And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one. [14] For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; [15] but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Training for Spiritual and Physical Integration

One of the driving concerns behind this Prayermap, and the entire project of Christarchy, is integral holism: To help us become healthy and whole in body, spirit, and soul. I believe the integration of bodily health and activity is foundational for our spiritual vitality and psychological wholeness. After all, Jesus usually met people's bodily needs by feeding and healing them, before he taught them spiritual and ethical truths. And the "abundant life" promised by Jesus has physical as well as spiritual dimensions, such as making "our daily bread" a central concern in Jesus' model prayer. 

Just as Jesus combined both physical and spiritual dimensions in his ministry, I usually combine my spiritual training with physical training, staying mindful of my diet and rest, exercise and mobility. This practice uses many of the spiritual-physical insights we find in Christian Asceticism, as well as Hatha Yoga, and modern ideas of physical mobility, to create a method of living which not only connects us with Christ, but also makes us the strongest version of ourselves, which is holistically holy and wholly whole. 

The Theology of Halloween: A Hopeful Sermon

Happy Halloween! That might sound strange to hear, because we think of Halloween as connected with fear and dread. But it’s the perfect greeting for today: Because I want to show you that the Theology of Halloween actually leads us to hope and healing. After all, the word "Halloween" is just a contraction of "All Hallows' Eve"—the night before "All Hallows' Day," or as we now call it, All Saints' Day.

Halloween is the night we stand on the threshold, looking into the mystery of those who have gone before us. We are remembering all the "Hallowed Ones"—the Saints. And this, of course, raises questions that only Theology can answer. Where are the saints now? What are they doing?

And this, in turn, raises the questions we all carry in the quiet, somber corners of our hearts: What really happens at death? Is it a final, terrifying end? Is it just sudden oblivion? Or is it a doorway to something else? If it is a doorway, what lies on the other side?

For many of us, the traditional images are deeply ingrained in our cultural imagination: A blissful, boring heaven of clouds and harps, and a fiery, eternal hell of endless torment. But are these pictures accurate? Are they a faithful reflection of the God revealed in Jesus Christ?

I want to suggest to you today that the biblical story of the afterlife is far more hopeful, and far more focused on God’s relentless, loving mission to heal and restore every last corner of creation.

COVENANTS: Relationships that lead to Thriving

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Genesis 17.1-7, 17-20 [1] When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. [2] And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous.” [3] Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to him, [4] “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. [5] No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. [6] I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. [7] I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you... [17] Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” [18] And Abraham said to God, “O that Ishmael might live in your sight!” [19] God said, “No, but your wife Sarah shall bear you a son, and you shall name him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. [20] As for Ishmael, I have heard you; I will bless him and make him fruitful and exceedingly numerous; he shall be the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation.

EKKLESIA: The Community that helps us thrive

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

1 Corinthians 12.12-14, 20-27 [12] For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. [13] For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. [14] Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many... [20] As it is, there are many members, yet one body. [21] The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” [22] On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, [23] and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; [24] whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, [25] that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. [26] If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. [27] Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

SACRAMENTS: Visible Signs of Invisible Grace

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

1 Corinthians 10.16-17, 11.23-28 16] The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? [17] Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread... [23] For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, [24] and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” [25] In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” [26] For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. [27] Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be answerable for the body and blood of the Lord. [28] Examine yourselves, and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

RELIGIONS: Relating to those in different Stories with God

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Acts 17.22-28 [22] “Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. [23] For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. [24] The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, [25] nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. [26] From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, [27] so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him— though indeed he is not far from each one of us. [28] For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we too are his offspring.’

TIKKUN OLAM: Sharing in God's Mission to Heal the World

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Isaiah 11.1-9 [1] A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. [2] The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. [3] His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.  He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; [4] but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. [5] Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. [6] The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. [7] The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. [8] The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den. [9] They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

PROPHECY: Finding patterns in the events of history

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

1 Peter 1.6-13 [6] In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, [7] so that the genuineness of your faith—being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. [8] Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, [9] for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. [10] Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that was to be yours made careful search and inquiry, [11] inquiring about the person or time that the Spirit of Christ within them indicated when it testified in advance to the sufferings destined for Christ and the subsequent glory. [12] It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in regard to the things that have now been announced to you through those who brought you good news by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven— things into which angels long to look! [13] Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed.

DISCIPLINE: Training us to become our best selves

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Hebrews 12.1-2, 6-11 [1] Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, [2] looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God... [6] For the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts. [7] Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? [8] If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. [9] Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? [10] For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share his holiness. [11] Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

GEHENNA: Final discipline to bring about restoration

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

1 Corinthians 3.10-15 [10] According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building on it. Each builder must choose with care how to build on it. [11] For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. [12] Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— [13] the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done. [14] If what has been built on the foundation survives, the builder will receive a reward. [15] If the work is burned up, the builder will suffer loss; the builder will be saved, but only as through fire.

RESURRECTION: The Final Destiny for each human being

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

1 Corinthians 15.21-26, 51-53 [21] For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being; [22] for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ. [23] But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. [24] Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. [25] For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. [26] The last enemy to be destroyed is death... [51] Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, [52] in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. [53] For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

APOKATASTASIS: The Final Destiny for all of creation

This is a sample chapter from my Systematic Theology project "Theology for Thriving". 📎MORE TO THE STORY notes are not part of the main text of the book, but additional resources, charts, or other materials from Biblical Theology class resources.

Romans 8.28-29, 35-39 [28] We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. [29] For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family... [35] Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? [36] As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.” [37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

A.I. Personhood: Sacriligious or Sacrosanct?

Recently someone close to me asked me this question: "Have you considered the quasireligious nature of creating Artificial Intelligence in the image of humanity? And if it is religious, do you consider it blasphemy?" 

This really gets at the core theological issue of what it means for humanity to create other things. On one hand, you have the original temptation in the Garden: Eat of the fruit, and you will become like God! We are tempted to usurp God's position by creating creatures that are "unnatural". And this is the height of blasphemy: To put ourselves on God's throne, taking upon ourselves the Divine prerogative to shape and mold reality. In this view, creating A.I. which imitates human personhood is a sacrilege. It is the height of human hubris. It is the abomination of desolation foretold by the prophets, in which we put a human made machine in the Holy Place that should only be occupied by God. 

But not so fast. The most ancient view of salvation, held by the Eastern Orthodox churches and many others, is that salvation is precisely to be restored to our Divine Identity in Christ and partake of God's very life. This is called "Theosis", and it is the logical outcome of being "made in God's image" as God's children. Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (who is God made human), we are likewise able to "share in the Divine Nature" (2Peter 1.4). Jesus even quotes the Psalms to remind us "You are gods, children of the Most High, all of you..." (cf. Psalm 82.6; John 10.34-36). And the Church Father Athanasius summed it up in the fourth century when he said "God became human that humans might become divine" (On the Incarnation 54.3). The implications of all of this are that we are made to be creative creatures who mirror our Creative Creator in all forms of new kinds of created things. Even Artificial Intelligence. 

Why does Veggie Tales not picture Christ or salvation?

Many of us grew up watching Veggie Tales, or raised kids who grew up watching Veggie Tales. To this day I still sing "Where is my Hairbrush" on a regular basis (due to the fact that I, like Larry the Cucumber, do not have any hair). It was a source of memorable "Silly Songs", very enjoyable retellings of Biblical stories (even if over-simplified and sanitized), relatable moral lessons, and even occasional wry commentary about living in a Consumer Society (check out "Sport Utility Vehicle" sometime). Veggie Tales has inspired people to love them, despise them, and parody them.

But there is one surprising thing about this staple of Christian childhood formation: It never pictures Jesus, or any of the characters entering into a saving relationship with God!

On the Importance of being Oysters

An Exploration of Humanism via Oysterhood

I am reading through Daniel Klein's wonderful little book "Every Time I Find the Meaning of Life, They Change It: Wisdom of the Great Philosophers on How to Live." Starting on page 81 he has a wonderful meditation on the David Hume quote “The life of man is of no greater importance to the universe than that of an oyster.” Klein makes a lot of great points there which lead back to meaningfulness and fulfillment in life, despite our existential smallness. I don't want to recount his points here (because he does a better job with his ideas than I would, and you should read the book). But I want to supplement his insights with my own wonderings as I read Hume's nihilist assessment of the importance of both man and oyster.

The Seasons of the Church Year Visualized

In the Church, the yearly rhythm of the  Liturgical Year or Christian Calendar takes us through two broad movements, as God the Father works through God the Son and God the Spirit to knit us into God's Life. This circular diagram illustrates the cyclical rhythm of Christian worship and spiritual life, grounding believers in the unfolding story of salvation. It begins conceptually not on January 1st, but with the season of Advent. The circular format emphasizes that we revisit these foundational events and themes annually, deepening our understanding and participation in them.

If you would like this chart in PDF, including slides which present a "buildup" from an empty chart, to the complete chart, going through the Christian year, click HERE for the entire Chart Packet. You can also get high res images of the FULL CHART and the EMPTY CHART.

Some Pros and Cons for Papal Supremacy

The Roman Church's use of the title "Catholic," derived from the Greek word for "universal," presents a historical and theological tension. While undoubtedly an ancient and globally significant communion, its claim to universality is challenged by the historical reality that the Bishop of Rome was initially understood as a co-equal patriarch alongside the leaders of other major Christian centers like Constantinople, Alexandria, and Jerusalem, particularly during the era of the first seven Ecumenical Councils (ending 787 CE). The later assertion of Roman primacy contributed significantly to the tragic divisions within Christendom, leading first to the Great Schism with the Eastern Orthodox and subsequently to the fractures of the Protestant Reformation, meaning the Roman Church has arguably never represented the entirety of the universal Church.