Friday, January 28, 2022

New Wine Uncorked: Trinitarian Soundings - God is Here…And?

#love #trinity #jesus #holyspirit #father #newwine #nwnws #trinitarian #faith #church


How does a Trinitarian, Christ-centered theology play out in how we see the “other”? Does it matter if one has a Trinitarian theology, and if so, why does this matter?

First things first. In my work as well as my writings, you will find me saying and promoting that theology not only matters, but each of us are theologians. And at New Wine, New Wineskins we believe that the call placed on the Christian is to participate with the Christian Godhead theologically, Biblicially, and Socially. Theology is faith seeking understanding and this is meant to be done both individually and communally.

Trinitarian theology recognizes God’s relational disclosure and seeks to frame our understanding of divine and human being in interpersonal and communal terms. Truth is, the Trinity is the paradigm by which we are to live. It is dynamic in relation; thus, God's being is His eternal, intrinsic communion. So what then of today? 

Recorded live on Fridays at 10am (pst) New Wine UnCorked seeks to step into culture with a heart bent towards engagement, reconciliation, and relationship.

Friday, January 21, 2022

Trinitarian Soundings - The God of Relationship

#love #trinity #jesus #holyspirit #father #newwine #nwnws #trinitarian #epiphany 

Theology, the Trinity... Where do we even start? The discussion this morning flows from the truth of theology, specifically, Trinitarian theology. How does a Trinitarian, Christ-centered theology play out in how we see the “other”? Where the body of Christ gets it right and where it does not.

As the Christian Scriptures reveal, the human is created in the image of the Trinity – A Godhead that does not remain absent or quiet throughout the course of history. We are not talking about a God hidden behind divine revelation. Rather, God is for us fully revealed and fully concealed in His self-disclosure.

The Christian Scriptures calls the reader into transformation –conversion—which is not a static event, something that happens once in a lifetime, but a continual process of turning toward the Son, who leads us, in union with the Holy Spirit, into an ever-deepening relationship with the Father. Thus, we are brought into the very life of the Trinity, that communion of love without end. 

The Trinity is the paradigm by which we are to live. It is dynamic in relation; thus, God's being is His eternal, intrinsic communion. So what then of today? Are we relationally wired by the God of  creation or have we become machines programmed by our own hands?

 

Recorded live on Fridays at 10am (pst) New Wine UnCorked seeks to step into culture with a heart bent towards engagement, reconciliation, and relationship. 

Where to find New Wine: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/newwinenewwineskins Twitter: https://twitter.com/nwnws Instagram: https://instagram.com/newwine_newwineskins Podcast: https://anchor.fm/newwinenewwineskins Clubhouse: https://www.clubhouse.com/club/new-wine-new-wineskins Web: http://www.new-wineskins.org/


Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Who is this One they call Three? How do the many created relate this God who is Three in One?


I am one who appreciates stretching… Maybe not to the point of rupture, but close… One of, if not the greatest forms of stretching has come through my faith seeking understanding. It is a stretching brought on through the inquiry of who is this God celebrated at Christmas, elevated at Easter, awed by the multitude, and crucified by the many? Who is this God called Trinity and why follow Him? Is it more profitable, more comforting, more secure to follow the one they call Christ, or should I continue on my own way, forging ahead on my own, self-made path?

Stepping into the dialogue of faith and life happens through a multitude of ways, yet arguably no way stretches, contorts, illumines, or calls upon us for a response more so than a step into the truth of Jesus. Who is this man who claims to be God? And what is the connection between Jesus and me? That is, the human is created in the image of a God who is relational, so what then are the implications for life, for church, for our engagement of the world? How does the Christian understand Jesus so to then understand the one standing in front of me? 

So where does one go to know Christ? To know the Christian God, and who is this God called Trinity? How does a Trinitarian, Christ-centered theology play out in my life and how I see the “other”?  

As the Christian Scriptures reveal, the human is created in the image of the Trinity – A Godhead that does not remain absent or quiet throughout the course of history. We are not talking about a God hidden behind divine revelation. Rather, God is for us fully revealed and fully concealed in His self-disclosure. As a result, the Christian Scriptures invoke participation… they beckon the reader to transformation. The movement to God, with God, from God is not a static event, something that happens once in a lifetime, but a continual process. And for those whose inflamed heart burns for the Son they find themselves pining after… longing for… continually turning toward the Son, who leads us, in union with the Holy Spirit, into an ever-deepening relationship with the Father. Thus, we are brought into the very life of the Trinity, that communion of love without end.

The Trinity is the paradigm by which we are to live. It is dynamic in relation; thus, God's being is His eternal, intrinsic communion. The Trinity provides not only the paradigm but also the process and protection of the relationality of humanity. For it is through the action of the Godhead that humanity gains relational access to the riches of the dynamics of revelation.

The words of Gregory of Nazianzus draw this to mind as he writes of the Triune God: “No sooner do I conceive of the One than I am illumined by the splendor of the Three; no sooner do I distinguish them than I am carried back to the One” (Gregory of Nazianzus, Oration 40.41).

Trinitarian theology is rooted in a relational foundation that recognizes people are created in the image of a relational God and as such, are not things, generic products, or numbers, but mysterious and unique subjects with inherent worth and the right to self-determination in fostering vital community. Therefore, we should not use and abuse one another. Yet today we experience the loss of personhood through the promotion of consumption. Forget what lies ahead. Push aside the risks. Consume. Consume.

In our push for consumption we consume— inadvertently at first - one another. Now, in our intentional consumption, we not only gain the whole world, but experience the loss of personhood. Today, the widespread loss of personhood and the reduction of persons to things robs all of us of our priceless worth and leads us to consume, deconstruct, and devalue the one sitting before us.

Trinitarian theology is communal and as such recognizes the truth, the necessity of community. It is best done in community, a community in which there is space for otherness and difference given God’s personal space for otherness in the divine life and in the world.

Our identity as relational people of the Triune (relational) God is foundational to our purpose and our activity.

As the great Dr. King illumined:
There is still something to remind us that we are interdependent, that we are all somehow caught in an inescapable network of mutuality.  Therefore whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. 
As long as there is poverty in the world I can never be rich, even if I have a million dollars.  As long as diseases are rampant and millions of people in this world cannot expect to live more than thirty years, I can never be totally healthy.  I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. 
As those created in the image of God, we must account for each human person in all their distinctiveness as being important in addition to their shared humanity. We must cherish each human person as equal in worth and dignity. We must focus upon the heart of the person and not their behaviors, their productivity, so that we might be as Horton the Elephant who reminds us, “after all, a person’s a person, no matter how small.” 

Tuesday, January 11, 2022

New Wine Uncorked: Epiphany: God is with us! Entering the New Year throu...


The discussion this morning flows from the newness of the year while continuing in the goodness of our Christmas celebrations. Truth is, Christmas lasts forty days – from Christmas eve to the presentation of the Christ child in the temple (Feb 2), according to the traditional liturgical calendar. And the 12 days of Christmas run from the 25th of Dec through Jan 6th which is known as Epiphany. 

Epiphany is the entrance – the presentation of hope, peace, joy to all of humanity– the reality of love with us. After all, God is “with us”—Emmanuel. Jesus manifests the divine presence in his entire incarnate state.

So where do we find ourselves this week? A couple days before the Biblical manifestation/presentation of Jesus for the world’s sake? Is the inn of our heart open for guests, or have we already closed off to all that stands before us? 

You can join the New Wine Uncorked crew every Friday on Facebook… 
https://www.facebook.com/newwinenewwineskins


New Wine Uncorked: Trinitarian Soundings - God is Here…And?

#love #trinity #jesus #holyspirit #father #newwine #nwnws #trinitarian #faith #church How does a Trinitarian, Christ-centered theology play ...