The Joshua Victor Theory

    Children loved by God: grace and peace to you! In a past sermon I talked to you about two different worldviews—a flat, 1D worldview, that revolves around us and what this world has to offer, and a 3D worldview, that revolves around Christ and what His kingdom offers. Faith is like our “3D glasses” to see the spiritual dimension behind things; that there is more to life. A God-centered way to live life, that helps and serves others. It’s the same world, but the believer sees by faith, eyes open to the spiritual struggle between good and evil. Today on All Saints’ Day, we can see something similar at work in 1 John 3:1-3. Believers with their 3D glasses are “children of God.” But unbelievers stuck in 1D aren’t seeing who God or Christ, or even who Christians really are. They may even be antagonistic to Christians. Read 1 John 3 with our 3D faith glasses on: “ See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are .” “See...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Today on Pentecost Sunday we remember the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the apostles as they went forward with the mission to go and testify about Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven. Since the readings all focus on the Holy Spirit, we’ll look at what Christian spirituality is. What genuine spirituality for the Christian is, and what the work of the Holy Spirit is, and how Christ and the cross stand at the center of true spirituality. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. While religious belief isn’t “in vogue” today, the generic idea of spirituality is. As author Gene Veith describes in his book, “The Spirituality of the Cross,” people today say they aren’t interested in doctrines, creeds, or institutions, but they are very interested in “spirituality.” “They are in the market for something that will give them a pleasant my...