The Really Hard Part

It started with a rereading of Tuomo Mannermaa’s Christ Present in Faith, I have re-engaged with Protestant theology and thinking in a manner that I have not done for over a decade. What I have found most striking is the differing emphasis on the individual and the society. From an Orthodox perspective, the really hard …

Grace, Effort, and the Majesty of God

What is the glory and majesty of God? One of my favorite pictures of that glory is in Ps 93:1. “The Lord is king, he is robed in majesty.” Majesty is also a fearsome concept. Consider Job, for instance, “Will not his majesty terrify you, and the dread of him fall upon you?” Or Ex. …

Grace and Effort

So what is the relationship between divine grace and human effort? Let's start by imagining me as the quarterback of the Washington Redskins instead of Robert Griffin III … or not. It doesn't matter how much strength training, how much coaching, and how many years of practice I had, I could never be a NFL …

The Apostle Paul on Costly Grace

Bonhoeffer (in the previous post) was certainly passionate about costly grace. But isn't that at odds with the idea of “salvation by faith alone” (a phrase many folk assume the Apostle Paul said)? Three points on that: (1) Paul never said it; it's actually a post-Reformation era formula in response to Erasmus and is a …

Bonhoeffer on Cheap and Costly Grace

Dietrich Bonhoeffer begins The Cost of Discipleship with a rant. Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our Church. We are fighting to-day for costly grace. Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like cheapjacks' wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices. Grace …

Life is Hard

Life is hard. By this I don't mean to say it's full of drudgery (although it can be) or that it is beyond our means to cope (although it can be). “Hard,” in the opening sentence ought not carry a negative connotation. Basketball, when played seriously, is hard. It requires a great deal of sweat …