Grace - What It Means

Image by havankevin via FlickrAt some point in time most of us become concerned about our physical health.  Perhaps because there are new aches and pains, or a friend has been diagnosed with a condition that concerns us, or maybe our lifestyle has led us to look at how to be healthy.  Whatever the reason we often react by building up our immune system by a combination of diet, nutrition, vitamins, and exercise.  Unfortunately we cannot cover all of the bases of viruses, bugs, genetics, environment and yet to be discovered.

When it comes to our spiritual life we find a parallel in attempting to reach for God on our own only to wonder if we have done enough. 

Grace What Is It? (week 2)

Image via WikipediaWhen Alexander the Great made his conquest he left Greek as the common language for the world he conquered.  That act unified the ancient world and  long outlasted his empire.  By the forth century the Roman empire pushed Latin as the common language and many people no longer spoke or read Greek.  In 382 AD Pope Damascus commissioned Jerome to create a common translation in Latin (versio vulguta).

Grace - What Is It?

Image by Deniz Tortum via Flickr
“We used to think agriculture gave rise to cities and later to writing, art, and religion.

Now the world’s oldest temple suggests the urge to worship sparked civilization.”

National Geographic, June 2011, Gobekli Tepe

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/06/gobekli-tepe/mann-text/1

This discovery reminds me of an account in Genesis chapter 11 about a people that traveled east and came to a plain in the land of Shinar. Humankind has a desire to get close to God yet we find a gulf between us and God. Temples and acts of worship were tried to bridge the gap but the message was always simple, take a path to love God completely (Deut 6:5, Luke 10:27). Easy say but hard to live, but God has us covered with something called grace.