charity

1. ransom (1 Tim. 2:5-6, Mt. 20:28, Mk. 10:45) 2. for all our sins (Gal. 1:3-4) 3. to redeem from all wickedness; to purify us; to establish us as his own; to make us eager to do what is good. (Titus 2:13-14) 4. turned himself in with the purpose of making us a fragrant offering and acceptable sacrifice to God. (Eph. 5:2) I sometimes think of possible scenarios between the Father, the Son and the Spirit. I imagine them all watching the comings and goings of us people. I imagine the feelings of pleasure, concern, displeasure, or grief as generations have passed, as my own life has passed. How much they understand of each of us, how much they understand of one another. From the time of creation, the Father

Christianity rests upon the acknowledgment of God (Yahweh) as a personal and active Presence in the affairs of man and the world that He has created. He is not Pantheistic (having no existence separate from His creation) and neither Deistic (having created everything and everyone with abilities for self-action and development and then pulling out giving no further assistance). This interaction is what distinguishes Yahweh from all other idols; He is a Living God. Yahweh hears, sees, knows, feels, wills and acts to lead, deliver, save and punish an individual. Yahweh, in His mercy toward us, continued to demonstrate this interaction in that

I think the main purpose of Peter's emphasis was to help us to identify with Him and understand that sin directly affects each one us and the world around us. I have heard that the Old Testament practice of sacrifice required a guilty person to place his hand on the head of the animal and hold that animal in place while the individual confessed his sin before the priest and before God. This was not a quiet and peaceful procedure. No animal will stand still quietly with the smell of blood nearby for a tranquil confessional to take place. There was contact with the physical elements of a live animal and the witnessing of the killing of that same animal. Jesus

Personally, the implications of becoming a sharer in the sacrifice of the cross today are more sobering than they have been in the past. I have a greater consciousness of the cost of being a follower of Christ and the responsibility of obedience to Christ. Perhaps, in reality, Self is more conscious of what still needs to go. Paul

Koinoina has meanings of partnership, participation, sharer and others. All are founded in relationship. There must be a giver and recipient. Christ is our ultimate example of giving Himself on the cross to a world of recipients. As diverse and unique as each one of us is individually, when we participate in the bread and the blood of Christ, we choose to lose some of that diversity, replacing it with the character of Christ, thus becoming one with Christ. In a practical sense, it means being vulnerable to other Christians, those whom we recognize as our brothers and sisters in Christ. It means stepping out of our comfort zones to share our lives in very personal ways during good times and low times. It means being tough with love, compassionate when needed and understanding when not all may be going so well. It means giving a pledge to each other to do the above. It means having it said about us,

The Lord

When we partake of the Lord

I believe that the cup is the most meaningful part of the Lord

An extreme symbolic interpretation toward the Lord

I believe that the elements of the Lord