Our current block of classes is deliciously light on homework.
Only two classes - Anthropology & Hamartiology (man and sin), and
two hours of Life of Christ. Yesterday in Man & Sin we had a really
interesting discussion about where/how we receive the immaterial
aspects of our being (soul, spirit, personality, etc.) Do they come
from our parents? It is obvious that there are traits of our
personality that come from our parents, but what about our soul? I also
used to think that when a baby is conceived God gives them a soul at
that time. The soul is spiritual and uniquely our own. Of course it
doesn't come from the parents. (Again, my own original thought
process.) But if this is the case, how does the sin nature come into
play? If our soul comes from God, does that mean He gives us a corrupt
soul? That's doesn't seem to make sense. The Bible tells us that the
sin nature is passed down through the father, so do we somehow receive
our soul and spirit from our parents right along with our 46
chromosomes? Like I said, it was an interesting discussion.
But
all that is just a side note. Acts will be one of the classes for our
remaining two blocks, so I am reading ahead, in a sense, for my
devotions. This morning I was reading the story of Peter's miraculous
release from prison:
(The notes added in italics are my own commentary, if you will.)
"So Peter was kept in prison, but prayer was being made fervently by the church of God...And
when Peter realized [he had been rescued], he went to the house of
Mary...where many were gathered together and were praying. And when
[Rhoda] recognized Peter's voice...ran in and announced that Peter (for whom they were fervently praying) was standing in front of the gate. And they said to her, 'You are out of your mind!' (Paraphrased:
"You're crazy! Why would Peter be here? Afterall, we are praying to
the all-powerful God of heaven and earth for his deliverance. What
makes you think Peter would actually be here??" Hmmm...something
doesn't seem to line up here.) ...And when they opened the door and saw [Peter], they were amazed." Acts 12:5, 12-16
You
mean God really does answer our most "impossible" prayers? And why
wouldn't He. Too often I am just like these early Christians. I find
myself amazed when God responds positively to my prayers. Since coming
back to NTBI after Christmas break, my growing knowledge and
understanding of God keeps making Him bigger and bigger, but I am still
trapped in a finite mind. I often find myself relating to the father of
the demon possessed boy in Mark 9:
Lord, I do believe. Please help my unbelief.
No comments:
Post a Comment