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Church Street, Princeton
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It would be just like him

The God of the Bible looks like Jesus, the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being. It would be just like him to go to the cross.

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Practicing Our Scales

Imagine if our walk with Christ, representing his kingdom in the world, were as practiced and pure as Hania Rani’s fingers on the piano keys.

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Rescue

I practice the spiritual discipline of rescuing earthworms on paved surfaces. It's a reminder to me that I can pause what I'm doing, get a little dirty, and help. Also, that I've been given the responsibility to care.

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Your Roots Are Showing

The life that I bring to the world can only be found in my attachment to Christ. His presence with me is essential.

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Connection

I live in a U.S. county with traffic problems. It's a peninsula, and what's not swamp land has been developed. Building new roads is difficult and expensive. Making things worse, roads that could connect don't.

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The Word of God

The word of God is his logos. It’s what God has to say.

The word of God is God’s logos1. We can say it this way: God’s word is ‘what God has to say’. We can find his word in Nature (Psalm 19:1-6, Romans 1:19,20). We find his word in the Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16,17). And Jesus is the Word of God (John 1:1-18).

“God’s word is ‘what God has to say’.”

Creation reveals what God has to say. The Scriptures reveal what God has to say. Jesus is our clearest revelation of what God has to say.

To encounter Nature, Scripture, and Jesus, is to have the opportunity to encounter ‘what God has to say’.

But this requires humble hearts.

Worshiping Nature misses what God has to say. Twisting Scripture to fit a human agenda defies what God has to say. And studying Jesus without being conformed to his image is a rejection of what God has to say.

When ‘God’s word’ fails to communicate ‘what God has to say’—his intent—it ceases to be God’s word (logos) altogether.

1 Koine Greek for persuasive 'reason' or 'reasoning'. The same root as the English word 'logic'. The Greek word rhema refers to God's speech. God's rhema conveys his logos.

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Knowing Rick Shafer Knowing Rick Shafer

A Community Confession

Confessing our desire to be like Jesus.

Jesus is our first love.
We stare at him.

Jesus is our provider.
We receive from him.

Jesus is our sovereign.
We yield to him.

Jesus is our example.
We love like him.

Jesus desires everyone to know him.
We help others do as we do.

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Knowing Rick Shafer Knowing Rick Shafer

Respect the breed

Nonbelievers will not (cannot) act like believers. But believers should not act like nonbelievers.

Some days I run past a man walking his dog. Invariably, the dog pulls hard at the end of its leash and barks nonstop until I'm out of sight. A voice in my head asks "WHY WON'T THAT DOG SHUT UP?" Its owner mildly chastises the dog—I suppose to make me see that he cares.

What I and the owner need to realize is it's the dog's nature to pull and bark. It's a Border Collie after all, not a Saint Bernard. The dog's nature is to herd things.

Same with people who stand outside God's kingdom. They have a nature that's well-described in the Bible. We Believers did too, once.

It makes no sense to expect a Border Collie to behave like a Saint Bernard. But when a Saint Bernard acts like a Border Collie, there's a problem. Disciplined training is prescribed. If speaking of Believers, to be trained by Christ.

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