Gene Haas - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Uploads
Papers by Gene Haas
The foundational biblical doctrine for the Christian life that prevents individualism and secular... more The foundational biblical doctrine for the Christian life that prevents individualism and secularization arising in these two areas for Calvin is union with Christ. Calvin unfolds the various aspects of the Christian life – including salvation, membership in the church, church discipline and the exercise of Christian freedom – by relating them to union with Christ. This keeps any tendency toward individualism in check. And this central doctrine gives unity and coherence to the various aspects of the Christian life, including the role of the church in the Christian life and the freedom of conscience. This paper will indicate how this unfolds in Calvin’s thought. I will close the paper with some exhortations for making this doctrine more central in the preaching, teaching, and discipleship of the church today.
As James K. A. Smith notes in the Foreword to this book, the culture of western society has chang... more As James K. A. Smith notes in the Foreword to this book, the culture of western society has changed so drastically that the traditional language of the transcendent norms of biblical Christianity no longer communicates to the young people of twenty-first century western society, and, in many ways, does not resonate with younger Christians today. Their imaginations have been captured by the notions of fulfilment and flourishing, and the language which embodies these notions in our culture. To communicate effectively to young peoplewhether Christian believers or non-believersabout human sexuality in the current secular culture so as to draw them to the flourishing sexual life that comes from following Christ, Christian pastors, teachers and leaders must understand the current mindset about sexuality and must develop new ways of proclaiming the fullness of sexual life found only in Christ.
The foundational biblical doctrine for the Christian life that prevents individualism and secular... more The foundational biblical doctrine for the Christian life that prevents individualism and secularization arising in these two areas for Calvin is union with Christ. Calvin unfolds the various aspects of the Christian life – including salvation, membership in the church, church discipline and the exercise of Christian freedom – by relating them to union with Christ. This keeps any tendency toward individualism in check. And this central doctrine gives unity and coherence to the various aspects of the Christian life, including the role of the church in the Christian life and the freedom of conscience. This paper will indicate how this unfolds in Calvin’s thought. I will close the paper with some exhortations for making this doctrine more central in the preaching, teaching, and discipleship of the church today.
As James K. A. Smith notes in the Foreword to this book, the culture of western society has chang... more As James K. A. Smith notes in the Foreword to this book, the culture of western society has changed so drastically that the traditional language of the transcendent norms of biblical Christianity no longer communicates to the young people of twenty-first century western society, and, in many ways, does not resonate with younger Christians today. Their imaginations have been captured by the notions of fulfilment and flourishing, and the language which embodies these notions in our culture. To communicate effectively to young peoplewhether Christian believers or non-believersabout human sexuality in the current secular culture so as to draw them to the flourishing sexual life that comes from following Christ, Christian pastors, teachers and leaders must understand the current mindset about sexuality and must develop new ways of proclaiming the fullness of sexual life found only in Christ.