Angels, inasmuch as they come from the Throne Room of the Thrice-holy God, usher us into the presence of God once removed and such encounters with God are more powerful and overwhelming than ordinary moments with God. Scot McKnight More Quotes by Scot McKnight More Quotes From Scot McKnight What the church most needs is not heroes of faith, but faithful followers of Jesus. Scot McKnight faithfulherojesus Those who aren't following Jesus aren't his followers. Its that simple. Followers follow, and those who don't follow aren't followers. To follow Jesus means to follow Jesus into a society where justice rules, where love shapes everything. To follow Jesus means to take up his dream and work for it. Scot McKnight dreammeanjesus Prayer is the way to die to our own wishes and surrender everything to God. Scot McKnight prayerwishway God was on the move; God is on the move; and God will always be on the move. Those who walk with God and listen to God are also on the move. Reading the Bible so we can live it out today means being on the move—always. Anyone who stops and wants to turn a particular moment into a monument, as the disciples did when Jesus was transfigured before them, will soon be wondering where God has gone. Scot McKnight readingmovingjesus Jesus wanted far more than to be accepted into one's life. He wanted to take over, and his essential call was to trust him enough to surrender one's entire being to him. Scot McKnight surrenderessentialsjesus We need to shed our unearthly and nonsocial and idealistic and romantic and uber-spiritual visions of kingdom and get back to what Jesus meant. By kingdom, Jesus means: God's Dream Society on earth, spreading out from the land of Israel to encompass the whole world. Scot McKnight spiritualdreamjesus We don't ask what the Bible says, we ask what God says to us in that Bible. The difference is a difference between paper and person. Scot McKnight differencespersonspaper Love one another strenuously because it's hard. Scot McKnight love-one-anotherhard God's idea of redemption is community-shaped. Scot McKnight redemptioncommunityideas One reason why so many Christians today don't know the Old Testament is because their 'gospel' doesn't even need it. Scot McKnight christiantodayneeds The assumption that the gospel can be reduced to a note card is already off on the wrong track. Scot McKnight assumptiontrackcards I've never spoken with an angel, though one time I felt the awesome weight and glory of God's presence in an angel in my bedroom as I kneeled in prayer. I kept my eyes closed, good Baptist that I was at the time, so I never knew if it was an angel. (I now am reasonably confident it was.) Scot McKnight angeleyeprayer God is love so all God does is loving. Scot McKnight god-is-lovedoe God's love entails a covenant commitment on the part of with us, and that covenant commitment means a promise to be with us and for us, and God's covenant is shaped toward our redemption. Scot McKnight meancommitmentpromise Many think Jesus came to earth so you and I can have a special kind of spiritual experience and then go merrily along, as long as we pray and read our Bibles and develop intimacy with the unseen God but ignore the others-oriented life of justice and love and peace that Jesus embodied. Scot McKnight spiritualjesusthinking On politics I strive as much as possible to let my passions be for God and for the Church and for others (the Jesus Creed). I place no confidence in redemption by way of politics. The political hope ebbs and flows every 8 years now; I don't get all riled up if a Republican or a Democrat wins; I don't think it matters that much to what we are called to do on a daily basis. Scot McKnight passionwinningjesus ... the Eucharist profoundly enables the grace of God to be received with all its glories and blessings. Scot McKnight glorygraceblessing Our biggest problem is that we have an entire culture shaped by a misunderstanding of the gospel. That so-called gospel is deconstructing the church Scot McKnight churchproblemculture God loves us and seeks our redemption, at times through angels. Scot McKnight redemptionangelgod-love Some think we each have a guardian angel while others think we don't have an assigned guardian angel, while yet others think God at times - but not always and not by assignment to each of us - sends an angel on a mission of guarding. The Bible's evidence that each of us has a specific, assigned guardian angel is not as solid as some think, so I'm with those who think sometimes God sends guardian angels but that we don't have a specific guardian angel. Scot McKnight guardingangelthinking
