Transforming Minds: Embracing the Creator-Creature Distinction

well the second thing I think that the Apostle Paul wants Christians to bring to a pagan world is a transformed mind a holy body says uh Romans 121 and 122 says well I'll read it to you do not be conformed to the this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing you may discern what is the will of God what is good and acceptable and perfect some folks have been asking me how you engage uh in the training of young people in this day and age and I think this is the key to what we need to do with our Rising generation of kids teach them what it means to have a trans form mind [00:10:39]

Paul has in mind a massive transformation of human thinking the only other time he uses this term transform is in 2 Corinthians 3:18 we all with unveiled faces beholding the glory of the Lord are being transformed he's recalling Moses being having his face transformed but also recalls the glory of God revealed on another Mount the Mount of transfiguration where Jesus was transformed before them and his face Shone like the Sun so Paul has in mind a radical transformation having to do with the glory of God revealed in a sinful world through good sound thinking [00:191:44]

and this is doubtless where you get this famous question and it's really the only fundamental question you can ask does the world create itself or is there a Creator who creates it that's the only question you can really ask about Origins and those are the two ways of thinking isn't that interesting this is fundamental is the answer one or two and uh it will affect the way you think about everything as Paul shows in Romans 1 the way you think about spirituality and Theology and sexuality in particular [00:365:16]

and we are now living in a world committed to a onest vision of universal justice pansexuality Interfaith and we believe that we can produce a paradise of human flourishing where old people get along it it's polanish isn't it it fails to take into account sin and how undiscerning we really are about the true nature of the world so that this will be a delusional fantasy and will become a planetary nightmare because based on the LIE Jesus himself said there are only two ways the broad way and the narrow way [00:409:599]

Tu ISM brings us sound Minds it teaches us a number of things that I'd like to display before you first theology then meaning then morality then Redemption then spirituality Tu ISM in terms of theology as I've been saying affirms the Creator creature distinction and that massive distinction makes it so obvious that God is the Lord Sovereign Transcendent that there is such a thing as hierarchy of being which of course is the basis of classic theology as we've learned we celebrate the mystery of the great other God is so totally other than us [00:570:12]

and this notion of Distinction you see gives us a sense of calling and value in what we do we are Vice Regents we serve God who is other than us in the world distinct from the world we're always creatures never God always submitted to God and to the structures he made but in that we find our dignity as well in our calling to work under God to have dominion so who God is will determine who we are isn't that interesting theology is so practical in in the end that if you want to really know who you are you better know who God is [00:765:16]

twoism gives us the notion of Revelation also that God who is other than us must reveal himself to us we cannot function by going within and asking ourselves who we are and what the world is all about we will never solve that problem but in Revelation we have have a word from the outside from the other we're not left with fallible insights from within but we are given God's word about the nature of existence isn't that a wonderful blessing [00:879:24]

Redemption is not self salvation but the act of a creator for helpless Sinners and it brings freedom from guilt I don't know what to do with my guilt except just live with it but that will drive me nuts as well but God who is other who is Holy can deal with my guilt in his atoning work as well in terms of redemption it's a love story God loves those he saves he loves The Sinner but it presupposes a person God as personal to make any sense of redemption [00:1079:48]

prayer is not Naval gazing on one's on one's Divine self uh but it is communion with the Creator there is somebody who he is if I thought that my spirituality dependent upon what I was telling myself I think I'd be of most men most miserable there's one part of spirituality that can only be practiced by tourists and that is praise don't you hate people who praise themselves I mean you want to go out of the room when this person walks in and starts telling you how wonderful they are [00:1179:559]

we affirm twoism over against oneism which refuses all these Notions particularly Notions of sin and guilt and believes that we are it that we are the solution to our own problems we know though don't we that we have sin stained bodies and messed up Minds there's not much we can do when we come to a savior who brings us his pure mind and His holy body twoism is a wonderful notion it includes ontology who is God cosmology the nature of the world [00:1275:64]

God the Eternal son takes on human flesh but in so doing doesn't destroy twoism how is this well the church Council of Caledon in Asia Minor in 451 showed us how the Incarnation solves the problem of God and Humanity the Creator and the creature where it says the Incarnate son is co-essential with the father according to the godhead co-essential according to manhood before the ages begotten of the father as the godhead but in the last days for us and our Salvation born of the Virgin Mary [00:1315:679]

the good news is if God is for us who can be against us we're on The Winning Side folks we're on the side of truth and truth will win but in what way is God for us remember I told you that in I'm going over here that in Romans 1 talks about God giving over it's the verb in Greek paren you must know that because in Romans 8:32 it says he who did not spare his own son but gave him over paraden for us all other words The God Who is the judge of sin also takes sin on himself in the person of the son [00:1381:48]