Last week was our first full week in Durham (AKA Bull City). What a great week! We had class from 9-12 every day, and the theme of the week was “What is the gospel?” I learned SO MUCH this week during each of these days. Monday and Tuesday, Dr. Bruce Ashford, one of the deans at Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, NC, taught us about the grand story of the world and how this story relates to our lives and culture. This was the coolest thing I learned from him:
The True Story of the Whole World
Part 1: Creation. God creates something out of nothing.
...God created humans in His image and likeness.
...He told us to till the earth...to bring out the best qualities of the earth (hint: because we'll still have all of technology, roads, etc. when heaven comes down!)
...Shalom. Everything was in perfect relationship. Adam and Eve were in perfect relationship with God, with each other, with the world, and with themselves.
Part 2: Fall. Adam & Eve trusted Satan’s word over God’s word.
...This unleashed hell on earth.
...Creation began to unravel. And relationships broke...all of them.
Part 3: Redemption. The whole Bible is the triumphant march of God to bring forth the seed (Jesus) that He promised Adam in Genesis.
...Jesus comes!
...Christianity isn’t DO. It’s DONE.
...God is beginning to reorder things, but we’re not there yet.
Part 4: New Creation. God will renew everything.
...Never again the possibility of sin.
...Yes, creation will be restored, but it will be BETTER than Eden! It will be our tilled world MINUS the sin!
...Our relationships will be perfectly restored!
...Heaven’s coming down. And Jesus is coming back!
Some other cool lessons from the week from Derrick Smith and Brad O’Brien (two of the other men who came in to teach us):
...God created humans in His image and likeness.
...He told us to till the earth...to bring out the best qualities of the earth (hint: because we'll still have all of technology, roads, etc. when heaven comes down!)
...Shalom. Everything was in perfect relationship. Adam and Eve were in perfect relationship with God, with each other, with the world, and with themselves.
Part 2: Fall. Adam & Eve trusted Satan’s word over God’s word.
...This unleashed hell on earth.
...Creation began to unravel. And relationships broke...all of them.
Part 3: Redemption. The whole Bible is the triumphant march of God to bring forth the seed (Jesus) that He promised Adam in Genesis.
...Jesus comes!
...Christianity isn’t DO. It’s DONE.
...God is beginning to reorder things, but we’re not there yet.
Part 4: New Creation. God will renew everything.
...Never again the possibility of sin.
...Yes, creation will be restored, but it will be BETTER than Eden! It will be our tilled world MINUS the sin!
...Our relationships will be perfectly restored!
...Heaven’s coming down. And Jesus is coming back!
Some other cool lessons from the week from Derrick Smith and Brad O’Brien (two of the other men who came in to teach us):
- We are justified because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Justified once and for all. But we are being sanctified day by day. God is making us more and more like Jesus until that day when Jesus comes back and we’ll finally be sanctified. But we don’t have to work to get into right standing before God. Because of Jesus’ finished work, we stand before God righteous, pure, blameless, holy…because when He looks at me, He sees Jesus. Wow!
John 16:13&14 – “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”
- The gospel changes your dreams. I could even see that sitting in class throughout the week. [more on this to come soon…cliffhanger!]
- If the gospel is true, then IT CHANGES EVERYTHING!
The other part of our weeks in Durham is my internship with Summit Kids. Since Kids Week (our vacation bible school) is this week, my main task last week was to help get everything ready for the week. Needless to say, it was a crazy week! But it’s been so cool to get hands-on ministry experience! Ministry isn’t easy nor is it always fun and glamorous…but it’s so amazing to know that I’m working in some small way to help the gospel be spread in the RDU area. (And I LOVE children!) So it’s been a lot of fun too! I think I’m learning that I enjoy being with kids much more than the administrative aspect, but the administrative side is necessary to allow for the playing part to happen.
I’m still LOVING living in my house; Lizzie (one of my housemates) made us a permanent sign:
And we got to help Katharine (another housemate) celebrate her birthday! Wahoo!! I’m definitely falling in love with Durham. Bull City, baby!
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