The Big Idea
A Collection of various theological thoughts.
Big Picture Theological Principles and Frameworks 💡
- Continuity of Biblical Teaching
- Old Testament Law useful for principles not direct following (I.e. Under Law of Christ not Law of Moses).
- Telescope of Scripture, the Law and Doctrine
- Law and Gospel - How does God speak humans?
- Three Uses of the Law
- Two Kingdoms
- Two Realms - How does God work in the World?
- Two Kinds of Righteousness - How should the Human Creature live?
- The Three Estates - How does God set up authority structures
- Meta narrative of the Bible (or the Story of Everything)
- The Two Commissions and cycle of gospel living
- The Personal (Jesus), Spoken, and Written Word of God
- The three Ps of seeing Jesus in the Old Testament: Presence, Prediction, and Pattern.
- Forgiveness
- Saint and Sinner
- Now and not yet
- Everyone is a Theologian
- the Paradosis (What is passed down) and Corpus Doctrinae (Body of Doctrine)
- Theologian of the cross vs theologian of glory
- The Process of Inculturation
- What is Liturgy
- Rhythms of Life and Faith
- Spiritual Disciplines
- Embodied practices (crosses, breath prayer, Using our bodies in worship, etc.)
- Liturgical Calendar
- Vocation
- Function of Doctrine as a common language
- Church Militant and the Church Triumphant
- Beauty, space and creativity
- Holiness of God
- Lament and tough emotions
- Bible reading skills
- Basic how to read the Bible stuff
- Bible Translations
- Reading and Meditating on Scripture:
- Christian Meditation
- Lectio Divina
- Luther’s Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio.
- Meditation on Psalm 8
- Metaphor in Scripture
- Quiet Muttering
- A Conversation with God (Epistle)
- Reading Scripture Devotionally
- The Struggle to be in God’s Word
- Love the Lord Your God with all Your Heart
- Ways to Engage Scripture
- Gerhard Method of Theological Study
- Reading Scripture for Familiarity
- Creatureliness and embodiment. Avoiding the Danger of Platonic dualism.
- 6 Chief Parts of the Catechism
- Ten Commandments
- Creed
- Lord’s Prayer
- Baptism
- Confession and Absolution
- Communion
- Means of Grace and Sacraments
- Justification and other Gospel metaphors
- New Heaven and New Earth. Eschatology
- Biblical Words and theological concepts for sin and their accompanying metaphors:
- Sin = Death, and Sin = Separation.
- Incurvatus in se (Latin) - A life lived turning inward on oneself - need to look it up again
- Concupiscence - malformed desires of the heart - way of speaking about sin in the confessions
- Hebrew (Chata) and Greek (Hamartia) - Missing the mark. Like an archer missing the target. Bible Project video
- Hebrew (Pesha) Transgression - Breaking an agreement or trust. Bible Project video
- Hebrew (Avon) Crooked - acting in a way that is bend out of line or “is not straight.” Bible Project video
- From Athanasius sin and eventually death are humans uncreating themselves and pushing ourselves back into uncreated chaos.
- Theodicy. Defending God’s hidden attributes. Not a good thing to do, example of the Psalms is better.
- Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi (Law of Prayer becomes Law of Faith). Practice proceeds Theology.
- Goodness of the Law and danger of antinomianism
- Pastoral Office and the Priesthood of All Believers
- Lutheran Potholes:
- Rationalism,
- Legalism
- Repristination
- Law/Gospel reductionism.
- Confessionalism. Subscribe to doctrine not exegesis.
- Movement of the Presence of God in Scripture and Sacred Space
- Proclamation vs Explanation of Theology and Faith
- Marks of the Church (Word and Sacraments). Preaching
- Visible and Invisible Church
- Jesus as Prophet, Priest and King
- Two Natures of Christ, Athanasian Creed, person of Christ
- Economic Trinity. from the father through the son by the Holy Spirit. We can also pray to the Father through the son in the Holy Spirit
- Immanent Trinity. Co equal, eternal etc.
- Original Sin
- Sanctification
- Return of Jesus, Judgment day. Eschatology
- Free will, and predestination
- Biblical Poetry (Psalms, Prophets, etc.)
- Mission Mindset: Go and Tell not always Come and See
- Order of Creation. As it comes from the creation account and other biblical descriptions, but also as we can see it through the healthy functioning of particular created orders. The Nature of Order A similar account of seeing the health functioning of buildings.
- The Use and Inhabitation of Space:
- The Solas of the Reformation
- Facing North or East
- Canticles (Songs in the Bible)
- Church Year
Other Notes
- Faith Catchphrases
- New Monasticism
- Love Your Enemies
- The Use of Co and being a Co-Creator with God
- Re-enchantment
- Creeping Idols
Unhealthy Theological Views or Ideas 🤢
- Moralistic Therapeutic Deism
- Repristination
- Christian Nationalism
- Law/Gospel Reductionism
- Implicit Platonism
- Modernity - Making Sense of Our Moment in History
- Post-Modernism - Making Sense of Our Moment in History