July 7, 2013
Revelation 4-16 gives us eyes to see the conflict between the kingdom of God and world powers with the eyes of God. We see the conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdoms of this earth from a heavenly perspective; we see it from the throne room of God. John, “in the Spirit,” is […]
3 Comments | Biblical Texts | Tagged: Assembly, Chaos, God, Kingdom, Revelation 4, Sovereignty, Throne, Worship | Permalink
Posted by John Mark Hicks
March 21, 2013
This text begins the third major section of Amos. In the first section (Amos 1-2) the prophet addressed eight nations and climaxed his message with an extended application to Israel. In the second section (Amos 3:1-5:17) the prophet declares the word of the Lord in three brief speeches (“hear this word” in 3:1, 4:1 and […]
No Comments » | Biblical Texts | Tagged: Amos, Amos 5:18-27, Assembly, Bible-Amos, justice, Music, Poor, Righteousness, Sacraments, Sacrifices, Worship | Permalink
Posted by John Mark Hicks
February 8, 2012
“God is Spirit, and those who worship God must worship in Spirit and Truth” (John 4:24). You might not immediately notice but one of the differences between my translation and the traditional one is that I capitalize “Spirit” and “Truth.” I think this is important. The traditional use of this text is to locate the prepositional […]
17 Comments | Theology | Tagged: Bible-Gospel of John, Christology, Eschatology, Holy Spirit, John 4:24, Liturgy, Temple, Truth, Worship | Permalink
Posted by John Mark Hicks
February 10, 2010
We all live with multiple and varied calendars. My work life is regulated by an academic calendar—a schedule of convocations, breaks, exams and class schedules. My national life is regulated by a federal calendar that has declared certain days as “holidays”: Martin Luther King’s birthday, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veteran’s Day, […]
17 Comments | Theology | Tagged: Ash Wednesday, Calendar, Christian Calendar, Churches of Christ, Lent, Liturgy, Worship | Permalink
Posted by John Mark Hicks
December 17, 2008
Last Wednesday evening I was reminded by Terry Smith of a wonderful summary of worship from William Temple, Archbishop of Cantebury (1942-1944). It was Temple’s vision of how liturgical community can help spiritually form a person. Terry first heard it from E. H. Ijams who, at the time, was an elder at the Highland Church […]
5 Comments | Spirituality | Tagged: Beauty, Contemplation, Contemplative Prayer, E. H. Ijams, God, Holiness, Love, Meditation, Prayer, Purposes, Spirituality, Truth, Worship | Permalink
Posted by John Mark Hicks