chrisvena

Husband. Father of four girls. Coach. I love coffee, soccer, Marquette, and theology. Theology prof @ToccoaFalls. @MarquetteTheo and @BethelU alum.

[Azurri @Azurri666]

Also the proper response from Belgium should have been, “We’re ready for whoever is on the field. Makes no difference to us. We’re prepared to play our best.” Not, “The Royal Belgium blah blah blah is exploring all options.”😂

[No Escalators @NoEscalators]

Multiple kicks off the post, a fumble into the end zone, what is this, an ACC football game?

[Drew @drewdyck]

Most people don’t realize that “Father’s Day” is a pagan holiday, a distortion of the ancient Christian holiday, Father’s Week.

[USMNT Only @usmntonly]

"Alexi Lalas left us."
Zlatan Ibrahimovic: "America, you're welcome."

😭😭😭

[chrisvena @chrisvena]

@NathanaelJohns7 @abernacchio77 I don't really follow the NBA and only watched a very little bit of the finals. I don't have a dog in this fight, but I'm always fascinated by the "why is no one seeing this?" question. Consensus isn't always right, but it's not always gaslighting.

[Autumn 🫡🪖🐸💚🤜🏼🤛🏼 @Southern75_29]

Us GenXers 🤣🤣💯🎯

[Adam Grant @AdamMGrant]

A telltale sign of an ignorant leader is failing to read books.

Fiction builds empathy and imagination. Nonfiction boosts concentration and critical thinking. Not reading fuels mental stagnation.

Leaders who “don't have time to read” are leaders who don't make time to learn.

[chrisvena @chrisvena]

@FrDrShep3 @David_Fairchild Correct

[Isaac Saul @Ike_Saul]

It has been six years. Every single "stolen election" theory — from 2,000 Mules to servers in Italy to Georgia suitcases — has been debunked, crushed in court, painstakingly explained, and none of these guys ever have the goods cause it's all nonsense to please POTUS. It's embarrassing for Bartiromo that she is still giving this airtime, and anyone who still falls for this chasing the next new reveal needs to get away from their computer.

[chrisvena @chrisvena]

@Dale_Chu @matt_barnum @Chalkbeat Shouldn’t conflate grace with leniency. It’s the latter that is the problem.

[Tim Alberta @TimAlberta]

My conviction remains:

God did not ordain Donald Trump to rescue the American church, or revive the American church, or redeem the American church.

God ordained Donald Trump to test the American church. And the American church has failed.

[Mr Pomble @realmrpomble]

The ruler is beefing with the pope, his legions have fought to a stalemate with Persia, now typhus is breaking out in a major city, oh yeah it’s late antiquity out there

[chrisvena @chrisvena]

@andrewbwiese Piedmont guy

[Marquette Nation @mubbnation]

BEN GOLD AND CHASE ROSS FINISHING BIG BUCKETS LATE ON SENIOR DAY

[Brad Brisco @bradleybrisco]

I have been thinking lately about Mark Noll's book, "The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind" (published over 30 years ago) where he critiques the intellectual shallowness of evangelicalism, arguing that it has neglected serious philosophical engagement with theology, history, and culture. I wonder if this same critique can be applied to the gospel message itself, where evangelicals have often reduced the good news to a message ABOUT Jesus (his death, resurrection, and personal salvation) rather than embracing the gospel OF Jesus, which was the arrival of the Kingdom of God.

We could call it “The Scandal of the Evangelical Gospel.”

Too often, we have distilled the gospel into a transactional message focused almost exclusively on the afterlife, heaven or hell. The dominant evangelical presentation of the gospel frequently sounds like this:

You are a sinner; Jesus died for your sins; Accept him as your personal Savior; Go to heaven when you die.

While this contains truth, it falls short of Jesus' gospel message. In contrast, His good news was about the in-breaking of God's reign on earth, a new reality that reorders everything. When Jesus proclaimed the gospel, his message was: "The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news" (Mark 1:15). Jesus' message was not, "Believe in me so you can go to heaven when you die." It was a radical announcement that God's rule was now breaking into human history through him, healing, restoring, and upending the world’s power structures. In this Kingdom:

* The poor are lifted up, and the proud are humbled (Luke 1:52-53).

* Sinners are forgiven, but the self-righteous are exposed (Luke 18:9-14).

* Healing, justice, and new creation begin now, not just in the afterlife (Matthew 11:5).

* Power is redefined, leadership means servanthood (Mark 10:42-45).

* The cross and resurrection do not merely secure individual salvation; they inaugurate God’s new world (Colossians 1:13-20).

Yet, much of modern evangelicalism has reduced this kingdom announcement into a gospel about personal salvation, missing the overarching scope of Jesus’ mission.

If the scandal of the evangelical mind was a failure to engage seriously with intellectual life, then the scandal of the evangelical gospel is our failure to proclaim and embody Jesus’ Kingdom vision.

We must recover the gospel Jesus preached by:

* Proclaiming a Gospel Beyond Afterlife Assurance. The good news is not just about where we go when we die, but how we live under Jesus’ reign here and now (Luke 4:18-19).

* Reintegrating Justice, Mercy, and Peacemaking. The Kingdom is about restoring all things (Colossians 1:19-20), not just individual forgiveness.

* Calling People to Follow a King, Not Just Accept a Sacrifice. Salvation is not just about avoiding hell, but about becoming citizens of a new reality where Jesus is Lord (Philippians 2:10-11).

* Recovering the Church's Role as a Kingdom Community. The church is not just a collection of saved individuals, but an outpost of the coming Kingdom, living as a preview of God’s new world. (Newbigin's sign, foretaste and instrument of the Kingdom)

If evangelicalism is to regain its credibility, it must expand its gospel beyond individual salvation. The gospel of the Kingdom is far more compelling, transformative, and biblical than the shrunk-down gospel of "pray this prayer and get to heaven." Jesus didn't just die to forgive our sins, he died and rose to bring a new world into existence, one where God reigns, justice prevails, and love restores all things.

[Josh RR Jokien @joshcarlosjosh]

Against the power of AI there can be no victory. We must join with it, Gandalf. We must join with AI. It would be wise, my friend, to subscribe for a small monthly fee to the premium versions and also subscribe to my palantír updates

[chrisvena @chrisvena]

@RoryTyer She's been able to monetize this mode of thinking.

[Josh Lepak @joshlepak]

HAPPY NATIONAL MARQUETTE DAY #MUBB

[Marquette Men’s Basketball @MarquetteMBB]

FIERCE FLUSH!!!🤯🤯

#MUBB | #WeAreMarquette