Michael Zeedyk

Kingdom Citizen | Jesus Follower | Husband | Father | Colts Fan | YFC Campus Life Director

[Tom Wright @profntwright]

Eschatology, rightly understood, is not antithetical to ethics. It generates them. When the kingdom comes, the will of YHWH will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
-Jesus and the Victory of God

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

We must not confuse power and coercion with genuine witness to the Christian faith.

Witness reveals and invites. Power and coercion can only repel.

[Derek Vreeland @DerekVreeland]

The Lord reigns as king forever.
The Lord gives his people strength.
The Lord blesses them with peace.
—Psalm 29:10-11 NLT

I advocate for disaffiliating from political parties because the Lord is King.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

We are too concerned with the labels of liberal, conservative, moderate, and so on. In different ways, we have made our particular interpretation of these words synonymous with the Christian faith itself.

Let’s focus on the word “Christlike” instead.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

When agreement and conformity become prerequisites to relationships and belonging, we betray any trust in the presence and transforming work of the Spirit.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

There is, indeed, always another side to the story.

But if our side of the story justifies a lack of integrity, causes harm to the vulnerable, or contradicts the way of Jesus, we need a better story.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Our understanding of history must be guarded by honesty and humility. A mythical, idealized vision of the past produces:

Discontent and anger in the present.

Fear and hopelessness about the future.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

The holy life to which we are called is not one marked by power grabs, building walls, and destroying enemies.

The holiness revealed by Jesus shares the table with the despised, shows compassion to those others fear, and loves the neighbor considered unlovable.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Silence can be wisdom; silence can be avoidance.
Silence can be courage; silence can be fear.
Silence can serve unity; silence can destroy unity.
Silence can nurture our soul; silence can crush the soul of others.
What we need is the discernment to know the difference.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Do not waste emotional energy fretting over disapproval from those you would not want to be like, people whose conduct and character don't merit your respect.
Look to those who faithfully represent Jesus. They're the ones who provide both affirmation and correction worth hearing.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Ballrooms and Temples, by @djvannest https://t.co/YoGAjKgtKW

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Those who trust in the power of the Spirit do not confuse our mission with having power over others.

The way of coercion is incompatible with the way of the cross.

[Michael Zeedyk @mizeedyk]

@DerekVreeland I have the Field Guide to Christian Nonviolence on my Amazon list. Waiting to finish a few other books first….

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

When effectiveness in leadership is defined solely by institutional measures of production, the character of the leader becomes irrelevant.
When it's defined by the formation of a healthy community and culture, the character of the leader becomes central.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Building bridges requires the willingness to trust, to set aside presumptions and believe that God is present and working in the other, despite our differences.

Seeking to control the other or forcing conformity does not build bridges. It can only burn them.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

What does harm to the witness of the church is not the honest naming of its failures with a call for repentance and humility.

What harms the witness of the church is our refusal to acknowledge the failures and inconsistencies the world so clearly sees.

[Derek Vreeland @DerekVreeland]

“It is not the task of Christianity to provide easy answers to every question, but to make us progressively aware of a mystery. God is not so much the object of our knowledge as the cause of our wonder.” - Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way

#mystery

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

The revival we need is not one of performative civil religion that is nothing more than power wearing the mask of piety.
We need a revival of true discipleship, one that walks the cross-shaped path of self-giving love, bearing the genuine fruit of Christlike character.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

Do not forget that the Sermon on the Mount was spoken to oppressed people living under constant threat from an empire marked by violent force.

No matter the circumstance, the call of Jesus is to never emulate the way of the empire, but to resist it with the way of God’s kingdom.

[Douglas Van Nest @djvannest]

There is a deep contradiction in believing the Good News of Christ’s kingdom can be advanced by means that violate the character of Christ.

If it does not look like Jesus, it does not bear witness to Jesus.