In his Introduction to Part 2 (“Identity: Who We Are”) of Transformed, Caesar Kalinowski asks us to imagine performing as a one-person trapeze act. Obviously, it doesn’t work- we’d need a partner to catch us. Similarly, our new identity in Christ is lived both individually and collectively (as the church). Pastor Kalinowski states that the […]
“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”- Romans 8:11 As Caesar Kalinowski continues Chapter 2 of Transformed, he states that his grasp of the […]
“And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”- 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 In Chapter 2 (“A New Way of Being”) of Transformed, Caesar Kalinowski states that, at times, Christians […]
As Pastor Caesar Kalinowski concludes Chapter 1 of Transformed, he tells of the time when he was a new believer and was befriended by a man named Johnnie, an older Christian who taught Caesar much about servanthood. Nowhere was Johnnie’s servant heart more apparent than when he was in a public restroom. Johnnie always would […]
One Way Love (David C. Cook, 2013) The full title of Tullian Tchividjian’s latest book is One Way Love: Inexhaustible Grace for an Exhausted World. Pastor Tchividjian emphasizes that in our performance-oriented society, the need for God’s inexhaustible grace has never been more urgent. Real life is long on law and short on grace. While […]
Today marks the beginning of five blogs from the book Transformed by Caesar Kalinowski. In Chapter 1 (“Who Are You”) the author observes that, as Christians, we’re often puzzled that we continue to sin in the same old ways, thus seeing little real change in our lives. Similarly, we may wonder why our doubts, fears, and […]
“The Gospel is not a command to hang on to Jesus. It’s a promise that no matter how weak your faith and how unsuccessful your efforts may be, God is always holding on to you.”- Tullian Tchividjian In Chapter 10 (“The End of To-Do Lists”) of One Way Love, author Tullian Tchividjian notes the paradoxical […]
“We are objects of love before we are subjects who love.”- Jono Linebaugh In Chapter 9 of One Way Love, author Tullian Tchividjian states that the only way any of us truly begins to live a life of obedience to God is when we experience tasting His grace. The message that justifies also is the […]
Tullian Tchividjian begins Chapter 9 (“Objections to One-Way Love) of One Way Love by asking this question: “Does grace make you look lazy?” In all honesty, states, the initial application of grace inspires sighs of relief and extended breathers that make it appear we’re doing nothing- lazy grace. However, in the long run grace has […]
“Grace is radically unbalanced. It contains no but: it is unconditional, uncontrollable, unpredictable, and undomesticated- or else it is not grace.”- Tullian Tchividjian As Tullian Tchividjian (One Way Love) continues his discussion of Jesus’ meal at the home of Simon the Pharisee, he observes that, unlike the other dinner guests, we have compassion for the […]
Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have know who and what sort of woman is touching him, for she is a sinner.”- Luke 6:39 In Chapter 9 (“An Offensive gift”) of One Way Love, Tullian Tchividjian reiterates the concept […]
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”- Lamentations 3:22-24 “Sometimes we stand to learn the most about God from the situations we understand […]