Re: appendix

It is clear that Christ is the head of all things, as all
things were created through him. He is in dominion over
all things.

And his death reconciles all things to God, that is clear.
 What is not clear is what things need to be reconciled.
 Verse 18 is a transition from Christ being the head of
all created things to the head of the Church. Certainly
people need to be reconciled. Do you really think that
the rocks and trees, the air, the laws of nature need
reconiliation? Do you think that v 20 indicates that all
men, whether believers or not, are renconciled to God
through the cross?

On Tue, 4 Jan 2005 10:19:15 -0500
  "George Murphy" <gmurphy@raex.com> wrote:
>----- Original Message ----- From:
><drsyme@cablespeed.com>
>To: "George Murphy" <gmurphy@raex.com>; "Don Winterstein"
><dfwinterstein@msn.com>; "asa" <asa@calvin.edu>
>Sent: Tuesday, January 04, 2005 9:56 AM
>Subject: Re: appendix
>
>
>> Other than the effects of man's sin ("environmental
>>degradation"), on the
>> universe, exactly what do you see as imperfect in the
>>original creation
>> George?
>>
>> Are you saying that "when the times have reached their
>>ultimate
>> fulfillment" there will no longer be plate tectonics,
>>genetic diseases,
>> hemorrhagic fever viruses, or any number of other
>>imperfections that are
>> not a result of mankinds sin?
>...................
>
>Briefly, I don't know. This is essentially the same
>question as one about what kind of bodies we'll have in
>the resurrection. We can speculate if we wish but that's
>all. In I Cor.15 Paul gives some analogies from nature
>in response to the question "with what bodies do they
>come" (after 1st calling the person who asks the question
>foolish!), but that's quite different from trying to
>explain it.
>
>> You have not convinced me that the Incarnation was for
>>anything more than
>> restoring mankind, who had "gotten off the proper path
>>for union with
>> God...". Christ didnt come to redeem creation, he came
>>to redeem man.
>......................
>
>Eph.1:10 says that God's "plan for the fulness of time"
>is to unite all things in Christ & Col.1:20 says that
>"all things" are to be reconciled to God through the
>cross. Especially in that latter verse, as the climax of
>Col.1:15-20, it simply isn't possible to give /ta panta/,
>"all things, anything less than its full meaning. /pas/
>is the key word (of course with inflections) in the whole
>hymn, & "all things" reconciled to God in v.20 must be
>the same as "all things" that were created through him &
>for him & that hold together in him in vv.16-17.
>
>Shalom
>George
>http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
>
Received on Tue Jan 4 11:10:12 2005