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"By myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will indeed bless you, and I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore. And your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies, and by your descendants shall all the nations of the earth bless themselves, because you have obeyed my voice." (Genesis 22:17)
We note here that amid the unfolding of subsequent covenant history, instead of child sacrifice for the benefit of his nomadic people, God substitutes his own sacrifice. The faith history of Israel shows our God as a benevolent, creative deity that provides plenteous population growth. |
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In this way the faithful will survive amid wars and the warp and woof of civilizations… until the time of Christ’s birth and beyond. Therefore in the flow of history, once and for all, Christ Jesus is finally made the “one and only, all time” child sacrifice for eternal survival and the prosperity of faithful humanity. With this history therefore, Christians should point out sinfulness and economic practices that say we need to sacrifice precious children to the faux gods of our own profitability. In fact, we must protest and witness that the love of our Creator indicates that just the opposite is true, in our God’s mandate he says that “Thou shall not kill.” |
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Mortality… (cont’d) |
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy - eBook
By Eric Metaxas / Thomas Nelson
As Adolf Hitler and the Nazi's seduced a nation, bullied a continent, and attempted the extermination of European Jews, a small number of dissidents and saboteurs worked to dismantle the Third Reich from the inside. One of these was pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
Widely known as the author of the classic works, The Cost of Discipleship, Life Together and, arguably, some of the most important theological works of the 20th century including Act & Being, Sanctorum Communio and Ethics. Bonhoeffer is also widely known for his 1945 execution in Flossenberg concentration camp for attempting to assassinate Hitler.
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy is the first fully comprehensive biography of Bonhoeffer in more than 40 years. Written by best-selling NY Times author Eric Metaxes, he presents both sides of Bonhoeffer's life, as theologian and as conspirator drawing them together to tell a searing story of incredible moral courage in the face of monstrous evil.
Presenting a deeply moving narrative, using previously unavailable documents-including personal letters, detailed journal entries, and first-hand personal accounts, Metaxas reveals dimensions of Bonhoeffer's life and theology never before seen. Furthermore, Metaxas presents the fullest accounting of Bonhoeffer's heart-wrenching 1939 decision to leave the safety of America for the lion's den of Hitler's Germany, and using extended excerpts from love letters and coded messages written to and from Bonhoeffer's Cell 92, we are allowed to see for the first time the full story of Bonhoeffer's passionate and tragic romance.
Finally, Bonhoeffer gives witness to the extraordinary faith of an incredible human being, while also illuminating the tortured fate of a nation he sought to deliver from the evil tyranny of National Socialism, and its political party, the Nazi party. The reader will come face to face with a man determine to do the will of God radically, courageously, and even to the point of death.
Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.
-Dietrich Bonhoeffer