The TRANSFORMING FIRE
of DIVINE LOVE
My Long, Slow Journey into the Love of God
My Long, Slow Journey into the Love of God
John H Armstrong
Most Bible readers know “God is love” (1 John 4-8,16). And most have heard the words of John 3:16 (“God so loved the world”), perhaps the best-known verse in the entire Bible. But few readers realize that these are perhaps the most daring verses In all the Scripture. Why? They tell us who God is and why we can trust him. Yet very few Christians realize how much of what they believe about the nature of God is rooted in ideas foreign to divine love. How did this happen? What can be done to change how we can relate to the God who is perfect and inexhaustible love?
John Armstrong shares a deeply personal story of his long, slow journey to know and experience God as a compassionate and loving Father. As a pastor trained in evangelical theology he came to know and experience the teaching of the whole church about God, thus the story he tells will inform how you can know the God who is amazing love. This readable primer will help you develop a doctrine that can free you from guilt, fear, and many misconceptions we have about God. You will see that what you believe about God will truly affect everything else you believe.
The
TRANSFORMING FIRE
of DIVINE LOVE
My Long, Slow Journey into the Love of God
John H Armstrong
Most Bible readers know “God is love” (1 John 4-8,16). And most have heard the words of John 3:16 (“God so loved the world”), perhaps the best-known verse in the entire Bible. But few readers realize that these are perhaps the most daring verses In all the Scripture. Why? They tell us who God is and why we can trust him. Yet very few Christians realize how much of what they believe about the nature of God is rooted in ideas foreign to divine love. How did this happen? What can be done to change how we can relate to the God who is perfect and inexhaustible love?
John Armstrong shares a deeply personal story of his long, slow journey to know and experience God as a compassionate and loving Father. As a pastor trained in evangelical theology he came to know and experience the teaching of the whole church about God, thus the story he tells will inform how you can know the God who is amazing love. This readable primer will help you develop a doctrine that can free you from guilt, fear, and many misconceptions we have about God. You will see that what you believe about God will truly affect everything else you believe.
“John Armstrong’s pastorally sensitive theological reflection and his vulnerable personal narrative will help to empower and inspire readers as they seek to understand and embody Christian convictions.”
GARY CHARTIER,
La Sierra University
“In this book, John Armstrong invites the reader on a journey to discover the wonder of embracing in humble faith that ‘God is love.’ He helps his audience discern unwarranted limitations of that bold but comforting truth as they have developed in Christian history, opening up about his own development of a greater appreciation for the wisdom of the broader Christian tradition—Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant. There is much to learn and appreciate here.”JAMES R. PAYTON, JR.,
McMaster Divinity College
“In The Transforming Fire of Divine Love, John Armstrong presents us with a morally serious vision of the Christian God, whose love is cleansing and restorative. This book is recommended for all who want to reflect on the God who is love and perhaps even experience its life-changing warmth.”JORDAN WESSLING,
Lindsey Wilson College
“An old friend of mine, John Armstrong, has been on nothing less than a journey from one form of the faith into a deeper Jesus-centered form of the faith. His new book, The Transforming Fire of Divine Love, details and discusses My Long, Slow Journey into the Love of God. His subtitle and the theme that shapes John’s journey remind me of a comment my late father once made to me. After I wrote about the Jesus Creed, my father said something like this: I have heard over and over in church that we are to love others, and that God loves us, but I don’t recall sermons about our need to love God. John’s journey is that “God is love lies at the heart of all divine revelation.” This is a theologically-informed book that brings diverse voices to the table for the discussion, but it is not a book to skim or read fast. It is meant to precipitate spiritual self-reflections. Read it, but read it slowly.”DR. SCOT MCKNIGHT
John H. Armstrong
Author, Mentor, Minister
John H. Armstrong is the founder of The Initiative, a community of Christians from many backgrounds who walk together in a covenant with Jesus and his followers so that the love of Christ might exceed all divisions. He is the author/editor of sixteen books and a minister of Word and sacrament in the Reformed Church in America.
John H. Armstrong
Author, Mentor, Minister
John H. Armstrong is the founder of The Initiative, a community of Christians from many backgrounds who walk together in a covenant with Jesus and his followers so that the love of Christ might exceed all divisions. He is the author/editor of sixteen books and a minister of Word and sacrament in the Reformed Church in America.
