Calvin Institute of Christian Worship - Coop's Column

Coop's Column - Lent Series: The Radiant Preciousness of Jesus

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

Lent is a time not only to focus upon the fleeting impermanence and abject perversity of one’s life. More important, by far, Christians take time to meditate, too, upon their Savior. They dwell upon their Lord’s act of grand love in offering himself for them. An audio recording for this column will be available on March 1, 2012.

Coop's Column - Creation's Choir Sings Hymns of Praise

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

It takes an act of slowing life down enough to cultivate wonder, which is one of the reasons God bids his children to practice Sabbath—to take a day off in order to savor life for the sheer and undeserved gift that it is, and then in turn to worship God and to give God thanks for it. This column includes an audio recording by Dale Cooper.

Coop's Column- All Your Wondrous Works Proclaim

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Thu, 5 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0500

With so much around us to invite our curiosity and to evoke our wonder, a bored attitude toward life is sinful. A day’s adventure in the world ought to end, after all, with an exclamation point of thanksgiving to God.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Guarantor

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0500

The Spirit is the strange, personal presence of the living God himself, leading, guiding, warning, rebuking, grieving over our failings and celebrating our small steps toward the true inheritance.

Coop's Column- Spirit at Work: Sender

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0500

This Good News - as every lesser piece of good news - is meant to be shared. And shared everywhere, always, by all who believe it.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Engifter

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Fri, 4 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The Triune God, through the Spirit's ongoing work, equips each member of his body for being suitable helpers to each other.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Assurer

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0400

Doubting is cool nowadays—it’s “in.” Some Christians, a few pastors among them, seem to take no small delight in announcing that they’re no longer sure about the centralities of the faith.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: The Transformer's Instruments

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Wed, 5 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0400

God’s Word teaches that the Spirit employs four principal means for shaping Christians: Scripture, the sacraments, a person’s life experiences, and time.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: The Transformer's Aim

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The Spirit’s aim is to give people aim in life. He seeks to direct them along a path which shall enable them, at their life’s close, to have marked progress in learning Christ’s deeper ways, in growing to love him more and more.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Transformer

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0400

“The Holy Spirit is writing us into the revelation, the story of salvation. We find ourselves in the story as followers of Jesus. … Our task is to obey—believingly, trustingly obey.”

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Guide

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Thu, 1 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0400

With “two hands,” said St. Irenaeus, third-century bishop of Lyons, God teaches and guides his people—with the Word and the Spirit. In the last column we focused on the Spirit’s role in writing the Word. In this column we look at the Spirit’s work in guiding God’s people as they read and apply it.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Revealer

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0400

How do we humans know what we know or, at least what we think we know? The question of knowledge is one of the most centrally important—and vexingly complex—issues facing humankind today, and cries out for a solid, appropriate answer.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Protector

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Fri, 5 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The source of this sturdy confidence, this quiet tranquility and hope? It is anchored in the confident trust Jesus’ community puts in his promise to them: “Be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world.”

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Illuminator

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:00:00 -0400

In order for God’s Word to achieve its Divinely intended purpose and effect, such an “Aha! That’s me!” response must happen within the hearts of those who read and hear it.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Exceptional

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0400

We focus on the Spirit’s work in creation—more specifically, on his act of creating each human being as a mirror of God.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work Series

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Tue, 31 May 2011 00:00:00 -0400

A reflection on how God’s Spirit leads Christians in their lives and helps them read, interpret and apply the Word of God.

Coop's Column - Spirit at Work: Power to Make Our Lives Anew

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Tue, 31 May 2011 00:00:00 -0400

When, as part of their Sunday worship, Jesus' followers join to declare, "I believe in the Holy Spirit," they’re saying a mouthful - a large mouthful.

Coop's Column - Not as Orphans

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Wed, 11 May 2011 00:00:00 -0400

To acknowledge that the Immortal God, the very Creator of the entire universe, is Father; and to affirm that this Father’s firstborn Son, Jesus Christ, once came to dwell on earth, to suffer, to die, and then to rise victoriously over death.

Coop's Column - Designed to the Inheritance of Jesus

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 00:00:00 -0400

"Designed to the Inheritance of Jesus" blog entry from Coop's Column.

Coop's Column - He Shall Come Again

worship@calvin.edu (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 00:00:00 -0400

One of my former pastors told me that in his -then- 27 years of ministry in five different congregations he had met only two persons-an elderly wife and husband-who lived in daily excitement at the fact that Jesus shall come again. At every day's beginning they exclaimed to each other, "This could be the day! Let's be ready to greet our Lord!"