Thread by @word_water_wine

“The grace of God is a redeeming, liberating force. It seeks the redemption of man, body and soul; the removal of sin and its dire consequences; the sanctification of life in all its relations; the restoration of the world to its pristine beauty...

“This grace is both general and particular. Common grace restrains the evil forces working in the world, makes a well ordered life possible, yea even makes for refinement and beauty and virtue. Particular grace, revealed in Jesus Christ, exercises a saving influence.”

“It implants in man the principle of a new, of a higher, of eternal life. It does not supersede common grace, but adds something to it, so that believers become partakers of both...”

We cannot “separate absolutely the natural and the spiritual” so as to “parcel out life in such a way that the Church as an institution would find her duty only in the spiritual sphere.”

“The Church should never forget the social message entrusted to her...”

The “Bible contains many directions for social life, reveals to us the principles that should control every movement for social reform…. and no sinister influence should ever induce the preacher to hide this light.”

“It is the duty of the Church to exemplify her teachings in this respect in her own social life.”

“The Church… ought to make a thorough study of all the problems that present themselves in social life and of the movements for social betterment, in order that she may know what stand to take.”

“The Church should encourage the organization of her members on a distinctly and positively Christian basis for social and philanthropic purposes.”
— Louis Berkhof, The Church and Social Problems

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