tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19138070.post-59531694223853936232008-01-13T17:09:00.000-05:002008-01-13T17:09:00.000-05:00I really love the doctrine of common grace too... especially because I grew up in the Dutch Reformed tradition. Teague, I like your analogy of the cup of water or the statue. The cup of water is the better of the two analogies and it gets to what I was thinking when I first read your post, Bryan. Common grace helps us to see the world as all a gift from God, including culture, agriculture, cities, what have you...but it may also tend to minimize the sin pollution found in these things. As praiseworthy as a glass of mostly pure water is (or the culture), it should be equally revolting and saddening to us to find out that the water is only mostly pure because Teague spit in it. <BR/>The goodness found in the original creation is superseded by the greater goodness of the new creation. Superseded is the wrong word.Matt and MissyKampshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06951952229312737008noreply@blogger.com