• That scratched a few itches •
[1½ MIN READ]
At Arcadia Christian Fellowship’s Athletes Bible Study, I normally ride shotgun to club officer Julia. When she was unavailable this week, I took the reins. We’ve been going through Philippians and when I led the study it made sense to talk about sanctification and glorification, 2 theological terms that were unfamiliar to the attending students.
After the study, I thought it would be good to share with them something they could lean into more deeply. A piece by John Piper was perfect and I happened to fall right into line with it (without having consulted it first). The message I included when I shared it combined 3 degrees of appeal — academics, faith, and humor:
Paul touched in PHP 3:15-18 (that we studied last night) about something Christians sometimes call The Now and the Not Yet. Jesus’ death gave us perfection before God, eternally, but we still struggle with imperfection every day [BibleGateway.com].
John Piper, a notable Christian author, practically plagiarized what I said about it. It’s okay, he paraphrased and added his own thoughts; no essay points deducted: [Is Sanctification the Pursuit of Perfection? {DesiringGod.org}].
Do check the article out for yourself. It is very good. Truly better than I could possible have done — and with better credibility.
(Btw, if you don’t know Amy Grant’s song, check it out, too: The Now and the Not Yet [Youtube.com]. I could listen to it endlessly when it first came out on her Straight Ahead album. This remastered version continues to move me. Please play it at my memorial celebration, when I will have achieved the Not Yet. I promise not to cry.)
For a more wholistic view of our work at Arcadia University, check out this newsletter from Nancy, my ACF co-minister: September 2026 (Mailchimp.com).
FINE PRINT ¶ACFterword #19 ¶Text: Calvin Wang (Wäng), CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
Calvin Wang serves Arcadia University‘s ACF (Arcadia Christian Fellowship) through CCO (Coalition for Christian Outreach). He began serving as a staff member February 2026. (Links are to respective websites, including iCandybyWangC.com.)
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