John Stott: God Himself Gave Himself to Save Us From Himself

“According to the Christian revelation, God’s own great love propitiated his own holy wrath through the gift of his own dear Son, who took our place, bore our sin and died our death. Thus God himself gave himself to save us from himself.” [via]

Thomas Oden: The Benefit of Christ for Sinners

“Luther taught that every time you insist that I am a sinner, just so often do you call me to remember the benefit of Christ my Redeemer, upon whose shoulders, and not upon mine, lie all my sins. So, when you say that I am a sinner, you do not terrify, but comfort me immeasurably.” [via]

Michael Reeves: A Sharing God

"Being triune, God is a sharing God, a God who loves to include. Indeed, that is why God will go on to create. His love is not for keeping but for spreading."

Book Recommendation: Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves

This weekend I finished a fantastic little book entitled Delighting in the Trinity: An Introduction to the Christian Faith by Michael Reeves.

I read it based on a glowing review from Tim Challies, and I am glad that I did. Reeves has opened my eyes to the inherent love of God. The Tri-unity of God really does teach us quite a bit about his character and love.

Here is a good word from Reeves concerning this Trinitarian love:

"...The shape of the Father-Son relationship (the headship) begins a gracious cascade, like a waterfall of love: as the Father is the lover and the head of the Son, so the Son goes out to be the lover and the head of the church. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you,” the Son says (Jn 15:9). 

And therein lies the very goodness of the gospel; as the Father is the lover and the Son the beloved, so Christ becomes the lover and the church the beloved. That means that Christ loves the church first and foremost: his love is not a response, given only when the church loves him; his love comes first, and we only love him because he first loved us (1 Jn 4:19)."

Tim Keller: At the Same Time Sinful and Accepted

“The gospel of justifying faith means that while Christians are, in themselves still sinful and sinning, yet in Christ, in God’s sight, they are accepted and righteous. So we can say that we are more wicked than we ever dared believe, but more loved and accepted in Christ than we ever dared hope — at the very same time. 

This creates a radical new dynamic for personal growth. It means that the more you see your own flaws and sins, the more precious, electrifying, and amazing God’s grace appears to you. But on the other hand, the more aware you are of God’s grace and acceptance in Christ, the more able you are to drop your denials and self-defenses and admit the true dimensions and character of your sin.” 

Paul Tripp: Grace Saturated Christian Leadership

I would take this one paragraph written by Paul Tripp over the top ten "Christian leadership" books on the market:

“I am more and more convinced that what gives a ministry its motivations, perseverance, humility, joy, tenderness, passion, and grace is the devotional life of the one doing ministry. When I daily admit how needy I am, daily meditate on the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and daily feed on the restorative wisdom of his Word, I am propelled to share with others the grace that I am daily receiving at the hands of my Saviour  There simply is no set of exegetical, homiletical, or leadership skills that can compensate for the absence of this in the life of a pastor. 

It is my worship that enables me to lead others to worship. It is my sense of need that leads me to tenderly pastor those in need of grace. It is my joy in my identity in Christ that leads me to want to help others live in the middle of what it means to be “in Christ.” In fact, one of the things that makes a sermon compelling is that the preacher is worshipping his way through his own sermon.” [via]

Gerhard Forde: Radical

"Let us be radicals... radical preachers and practitioners of the gospel by justification by faith without the deeds of the law.  We should pursue it to the radical depths already plumbed by St. Paul, especially in Romans and Galatians, when he saw that justification by faith without the deeds of the law really involves and announces the death of the old being and the calling forth of the new in hope.  

We stand at a crossroads.  Either we must become more radical about the gospel, or we would be better off to forget it altogether." 

Lutheran Quarterly 1987 (Spring)

Rod Rosenbladt: The Gospel For Those Broken By The Church

Michael Horton: The Message

"Jesus Christ is not just a teacher, He is the message. He is not just an illustration, He is the point."

Justin & Lindsey Holcomb: Gospel Healing

"To the pain of all of us... the gospel says, "You will be healed." To your shame, the gospel says, "You can now come to God in confidence." To your rejection, the gospel says, "You are accepted!" To your lostness, the gospel says, "You are found and I won't ever let you go." To your sin, the gospel says, "You are forgiven, and God declares you pure and righteous." To your death, the gospel says, "You were dead, but now you are alive."

Bono: "I'm Holding Out For Grace"

This is great stuff from U2's front-man:

"You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics; in physical laws every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. 

And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff...

I'd be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. I'd be in deep s---. It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity." 

Quoted from Bono In Conversation via GR.

Tullian Tchividjian: God is Hanging on to You!

"God intends to free us from more than our idolatry; He intends to free us from ourselves. He wants to liberate us from our need to find a silver lining in suffering...

The good news of the Gospel is NOT an exhortation to ‘hang on at all costs,’ or ‘grin and bear it’ in the midst of hardship. No, the good news is that God is hanging on to YOU, and in the end, when all is said and done, the power of God will triumph over every pain and loss.” 

From Glorious Ruin [via]

Martyn Lloyd-Jones: Broken By God

Commentating on Genesis 32:30-31, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones once said:

“How do you know you have met with God? You limp. You know you have met God when you limp, you’ve been hurt, you’ve been broken by God… 

Jacob after Penuel was never the same again. He was lame, he had a mark upon him, & his name was changed from Jacob to Israel… Jacob, the old Jacob, was no more. Now he is a cripple in a sense but a new man & living a different life… Jacob, the strong self-reliant Jacob, is gone and the crippled Jacob – Israel – relying upon God, halts upon his thigh.”

Paul Zahl: Grace in Practice

I just finished reading a fascinating book written by Paul Zahl entitled Grace in Practice. While I disagree with some of Zahl's theological conclusions and applications of a grace-centric hermeneutic, I nevertheless could not put the book down. I found it to be a refreshing read. I would cautiously commend it to discerning readers who are looking to be uncomfortably stretched and awakened to the impact of grace in everyday life.

I will say though, the first 100 pages were pure gold. Here is a passage from pages 35-36 where Zahl beautifully contrasts law and grace:

"What the law requires is exactly what men and women need in order to be wise, happy, and secure. But the law cannot pull this off. The problem with the law is not its substance. The problem with the law is its instrumentality. The law is not up to the task it sets for itself. If the law says, “Jump,” I sit. If it says, “Run,” I walk. If it says, “Honor your father and mother,” I move…to Portland. If it say, “Do not covet” (Romans 7:7-8), I spend all day on the Home Shopping Channel...

[In contrast] the one-way love of grace is the essence of any lasting transformation that takes place in human experience.”

Martyn Lloyd-Jones: It's All Useless

"My dear friend, we must make this perfectly clear. When you come into the Christian church and listen to this gospel as it is in truth, you must realize that everything you are in the world is of no value. It does not matter who you are, what your natural ability is, what your degrees and diplomas, your academic attainments, what knowledge you may have garnered. It is all useless to you. When you come into the realm of the church, the Pharisee is as helpless as the publican. The greatest sage is as helpless as the newborn babe...

Thank God that his way of salvation is so utterly and entirely different from ours... What does the gospel demand of us? Simply that we know that we are paupers, simply that we repent and admit and confess that we have nothing at all, that we are blind and lost and damned and hopeless and helpless."

Martyn Lloyd-Jones, 'The Great Watershed,' in Setting Our Affections on Glory: Nine Sermons on the Gospel and the Church (Crossway, 2013), 41, 43 [via]

All is Grace

Heavenly Father,

We thank you for your grace - for the one way love you have shown undeserving sinners.

While we were running from you, rebelling against you, living for ourselves, pursuing your throne, your Son was dying for us.

You pursued us. You loved the unlovable; not because of what we have done or could ever do, but because of who you are.

We thank you that you have come for the unrighteous, for the sick, for the needy, for the broken, because that is exactly who we are.

I pray that you would bring us to the realization that every breath we take, every word we utter, and every pleasure we enjoy comes to us by your grace alone in Christ Jesus.

All is grace.

A Helpful Reminder

"No man can give the impression that he himself is clever and that Christ is mighty to save." James Denney

Tim Brister: Gospel-Centered Application

"Religion-based application focuses on what must I do first;
Gospel-centered application focuses on what Jesus has done first. 

Religion-based application addresses only the fruit of our behavior;
Gospel-centered application strikes at the root of heart transformation. 

Religion-based application says, “I must obey; therefore I’m accepted.”
Gospel-centered application says, “I’m accepted; therefore I gladly obey.” 

Religion-based application explains that what you do defines who are you;
Gospel-centered application explains who you are defines what you do. 

Religion-based application leads to emotional highs and lows based on shaky spiritual performances;
Gospel-centered application hitches your affections to your identity & acceptance in Christ. 

Religion-based application has a philosophy of “try harder and do better”;
Gospel-centered application has a philosophy of “repent, believe, and repeat” 

Religion-based application says my problems are manageable and I can fit it;
Gospel-centered application says my sins are massive and only Jesus can fix it. 

Religion-based application emphasizes my will power and assumed competency;
Gospel-centered application emphasizes God’s grace in my weakness and dependency. 

Religion-based application takes ten looks at self and one look at Christ;
Gospel-centered application takes one look at self and takes ten looks at Christ." [via]

Charles Bridges: The Law & Gospel Distinction

"The law condemns, and cannot justify a sinner; the gospel justifies and cannot condemn the sinner that believes in Jesus.  

In the law, God appears in terrible threatenings of eternal death; in the gospel, he manifests himself in gracious promises of life eternal.  

The law is a sound of terror to convict sinners; the gospel is a joyful sound, ‘good tidings of great joy.’”

[via]

John Calvin: Substitution

"By His obedience he [Jesus] has wiped off our transgressions, by His sacrifice appeased the divine anger, by His blood washed away our stains, by His cross borne our curse, and by His death made satisfaction for us.”

David Crowder: After All

[via]

Gerhard Forde: Listen and Believe

“We are justified freely, for Christ’s sake, by faith, without the exertion of our own strength, gaining of merit, or doing of works. To the age-old question, ‘What shall I do to be saved?’ the confessional answer is shocking: ‘Nothing! Just be still; shut up and listen for once in your life to what God the Almighty, creator and redeemer, is saying to his world and to you in the death and resurrection of his Son! Listen and believe!’”

David Crowder: A Beautiful Collision

“When our depravity meets his divinity it is a beautiful collision."  [via]

We Were Made For So Much More

"The people of the modern West are better fed, better housed, better equipped with health care than those in any previous age in human history. But paradoxically, they also seem to be the most fearful, the most divided, the most superstitious and the most bored generation in human history. All the labor-saving devices of modern technology have only enhanced human stress, and modern life is characterized by restless movement from place to place, from on experience to another, in a frenetic whirl of purposeless activity." Vinoth Ramachandra [via]

Timothy Keller: Identity

"The Christian’s identity is not based on the need to be perceived as a good person, but on God’s valuing of you in Christ."