Tidbits

This is a series of snippets from previous posts.  I have a tendency to clutter pages with many words, so I tried to sift through and pick out a few that I thought might be helpful.

The first thing we need to know…is that ultimately, the glory of God is the primary reason our focus is to be on the Gospel. We see this in verses 5 and 6[of Romans 1]. We have received grace and apostleship to bring about obedience through faith for the sake of His name among the nations. Nations including us, right here, right now. All ministry, all personal growth, all faith, obedience, and work are meant not to somehow earn God’s favor, which Ephesians 2 makes very clear is a gift that we cannot earn. It is meant to display the glory, the weightiness, the importance, and the worthiness of Almighty God to the nations.

-The Import of the Gospel in Youth Ministry



God's glory is the Big Deal. I am saved, the Gospel exists, and God redeems sinners for the sake of His name among all the nations.

-Gospel Centered Youth Ministry (Part 2)



Andie: Will, please wash the dishes.

Will: What do you mean by the word, “wash”?

Andie: You know what I mean by the word wash, it means the same thing now as the last thirty times I used it saying I was going to wash the dishes!

Will: That’s all fine and wonderful dear, but while for you the word wash means to clean them thoroughly with soap and water and rinse them with clean water and then proceed to dry them to put them away; as you do regularly; my interpretation of that word means that if I place them outside and let the dog lick them and let the rain rinse them off that I have sufficiently executed my duties.



Now, if I do the dishes my way, have I done as I was asked? No, because Andie was the one asking. Therefore, she determines both the terms used and the meaning of those terms. My interpretation is of no value if it does not agree with her intended meaning.

So if I go to Scripture and read that I am to love the Lord my God; does my 21st Century interpretation of the word “love” affect what is meant by the writer of that verse? No. Rather, in order to understand the writer correctly, I need to attempt and understand what the original intent of the writer was. Scripture interprets Scripture, as Calvin would have it.

-Thinking…the first of a few posts on the subject.



By all means question. People who are afraid to question are afraid of the truth…deeply question and take those questions to God Himself. But be prepared for the answer you will receive. God will not change for us. But we are obligated to change in light of who we are and who He is calling us to be. That is where nearly all honest questioning leads. A heart change that leads to life change.

--A quick thought on Christian thought.



[I]t is of extreme importance to keep in mind that things such as love, grace, justice, mercy, holy, and other words we use to describe God are just that descriptive. Our words do not constrain Him.

-A quick thought on Christian thought.



[Of most] importance is the message of the Gospel. Christ and Him crucified. God reconciling man to Himself on account of Jesus. We need to be lights to this dark world. That starts by loving God, pours out into loving His people, and overflows into loving this world that so desperately needs Him.

-Honor, Love, Fear



Do we have such a longing for God that we are willing to give up things that we have longed for in order to see our relationship with Him grow? Do we pray prayers for ourselves and others that we would see the beauty and majesty of God, that we would be satisfied in Him-and Him alone? This is what we need. We don't need "our best life now." We don't need "heaven" in some abstract, floating on clouds strumming a hapr sense. We don't need a land flowing with milk and honey, a better job, or an easy life. We need Jesus.

-Desperate for His Presence



Do we beg the Almighty for a glimpse of Him? Do we echo the Psalmist in in Psalm 42 crying out for the Lord with same passion as one who is dying of thirst calls out for a drink? Do you long for communion with your Maker or are you satisfied with life as usual? Are you okay with the way things are or do you wish to be broken before Him?

-Broken



Our primary source of spiritual food, as it were, needs to be Scripture. God has given us the revelation of Himself in written form; I can read every book published and read every article written, and listen to every sermon preached-but if I am not reading the revelation of God Himself and praying for the Holy Spirit to open my eyes to it's truth, then all the rest of it is mute.

-A World Full of Resources



It really is selfish robbery of me to walk into church week after week, “be fed”, and leave without doing anything to build up and edify the other parts body. If your right hand decided to call in sick to work one day it would be a very inconvenient day for you. If it quit working entirely you would be at a place where you might be better off to have it amputated and have a prosthetic put on in it’s place, rather than continuing to nourish it by allowing it to still be attached. Are you a lively hand, or a dead one?

-Church isn’t about you.





Is Sunday Morning Christianity compatible with Jesus radical call to discipleship? Jesus says people were going to hate us for following Him...are we? If no one can tell the difference between us and the world, are we really following Jesus? And if we aren't following Jesus, do we really believe He is who He claims to be?

-Do we really Treasure Christ?



Am I a disciple or a poser? There is no "Christian-light." It's all or nothing.

-Posers



Do you see a world full of inconveniences for you, that you just want to die and be rid of? Or do you see a lost world desperately in need of the Gospel—the Gospel that you have been entrusted to share with the world? In the words of John Piper, “don't waste your life.” Because someday you will die. And there are no second chances.

-Death



[Life’s trials] steal from me that which I seek

And make my place here feel so bleak

In spite of this I thank the One

Who gave for me His only Son

And so I need not clear skies

I need the One who for me dies

To wreck my joy pain may endeavor

But my joy in Him endures forever

-Peace



[T]he question is not “will we be enslaved”, but rather, “to what master”?

-Pondering Treason





My life should reflect my chief affection, and my affection should be for the only One who is worthy of it.

-Reflection of Affection





You see to be Christian

Has this as it's goal

To live for God's glory

For there joy is made whole

-Christian?