"Bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil speaking, and malice [Ephesians 4:30-32] are characteristic of words that qualify as ungracious speech. These are forbidden vices that grieve the Holy Spirit. God has a personal concern that His children use their speech in kind and merciful ways and not at all in ways that are harmful: 'But love … Continue reading Quote of Note #44: Instruments of Grace to Others
"The Spirit which Jesus promised would lead his followers 'into all truth' is very actively at work wherever he is allowed. Some of his work is painful in the extreme. There has often to be the breaking-up of old ways of thinking, the expansion of responsibility, and the checking of priorities. Anyone who opens his … Continue reading Quote of Note #43: Being Re-Made by the Spirit of God
"Scripture urges and warns us that whatever favors we may have received from the Lord, we have received them as a trust on condition that they should be applied to the common benefit of the church. The legitimate use of the Lord's favors is liberally and kindly to share them with others. You cannot imagine … Continue reading Quote of Note #42: Passing on God’s Generosity
"If you ask twenty good men today what they thought the highest of virtues, nineteen of them would reply, Unselfishness. But if you asked almost any of the great Christians of old, he would have replied, Love. You see what has happened? A negative term has been substituted for a positive, and this is of … Continue reading Quote of Note #41: Love
"Satan fears virtue. He is terrified of humility; he hates it. He sees a humble person, and it sends chills down his back. His hair stands up when Christians kneel down, for humility is the surrender of the soul to God. The devil trembles before the meek because, in the very areas where he once … Continue reading Quote of Note #40: Humility and the Defeat of Demonic Strongholds
"When cleansing is mentioned in the Bible in connection with the blood, it is always cleansing from guilt. Cleansing from the power of sin and the presence of sin is by the Word of God, the Holy Spirit, and the living, in-dwelling Christ. Christ on the cross saves from the guilt of sin; Christ on … Continue reading Quote of Note #39: The Guilt of Sin, the Power of Sin, and the Presence of Sin
"God has provided a way of escape by the Holy Spirit's power. When we give up the hopeless struggle of trying to overcome 'the law of sin and death' [Romans 7] with our own strength and in utter helplessness surrender to the Holy Spirit to do everything for us -- when we walk in his … Continue reading Quote of Note #38: Power to Set Us Free
"What men call 'salvation' is simply the first stage of God's plan for our lives, which is to conform us in character and power to the image of Jesus Christ. If we fail to see our relationship to God as such, we will allow too many areas within us to remain unchanged. Pulling down strongholds … Continue reading Quote of Note #37: Salvation as Transformation
"If you are one who just cannot seem to forgive, let me ask you a few questions which might give you another perspective. Have you received the forgiveness that God offers through a relationship with Jesus? Have you personally experienced God's forgiveness of your sins? If you haven't, then there is some credibility to the … Continue reading Quote of Note #36: Being Forgiven and Being Forgiving
"Whatever the temptations may be for the dominant nation at any point in world history to identify its mission with the mission of God, such temptations must be resisted at all costs; God's providential dealings with people (the Church, not any particular nation) are too mysterious to be reducible to simplistic nationalism; and the gospel … Continue reading Quote of Note #35: Nationalism and the Mission of God in the World
