"Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction. So when Jesus says, … Continue reading Quote of Note #165: “Love Your Enemies”
Category: Quotes of Note
Quote of Note #164: Self-sacrificial Love
"God does not force us to do anything, including love our neighbor. Therefore, love is a choice, not a given. Love is an inconvenient choice, one that costs us time, resources, and at times our safety. God's love empowered by the Spirit, compels us to be countercultural, bearing witness to who and whose we are … Continue reading Quote of Note #164: Self-sacrificial Love
Quote of Note #163: No National Gods
"There is only one God, Creator of all humanity, not nation-gods who conquer other nation-gods, and there are not racial or national differences before God. Most importantly, our people need to be sensitized to the God who works across national boundaries and loves children from Chihuahua as much as children from Chicago." Leonard Sweet, Rings … Continue reading Quote of Note #163: No National Gods
Quote of Note #162: Worldly Power vs. Christ-like Love
photo by GAC "Ever since the snake said, 'The day you eat of the tree your eyes will be open and you will be like gods knowing good and evil' (Genesis 3:5), we have been tempted to replace love with power. Jesus lived that temptation in the most agonizing way from the desert to the … Continue reading Quote of Note #162: Worldly Power vs. Christ-like Love
Quote of Note #161: The Biblical Mandate for Civility
photo by GAC "The truth is that civility is not something that stands over against biblically based convictions in a kind of 'tension' relationship. To put it bluntly: the obligation to be civil is itself a matter of biblical conviction. This is very clear, for example, in 1 Peter 3:15. . .'Always be prepared to … Continue reading Quote of Note #161: The Biblical Mandate for Civility
Quote of Note #160: Respect for All
photo by GAC “Jesus rebukes every us versus them, erases every in versus out, banishes every elite versus outcast, and calls us to a strange Kingdom living and loving where Calvary levels all. To disrespect any person is to slap the face of Jesus and to slander the person’s Creator, God.” Leonard Sweet, Rings of … Continue reading Quote of Note #160: Respect for All
Quote of Note #159: The Politics of Humility
photo by GAC "But for most people, to be able to simplify issues so as to see only the definite external enemy is extremely exhilarating and brings about the bright eye and the springy step that go so well with the political uniform. This is an exhilaration that the Christian must deny himself. It comes from an … Continue reading Quote of Note #159: The Politics of Humility
Quote of Note #158: Christianity and Nationalism
“Mr. [Middleton] Murry holds that ‘the real conflict that is preparing is the conflict between Christianity and anti-Christian nationalism’: but surely a nationalism which is overtly antagonistic to Christianity is a less dangerous menace for us than a nationalism which professes a Christianity from which all Christian content has been evacuated.” T. S. Eliot, Christianity … Continue reading Quote of Note #158: Christianity and Nationalism
Quote of Note #157: Love vs. Power
photo by GAC "What makes the temptation of power so seemingly irresistible? Maybe it is that power offers an easy substitute for the hard task of love. It seems easier to be God than to love God, easier to control people than to love people, easier to own life than to love life. Jesus asks, … Continue reading Quote of Note #157: Love vs. Power
Prayer Note #62/Quote of Note #156: Made for God
"Almighty God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you. Teach us to offer ourselves to your service, that here we may have your peace, and in the world to come may see you face to face; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." The Alternative … Continue reading Prayer Note #62/Quote of Note #156: Made for God
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 