The amount which you understand the gospel is measured by your ability to be joyful in all circumstances. If you grasp what a treasure the presence and acceptance of God are, then even when life goes really wrong you will have a joy that sustains you, because youโll recognize the value of what you have in Him. When life punches you in the face, youโll say, โBut I still have the love and acceptance of God, a treasure I donโt deserve.โ And the joy you find in that treasure can make you rejoice even when you have a bloody nose. You have a joy that death and depravation cannot touch.
J. D. GreearGetting doctrine right is a matter of life and death, but holding that doctrine in the right spirit is essential too. A great deal of damage is done by those who hold the truth of Christ with the spirit of Satan.
J. D. GreearThe gospel has done its work in us when we crave God more than we crave everything else in life - more than money, romance, family, health, fame - and when seeing His kingdom advance in the lives of others gives us more joy than anything we could own. When we see Jesus as greater than anything the world can offer, we'll gladly let everything else go to possess Him.
J. D. Greear