Duty or guilt may motivate us for awhile, but only a sense of Christ's love for us will motivate us for a lifetime.
Jerry BridgesAs we become soft and lazy in our bodies, we tend to become soft and lazy spiritually.
Jerry BridgesTo derive the fullest comfort and encouragement from Romans 8:28 we must realize that God is at work in a proactive, not reactive, fashion. That is, God does not just respond to an adversity in our lives to make the best of a bad situation. He knows before He initiates or permits the adversity exactly how He will use it for our good.
Jerry BridgesHow then can we deal with our tendency toward worldliness? It is not by determining that we will not be worldly, but by committing ourselves to becoming more godly.
Jerry BridgesIn a sermon entitled โGod's Providence,โ C. H. Spurgeon said, โNapoleon once heard it said, that man proposes and God disposes. 'Ah,' said Napoleon, 'but I propose and dispose too.' How do you think he proposed and disposed? He proposed to go and take Russia; he proposed to make all Europe his. He proposed to destroy that power, and how did he come back again? How had he disposed it? He came back solitary and alone, his mighty army perished and wasted, having well-nigh eaten and devoured one another through hunger. Man proposes and God disposes.
Jerry Bridges