The call of God does what the call of man cannot. It raises the dead.

Strong affections for God, rooted in and shaped by the truth of Scripture - this is the bone and marrow of Biblical worship.

Exultation that does not flow from education, affections that do not flow from knowing, savoring that does not flow from seeing, feeling that does not flow from thinking - are hollow and rootless - noisy gongs and clanging cymbals. And God is not glorified by artificial and empty passions. True delight is rooted in true doctrine. God-centered exultation is rooted in God-centered education.

Life is not a straight line leading from one blessing to the next and then finally to heaven. Life is a winding and troubled road. Switchback after switchback. And the point of biblical stories like Joseph and Job and Esther and Ruth is to help us feel in our bones (not just know in our heads) that God is for us in all these strange turns. God is not just showing up after the trouble and cleaning it up. He is plotting the course and managing the troubles with far-reaching purposes for our good and for the glory of Jesus Christ.

The further you go in the revealed thoughts of God, the clearer you see that God's aim in creating the world was to display the value of his own glory.

You never outgrow your need to preach to yourself the gospel.

This is God's universal purpose for all Christian suffering: more contentment in God and less satisfaction in the world.