Religion operates on the principle 'I obey-therefore I am accepted by God.' But the operating principle of the gospel is 'I am accepted by God through what Christ has done-therefore I obey.'

If you have to run away from something that used to be an idol, you're actually still enslaved by it. It's still controlling you.

Change happens not just by giving the mind new arguments but also by feeding the imagination new beauties

This is the humbling truth that lies at the heart of Christianity. We love to be our own saviors. Our hearts love to manufacture glory for themselves. So we find messages of self-salvation extremely attractive, whether they are religious (Keep these rules and you earn eternal blessing) or secular (Grab hold of these things and you’ll experience blessing now).

Ministry to the poor is a crucial sign that we believe the gospel.

Freedom is not the absence of limitations and constraints but it is finding the right ones, those that fit our nature and liberate us.

The great basis of Christian assurance is not how much our hearts are set on God, but how unshakably his heart is set on us.