What To Preach To Yourself Every Day

A great quote from Tullian Tchividjian

I used to think that growing as a Christian meant I had to somehow go out and obtain the qualities and attitudes I was lacking. To really mature, I needed to find a way to get more joy, more patience, more faithfulness, and so on.

Then I came to the shattering realization that this isn’t what the Bible teaches, and it isn’t the gospel. What the Bible teaches is that we mature as we come to a greater realization of what we already have in Christ. The gospel, in fact, transforms us precisely because it’s not itself a message about our internal transformation, but Christ’s external substitution. We desperately need an Advocate, Mediator, and Friend. But what we need most is a Substitute. Someone who has done for us and secured for us what we could never do and secure for ourselves.
The hard work of Christian growth, therefore, is to think less of me and my performance and more of Jesus and his performance for me. Ironically, when we focus mostly on our need to get better we actually get worse. We become neurotic and self-absorbed. Preoccupation with my effort over God’s effort for me makes me increasingly self-centered and morbidly introspective.

Key sentence from Elyse Fitzpatrick, whom Tullian quotes: "If we fail to remember our justification, redemption, and reconciliation, we’ll struggle in our sanctification."

Gospel versus Religion

Tim Keller gives these helpful contrasts between the message of Jesus and religion.
It comes from his new DVD and book gospel in life: Grace Changes Everything

Acceptance

* Religion: “I obey; therefore, I’m accepted.”
* Gospel: “I’m accepted; therefore, I obey.”

Motivation

* Religion: Motivation is based on fear and insecurity.
* Gospel: Motivation is based on grateful joy.

Obedience

* Religion: I obey God in order to get things from God.
* Gospel: I obey God to get God – to delight in and resemble him.

Circumstances

* Religion: When circumstances in my life go wrong, I am angry at God or myself, since I believe that anyone who is good deserves a comfortable life.

* Gospel: When circumstances in my life go wrong, I struggle, but I know my punishment fell on Jesus and that while God may allow this for my training, he will exercise his Fatherly love within my trial.

Criticism

* Religion: When I am criticized, I am furious or devastated because it is critical that I think of myself as a “good person.”
Threats to self-image must be destroyed at all costs.

* Gospel: When I am criticized, I struggle, but it is not essential for me to think of myself as a “good person.”
My identity is not built on my record or my performance but on God’s love for me in Christ.

Prayer

* Religion: My prayer life consists largely of petition, and it only heats up when I am in a time of need. My main purpose in prayer is control of the environment.

* Gospel: My prayer life consists of generous stretches of praise and adoration.
My main purpose is fellowship with God.

Confidence

* Religion: My self-view swings things between two poles.
If and when I am living up to my standards, I feel confident, but then I am prone to be proud and unsympathetic to failing people.
If and when I am not living up to standards, I feel humble but not confident – I feel like a failure.

* Gospel: My self-view is not based on my moral achievement.
In Christ I am simul iustus et peccator –simultaneously sinful and lost, yet accepted in Christ.
I am so bad that he had to die for me, and I am so loved that he was glad to die for me.
This leads me to deep humility and confidence at the same time.

Identity

* Religion: My identity and self-worth are based mainly on how hard I work, or how moral I am – and so I must look down on those I perceive as lazy or immoral.

* Gospel: My identity and self worth are centered on the One who died for me.
I am saved by sheer grace and I can’t look down on those who believe or practise something different from me.
Only by grace am I what I am.

HT: http://jonosmith.com