When the mask of self-righteousness has been torn from us and we stand stripped of all our accustomed defenses, we are candidates for God's generous grace.
Erwin W. LutzerRead
The ability to make judgments lies at the heart of Christian living. Unless we are able to judge doctrine, lifestyles, and entertainment, unless we are able to distinguish between outer appearance and inner character, we just might miss the purpose for which God placed us on this earth. We might end up accepting a stone for bread and a snake for a fish.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Judgment is essential for understanding true values and purpose in life.
This quote emphasizes the importance of discernment in Christian life, urging individuals to recognize the significance of making judgments about beliefs, behaviors, and superficial appearances. It suggests that without the ability to see beyond the surface, one risks missing life's true purpose and may settle for harmful substitutes in a spiritual sense, illustrated by the metaphor of choosing a stone instead of bread.
Themes
JudgmentDiscernmentValuesPurposeCharacter
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be shared during a sermon to encourage deeper reflection on personal values.
More from Erwin W. Lutzer
All quotes →At death we cross from one territory to another, but we'll have no trouble with visas. Our representative is already there, preparing for our arrival. As citizens of heaven, our entrance is incontestable.
Erwin W. LutzerRead
Only those who see themselves as utterly destitute can fully appreciate the grace of God.
Erwin W. LutzerRead
Similar quotes
The very essence of instinct is that it's followed independently of reason.
Charles DarwinRead
A consistent anarchist must oppose private ownership of the means of production, and the wage-slavery which is a component of this system, as incompatible with the principle that labor must be freely undertaken and under the control of the producer.
Noam ChomskyRead
Money for me has only one sound: liberty.
Coco ChanelRead
Well, we think that time "passes," flows past us, but what if it is we who move forward, from past to future, always discovering the new? It would be a little like reading a book, you see. The book is all there, all at once, between its covers. But if you want to read the story and understand it, you must begin with the first page, and go forward, always in order. So the universe would be a very great book, and we would be very small readers.
Ursula K. Le GuinRead
I have always sought to guide the future-but it is very lonely sometimes trying to play God.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
In the secular view, suffering is never seen as a meaningful part of life but only as an interruption.
Timothy KellerRead