We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God.
John StottRead
An unchurched christian is a grotesque anomaly. The New Testament knows nothing of such a person. For the church lies at the very center of the eternal purpose of God. It is not a divine afterthought. It is not an accident of history. On the contrary, the church is God's new community.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of the church in the Christian faith as a central aspect of God's plan.
John Stott highlights that being a Christian without being part of a church community is fundamentally flawed, as the church is an integral aspect of God's divine purpose. He argues that the church is not merely an afterthought or a historical accident; rather, it is a deliberate creation by God to establish a new community of believers who collectively fulfill God's intentions.
In practice
In a sermon on the significance of church membership, this quote could emphasize the necessity of belonging to a faith community.
We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God.
Mission arises from the heart of God Himself and is communicated from His heart to ours. Mission is the global outreach of the global people of a global God.
Saving faith is resting faith, the trust which relies entirely on the Savior.
It is a great comfort to know that our judge will be none other than our savior.
To encounter Christ is to touch reality and experience transcendence. He gives us a sense of self-worth or personal significance, because He assures us of God's love for us. He sets us free from guilt because He died for us and from paralyzing fear because He reigns. He gives meaning to marriage and home, work and leisure, personhood and citizenship.
Many (Christians) have zeal without knowledge, enthusiasm without enlightenment. In more modern jargon, they are keen but clueless.
The greatest miracle of the Bible is that the prophets of Israel could keep a religion as clean as a hounds tooth amid all the corruption and idolatry of the nations surrounding them.
It is not always those who have the most eminent gifts who are the most successful laborers for God. It is generally those who keep up closest communion with Christ and are most constant in prayer.
Our Christian identity is belonging to a people: the Church. Without the Church we are not Christians.
I hope that this form of Adoration, with permanent exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, will continue into the future. Specifically, I hope that the fruit of this Congress results in the establishment of Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration in all parishes and Christian communities throughout the world
I cannot tell you what joy it gave me to bring the first soul to the Lord Jesus Christ. I have tasted almost all the pleasures that this world can give. I do not suppose there is one that I have not experienced, but I can tell you that those pleasures were as nothing compared to the joy that the saving of that one soul gave me.
That the entire People of God, to whom Christ entrusted the mandate to go and preach the Gospel to every creature, may eagerly assume their own missionary responsibility and consider it the highest service they can offer humanity.
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