The Christian - the biblical - concept of mercy toward wrongdoers only exists in relation to justice. Showing mercy, in relation to wrongdoing, means treating someone better than they deserve. John Piper More Quotes by John Piper More Quotes From John Piper If you can't see the sun you will be impressed with a street light. If you've never felt thunder and lightning you'll be impressed with fireworks. And if you turn your back on the greatness and majesty of God you'll fall in love with a world of shadows and short-lived pleasures. John Piper falling-in-lovegreatnesslight My feelings are not God. God is God. My feelings do not define truth. God’s word defines truth. My feelings are echoes and responses to what my mind perceives. And sometimes - many times - my feelings are out of sync with the truth. When that happens - and it happens every day in some measure - I try not to bend the truth to justify my imperfect feelings, but rather, I plead with God: Purify my perceptions of your truth and transform my feelings so that they are in sync with the truth. John Piper echoesperceptionfeelings One of the great uses of Twitter and Facebook will be to prove at the Last Day that prayerlessness was not from lack of time. John Piper christian-inspirationalusemissionary What is sin? It is the glory of God not honored. The holiness of God not reverenced. The greatness of God not admired. The power of God not praised. The truth of God not sought. The wisdom of God not esteemed. The beauty of God not treasured. The goodness of God not savored. The faithfulness of God not trusted. The commandments of God not obeyed. The justice of God not respected. The wrath of God not feared. The grace of God not cherished. The presence of God not prized. The person of God not loved. That is sin. John Piper justice-of-godgreatnesswrath Our deeds are not the basis of our salvation, they are the evidence of our salvation. They are not foundation, they are demonstration. John Piper foundationsalvationdeeds 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. John Piper biblicaljobsjesus People don't enjoy salt. They enjoy what is salted. We are the salt of the earth. We do not exist for ourselves. John Piper saltearthpeople If God's love for his children is to be measured by our health, wealth, and comfort in this life, God hated the apostle Paul. John Piper wealthcomfortchildren God is at work in the worst of times. He is at work doing a thousand things no one can see but him. John Piper worstthousand A Christian is not a person who believes in his head the teachings of the Bible. Satan believes in his head the teachings of the Bible! A Christian is a person who has died with Christ, whose stiff neck has been broken, whose brazen forehead has been shattered, whose stony heart has been crushed, whose pride has been slain, and whose life is now mastered by Jesus Christ. John Piper christianbelievejesus In EVERY situation and EVERY circumstance of your life, God is always doing a thousand different things that you cannot see and you do not know. John Piper situationdifferentcircumstances Sleep is a daily reminder from God that we are not God. Once a day God sends us to bed like patients with a sickness. The sickness is a chronic tendency to think we are in control and that our work is indispensable. To cure us of this disease God turns us into helpless sacks of sand once a day. John Piper bedsleepthinking Sin is what you do when your heart is not satisfied with God. John Piper sinchristianheart Life is wasted if we do not grasp the glory of the cross, cherish it for the treasure that it is, and cleave to it as the highest price of every pleasure and the deepest comfort in every pain. What was once foolishness to us—a crucified God—must become our wisdom and our power and our only boast in this world. John Piper paineasterchristian The Gospel is not how people get to heaven. John Piper heavenpeople Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon. John Piper enablingsingrace Life is too short, too precious, too painful to waste on worldly bubbles that burst John Piper life-is-too-shortwastepainful God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. John Piper religiouschristiangod Prayer causes things to happen that wouldn't happen if you didn't pray. John Piper causesprayingprayer Do we eagerly long for the coming of Christ? Or do we want him to wait while our love affair with the world runs its course? That is the question that tests the authenticity of faith. John Piper waitingrunninglong
