When [Satan] undertook to draw Eve away from God, he did not hit her with a stick, but with an idea. It was with an idea that God could not be trusted and that she must act on her own to secure her own well-being. Dallas Willard More Quotes by Dallas Willard More Quotes From Dallas Willard Other kingdoms are still present on earth along with the kingdom of the heavens. That is the human condition. Dallas Willard kingdoms earth heaven It's a wonderful thing to do an inductive study with our concordance. Dallas Willard things-to-do study wonderful No one need worry about our getting the best of God in some bargain with him, or that we might somehow succeed in using him for our purposes. Anyone who thinks this is a problem has seriously underestimated the intelligence and agility of our Father in the heavens. He will not be tricked or cheated. Dallas Willard worry father thinking We don't save our soul and leave our emotions and our feelings and our body and all the rest of it out. That's just a way of talking that emphasizes the soul is so fundamental that we can, in some cases, treat it as the whole person because it actually is the thing that integrates all of these aspects of the self and makes them work together. Now, I don't think we can find a passage in the Bible that says that. We have to read and study how it addresses the soul, and we then see that it is the deepest, most vital part of the human self. Dallas Willard self talking thinking You have established the earth and it continues. All things stand this day according to your directions. For all things are your servants (Ps. 119:91). God himself loves the earth dearly and never takes his hands off it. And because he loves it and it is good, our care of it is also eternal work and a part of our eternal life. Dallas Willard environmental self-love hands When we receive God's gift of life by relying on Christ, we find that God comes to act with us as we rely on him in our actions. Dallas Willard gifts-of-life our-actions christ The relation of redemption and sanctification would be the ongoing relationship between the driver and God who is directing her. Now, if God isn't directing him, he may go wild and do all sorts of things criminal and crazy. Dallas Willard criminals crazy would-be The Great Commission is still the mission statement of the Church. Dallas Willard mission-statement missions church Those who have been touched by forgiveness and new life and have thus entered into God's rule become, like Jesus, bearers of that rule. Dallas Willard touched new-life jesus We see that the soul is the deepest and the most vital part of the person as a whole. It is often treated as the person, and we actually do this when we talk about "saving our soul." Dallas Willard treated saving soul Many churches are measuring the wrong things. We measure things like attendance and giving, but we should be looking at more fundamental things like anger, contempt, honesty, and the degree to which people are under the thumb of their lusts. Those things can be counted, but not as easily as offerings. Dallas Willard looking honesty anger people Spiritual formation in a Christian tradition answers a specific human question: 'What kind of person am I going to be?' It is the process of establishing the character of Christ in the person. That's all it is. Dallas Willard person tradition spiritual character The aim of God in history is the creation of an all-inclusive community of loving persons with God himself at the very heart of this community as its prime Sustainer and most glorious Inhabitant. Dallas Willard community god heart history What sometimes goes on in all sorts of Christian institutions is not formation of people in the character of Christ; it's teaching of outward conformity. You don't get in trouble for not having the character of Christ, but you do if you don't obey the laws. Dallas Willard you sometimes character people I think that when I die, it might be some time until I know it. Dallas Willard die think know time Reality is what you can count on. Dallas Willard count you reality So many people would like to have guidance from God because obviously, if you have a word from God, it's the best possible thing. But they don't relate that to life as a whole. Often they want guidance as a way of opting out of the responsibility of making decisions. Dallas Willard best you god life When pastors don't have rich spiritual lives with Christ, they become victimized by other models of success - models conveyed to them by their training, by their experience in the church, or just by our culture. Dallas Willard experience spiritual success culture Spiritual formation is character formation. Everyone gets a spiritual formation. It's like education. Everyone gets an education; it's just a matter of which one you get. Dallas Willard you spiritual education character
