"If you have faith as small as a mustard seed" (v. 6). Then as now, Christians become aware of the inadequacy of their faith when they are made responsible for leading others. As leaders, they face challenges greater than their faith. They hope for great faith, certainly greater faith than their followers. Surprisingly, Jesus does not require superior spiritual endowments of Christian leaders, even apostles, nor does he offer them such. He promises, rather, to be present in the smallness of their faith. A mustard seed is so small that, held in the palm of one's hand, it appears as a speck of dust, barely visible. The image of the mustard seed is another hyperbole, but the point is clear. Christians, even apostles, are distinguished not by the quantity of faith, but by the employment of faith; not by greatness or smallness of faith, but by acting on faith, even faith the size of a mustard seed.Pillar Commentary, Luke
although indeed 'God is love', yet we have to remember that his love is 'holy love', love which yearns over sinners while at the same time refusing to condone their sin.The Cross of Christ (88)
If your going to take on your self a religion that puts on silver slippers. Just know it's taking you to hell. If your Christianity does not cost you throw it away, it's a lie! Sermon: Is Your View of the Cross Worldly
The tears are in my eyes as I look at you and say, Why will you die? Will you not give your soul a thought? Will you perish through sheer carelessness? Oh, do not do so, but weigh these solemn matters and make sure of eternity! Do not refuse Jesus, His love, His blood, His salvation. All of Grace (150)
the command to judge not is not a requirement to be blind, but rather a plea to be generous. Jesus does not tell us to cease to be men (by suspending our critical powers which help to distinguish us from animals) but to renounce the presumptuous ambition to be God (by setting ourselves up as judges
We must allow the Word of God to confront us, to disturb our security, to undermine our complacency and to overthrow our patterns of thought and behavior.
Believe God's word and power more than you believe your own feelings and experiences. Your Rock is Christ, and it is not the Rock which ebbs and flows, but your sea.
Christian righteousness far surpasses pharisaic righteousness in kind rather than in degree. It is not so much, shall we say, that Christians succeed in keeping some 240 commandments when the best Pharisees may only have scored 230. No. Christian righteousness is greater than pharisaic righteousness because it is deeper, being a righteousness of the heartThe message of the Sermon on the mount (Matthew 5-7): Christian counter-culture (p. 75). Leicester; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
He does more than obey them himself; he explains what obedience will involve for his disciples. He rejects the superficial interpretation of the law given by the scribes; he himself supplies the true interpretation. His purpose is not to change the law, still less to annul it, but 'to reveal the full depth of meaning that it was intended to hold'.
The message of the Sermon on the mount (Matthew 5-7): Christian counter-culture (p. 72). Leicester; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
What is unhealthy is every wallowing in guilt which does not lead to confession, repentance, faith in Jesus Christ and so forgiveness.The Cross of Christ (101)
The place of faith is first in the understanding, but working downward on the will and affections it joins us to Christ. Faith is not only essential for union but also for all the benefits and fruits coming from that union, of which works are a part.Puritan Meditations, Puritan Publications, 2024, 108.
the church is meant to be the kingdom community, a model of what the human community looks like when it comes under the rule of God, and a challenging alternative to secular society.
Now we shall possess a right definition of faith if we call it a firm and certain knowledge of God's benevolence toward us, founded upon the truth of the freely given promise in Christ, both revealed to our minds and sealed upon our hearts through the Holy Spirit.
First, although pistis does not always mean allegiance, it certainly does carry this exact meaning sometimes in literature relevant to Paul's Letters and the rest of the New Testament. Second, since Paul regards Jesus above all else as the king (the Christ) or the Lord, this is the most natural way to speak of how the people of God should relate to Jesus. Third, allegiance makes better sense of several otherwise puzzling matters in Paul's Letters. Fourth, the proclamation "Jesus is Lord" resonated with Greco-Roman imperial propaganda, so that pistis as allegiance fits into the broader cultural milieu of the New Testament world.