Gospel Change...

"Where the Lord calls for change, connect those specific changes to what God is doing. Whenever you need to change, put the Redeemer in the center of the picture. Whenever others need to change, remember that the Light enlightens and the Holy One sanctifies. God is primarily interested in making us know him. Don't ever degenerate into giving advice unconnected to the good news of Jesus crucified, alive, present, at work, and returning. [For example] Ephesians gives us no Reader's Digest list of six principles for successful marital conversation' or 'four keys to getting your life organized.' Such advice is often reasonably OK, though rather pale and powerless. It often expresses a superficial analogy to biblical wisdom, in the same way that the moral codes of false religions often grope in the right direction. But looked at more deeeply, such things are only crude imitations of biblical truth. Paul never slips into giving pointers for life, because he has much bigger goals in view. He pleads with God that he would open our hearts to know Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. So we don't dare read the communication discusion at the end of Ephesians 4 and only say Paul teaches four key principles: 1.) Tell the truth. 2.) Keep short accounts and deal with anger daily. 3.) Speak constructive rather than destructive words. 4.) Forgive others. Now those are terrific principles! But they are gutted of the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which is the point of human life and the power and reason to obey in truth." (Seeing with New Eyes, David Powlison, p.43)