The Great Privilege of God’s Election

Listen not for a moment to those who tell you that in this life we can never be sure of our own spiritual state, and must always be in doubt. The Roman Catholics say so. The ignorant world says so. The devil says so. But the Bible says nothing of the kind. There is such a thing as strong assurance of our acceptance in Christ, and a Christian should never rest till he has obtained it. That a man may be saved without this strong assurance I do not deny. But without it, he misses a great privilege and much comfort, I am quite sure.

Strive, then, with all diligence, "to make your calling and Election sure." [2 Peter 1:10] and "Lay aside every weight and the sins that most easily beset you." [Hebrews 12:1]  Be ready to cut off the right hand and pluck out the right eye, if need be. Settle it firmly in your mind, that it is the highest privilege on this side of the grave, to know that you are one of the children of God.

~ J.C. Ryle

The Deification of man

 ‎"Man was never meant to be a god, but he is for
ever trying to deify himself." - Martyn Lloyd-Jones

A sermon without Christ as its beginning, middle and end

A sermon without Christ as its beginning, middle and end is a mistake in conception and a crime in execution. —C.H. Spurgeon

Day to day more and more

“For God is not gracious and merciful to sinners to the end that they might not keep his Law, nor that they should remain as they were before they received grace and mercy; but he condones and forgives both sin and death for the sake of Christ, who has fulfilled the whole Law in order thereby to make the heart sweet and through the Holy Spirit to kindle and move the heart to begin to love from day to day more and more.”

- Martin Luther, Complete Sermons of Martin Luther, vol. 3, p. 188

Whatever your heart clings to

 ‎"Whatever your heart clings to and confides in, that is really your god". - Martin Luther

No greater delusion

There is no greater delusion than the common idea that it is possible to live wickedly, and yet rise again gloriously—to be without Christ in this world, and yet to be a saint in the next. I fear the false doctrine of the Roman Catholic purgatory has many secret friends even within the confines of the true Church today! However carelessly men may go on while they live, they secretly cling to the hope that they will be found among the saints when they die. They seem to embrace the idea that there is some cleansing, purifying effect produced by death, and that, whatever they may be in this life, they will be found "suitable for the inheritance of the saints" in the life to come. But it is all a delusion.

~ J.C. Ryle

Paedobaptism

It is impossible to measure the harm done to the Protestant cause through the retention of paedobaptism. The Reformed churches profess to be governed solely by Scripture, but so long as they continue baptizing babies, so long will they be taunted by Roman Catholics (and others) for their manifest inconsistency. . . . . Baby baptism is ruinous to the souls of thousands. Strictly speaking, it is not baby baptism but mistaken views regarding its efficacy and significance which leads multitudes down the broad way to destruction.

- T.E. Watson