Gospel Formed Quotes

“Paul says, “All things were created for him.” Let these four words rest on your heart: All / things / for / him. Paul’s point is so clear, you’ll miss it if you don’t slow down. Jupiter exists for Jesus. Incredible! Clownfish, caramel macchiatos, volcanoes, deoxyribonucleic acid—it’s all his. All for his enjoyment.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Even the sweetness of a freshly cut pineapple from Hawaii is a sermon: “Taste and see that the LORD is good” (Ps. 34:8).”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“A Christianity filled with well-intended good advice, severed from the good news, is bad news and bad advice.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“We must strive to make the good news the core message we put forth, the chief model we emulate, the leading motivation in obedience, and the proprietary means of growth in the Christian life. Anything else falls dreadfully, woefully short.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Being gospel-centered in language and theology isn’t enough. Pharisees can yack away with hyphenated gospel-talk, but we are after the spirit and truth of gospel-centeredness: worship.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Gospel-driven friends look to the interests of others, because this is the mind of Christ, which is now theirs as well.4”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“A life that is heaven-bent on exalting Jesus will be committed to the Bible, because we believe our Lord when he said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31–32).”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“We war against our sin because we want to obey Jesus—not to be saved by him, but because we are saved by him. It is never legalistic to want to obey Jesus. It’s stupid not to. The flesh is stupid. Tune it out. We don’t manage sin—we can’t; we’ve tried. We massacre it.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“We live our lives in his sight, and bearing this in mind, grace-addicted people don’t take the reality of grace as a free pass. Rather, it is seen as freedom to pursue what pleases Jesus and is for our good. The gospel creates holy people.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Lives that are all about Jesus will be lives that fight against things that aren’t about Jesus.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Jesus changes the way we are changed. The gospel really does change everything. Trying to change without treasuring Christ is no way to live. You need grace, not grit; not mere rules, but the Ruler and his gentle commands. You need Jesus.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Christian growth is not like a combo-lock. We don’t change by dialing in the right amount of Bible reading, prayer, Scripture memory, service, and community, and then click. By all means, do the spiritual disciplines, but know that the spiritual disciplines aren’t what change us. We are transformed, and idols are shattered, by what the disciplines are meant to show us: the glory of Jesus. The disciplines are vehicles of faith, means of grace to get us on the path of the Spirit so we can behold, see, and feel the wonder of Christ.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“A Jesus-centered eschatology is more valuable than a tribulation-centered obsession.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“By looking inward instead of upward, fixating on our sins instead of Jesus, we are subtly drawn away from the power of Christ.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The Bible says we’re to “make no provision for the flesh.” That’s because if we give the flesh an inch, it’ll take the West Coast. Sin wants to reach its utmost potential. Anger wants to become murder; bitterness wants to sprout divorce; a glance wants to become adultery.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Don’t forget that you are divorced from sin’s power because you are married to Christ.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The disciples are having a complete meltdown. And Jesus? He’s snoozing. They wake him up, and then this man from Nazareth rebukes the storm. Let that sink into your rusty imagination. Jesus speaks to a storm—and it hears him. And it follows orders—instantly.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Jesus is over all things, and all things are for Jesus. We don’t worship a mere thirtysomething, humble religious leader—we worship the Cosmic King.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“I’m bigger than all that you see. I’m bigger than all that you’ve read and experienced.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The gospel is C-4 to lukewarm worship.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“If you are puttering about with your astonishment tank on empty, seek the Lord by soaking in the gospel.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“When you shift from the gospel there are four places you can drift into: license, legalism, lukewarmness, or leaving the faith altogether.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The gospel of the kingdom is concerned with making Jesus’ people into holy people (Titus 2:14). But when we want an earthly power to accomplish what only divine power can do, we shift from the gospel.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Going to church doesn’t change anything—Jesus does, and he works through his Word and his people.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Community and the Bible are the bumpers we need in our lives. The Spirit of Christ uses both to transform us into the image of Christ. The Word of God without a gospel community can be abused, misapplied, and ignored. And a community that isn’t centered on the gospel and the Word of God will only gutter itself person by person into nothingness. We need the refining factory of the church of Jesus.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The early church braved the sword to gather with God’s people, and Christians in our day will hardly brave the rain. That’s a problem—one that’s bigger than church attendance. This is a love-for-Jesus problem. How we treat his bride equals how we treat him.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“Christian, you must consider your ties with sin to be forever severed by the blood of Jesus.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The Holy Spirit’s goal in the Word is to show you Jesus so you can behold his glory and live in response to his radiance.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“The gospel doesn’t need to be dressed up to inspire worship; it just needs to be seen with the eyes of the heart.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life

“It’s all gospel. All the time. A gospel party don’t stop.”
― J.A. Medders, Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life