7 Oct 2017 - The Great Why of God (pt 1)

Radical ch 4 - The Great Why of God (pp. 61-69)

"God blesses his people with extravagant grace so they might extend his extravagant glory to all peoples on the earth. This basic, fundamental truth permeates Scripture from beginning to end. Yet I wonder if we unknowingly ignore the great why of God." - p. 69

 Acts 1:1-11

6 Oct 2017 - Beginning at the End of Ourselves (pt 2)

Radical ch 3 - Beginning at the End of Ourselves (pp. 53-60)

"The church I lead could have all the man-made resources that one could imagine, but apart from the Holy Spirit, such a church will do nothing of significance for the glory of God." - p. 54

"God our Father delights in this. He delights in giving us himself. He puts his very power in us so we might have all we need to accomplish his purposes in the world." - pp. 58-59 

"Surrounded by the self-sufficiency of American culture, we can convince ourselves that we have what it takes to achieve something great. In our churches we mimic our culture, planning and programming, organizing and strategizing, creating and innovating - all in an effort that will show what we can accomplish in our own ability." - p. 59

Titus 3:1-15

5 Oct 2017 - Beginning at the End of Ourselves (pt. 1)

Radical ch 3 -  Beginning at the End of Ourselves (pp. 43-53)

"This is how God works. He puts people in positions where they are desperate for his power, and then he shows his provision in ways that display his greatness." - p. 48

Titus 2:1-15

3 Oct 2017 - Too Hungry for Words (pt 2)

Radical ch 2 - Too Hungry for Words (pp. 33-41)

"At the Cross, Christ drank the full cup of the wrath of God, and when he had downed the last drop, he turned the cup over and cried out, 'It is finished.'" - p. 36

"You will not find a place where a superstitious sinner's prayer is even mentioned. And you will not find an emphasis on accepting Jesus. We have taken the infinitely glorious Son of God, who endured the infinitely terrible wrath of God and who now reigns as the infinitely worthy Lord of all, and we have reduced him to a poor, puny Saviour who is just begging for us to accept him. Accept him? Do we really think Jesus needs our acceptance? Don't we need him?" - p. 37

"Biblical proclamation of the gospel beckons us to a much different response and leads us down a much different road. Here the gospel demands and enables us to turn from our sin, to take up our cross, to die to ourselves, and to follow Jesus. These are the terms and phrases we see in the Bible. And Salvation now consists of a deep wrestling in our souls with the sinfulness of our hearts, the depth of our depravity, and the desperation of our need or his grace. Jesus is no longer one to be accepted or invited, but one who is infinitely worthy of our immediate and total surrender." - pp. 38-39

"We realise that we are saved not just to be forgiven of our sins or assured of our own eternity in heaven, but we are saved to know God. So we yearn for him. We want him so much that we abandon everything else to experience him." - p. 39 

Titus 1:1-16

1 Oct 2017 - Too Hungry for Words (pt 1)

Radical ch 2 - Too Hungry for Words (pp. 23-32)

"What if we take away the cool music and cushioned chairs? What if the screens are gone and the stage is no longer decorated? What if the air conditioning is off and the comforts re removed? Would his Word still be enough for his people to come together?" - p. 27

"We already have a fairly high view of our morality, so when we add a superstitious prayer, a subsequent dose of church attendance, and obedience to some of the Bible, we feel pretty sure that we will be all right in the end." - p. 32

"The modern-day gospel says, 'God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Therefore, follow these steps, and you can be saved.' Meanwhile, the biblical gospel says, 'You are an enemy of God, dead in your sin, and in your present state of rebellion, you are not even able to see that you nee life, much less to cause yourself to come to life. Therefore you are radically dependent on God to do something in your life that you could never do.'" - p. 32

2 Timothy 4:9-22