The disease is terminal.
The grace, restoration, reconciliation, forgiveness, mercy, patience, power, healing, and hope of the gospel are for sinners. They are only meaningful to you if you admit that you have the disease and realize that it is terminal.
How People Change by Timothy S. Lane, Paul David Tripp
I like Paul Tripp anyway but this book has been great. Christianity is about the gospel all the time. Our desperate need for Jesus continues after the point of justification, through our sanctification, until we reach glorification. If I begin to rely on myself, I begin to stumble around like a fool.
Last night I found peace while I read this book. A peace I have not had in a few weeks. I was just enjoying the gospel and my reliance on Jesus. It lasted until my head hit the pillow and the cares of the world began to creep in. I fell asleep praying – thanking God for the peace and the pain. This morning was typical. It starts off good and one by one trouble piles up. It doesn’t take long in my current state of mind and I realize I have done it again – stopped relying on Jesus. The grace Jesus has is for me, a sinner. And He takes care of me in the smallest ways, if only I can have eyes that will see the work He is doing in and around me.