Brian G. Hedges > Quotes

“This is a helpful working definition of pride. Pride is thinking much about one’s self and much of one’s self. To borrow words from Augustine, pride is “the love of self, even to the contempt of God.”30”
― Brian G. Hedges, Hit List: Taking Aim at the Seven Deadly Sins

“But the kind of humility we need isn’t the result of will power, but the reflex of a heart captured by the vision of God.”
― Brian G. Hedges, Hit List: Taking Aim at the Seven Deadly Sins

“In On Christian Doctrine, one of the great classics of Christian literature, Augustine draws a careful distinction between using things and enjoying things. He pictures us as exiles longing to return from a foreign land to our own country, where our true happiness lies. We are therefore pilgrims: travelers on the journey home. As with all travelers, we need certain things to help us arrive at our destination, including refreshment along the way. But there’s a problem, says Augustine, if we become so delighted with the pleasures of the journey that we’re unwilling to finish it quickly. If we’re not careful, we will lose interest in our home country, the place where true happiness awaits. When this happens, we’ve started to unduly enjoy the things that God intended to be used in helping us in our progress. And so as Augustine says, “If we wish to return to our home country, where alone we can be truly happy, we have to use this world, not enjoy it.”109”
― Brian G. Hedges, Hit List: Taking Aim at the Seven Deadly Sins

“Only when we are ravished in communion with Christ will we be liberated from lesser loves:”
― Brian G. Hedges, Watchfulness: Recovering a Lost Spiritual Discipline

“Scripture teaches us that God is like this. Paul says that God “is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20). Commenting on this verse, F. F. Bruce said that God’s “capacity for giving far exceeds [our] capacity for asking.”23”
― Brian G. Hedges, Christ Formed in You

“The beauty of propitiation is that our just and holy God is more satisfied with the obedience and death of Christ than he is grieved and angered by our God-belittling sins.7”
― Brian G. Hedges, Christ Formed in You

“These passages, and many more, show that though believers “have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal. 5:24), their conflict with the flesh continues (Gal. 5:17). We are always in danger of being seduced by the desires of the flesh that bubble up from within. Like an undercover spy, sin lurks in the corridors of our hearts and minds, watching for any opportunity to betray us. “There remains in a regenerate man a smoldering cinder of evil, from which desires continually leap forth to allure and spur him to commit sin,” writes Calvin.23 This cinder can burst into flame at any time, in any place. That’s why we need vigilance. As Paul commands, “Do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts” (Rom. 6:12). Peter agrees: “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11).”
― Brian G. Hedges, Watchfulness: Recovering a Lost Spiritual Discipline

“Hebrews 6:4–6 also shows us that spiritual sloth never leaves us in neutral. If you’re not moving forward, you will drift backwards. You will either grow or decay. There is no standing still. The spiritual life is not like riding a bike, where you learn once and never forget. It’s more like golf: neglect your short game for a few weeks, and you’ll be chipping over the green and triple-putting.”
― Brian G. Hedges, Hit List: Taking Aim at the Seven Deadly Sins

“But we not only need to be humbled, we need to boast in something better. Our hearts are glory vacuums, and we will only escape the gravitational pull of our inwardly imploding selves if there is a more powerful force holding our hearts in orbit. That’s why the counsel of Scripture isn’t only, “do not boast,” but also “boast in the Lord” (See Psalm 34:2; Jeremiah 9:23–24; 1 Corinthians 1:26–31).”
― Brian G. Hedges, Hit List: Taking Aim at the Seven Deadly Sins

“The next two symptoms can be taken together: criticizing and complaining. When the envious person reflects on her own fortunes, she complains. When she reflects on the good fortunes of others, she criticizes. Of his own situation, the man consumed with envy says “It’s not fair!” And of others, “They don’t deserve it!”
― Brian G. Hedges, Hit List: Taking Aim at the Seven Deadly Sins