Mark Leberfinger

“The purpose of theology is not to tickle our intellects but to instruct us in the ways of God, so that we can grow up into maturity and fullness of obedience to Him. That is why we engage in theology.”
― R.C. Sproul, Everyone's a Theologian: An Introduction to Systematic Theology

“Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong; I cannot. If a thing is free to be good it is also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having. A world of automata—of creatures that worked like machines—would hardly be worth creating.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

“Reliance on ourselves is no option in light of the cross. However fantastically marvelous we may think we are, the cross is God’s verdict on us as sinners. It annihilates even the possibility of finally placing our trust in ourselves. Meaning we can know a far greater assurance, anchoring it in firm ground outside ourselves, in Christ. Christians are people who have given up all claims to both our badness and our goodness—and instead gotten him. ”
― Michael Reeves, Rejoicing in Christ

“Christians are called to be Bible interpreters, but our interpretations must not be based simply on “what I want the Bible to say.” We need God’s Spirit to discipline our reading of Scripture.”
― John P. Burgess, Confessing Our Faith: The Book of Confessions for Church Leaders