Latest / Reformed Thinking / Brothers, Beware of the Debtor’s Ethic | John Piper

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Brothers, Beware of the Debtor’s Ethic | John Piper · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to Reformed Thinking, the broadcast where we consider
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Christian doctrine and its practical applications for
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everyday life. Glad to be here.
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We're about to embark on another deep dive, this time into a
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topic that really touches the very core of our walk with God,
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the true nature of gratitude, and specifically how it
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genuinely motivates our obedience.
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It's a subject many us think we understand, perhaps, but our
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source material today reveals layers we might have overlooked.
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Indeed, today we're taking a close look at insights from John
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Piper's brothers. We are not professionals
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focusing specifically on his thoughts regarding what he terms
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the debtors ethic, we'll carefully unpack why our
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intentions behind Christian actions hold as much weight as
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the actions themselves, and how, maybe surprisingly, God shapes
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our very desires to follow Him rather than simply commanding us
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from, you know, a distance. Right.
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Our mission for this deep dive is to clarify what genuine God,
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honor, and gratitude truly looks like.
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We want to draw a clear distinction from a widespread
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misconception. When they can subtly undermine
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the very grace we cherish, we aim to extract crucial insights
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to help you think clearly about these vital truths, freeing you
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perhaps from some common pitfalls.
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So let's get started. Let's do it.
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OK, let's unpack this foundational idea.
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First, our source material from John Piper opens with a very
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direct assertion, one that might challenge our typical way of
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thinking about Christian living. It states that the why, the
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motive, the internal reason behind our Christian actions
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holds as much weight, if not more than the what we actually
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do. That's a big statement right at
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the start. It is.
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It suggests that even deeds which appear outwardly
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commendable can be rendered futile or even corrupted by a
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flawed motive. Think about that for a moment.
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We often focus so heavily on the external performance, showing
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up, doing good deeds, giving money.
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The visible stuff. Yeah, the visible stuff.
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But Piper is pressing us to look inward.
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It's not simply about checking off a list of religious duties
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or just going through the motions.
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It is first and foremost about the heart's posture.
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And the Bible really backs this up, doesn't it?
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You mentioned First Corinthians 13.
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Absolutely. Chapter we often associate with
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love, maybe particularly at weddings.
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But First Corinthians 13 verse 3 makes a very stark point.
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It says that if you give away everything you possess to feed
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the poor, or even if you offer your body to be burned as a
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sacrifice, yet you lack love, you gain absolutely nothing.
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Nothing. That's quite arresting, isn't
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it? It really is.
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Here are actions that on the surface seem incredibly
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selfless, radical, even costly. Yet the Apostle Paul declares
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them to be empty, valueless, if the internal motivation, the
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animating spirit of love, is absent.
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So it tells us that the external action, no matter how grand or
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sacrificial it appears to humanize, holds no true
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spiritual currency with God without the right internal
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disposition. It's a serious cult
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introspection for sure. And that biblical focus on
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intention is reinforced further in First Corinthians 4.5.
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That verse points to a future judgement stating that the Lord
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will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will
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disclose the purposes of the heart.
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So not just the actions, but the purposes.
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Precisely. This is a sobering perspective,
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one that tells us God sees far beyond the surface of our lives.
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He doesn't merely evaluate our outward displays of piety, our
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acts of service, or our visible contributions.
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Instead, he scrutinizes the hidden reasons, the underlying
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purposes, the secret intentions residing within our hearts.
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Which means that God's ultimate assessment of our deeds will
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always include a thorough review of what truly drove them.
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Yes, and for us, as those who aspire to guide others in their
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walk with Christ, this perspective is truly vital.
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It's not enough for us to be content simply because people
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are performing good things. We must actively strive to
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ensure that those good things are done from motives that
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genuinely give glory to God. Right.
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Otherwise. Otherwise, their sacrifices, no
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matter how outwardly impressive or exhausting, could in God's
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estimation, ultimately be in vain.
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Their efforts, in the final analysis, could indeed come to
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not if the heart isn't aligned with God's will for their
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motivation. Yeah, it highlights the absolute
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centrality of the heart in our Christian living.
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It really does. So this isn't just some abstract
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theological point, it's a deeply practical and searching truth
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for anyone seeking to live a life that genuinely pleases God.
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And this leads us directly to a key concept Piper addresses
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early in his work, what he calls the Debtor's ethic.
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OK, the debtor's ethic. Yeah, this viewpoint is often
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quite tempting, particularly for those who are maybe new in their
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walk with Christ, or perhaps for those who haven't yet fully
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grasped the astonishing scope of God's liberating grace.
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On the surface, it can sound quite appealing, even pious,
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can't it? It can.
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It often comes packaged as sort of a gratitude based
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perspective. It asks those questions that
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seem to resonate with our common understanding of repayment
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questions like. Like God has done so much for
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you, what will you do for Him? Or He gave you his very life.
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How much will you give to him in return?
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Yeah, and when you hear them in isolation, these questions might
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sound inspiring, maybe even righteous.
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They seem to urge Christians toward act of service and
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sacrifice. They appear to stem from a
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proper recognition of God's immense generosity and unmerited
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kindness. That's the hook.
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That's the hook. But the core of this ethic, as
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our source carefully explains, is the presentation of the
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Christian life, not as a relationship of freely given
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grace. But as a continuous attempt to
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repay an unpayable debt owed to God, it operates under the idea
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that because God has performed such an astonishing act for us,
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giving His Son, we are now under an undeniable obligation to
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exert ourselves tirelessly in an attempt to settle that account.
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It's a mindset that says I owe him, therefore I must strive to
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pay him back. Exactly.
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And while this perspective might acknowledge that the debt can
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never be fully settled because of course God's gifts are
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infinite in value and beyond human repayment, it still pushes
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for relentless, constant effort. Right.
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So within this framework, good deeds, acts of religious
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service, personal sacrifices, they become like a series of
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regular payments. Yes, never ending payments on an
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unpayable balance. You're always striving to catch
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up, always putting in installments, but you can never
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ever reach 0. And the source says the problem
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with this viewpoint is that it fundamentally misrepresents the
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Spirit, the very essence of God's gift.
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It does. It suddenly shifts the entire
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nature of our relationship with him from 1 of overflowing
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unmerited favor to 1 of burdensome transactional
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obligation. We end up perpetually striving
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to give back something that was freely given, which kind of
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undermines the freeness of the gift itself.
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That's the core issue. OK, here's where it gets really
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fascinating, and perhaps a bit counterintuitive for many of us
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listening. Piper brings up a striking
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observation from his study of the sources, a surprising near
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absence of biblical passages where gratitude or thankfulness
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is presented as the direct and explicit reason for obedience to
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God. OK, pause there.
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That's a big claim. Gratitude feels like the number
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one reason we talked about, doesn't it?
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It really does. It's likely the most common
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reason for obedience cited in contemporary Christian circles.
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We hear it constantly. Be grateful for what God has
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done for you, and therefore obey Him.
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Yet when you meticulously search the Scriptures for explicit
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statements linking gratitude as the primary motivator for
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obedience, it's remarkably sparse.
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What about examples often used like the woman anointing Jesus
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feet? Good point.
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He mentions common stories that immediately spring to mind, like
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that sinful woman in Luke 7. She anoints Jesus's feet with
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her tears and hair and act frequently interpreted as
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flowing from a deep, overflowing gratitude for her forgiveness.
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Makes sense? Or the unforgiving servant.
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Right, the parable in Matthew 18.
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The servant forgiven a huge debt, who then refuses to
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forgive a tiny one owed to him. Seems like a total lack of
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gratitude, right? You'd.
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Think so. However, the text points out
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that neither of these stories explicitly states gratitude as
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the motive for their actions. So it's an inference we make.
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That's what Piper suggests. The connection we often make is
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inferred or assumed by us based on what seems logical to our
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human understanding. It's not plainly stated as the
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direct primary driver in the biblical text itself.
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That's a subtle but really significant distinction he's
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drawing. It is, and it leads to what
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Piper calls a probing question. Which is.
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Given the gratitude is so commonly cited as the reason for
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Christian obedience today, why is it so scarcely mentioned as
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an explicit motivator in the Bible?
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And what possible answer does the source offer?
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The sources propose a possibility, and it's quite a
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thought provoking 1. Perhaps God, in his infinite
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wisdom, chose to shield his people from this particular
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motivation. Shield them?
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How so? He foresaw how easily a
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gratitude based perspective, when misunderstood or
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misapplied, could devolve into the very debtors ethic we've
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been discussing. So it's like a protective
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measure, guarding against a mindset that would ultimately
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undermine the freeness of his grace.
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That's the idea. If a focus on gratitude so
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easily morphs into a sense of obligation to repay a debt, then
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God, understanding the human heart, might have deliberately
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chosen not to make it the overt primary driver for obedience.
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OK, that makes a certain kind of sense.
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He prefers and provides motivations that uphold the
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pure, unmerited nature of his favor.
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And keep us ever reliant on His goodness rather than our
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attempts to balance some imaginary Ledger.
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Protecting the gospel itself, really ensuring our obedience
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springs from continuous dependence, not a desperate
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attempt at reciprocation. So if gratitude in that
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repayment sense isn't the primary explicit motivator, then
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what does God use? What are the divine means by
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which He draws us into heartfelt obedience?
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Well, the sources make it abundantly clear that God uses
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entirely different means, means that fundamentally do not hinge
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on us feeling and need to pay him back.
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OK, instead of a backward looking repayment model, God
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uses what are described as irresistibly desirable promises
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of enablement and divine reward. Enablement and reward.
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So it shifts the focus entirely from our past debt to his future
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provision and blessings. That's it.
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It's a forward-looking motivation anchoring us in His
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faithfulness yet to come, rather than a backward looking
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obligation to settle an account. All right, let's unpack this
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enablement part first. You mentioned some Bible
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references. Like Jeremiah 31.33 and Ezekiel
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36.27 are cited in Jeremiah. God promises I will put my law
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within them, and I will write it on their hearts.
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OK, not just an external command, but an internal work.
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Right. It's not just a moral directive
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for us to obey. It's a promise of an internal
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divine work that empowers obedience by reshaping our inner
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being. A divine rewiring, you could
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say. And Ezekiel.
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Similarly, Ezekiel 36.27 echoes this promise, stating I will put
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my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes.
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Notice the active verb 'cause you.
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He causes us to walk. That radically shifts the locus
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of agency, doesn't it, From our strained efforts to His
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indwelling grace. He does it moves it from self
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generated attempts to repay to His grace that supernaturally
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empowers and inclines us toward obedience.
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It's proactive, liberating enablement.
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And Philippians 2.13, it's here too.
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Perfectly, it states that it is God who works in you, both to
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will and to work for his good pleasure.
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So even the desire to obey and the ability to carry it out
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originate from him. Correct.
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It's not something we generate independently and then offer
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back. It's his work within us.
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Hebrews 13.21 says something similar.
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Yes, Speaking of God equipping us with everything good for
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doing His will and then working in US what is pleasing to Him
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through Jesus Christ. These verses consistently
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highlight God working within believers to make obedient as
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possible. Making us not merely struggling
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debtors, but rather responsive agents of his gracious will.
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OK, so that's enablement. What about the divine reward
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aspect? Right.
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This forward-looking motivation extends powerfully to divine
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reward to the sources cite passages like Luke 12.33.
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Where Jesus tells people to sell possessions and give to the
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poor. Promising that by doing so you
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will have unfailing treasure in heaven.
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Now this isn't presented as a payment we earn to get into
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heaven. No, it's more like a desirable
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future blessing that motivates joyful generosity now.
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That's right, and Hebrews 11.24226 speaks of Moses
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choosing suffering with God's people over fleeting sinful
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pleasures. Because he was looking to the
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reward. Yes, his choice was deeply
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motivated by anticipating God's future blessing, a reward that
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made present hardship seem worthwhile.
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And even Jesus himself in Hebrews 12.2.
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Who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross?
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Even our Savior, who is motivated by a glorious future,
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a joy awaiting Him beyond the suffering.
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So these passages consistently speak of future blessings, not
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as something earned transactionally, but as an
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overflowing expression of his generosity.
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An incentive, really, that makes obedience profoundly desirable.
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The material explains that God goes to astonishing lengths to
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inspire us. He continually assures us that
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He is presently and always will be active for those who pursue
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Him through the obedience that comes from faith.
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He doesn't stop and wait for us to act for him out of gratitude,
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as if we need to catch up or settle a favor.
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Instead, He consistently continues to work in US and for
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us, beckoning us forward with His enabling presence and His
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glorious promises. That's a much different picture
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than the debtor trying to pay back.
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It really is. And this leads us to a truly
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foundational, maybe counterintuitive truth that
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reshapes our entire understanding.
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God safeguards us from falling into that debtor type of mindset
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by constantly reminding us that all our Christian effort for Him
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is actually a gift from Him. That is such a critical insight.
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Yeah, isn't it? If our very capacity to labor,
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to obey, to do good deeds, is itself a gift, then how can it
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ever possibly function as a payment to settle a debt?
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It can't. It's a cosmic paradox that frees
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us from trying to repay what can only be received.
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And Romans 11.3536 speaks to this.
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Directly, it boldly asks, or who has given a gift to him that he
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might be repaid? The answer, obviously, is no
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one. God isn't indebted to anyone.
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He's the source of all things. And Romans 15.18 where Paul
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talks about his own ministry. Yes, Paul, reflecting on his
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tireless work states. For I will not presume to speak
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of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me.
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Through me, not by me. Exactly.
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Paul, the most tireless apostle, doesn't claim credit.
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He attributes it all to Christ working through him.
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This shows that our labor, our capacity, every good
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inclination, every act of service, it originates from his
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unmerited favor. It's not something we generate
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independently and then offer back His payment.
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It's a continuous flow from Him, through us and ultimately for
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His glory. OK, so the sources present this,
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well, almost startling idea. Yeah, every good deed we do,
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even if we're trying to repay him in our minds.
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It actually produces the precise opposite effect of what a debtor
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mentality intends. How so?
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Instead of diminishing our debt, our efforts, when performed in
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dependence on God, actually plays US ever more reliant on
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His grace. That's a vital distinction.
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Our efforts don't lessen our need for His grace.
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They actually deepen our dependence on His continuous
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apply. We become more, not less,
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recipients of his undeserved kindness.
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And 1st Corinthians 15.10 illustrates this beautifully.
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It does. Paul reflects on his
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extraordinary labor for the gospel, stating, I labored even
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more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.
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The grace of God with me. Yes, here's Paul, the most
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energetic apostle, clearly attributing his labor not to his
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own will or strength, but to the grace of God.
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That was not just for him, but with him, working through him.
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Which means the very capacity to labor, the energy, the
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motivation, the effectiveness, the desire to act.
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It all originates from God's race.
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It's a gift from start to finish, a continuous outpouring.
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And the material strongly states that this state, this reality of
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going ever deeper in reliance on grace through all eternity, is
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precisely where God wants us to be.
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Not breaking free from dependence.
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Achieving some spiritual self-sufficiency.
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No, rather, embracing that dependence fully and perpetually
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finding our joy and freedom within it.
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Our future, now and forever, isn't diligently paying off an
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unpay payable debt. But joyfully and humbly
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receiving an endless cascade of grace which then in turn fuels
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our heartfelt response to him. That really is a liberating
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thought, frees us from the crushing burden of trying to pay
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back. It does, and invites us into an
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ongoing, joyful reception of God's limitless provision.
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OK, so this understanding compels us to carefully consider
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how gratitude can motivate us in a sound way, a way that is
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distinctly different from a transactional debtor mentality.
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Right, because gratitude is still a biblical concept, isn't
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it? We're called to be thankful.
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Absolutely. But to understand its proper
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role, we first need a precise and clear definition of
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gratitude, one that distinguishes it from just a tit
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for tat response. And the source provides 1.
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Yes, it defines gratitude as a species of joy which arises in
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your heart in response to the goodwill of someone who does or
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tries to do you a favor. OK, a species of joy in response
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to goodwill. That's interesting.
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It's crucial because it highlights that genuine
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gratitude isn't just a reaction to simply receiving a benefit or
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merely possessing something good.
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It is more accurately a reaction to the good intentions of the
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giver. The goodwill behind the gift,
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not just the gift itself. That's the key, the subtle shift
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in focus from the gift to the givers Goodwill is what makes
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all the difference. And there were some examples in
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the sources that illustrate this.
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Yes, a couple of helpful ones. The first involves a thief
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unintentionally saving someone's sons by accidentally waking them
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during a house fire while he was breaking in.
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Right, the accidental hero thief.
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In this unusual scenario, no gratitude is felt towards the
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thief himself. Why?
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Because he had no good intentions, the benefit the boys
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being saved was entirely accidental a by product of his
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ill intent. So gratitude would rightly be
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directed to God who did have good intentions using the
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situation for good. Correct.
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The benefit was there, but the goodwill from the human agent
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was totally absent. And the second example.
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It describes A dedicated villager who dies trying to
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bring much needed medicine to a distant recipient, but
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tragically fails to deliver it. So the medicine never arrived.
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The benefit wasn't received. Right.
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But even though the benefit wasn't received, thankfulness is
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still profoundly present. Why?
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Because the villager demonstrated immense goodwill,
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sacrificing his life in the attempt.
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The purity of the intention evokes gratitude even without
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the tan tangible outcome. Exactly.
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These examples really challenge our common assumption that
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gratitude is solely a reaction to receiving something.
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They direct our gaze squarely onto the heart of the Giver.
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And this is further confirmed by the common understanding of an
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ingrate. The person at the party obsessed
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with the gift but ignoring the giver.
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Yes, someone completely captivated by a gift, admiring
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it, showing it off, but never acknowledges or even looks at
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the giver. They're labeled an ingrate.
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Why? Because their delight is purely
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in the object itself, completely detached from the benevolence
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that brought it to them. So true gratitude requires an
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acknowledgement of the giver's heart, not just the gift.
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OK, so at its core, gratitude is a particular kind of joy, a joy
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arising from perceiving something or someone's intention
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as valuable. And the more value we see in the
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gift, or more accurately, in the giver's goodwill, the greater
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our joy. It's an internal state that
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deeply values the object of its focus.
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But there's a critical characteristic about this, Joy
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mentioned. It's described as gregarious.
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Yes, gregarious, meaning it naturally seeks to gather others
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and share in the perceived value.
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Like when you see a beautiful sunset or hear amazing music,
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you want someone else to experience it too.
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Precisely. Your natural inclination is
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often to share it, to point it out, to have them experience it
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with you. That's the gregarious, outgoing
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nature of joy. And it also possesses a
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demonstrative impulse. Right.
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It's suggested to be a psychological impossibility to
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feel intense delight in something good and yet have no
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impulse whatsoever to show others the value that sparked
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that delight. Like discovering a brilliant
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author but having no one to tell it feels incomplete.
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Exactly. The delight is held captive and
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yearns for expression. It's a natural overflow, not a
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duty. CS Lewis is quoted here right
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making this very point. Yes, he states that people
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spontaneously commend what they value and they spontaneously
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urge others to join them in praising.
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It he says the delight is incomplete until it is
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expressed, comparing it to that frustration of finding something
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great with no one to share it with.
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Or coming upon a stunning mountain valley only to be with
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people who don't care about it at all.
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The Joy wants an outlet. It wants to demonstrate the
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value of its object. OK, so the principle of how
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gratitude genuinely moves us to action is found in the very
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essence of joy itself. That's what the source reveals.
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All true joy holds within it an inherent impulse to exhibit the
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beauty and worth of its object. It naturally spills over into
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expression and action, not as a laborious repayment.
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But as an unburdened, spontaneous demonstration of the
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perceived worth and beauty of the one who provided the good.
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Given them that joy motivates us by seeking to demonstrate its
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objects value, the crucial question for us becomes how must
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our joy and the immense value of God's gift of Jesus Christ show
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itself? And the answer, as the sources
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clearly articulate, is that it must manifest in a way that
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truly honors the nature and aim of God's goodwill and,
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crucially, does not go against it.
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Like the analogy used, you wouldn't show gratitude to
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someone who paid for your alcohol treatment by throwing
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them a beer party. Right.
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That would fundamentally contradict the very aim of their
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goodwill. Our expression of gratitude to
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God must be entirely consistent with His purposes and the nature
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of His gift. And the material spills out the
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specifics of God's goodwill. Yes, 1st it's nature.
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God's gift of his Son was entirely without conditions,
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unearned, undeserved, A pure gift of free grace.
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Not a transaction, not a reward. Pure, unmerited favor. 2nd, it's
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aim. God's purpose in giving his Son
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was to unleash a pardoning and renewing ability that would
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change people, make us new creations, transforming us into
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reflections of God's glory. He desires to make us like Him.
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OK, Therefore, our gratitude to God for His extraordinary
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goodwill must show itself by saying and doing what respects
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its unearned, gracious nature and its ultimate goal of His
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glory in our lives. That's the standard.
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Which this understanding immediately, unequivocally rules
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out the debtors ethic, doesn't it?
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Completely. Any effort, any sincere human
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striving to express gratitude by attempting to repay God would
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fundamentally contradict the unearned and gracious nature of
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His gift. It's like trying to pay for
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something given freely, which nullifies the freeness itself.
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And it has serious implications for our standing before God.
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It's subtly attempts to shift us from humble beneficiaries to his
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benefactors, as if we could give him something he doesn't already
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own. Which removes the well, the
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finished work of the cross, where our debt was completely
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settled, not by us, but by Christ.
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Precisely. That singular act makes us
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forever humble receivers, not givers.
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The cross shows the debt is paid not by our efforts, but by
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Christ's gracious act alone. Trying to pay it back diminishes
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that perfect work. And first Peter 4.11 reinforces
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this. Beautifully, whoever serves is
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to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God
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supplies. But the strength God supplies,
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even our actions of obedience are enabled by Him.
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We aren't working from our own strength to pay him back, we're
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working from his strength, which he provides freely, moment by
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moment. It's all from him.
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So instead, the truly the God honoring way our joy reveals the
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value of unearned grace is how. By acknowledging without
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reservation that we do not deserve it, by continually
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placing our hope on that grace, not on our own efforts, and by
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acting in everything we do as someone who is continuously
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receiving more and more grace. Living from a position of
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constant humble reception rather than strenuous repayment.
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Yes, a posture of heart that recognizes every breath, every
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ability, every good inclination, every act of service as a fresh,
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undeserved inflow of his unmerited favor.
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And 2nd Corinthians 9.8 supports this.
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Powerfully, it indicates that God makes all grace abound to
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you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you
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need, you will abound in every good deed.
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So His grace overflows, actively empowering us for good works.
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Meaning our good deeds aren't what earn us disgrace, they are
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the direct outflow and evidence of the grace He already provides
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in limitless abundance. This means, quite simply, then
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good deeds don't return grace, they borrow more grace.
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That's a line worth repeating, isn't it?
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It runs so counter to our natural way of thinking about
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debt and payment. It really does, every time we do
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something good. Every act of obedience when done
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in dependence on God, it doesn't settle in account.
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On the contrary, it actually plunges us deeper into his
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ongoing provision and makes us more, not less, reliant on him.
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We become perpetually more indebted to his generosity, not
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less. And the material highlights that
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gratitude will always subtly slide into the debtors ethic if.
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If it only looks back on grace already given and not also
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forward to future grace. That's key.
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If it's just backward looking, it can feel like an obligation
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for the past. But if it also looks forward,
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anticipating God's faithful and continuous supply yet to come,
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it truly fosters a humble, dependent faith.
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We honor the true nature and purpose of God's goodwill by
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trusting Him to continue working for us from this moment forward
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into eternity. Which signifies that genuine
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gratitude functions properly as a motive only, as it
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consistently gives rise to faith and what God will yet do.
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So gratitude supports faith. Yes, gratitude in this healthy
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forward-looking form acts as a supportive voice.
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It says to faith, keep trusting your Father for more grace.
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I know He will provide. I have experienced His goodness
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in the past and it was sweet. He is faithful.
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It's like a testimony of past experience fueling future
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reliance. Exactly.
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It confirms God's faithfulness and His boundless generosity,
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building our confidence that He will continue to be who He is.
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So gratitude certainly helps motivate genuine, even radical
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obedience that comes from love. But it does so indirectly,
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through aiding and strengthening our faith and grace yet to come.
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It's not the direct engine, but fuel for the engine of faith
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which then drives our actions. A subtle but really significant
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distinction, one that protects the purity of God's grace.
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And this leads to why the central ethical affirmation, the
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driving force of the New Testament, is found in Galatians
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5.6. Faith works through love.
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Right. It does not say gratitude works
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through love. And the source suggests that
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while maybe gratitude works through love isn't entirely
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inaccurate in a general sense. It is, in its formulation,
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filled with dangers that could easily lead back to thinking in
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terms of legal obligation or repayment.
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If gratitude were the direct motivator, it risks pulling us
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back into that debtor's ethic trap.
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Making our obedience feel like laborious repayment rather than
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a free, joyful response of love fueled by faith than God's
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continuous, unmerited provision. Therefore, the essential message
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for us is to be deeply cautious of the debtors ethic.
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And instead to consistently guide people into the life
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altering experience of continuous dependent joy.
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A joy stemming not from having paid a debt, but from living
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always within the boundless generosity of God.
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Always receiving, always relying, always trusting in His
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goodness. So summing up what we've seen
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today is a careful but crucial distinction.
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Right between a transactional repayment, an oriented view of
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gratitude, and one that joyfully celebrates God's unmerited
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favor. True gratitude isn't about
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striving to pay God back. No, it's about acknowledging His
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complete provision for us and humbly relying on His ongoing
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fresh grace, moment by moment, day by day.
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A dynamic, forward-looking reliance on his kindness rather
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than a backward looking attempt at repayment.
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And it's about being forever in his debt, not as a burden, but
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as an astonishing position of privilege.
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A constant recipient of his is abundant, never ending
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generosity. This truly redefines how we
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understand our actions, our motives, and our entire walk
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with God. It certainly does.
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Maybe something for you listening to consider, Yeah.
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What does this idea mean for how you personally think about your
28:47
own motives in following God? What stands out to you about the
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thought of living as a continuous recipient of his
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unmerited favor? Yeah, that's a good question to
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ponder. This deep dive has highlighted
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that our good deeds are not installment payments on an old
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debt. They're rather further
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extensions of God's unearned kindness and enablement in our
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lives. Which means that God's ultimate
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desire for us is not for us to strive to repay Him.
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But to live in a perpetual state of humble, ever increasing
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reliance on his glorious and limitless generosity?
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Join us next time on Reformed Thinking for another deep dive
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into subjects that shape our understanding of the faith and
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our place within it.