Quotes about Understanding
Racial tensions are rife with pride—the pride of white supremacy, the pride of black power, the pride of intellectual analysis, the pride of anti-intellectual scorn, the pride of loud verbal attack, and the pride of despising silence, the pride that feels secure, and the pride that masks fear. Where pride holds sway, there is no hope for the kind of listening and patience and understanding and openness to correction that relationships require.
— John Piper
Without a spiritual wakefulness to divine purposes and connections in all things, we will not know things for what they truly are.
— John Piper
Knowing and thinking exist for the sake of love -- for the sake of building people up in faith. Thinking that produces pride instead of love is not true thinking.
— John Piper
One great function of Bible verses: To keep us from drawing false inferences from other Bible verses.
— John Piper
Seek not to grow in knowledge chiefly for the sake of applause, and to enable you to dispute with others; but seek it for the benefit of your souls, and in order to practice. . . . Practice according to what knowledge you have. This will be the way to know more. .
— John Piper
Brand-new truths are probably not Truths.
— John Piper
The aim of the climb is not intellectual satisfaction. The aim is worship. God gets more honor when we worship on the basis of what we know about him than he gets if we worship on the basis of what we don't know.
— John Piper
We do not know ourselves aright, Until we have the Father's light. We think we know ourselves and groan, Until we know as we are known
— John Piper
If our effort to know God more clearly is not an effort to love him more dearly, it will be fatal.
— John Piper
Preaching is one thing—and it is crucial. But hearing is another thing—and it is just as crucial.
— John Piper
It is possible to experience true divine wonders in your conversion but never to be taught a true description of what your experience is. Then someone starts to describe your experience in words you have never heard, and in ways you have never understood, and suddenly the strange words all sound exactly right.
— John Piper
I have no sure sight of God's glory except through his word. The word mediates the glory, and the glory confirms the word.
— John Piper