The Luscious Carrot of God’s Promises

It really was a thrill to preach on 2 Peter 1:3-11 last night at a baptismal service (“Pilgrim’s Progress”). At one point I quoted John Piper on fighting promises with promises. Typically vivid, Piper compares the promises of sin’s pleasure to the “luscious carrot” of God’s promise.

(Photo by 1773*, Creative Commons License)

Here’s the quote:

“Sin makes its attack by holding out promises to us for our happiness: if you lie on your income tax return, you will have more money and be happier; if you divorce your spouse, you will be happier… if you don’t upset your relationship with your neighbor by sharing Christ, you will be happier; etc… And sin will always win the battle unless we have the luscious carrot of God’s promises hanging clearly in front of our noses. Unless we enter our day armed with one or two precious and very great promises, we will be utterly vulnerable to temptation.” (John Piper, from his sermon “Liberating Promises”)

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