Understanding Joy in the Gospel
Illustration
by Dean Lueking

There was an old Dutch preacher who served two congregations in Holland, one on either side of a dike. The only way he could get to both on winter Sunday mornings was to skate across the frozen body of water separating the two churches. When he asked permission of his ecclesiastical elders to skate the distance, they reluctantly agreed – but only on the stipulation that he would not enjoy doing so.

That story illustrates a much larger problem, the problem of knowing God only under the Law and never under the Gospel. Don't let that blight cripple your spirit and rob your faith of the delighting in God, the enjoyment of his grace and abundant goodness.

CSS Publishing Company, Inc., From Ashes to Holy Wind, by Dean Lueking