1. the best trick of the devil is getting you to think his ideas aren’t just yours, but even God’s . So he creates his own “gospel,” a perversion of the real one. It sounds like good news because it appears to answer questions we’ve always had, satisfy desires we’ve always felt, solve mysteries we’ve always pondered. If he can give his lies the ring of truth, so much the better.

2. Sin isn’t purely about the malfunction; it’s essentially about the faulty wiring.

3. Works righteousness is like that forbidden tree in the middle of the garden. We can see it in our midst. It is al- ways within eyesight of our reveling in grace. And every now and again, we hear a serpentine whisper: “Yes, yes, grace. But there’s more. There’s an enhancement. There’s real power, real enhancement here , with this. Take and eat.” And it’s so tempting, because it promises to make much of us. Legalism pets our pride so smoothly. “God helps those who help themselves” is the lie that promises to gratify our desire for recognition and re- ward. But in the end, it leads only to exile.

4. What the Keswick higher life theology teaches is a division be- tween “Spirit-filled” Christians and “carnal” Christians. The Spirit-filled Christian accesses blessings in apparently automatic fashion, while the carnal Christian is still stuck “trying.” At its best, “let go and let God” is simply about repenting of anxious worrying and instead trusting God with our cares. This is something the Bible doesn’t just permit, but commands.

5. Wisdom weighs all the facts, not just the convenient ones.

6. The devil likes to traffic in fear, but it’s not his immediate go-to, because he knows that fearful people often cry out for help, which means fearful people are very close to having their ears open to divine rescue.

7. TRUTH IS CENTERING. THE TRUTH IS STABILIZING. The truth is clarifying. That is, if we are willing to upend our devotion to our preferred version of the truth. If we are not, the truth is disorienting, disturbing, and confounding.

8. Forgiving people do get taken advantage of. But unforgiving people, Paul said in verse 11, get taken advantage of by Satan!

9. When power becomes your god, you’ll do as much biblical gymnastics as it takes to get it or keep it.

10. And it’s how stupid the accumulation of stuff—be it possessions, money, or simply fame or success—can make us, if we’re not careful. It is a lot like drunkenness. Many men find their sense of invincibility is enhanced when they become intoxicated. Everything is exaggerated, including the ego. They feel and act bigger than they are. But they are actually slower, dumber, and more vulnerable. Money, fame, and stuff are like that. The more we have, the more secure we may feel, but if the Bible is to be believed, the more spiritually vulnerable we actually are. It’s as though we’ve become drunk.