"A TRIED STONE" Isaiah 28:16

"Could He bear the weight of this test? Could He take the punishment decreed by the law? Could He bear this punishment and still come out victorious? He has indeed been 'tried'!... He was led by the Spirit up into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.... He was tried in the garden of Gethsemane, and that trial caused Him to sweat great drops of blood, but He went through. 'O my Father, if it be possible... nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt' [Matt. 26:39]. And on the cross He bore the wrath of God against sin; His heart was broken and He died. But He rose 'triumphant o'er the grave'! A tried stone!" D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones [Pict: Cornerstone of the 3rd temple.]

Celebrate the gospel before them

'We are not to simply communicate the gospel to them, but (to) celebrate the gospel before them.' Tim Keller (refers to Psalm 105 and calls this 'doxological evangelism')

Personify the virtues

"Perhaps the greatest of men are those who never seek greatness at all, but who personify the virtues which posterity calls great." with reference to Brother Lawrence

A clear understanding of the gospel.....

"A clear understanding and appropriation of the gospel, which gives freedom from sin's guilt and sin's grip, is, in the hands of the Holy Spirit, a chief means of sanctification." Jerry Bridges