“It is a mistake to measure spiritual maturity merely by the presence of gifts. By themselves they are an inadequate basis for a man’s lasting influence for God. They may be present and they may be valuable, but the Spirit’s object is something far greater – to form Christ in us through the working of the cross. His goal is to see Christ inwrought in believers. So it is not merely that man does certain things or speaks certain words, but that he is a certain kind of man. He himself is what he preaches. Too many want to preach without being the thing themselves, but in the long run it is what we are, and not simply what we do or say, that matters with God, and the difference lies in the formation of Christ within.”

– Miles Stanford