Piper in a gang?

Do I need to say anything?

Practical Principles

I all too often hear from people such things as: "Why study the Old Testament (or NT) so closely, it just isn't practical." or "Theology is boring because it isn't practical." When I hear these remarks I often wonder how people do not get that all theological/biblical study is practical. So when I came across this quote I was floored by the honesty and the tremendous degree of the author's ability to articulate what I often think in response to the preceding comments. So for all of you who always want 'practical.' Think about this and may you realize the truths of this statement.

“All the doctrines of the Gospel are practical principles. The word of God was not written, the Son of God was not incarnate, the Spirit of God was not given, only that Christians might obtain right views, and possess just notions. Religion is something more than mere correctness of intellect, justness of conception, and exactness of judgment. It is a life-giving principle. It must be infused into the habit as well as govern in the understanding; it must regulate the will as well as direct the creed. It must not only cast the opinions into a right frame, but the heart into a new mould. It is a transforming as well as a penetrating principle. It changes the tastes, gives activity to the inclinations, and, together with a new heart, produces a new life.”

- Hannah More, Practical Piety