Good News vs. Good Advice

This is a paraphrase of a Doug Wilson sermon illustration on what good advice is compared to good news, as relayed by John Piper.

Good advice is a teacher standing in front of her class and preparing them for a test. "Study hard, memorize your paradigms, do you homework and get it in every night, and you'll do fine on the final exam." That is very good advice. Well, come test day the teacher makes her way up and down the rows of students as they work, but notices that one student has a blank page before him; he hasn't even started writing. Good advice is the teacher coming up to him and urging him on, "You can do it, just take your time and concentrate, it will come." That is very good advice. Good news is the teacher sitting down at the student's seat and taking the test for him.