Top 328 Quotes & Sayings by Francis Chan - Page 3

Lukewarm people don't really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin. They don't genuinely hate sin and aren't truly sorry for it; they're merely sorry because God is going to punish them. Lukewarm people don't really believe that this new life Jesus offers is better than the old sinful one.

I think most American churchgoers are the soil that chokes the seed because of all the thorns. Thorns are anything that distracts us from God. When we want God and a bunch of other stuff, then that means we have thorns in our soil. A relationship with God simply cannot grow when money, sins, activities, favorite sports teams, addictions, or commitments are piled on top of it.

The Bible says that when we obey God’s commands, we benefit. I think we naturally assume that if we look out for our own interests and concerns, we will be happy. But people who sacrifice for others will tell you that seasons of giving are the most rewarding of their lives.

God is the only being who is good, and the standards are set by Him. Because God hates sin, He has to punish those guilty of sin. Maybe that's not an appealing standard. But to put it bluntly, when you get your own universe, you can make your own standards.

God never breaks His promises.

We have become dangerously comfortable- believers ooze with wealth and let their addictions to comfort and security numb the radical urgency of the gospel.

Isn't it a comfort to worship a God we cannot exaggerate?

Be careful not to turn others' lives into the mold for your own...we have a #? God who is a #? Creator not a #? Duplicator .

The world is not moved by love or actions that are of human creation. And the church is not empowered to live differently from any other gathering of people without the Holy Spirit. But when believers live in the power of the Spirit, the evidence in their lives is supernatural. The church cannot help but be different, and the world cannot help but notice.

In the craziness of our world, it takes tremendous effort to find a quiet place. It takes time to quiet your mind and your heart before the Lord.

Lukewarm people think about life on earth much more often than eternity in heaven.

It's much less demanding to think about God's will for your future than it is to ask Him what He wants you to do in the next ten minutes.

Christians today like to play it safe. We want to put ourselves in situations where we are safe 'even if there is no God.' But if we truly desire to please God, we cannot live that way.

...I don't have to worry about not meeting His expectations. God will ensure my success in accordance with His plan, not mine.

The very fact that a holy, eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, merciful, fair, and just God loves you and me is nothing short of astonishing.

Christianity was simple: fight your desires in order to please God.

God is not just one thing we add to the mix called life. He wants an invitation from us to permeate everything and every part of us.

The way we live out our days is the way we will live our lives.

True faith manifests itself through our actions.

Jesus' call to commitment is clear: He wants all or nothing.

Not being able to fully understand God is frustrating but it is ridiculous for us to think we have the right to limit God to something we are capable of comprehending. What a stunted, insignificant god that would be! If my mind is the size of a soda can and God is the size of all the oceans, it would be stupid for me to say He is only the small amount of water I can scoop into my little can. God is so much bigger, so far beyond our time-encased, air/food/sleep-dependent lives.

If a guy were dating my daughter but didn't want to spend the gas money to come pick her up or refused to buy her dinner because it cost too much, I would question whether he were really in love with her In the same way, I question whether many American churchgoers are really in love with God because they are so hesitant to do anything for Him." Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God

The wise man comes to God without saying a word and stands in awe of Him.

We are here to love. Not much else matters.

Multi-tasking is keeping me from whole-hearted worship.

True faith means holding nothing back. It means putting every hope in God's fidelity to His Promises.

Jesus asks for everything, but we try to give Him less.

...you will have a choice: to adjust how you live daily or to stay the same.

We are consumed by safety. Obsessed with it, actually. Now, I’m not saying it is wrong to pray for God’s protection, but I am questioning how we’ve made safety our highest priority. We’ve elevated safety to the neglect of whatever God’s best is, whatever would bring God the most glory, or whatever would accomplish His purposes in our lives and in the world.

The core problem isn’t the fact that we’re lukewarm, halfhearted, or stagnant Christians. The crux of it all is why we are this way, and it is because we have an inaccurate view of God. We see Him as a benevolent Being who is satisfied when people manage to fit Him into their lives in some small way. We forget that God never had an identity crisis. He knows that He’s great and deserves to be the center of our lives.

[Y]ou have to stop loving and pursuing Christ in order to sin. When you are pursuing love, running toward Christ, you do not have opportunity to wonder, *Am I doing this right?* or *Did I serve enough this week?* When you are running toward Christ, you are freed up to serve, love, and give thanks without guilt, worry or fear. As long as you are running, you're safe.

When it's hard and you are doubtful, give more.

Our lives should be more than just focusing on our marriage but on focusing our marriage toward what God's mission is for us as a couple.

Lukewarm people love others but do not seek to love others as much as they love themselves.

God cares more about your obedience to His Spirit's leading TODAY than what you will do next year.

God's art speaks of Himself, reflecting who He is and what He is like.

From start to finish, this movie is obviously about God. He is the main character. How is is possible that we live as though it is about us?

The world needs Christians who don't tolerate the complacency of their own lives.

What evidence do you have that you know Jesus?

God never excuses sin. And He is always consistent with that ethic. Whenever we start to question whether God really hates sin, we have only to think of the cross, where His Son was tortured, mocked, and beaten because of sin. Our sin

I want to see people do more than simply raise their hand when they come to Christ. Where are the totally changed lives?

If life is a river, then pursuing Christ requires swimming upstream. When we stop swimming, or actively following Him, we automatically begin to be swept downstream.

It is true that God may have called you to be exactly where you are. But, it is absolutely vital to grasp that he didn’t call you there so you could settle in and live your life in comfort and superficial peace.

Not being able to understand God is frustrating, but it is ridiculous for us to think we have the right to limit God to something we are capable to comprehending.

God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. The answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts-it's falling in love with God.

Heavenly Father, thank You so much for Your grace. Your forgiveness is SO good that I struggle with believing it at times. Thank You for rescuing me from myself and giving me Your Holy Spirit. Your love is better than life.

The stress that some of us feel - it's a lack of faith, it really is.

Trying harder doesn’t work for me. Slowly I’ve learned to pray for God’s help and He has become my greatest love and desire.

We don't get to decide who God is.

I really believe it's time for some of us to stop apologizing for God and start apologizing to Him for being embarrassed by the ways He has chosen to reveal Himself

To call someone a Christian simply because he does some Christian-y things is giving false comfort to the unsaved.

People who are obsessed with God are known as givers, not takers. Obsessed people genuinely think that others matter as much as they do, and they are particularly aware of those who are poor around the world (James 2:14-26).

True faith means holding nothing back; it bets everything on the hope of eternity

We need to stop giving people excuses not to believe in God.

We need to stop giving people excuses not to believe in God. You've probably heard the expression 'I believe in God, just not organized religion'. I don't think people would say that if the church truly lived like we are called to live.

True love requires sacrifice.

The best things in life are gifts from the One who steadfastly loves us. But an important question to ask ourselves is this: are we in love with God or just His stuff?

...our concern is more about going to heaven than loving the King.

God's presence is all that matters.

The irony is that while God doesn't need us but still wants us, we desperately need God but don't really want Him most of the time. He treasures us and anticipates our departure from this earth to be with Him-and we wonder, indifferently, how much we have to do for Him to get by.