27 Great Philip Yancey Quotes

Philip Yancey, author of What’s So Amazing About Grace (1998), has been writing great material for the kingdom of God for a very long time.  He has sold over 14 million books world-wide.  His heart for the Lord is evident in all of his works.  With so many books under his belt, he has some very handy and inspiring sayings that can really encourage you in your walk with the Lord.  Here are 27 great quotes from Philip Yancey.

"The Truth" (Hebrews 11:6) And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

1. “I have learned that faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse.”

2.  “Grace, like water, flows to the lowest part.”

3.  “Grace is the most perplexing, powerful force in the universe, and, I believe, the only hope for our twisted, violent planet.”

4.  “God loves people because of who God is, not because of who we are.” (What’s So Amazing About Grace?)

5.  “Christians are not perfect, by any means, but they can be people made fully alive.” (Soul Survivor: How My Faith Survived the Church)

6.  “If my activism, however well-motivated, drives out love, then I have misunderstood Jesus’ gospel. I am stuck with law, not the gospel of grace.”

7.  “I would far rather convey grace than explain it.” (What’s So Amazing About Grace?)

8.  “If prayer stands as the place where God and human beings meet, then I must learn about prayer. Most of my struggles in the Christian life circle around the same two themes: why God doesn't act the way we want God to, and why I don't act the way God wants me to. Prayer is the precise point where those themes converge.”

9.  “Nature was one of the key forces that brought me back to God, for I wanted to know the Artist responsible for beauty such as I saw on grand scale in photos from space telescopes or on minute scale such as in the intricate designs on a butterfly wing.”

10.  “Whatever else we may say about it, the atonement fulfills the Jewish principle that only one who has been hurt can forgive. At Calvary, God chose to be hurt.”

11.  “[...]women much like this prostitute fled toward Jesus, not away from him. The worse a person felt about herself, the more likely she saw Jesus as a refuge. Has the church lost that gift?” (What’s So Amazing About Grace?)

12.  “The problem of pain meets its match in the scandal of grace.”

13.  “Sociologists have a theory of the looking-glass self: you become what the most important person in your life (wife, father, boss, etc.) thinks you are. How would my life change if I truly believed the Bible's astounding words about God's love for me, if I looked in the mirror and saw what God sees?” (What’s So Amazing About Grace?)

14.  “God's terrible insistence on human freedom is so absolute that he granted us the power to live as though He did not exist, to spit in His face, to crucify Him.” (The Jesus I Never Knew)

15.  “We admit that we will never reach our ideal in this life, a distinctive the church claims that most other human institutions try to deny.”

16.  “If God doesn't want something for me, I shouldn't want it either. Spending time in meditative prayer, getting to know God, helps align my desires with God's.” (Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?)

17.  “A God wise enough to create me and the world I live in is wise enough to watch out for me.” (Where Is God When It Hurts?)

18.  “Christ bears the wounds of the church, his body, just as he bore the wounds of crucifixion. I sometimes wonder which have hurt worse.” (The Jesus I Never Knew)

19.  “Power, no matter how well-intentioned, tends to cause suffering. Love, being vulnerable, absorbs it. In a point of convergence on a hill called Calvary, God renounced the one for the sake of the other.” (The Jesus I Never Knew)

20.  “Yet as I read the birth stories about Jesus I cannot help but conclude that though the world may be tilted toward the rich and powerful, God is tilted toward the underdog.”

21.  “Any discussion of how pain and suffering fit into God's scheme ultimately leads back to the cross.”

22.  “Christians get very angry toward other Christians who sin differently than they do.”

23.  “Love deems this world worth rescuing.”

24.  “We need faith and the mind of the Lord Jesus to recognize something of lasting value in even our most ordinary tasks.”

25.  “We grow up hungry for love, and in ways so deep as to remain unexpressed we long for our Maker to love us.” (What’s So Amazing About Grace?)

26.  “Grace is everywhere, like lenses that go unnoticed because you are looking through them.” (What’s So Amazing About Grace?)

27.  “Some things just have to be believed to be seen.” (Grace Notes: Daily Readings with a Fellow Pilgrim)

Philip Yancey is one of the best writers out there.  He says things that pop out at you and make you think.  His words will continue to affect people many years to come.  I hope you have enjoyed this article and these wonderful quotes from Philip Yancey!  God bless you all!

If you found this quote article entertaining we here at F&E have many other great quote articles, including the following link to Francis Chan quotes!

Resources- The Holy Bible, English Standard Version“Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”, www.youtube.com,photo credit: Waiting For The Word via photopin cc