“One desire has been the ruling passion of my life.”

He is your friend who pushes you nearer to God.

The curse should no longer rest upon the world itself, but upon that which is sinful in it, and instead of monastic flight from the world the duty is now emphasized of serving God in the world, in every position in life.

… we have gratefully to receive from the hand of God the institution of the state with its magistrates as a means of preservation….

There is not one square inch of the entire creation about which Jesus does not cry out, ‘This is mine!’

Unity is the ultimate goal of all the ways of God.

You must at the price of dearest peace lay your convictions bare before friend and enemy with all the fire of your faith.

We understand hereby, that the family, the business, science, art and so forth are all social spheres, which do not owe their existence to the State, but obey a high authority within their own bosom

Sin lives solely by plagiarising the ideas of God

Lutheranism restricted itself to an exclusively ecclesiastical and theological character, while Calvinism put its impress in and outside the church upon every aspect of human life.

There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower.

Whatever man may stand, whatever he may do, to whatever he may apply his hand – in agriculture, in commerce, and in industry, or his mind, in the world of art, and science.

An authority which rules, by the grace of God, just as the sovereignty of the State does.

It is everywhere, in all parts of the world; and whatever its external form, frequently changing, often impure, yet the gifts wherever received increase our riches.

He is employed in the service of his God. He has strictly to obey his God. And above all, he has to aim at the glory of his God.

The Holy Scripture is like a diamond: in the dark it is like a piece of glass, but as soon as the light strikes it the water begins to sparkle, and the scintillation of life greets us.

It is impossible, Bible in hand, to limit Christ’s Church to one’s own little community.

The motive of art comes to us not from what exists, but from the notion that there is something higher, something nobler, something richer, and that what exists corresponds only partially to all of this.

I value science–none can prize it more, It gives ten thousand motives to adore: Be it religious, as it ought to be, The heart it humbles, and it bows the knee.

The Man who works for others, without any selfish motive, really does good to himself.

Evolution of consciousness is the central motive of terrestrial existence.

The only work that spiritually purifies us is that which is done without personal motives.

This strange disease of modern life, With its sick hurry, its divided aims.

No woman dares to refuse love without a motive, for nothing is more natural than to yield to love.

People’s behavior makes sense if you think about it in terms of their goals, needs, and motives.