black
grey
blue
red
brown
white

We tend to see God as a means through which we get things to make us happy. For most of us, He has not become our happiness.

Timothy Keller

The key question in order to change you is not ‘What would Jesus do?’ but “What has Jesus done for you?”
TIMOTHY KELLER

Change Done Jesus Key Order Question
The Gospel is that Jesus Christ came to earth, lived the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Came Christ Death Died Earth Gospel Jesus Life Live
God relentlessly offers his grace to people who do not deserve it, or seek it, or even appreciate it after they have been saved by it.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Appreciate Deserve God Grace Offer People Relentlessly Save Seek
The world values power, comfort, success, and recognition. Jesus frees us to value grief, sacrifice, weakness, and exclusion.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Comfort Grief Jesus Power Recognition Sacrifice Success Value World
Religion: ‘My identity is built on being a good person.’ Gospel: ‘My identity is not built on my record or my performance but on Christ’s.’
TIMOTHY KELLER

Christ Good Identity Performance Person Record Religion
When Job was prospering, he prayed. When he was suffering, he still prayed.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Pray Proper Still Suffer
After creation God said, ‘It is finished’-and he rested. After redemption Jesus said, ‘It is finished’-and we can rest.
TIMOTHY KELLER

After Creation Finish God Jesus Redemption Rest
Jesus Christ was treated as we deserved so that when we believe in Jesus, God treats us as Jesus deserves.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Believe Christ Deserve God Jesus Treat
If our identity is in our work, rather than Christ, success will go to our heads, and failure will go to our hearts.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Failure Go Head Heart Identity Rather Success Work
Suffering can refine us rather than destroy us because God himself walks with us in the fire.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Destroy Fire God Himself Refine Suffering Walk
Prayer is the way to experience a powerful confidence that God is handling our lives well, that our bad things will turn out for good, our good things cannot be taken from us, and the best things are yet to come.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Bad Experience God Good Handle Live Our Out Powerful Prayer Taken Thing Turn
Fear-based repentance makes us hate ourselves. Joy-based repentance makes us hate the sin.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Base Bases Fear Hate Joy Make Ourselves Repentance Sin
Generosity is not only about money. There is more than one currency. Let your generosity be pervasive in life.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Currency Generosity Life Money One Only Perceive
There are some needs only you can see. There are some hands only you can hold. There are some people only you can reach.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Hand Hold Inspirational Need People Reach Some
Success and suffering will either darken your heart or make you wise, but they won’t leave you where you were.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Access Darken Heart Leave Make Suffer Wise
God invites us to come as we are, not stay as we are.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Come God Invite Stay
If you don’t feel like praying, pray to God to give you the desire.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Desire Feel God Pray
How do you change your behavior? Change what you worship
TIMOTHY KELLER

Behavior Bless Change Worship
This leads to deep humility and deep confidence at the same time. It undermines both swaggering and sniveling. I cannot feel superior to anyone, and yet I have nothing to prove to anyone. I do not think more of myself nor less of myself. Instead, I think of myself less.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Anyone Deed Humanity Less Myself Nothing Superior Swagger Think Undermine
We instinctively tend to limit for whom we exert ourselves. We do it for people like us, and for people whom we like. Jesus will have none of that.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Brother Exert Instinctively Jesus Limit Ourselves Race
To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Comfort Fear Fully Greatest Know Love Superficial True Love
Religion says earn your life. Secular society says create your life. Jesus says, ‘My life for your life.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Create Earn Jesus Life Religion Say Secular Society
We were designed to know, serve, and love God supremely – and when we are faithful to that design, we flourish.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Design Dream Faithful Flourish Love Service Supremely
Christ did not suffer so you wouldn’t suffer. He suffered so when you suffer you will become like Him.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Become Christ Like Suffer
Christians tend to motivate others with guilt. We tend to say: You would do this if you were really committed Christians, indicating that we are committed and all that is needed is for others to become as good as we are!
TIMOTHY KELLER

Christian Guilt Motivate Motivation Other Say Shoes Tend
If anything becomes more fundamental than God to your happiness, meaning of life, and identity then it is an idol.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Anything Become Fundamental God Identity Idol Idols Life Meaning
The purpose of Jesus’s coming is to put the whole world right, to renew and restore the creation, not to escape it.
TIMOTHY KELLER

Creation Escape Jesus Purpose Put Renew Restore Right World

We tend to see God as a means through which we get things to make us happy. For most of us, He has not become our happiness.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

We tend to see God as a means through which we get things to make us happy. For most of us, He has not become our happiness.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Timothy Keller Quotes