Richard Stearns Quotes

#1. Saint Francis of Assisi understood the power of faith put into action to change the human heart, for it was he who said, "Preach the gospel always; when necessary use words." We had not yet spoken a word in their language, but the village elders had already "heard" the gospel.

Richard Stearns

#2. God's love was intended to be demonstrated, not dictated.

Richard Stearns

#3. Every act of kindness, each moment spent in prayer, and every expression of love in the name of Christ pierces the heart of the enemy and sends him into retreat. These are the gentle weapons of the kingdom.

Richard Stearns

#4. What if we actually demonstrated God's love for the world instead of just talking about it?

Richard Stearns

#5. I believe that this could very well be looked back on as the sin of our generation ... I believe that our children and their children, 40 or 50 years from now, are going to ask me, what did you do while 40 million children became orphans in Africa?

Richard Stearns

#6. Can you imagine the impact on our own culture if American Christians began using their riches as if they belonged to God?

Richard Stearns

#7. it also signified the coming of God's kingdom on earth. This

Richard Stearns

#8. God never asks us to give what we do not have ... But he cannot use what we will not give.

Richard Stearns

#9. Love always requires tangible expression. It needs hands and feet.

Richard Stearns

#10. We must move beyond an anemic view of our faith as something only personal and private, with no public dimension, and instead see it as the source of power that can change the world.

Richard Stearns

#11. To even be Christians, we must first believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. That in itself is no small idea. If it is true, it changes everything because if Christ is God, then all that he said and did is deeply significant to how we live our lives. So we believe. But God expects more.

Richard Stearns

#12. We have not been promised rescue from this world; we have been commanded to go and take back this world. The Great Commission is Jesus' call to storm the gates of hell and to liberate his children, establishing his kingdom.

Richard Stearns

#13. It's not what you believe that counts; it's what you believe enough to do.

Richard Stearns

#14. A church that's lost it's voice for justice is a church that's lost it's relevance in the world.

Richard Stearns

#15. Don't fail to do something just because you can't do everything

Richard Stearns

#16. If we truly love God, we will express it by loving our neighbors, and when we truly love our neighbors, it expresses our love for God.

Richard Stearns

#17. The beautiful simplicity of our faith is that it distills down to the exact same bottom line for both the brilliant theologian and the five-year-old child: love God and love each other - period.

Richard Stearns

#18. But I want to be clear that this does not mean we are saved by piling up enough good works to satisfy God. No, it means that any authentic and genuine commitment to Christ will be accompanied by demonstrable evidence of a transformed life.

Richard Stearns

#19. Even a small match
lit in a place of total
darkness gives off a
blinding light.

Richard Stearns

#20. is a misunderstanding we often have

Richard Stearns

#21. What if there are children who will suffer somehow because I failed to obey God? What if my cowardice costs even one child somewhere in the world his or her life?

Richard Stearns

#22. To be a disciple means forsaking everything to follow Jesus, unconditionally, putting our lives completely in His hands. When we say that we want to be His disciple, yet attach a list of conditions, Jesus refuses to accept our terms. His terms involve unconditional surrender.

Richard Stearns

#23. The idea behind The Hole in Our Gospel is quite simple. It's basically the belief that being a Christian, or a follower of Jesus Christ, requires much more than just having a personal and transforming relationship with God. It also entails a public and transforming relationship with the world.

Richard Stearns