Quotes of Ancient Wisdom
Some of my favorite Quotes I find useful in my life, & a few of my own. There are more sub-pages of quotes on different subjects like: Wise People on Successful Life Experiences and even Government, click the links at the bottom of this page. Be Inspired and Enjoy!
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” ~ John Quincy Adams
“Faith is to believe what you do not see; – the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.” - Saint Augustine
“Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation.”
“Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there.” -Will Rogers
Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. – Thomas Edison
“Don’t fight forces, use them.” - R. Buckminster Fuller
My great concern is not whether you have failed; But whether you are content with your failure. ~ The Great Failure himself – Abraham Lincoln.
… as a wise man once said: “An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.” ~ John F Kennedy
” If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking” ~ General George Patton
Discernment is not a matter of simply telling the difference between what is right and wrong; rather, it is the difference between right and almost right. ~Charles Spurgeon
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” ~Mark Twain
Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strength. ~ Charles Spurgeon
“It behooves a father to be blameless if he expects his child to be.” ~ Homer
Be often with those more experienced than yourself. “Association begets assimilation” ~ Thomas Watson
Courage is Resistance to fear, Mastery of fear; not absence of fear. ~ Mark Twain
Sow a thought and you reap and act. Sow an act and you reap a habit. Sow a habit and you reap a character. Sow a character and you reap a DESTINY~ Charles Reade
“The missionary heart: Care more than some think wise. Risk more than some think safe. Dream more than some think is practical. Expect more than some think is possible. I was called not to comfort or success but to obedience…There is no joy outside of knowing Jesus and serving him.” – Karen Watson
As water tastes of the soil it runs through, So does a soul tastes of the authors a man reads. ~ John Trapp
“A firm faith in the universal providence of God is the solution to all earthly troubles.” – Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield
I wish, brothers and sisters, that we could all imitate “the pearl oyster”—A hurtful particle intrudes itself into its shell, and this vexes and grieves it. It cannot reject the evil, but what does it do but “cover” it with a precious substance extracted out of its own life, by which it turns the intruder into a pearl! Oh, that we could do so with the provocations we receive from our fellow Christians, so that pearls of patience, gentleness, and forgiveness might be bred within us by that which otherwise would have harmed us. ~ Charles Spurgeon
1 Cor 13:4 Love … is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, … 7 bears all things, … endures all things. 8 Love never fails; NASB
1 Peter 4:8 And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins . NKJV
Jesus knew that all mankind were in the pursuit of happiness. He has directed them in the true way to it, and He tells them what they must become in order to be blessed and happy.~ Jonathan Edwards
“Poor, frail, mortal man! what can he do against me, if God be for me? And therefore why should I fear? Men may contrive schemes, form weapons, and attempt many things against the saints, but can execute nothing, except permitted by the Lord; and the utmost they can do, when suffered, is to kill the body.” - John Gill
“Whatsoever we scatter to the poor, we gather for ourselves. Not getting, but giving, is the way to wealth. The poor man’s hand is Christ’s treasury, Christ’s bank. Oh let not Christ’s hand and Christ’s treasury be empty! and yet be careful that what you cast into Christ’s treasury be got in Christ’s wages.”~ Thomas Brooks -The Hypocrite Detected
“Peace often comes as a result of conflict!” Don P Mt 18:15-17 Rom 12:18
“Cowards never won heaven. Do not claim that you are begotten of God and have His royal blood running in your veins unless you can prove your lineage by this heroic spirit: to dare to be holy in spite of men and devils.” - William Gurnall
“Peace if possible, truth at all costs.” - Martin Luther
“Sometimes the truth isn’t “nice” – but it is always focused and unyielding.” – John MacArthur
“Truth must be spoken, however it be taken.” - John Trapp
“Hard words, if they be true, are better than soft words if they be false.” – C.H. Spurgeon
“Truth bites and it stings and it has a blade on it.” ~ Paul Washer
“It is true, where doctrine is not right, it is impossible for the life to be right and good; for life is fathered and fashioned by doctrine” ~Martin Luther
“Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.” – G. K. Chesterton
“All the blessings we enjoy are Divine deposits, committed to our trust on this condition, that they should be dispensed for the benefit of our neighbors.” – John Calvin
“[Some say] ‘You cannot judge my Christianity by what I do because you can’t look in my heart.’ If I see what you do, I don’t have to look in your heart, because what you do and especially what comes out of your mouth will tell me everything and more that I need to know about your heart. For the mouth and the deeds are a perfect barometer for the condition of your heart.” ~ Paul Washer
“It is one of the severest tests of friendship to tell your friend his faults. So to love a man that you cannot bear to see a stain upon him, and to speak painful truth through loving words, that is friendship.” – Henry Ward Beecher
Better to not have peace with men, than to not have peace with God. ~ Don P
“If you are not content with what you have, you would not be satisfied if it were doubled.” ~ Spurgeon
“Adversity is the diamond dust Heaven polishes its jewels with.” ~ ROBERT LEIGHTON
Infirmities are a ground of humility, not a plea for negligence, nor an encouragement to presumption. – Richard Sibbes “ The Bruised Reed
Glory follows afflictions, not as the day follows the night but as the spring follows the winter; for the winter prepares the earth for the spring, so do afflictions sanctified, prepare the soul for glory. ~Richard Sibbes
“There is no book of the Bible which affords a better test of the depth of a man’s Christianity than the Song of Solomon” ~ Robert Murray M’Cheyne
“To discern our state in grace, let us chiefly look to our affections for they are intrinsic and not subject to hypocrisy. Men of great parts know much and so does the devil, but he lacks love. In fire all things may be painted by the heat; so all good actions may be done by a hypocrite but there is a heat of love which he has not. We should therefore chiefly examine the truth and sincerity of our affections towards God”. ~Richard Sibbes
“See that your chief study be about the heart, that there God’s image may be planted, and his interest advanced, and the interest of the world and flesh subdued, and the love of every sin cast out, and the love of holiness succeed; and that you content not yourselves with seeming to do good in outward acts, when you are bad yourselves, and strangers to the great internal duties. The first and great work of a Christian is about his heart.” - Richard Baxter
“There is no book of the Bible which affords a better test of the depth of a man’s Christianity than the Song of Solomon” ~ Robert Murray M’Cheyne
Isn’t that the truth!
Some can be smart, some can do great works, some can serve others sacrificially and more than themselves. But who can love the invisible God with all their heart soul and mind?
I need a savior for this,
and grace that I would love God more. Meditate on: Jesus prayed that the Father would love us with the same love that He loved the Son. Unimaginable!! John 17:23 .. have loved them as You have loved Me. 26 …that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” NKJV
Seek not to understand that you may believe, but believe that you may understand.- Saint Augustine 1 Cor 2:14
If we want to prepare for our final destination, we should begin to worship God here on earth. Our arrival in heaven will only be a continuation of what we have already begun. Praise is the language of heaven and the language of the faithful on earth. ~ Erwin Lutzer
“It is neglect of the Bible which makes so many a prey to the first false teacher whom they hear.” ~ J.C. Ryle
The doctrines of original sin, election, effectual calling, final perseverance, and all those great truths which are called Calvinism—though Calvin was not the author of them, but simply an able writer and preacher upon the subject—are, I believe, the essential doctrines of the Gospel that is in Jesus Christ. Now, I do not ask you whether you believe all this—it is possible you may not; but I believe you will before you enter heaven. I am persuaded, that as God may have washed your hearts, he will wash your brains before you enter heaven.” C. H. Spurgeon
Ps 104:4 Who makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire.
“Am I ignitable? God deliver me from the dread asbestos of ‘other things.’ Saturate me with the oil of the Spirit that I may be aflame. But flame is transient, often short-lived. “Canst thou bear this my soul – short life?”
“In me there dwells the spirit of the Great Short-Lived, whose zeal for God’s house consumed Him. Make me Thy Fuel, Flame of God“ Hebrews 12:28-29 says, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.”
~ Jim Elliot wrote this during his college years and Yes, he could bear the thought of a short life. The proof: For love of God he took the gospel to the Auca Indians and was killed at the hands of this people he loved more than his own life, leaving his wife behind. Is your life dear to you?
“If the professed convert distinctly and deliberately declares that he knows the Lord’s will, but does not mean to attend to it, you are not to pamper his presumptions, but it is your duty to assure him that he is not saved. Do not suppose that the Gospel is magnified or God-glorified by going to the world…and telling them that they may be saved at this moment by simply ‘accepting Christ’ as their Savior, while they are wedded to their idols, and their hearts are still in love with sin. If I do so, I tell them a lie, pervert the Gospel, insult Christ, and turn the grace of God into lasciviousness.” ~ Charles Spurgeon – Today’s Evangelism, pp. 25-26.
For Warfield the idea of unity at the expense of truth was folly – sin – and an evil compromise. The following exchange may help to understanding why B.B.Warfield was called “The Lion of Princeton.” “A lady once met him during the week of a General Assembly. ‘Dr. Warfield, I hear that there is going to be trouble at the Assembly. Do let us pray for peace.’ ” He responded, “I am praying that if they do not do what is right, there may be a mighty battle.” The exact opposite of the peace this lady desired. Let the (undesired) battle ensue. Perhaps out of the rubble truth would arise. The only peace and unity Warfield knew of was unity in truth – the Biblical definition of unity.
“Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.” - John Owen
“High degrees of true assurance cannot be enjoyed by those who persist in low levels of obedience.“ ~ Sinclair Ferguson
“If you believe what you like in the gospel, and reject what you don’t like, it is not the gospel you believe, but yourself.” – St Augustine
“The Christian is to proclaim and prosecute an irreconcilable war against his bosom sins; those sins which have lain nearest his heart, must now be trampled under his feet.” ~ William Gurnall -The Christian In Complete Armour, Vol I, Part First
“In conquering of those enemies that be within, you make a conquest over the devil and hell itself… And as this is the most noble conquest, so it is the most necessary conquest. You must be the death of your sins, or they will be the death of your souls. Sin is a viper, that does always kill where it is not killed. ~ Thomas Brooks - The Hypocrite Detected
The position of sin in a natural man is that of a king on his throne.
The position of sin in a Christian is that of a bandit hiding in secret places trying to get back its old usurped dominion, but failing in the attempt, for sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not
under the law, but under grace. ~ C. H. Spurgeon
“Step into the average church these days and you will likely see that the services are designed more to remove the fear of God than to promote it.” – Steven J. Lawson
Preachers with cold hearts will never warm and awaken the consciences of their hearers. Preaching is more than delivering a message from God; it is delivering a message from God in a manner consistent with that content. The message concerns the fire of God’s love and the fire of his judgment and hence can be authentically proclaimed only by hearts kindled with the fire of the Holy Spirit. False emotionalism, and the unrealistic dramatisation of the message, do not honor the Lord and tend only to alienate non-Christians further. But there is a true engagement of the heart in preaching . . . which is stamped with sincerity and which is an authentic reflection of the heart of the God whose gospel you proclaim. ~ Bruce Milne
If the minister’s own life and heart are not affected by what he preaches, neither will the hearers be affected. Though God could work apart from normal means, a minister whose religion goes no deeper than his intellect, should not expect that his message pierce and change the hearts of his hearers. Like Jacob he should continue to wrestle with God until He bless him with some new grace to take to his flock. ~ Don P
Is your spiritual combat a wrestling? come then, and play the man. Here are legions of devils ready to devour…furiously against you, determined to destroy…will you turn your back and fly? Shall Satan conquer without a struggle?…Satan is a conquered enemy; Christ conquered him for you, and he will conquer him by you, when you fight in his name - Isaac Ambrose
Most North American Christians have things so good right here in this world that they don’t really know what it is to long for heaven. God has blessed us with an abundance of earthly comforts – more than any prior generation in history. There is a danger that we become so comfortable in this life that we forget we are but strangers and pilgrims in this world. Like Abraham, we’re supposed to think of ourselves as vagabonds here on earth, looking for a city with eternal foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Heb. 11:10)… I often meet Christians who live as if heaven would be an unwelcome intrusion into their busy schedule – an interruption of career goals or holiday plans. – John MacArthur
Fierce drives the storm, but wind and waves within His hand are held,
And trusting His omnipotence My fears are sweetly quelled. ~ Brown
If I profess with loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at the moment attacking, I am not a confessing Christian. ~ Martin Luther
“Show me a believer who has become both a lover and a doer of the truth, and I’ll show you one who has been rejected and persecuted by the entire lukewarm Church.” – David Wilkerson
Silence is golden but more often it is guilty. The normal thing for Christians is to speak of what they know, to deal frankly against error, and to maintain freedom of discussion whenever challenged by an honest appeal of plain facts. But to shut up like a clam is sin by omission – failure to study God’s word or the fear of cost of unvoicing unpopular testimony.
If we are not keenly aware of our own helplessness, then we can make the use of the means of sanctification the minister of self-righteousness and pride and thus defeat the end of sanctification. We must rely not upon the means of sanctification but upon the God of all grace. ~ John Murray
“The greatest cause in the world is joyfully rescuing people from hell, meeting their earthly needs, making them glad in God, and doing it with a kind, serious pleasure that makes Christ look like the treasure he is”
Excellent Wisdom Quotes Continued – Click Here
Quotes on Wisdom for Daily Living
Quotes From Wise People on Successful Life Experiences
Quotes on Health and Nutrition
Quotes on Peace and Comfort in Trial & Afflictions
Quotes & Studies on Predestination
