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Dallas Willard Quotes

Philosopher

Dallas Willard was an American philosopher known for his contributions to practical theology and moral philosophy. His works explored faith, moral life, and spiritual practice, having a profound impact on contemporary Christian philosophy.

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Famous Dallas Willard Quotes

“Jesus's words are the best information on the subjects of greatest importance to human beings—whether they know it or not. He is the only solid foundation for our ideas. So here's an example of a big idea from Jesus: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 4:17, KJV). The time is fulfilled. The kingdom of the heavens is right here. That is what Jesus preached. He preached the immediate availability of the kingdom of the heavens to anyone who would simply turn and walk into it. He preached discipleship as the greatest opportunity that any human being will ever have. He preached discipleship, because discipleship is how we get our ideas corrected.”

Ideas Jesus Heaven Christianity Information Kingdom Discipleship

Book:The Allure of Gentleness: Defending the Faith in the Manner of Jesus

Source: The Allure of Gentleness: Defending the Faith in the Manner of Jesus

“There is knowledge of God and the spiritual nature of man, as well as other types of reality..., that are not reducible to the world dealt with by the so-called "natural" sciences. The idea that knowledge - and, of course, reality - is limited to that world is the single most destructive idea on the stage of life today.”

Men World Wells Ideas Reality Today Spiritual Courses Natural Stage Type Destructive Nature Of Man Natural Science Knowledge Of God Stages Of Life Spiritual Nature

Author:Dallas Willard

“The revolution of Jesus is in the first place and continuously a revolution of the human heart or spirit...it is a revolution of character which proceeds by changing people from the inside through ongoing personal relationship to God in Christ and to one another. It is one that changes their ideas, beliefs, feelings, and habits of choice, as well as their bodily tendencies and social relations. It penetrates to the deepest layer of their soul. External, social arrangements may be used to this end, but they are not the end, nor are they a fundamental part of the means”

“When [Satan] undertook to draw Eve away from God, he did not hit her with a stick, but with an idea. It was with an idea that God could not be trusted and that she must act on her own to secure her own well-being.”

Wells Ideas Draws Sticks Secure Well Being Satan Trusted

Book:The Kingdom Life: A Practical Theology of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation

Source: The Kingdom Life: A Practical Theology of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation

“The needed transformation is very largely a matter of replacing in ourselves those idea systems of evil (and their corresponding cultures) with the idea system that Jesus Christ embodied and taught and with a culture of the kingdom of God.”

Ideas Matter Culture Evil Jesus Christ Taught Needed Jesus Christ Transformation Kingdoms Kingdom Of God Corresponding

Author:Dallas Willard

“Spiritual formation in Christ moves us toward a total interchange of our ideas and images for his.”

Ideas Spiritual Moving Christ Formation Interchange Spiritual Formation

Book:The Kingdom Life: A Practical Theology of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation

Source: The Kingdom Life: A Practical Theology of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation

“I was in a fascinating meeting where one man had been in China recently. A Chinese professor has found evidence that Christians reached Western China before 90 AD. Before 90 AD! The idea isn't all that astonishing when we think about it. That's what the disciples thought they were supposed to do! And, I'm sure, the disciples just said, "That's it. Let's go!" And they all wound up dead. But everyone else did too!”

Thinking Men Said Ideas Christian Found Evidence Meetings Western China Wounds Chinese Fascinating One Man Professors Ads Disciple Astonishing

Author:Dallas Willard

“That's the illusion - the idea that you can be all right on the inside and not act it out - and it has affected us in many ways. That's a part of the idea that professing is enough.”

Way Ideas Enough Illusion Affected

Author:Dallas Willard

“We live in a culture that has, for centuries now, cultivated the idea that the skeptical person is always smarter than one who believes. You can almost be as stupid as a cabbage as long as you doubt.”

Believe Persons Long Ideas Culture Doubt Century Stupid Smarter Skeptical Believe You Can Cabbage

Author:Dallas Willard

“Happiness in reality consists only in rest, and not in being stirred up. This instinct conflicts with the drive to diversion, and we develop the confused idea that leads people to aim at rest through excitement.”

People Ideas Reality Conflict Aim Instinct Excitement Confused Diversion

Author:Dallas Willard

“There is no avoiding the fact that we live at the mercy of our ideas This is never more true than with our ideas about God.”

Ideas Facts Mercy Avoiding Hearing God

Author:Dallas Willard

“The idea that everything would happen exactly as it does regardless of whether we pray or not is a specter that haunts the minds of many who sincerely profess belief in God. It makes prayer psychologically impossible, replacing it with dead ritual at best.”

Mind Doe Ideas Happens Belief Prayer Impossible Praying Ritual Sincerely Belief In God

Author:Dallas Willard

“The truly powerful ideas are precisely the ones that never have to justify themselves.”

Ideas Powerful Justify

Book:The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life In God

Source: The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life In God

“The idea of having faith in Jesus has come to be totally isolated from being his apprentice and learning how to do what he said.”

Said Ideas Jesus Have Faith Isolated Apprentice Faith In Jesus

Author:Dallas Willard

“Discipleship' as a term has lost its content, and this is one reason why it has been moved aside. I've tried to redeem the idea of discipleship, and I think it can be done; you have to get it out of the contemporary mode.”

Thinking Has Beens Ideas Reason Done Lost Term Moved Contemporary Reason Why Discipleship

Author:Dallas Willard