--- title: "8 Christianity Primarily Quotes by 7 authors" description: "Browse 8 Christianity Primarily quotes by 7 authors. Discover the best Christianity Primarily sayings and thoughts." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7b/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_274026.jpg" --- > [“We may be tempted to think of Christianity primarily as 'I must...,' but that is not the starting place. You cannot make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-snyder/we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christianity-primarily-as-i-must-but/) [John Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-snyder/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7b/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_274026.jpg) > [“...it is most certainly Christianity itself which is primarily responsible for the intellectual sloppiness of its critics. Apart from the single instance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/it-is-most-certainly-christianity-itself-which-is-primarily/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/terry-eagleton-1660_christianity_it-is-most-certainly-christianity-itself_1128458.jpg) > [Christianity is not primarily about lifestyle change; it is about knowing God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-reeves/christianity-is-not-primarily-about-lifestyle-change-it-is-about/) [Michael Reeves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-reeves/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e52/michael-reeves-23589_change_christianity-is-not-primarily-about-life_1170822.jpg) > [THE NINETEENTH CENTURY SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY WAS DUE PRIMARILY TO A NEW BURST OF RELIGIOUS LIFE EMANATING FROM THE CHRISTIAN IMPULSE. .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-scott-latourette/the-nineteenth-century-spread-of-christianity-was-due-primarily-to-a/) [Kenneth Scott Latourette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-scott-latourette/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kenneth-scott-latourette-23006_century_the-nineteenth-century-spread-of-christi_1380293.jpg) > [The confessing church of American Ragamuffins needs to join Magdalene and Peter in witnessing that Christianity is not primarily a moral code…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/the-confessing-church-of-american-ragamuffins-needs-to-join-magdalene/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/brennan-manning-959_affair_the-confessing-church-of-american-ragamu_1828529.png) > [“Love, and you are a success whether or not the world thinks so. The highest purpose of Christianity--which is primarily a way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-sloane-coffin/love-and-you-are-a-success-whether-or-not-the-world-thinks-so-the/) [William Sloane Coffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-sloane-coffin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb9/william-sloane-coffin-4839_christianity_love-and-you-are-a-success-whether-or-no_1966938.png) > [“We may be tempted to think of Christianity primarily as 'I must...,' but that is not the starting place. You cannot make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-snyder/we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christianity-primarily-as-i-must-but-2/) [John Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-snyder/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/437/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_2836701.jpg) > [“Christianity is not primarily a moral code but a grace-laden mystery; it is not essentially a philosophy of love but a love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-bruner/christianity-is-not-primarily-a-moral-code-but-a-grace-laden-mystery/) [Kay Bruner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-bruner/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18a/kay-bruner-252703_christianity_christianity-is-not-primarily-a-moral-co_2947004.jpg) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity-primarily/#itemlist", "name": "Christianity Primarily Quotes", "numberOfItems": 8, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We may be tempted to think of Christianity primarily as 'I must...,' but that is not the starting place. You cannot make yourself a child of God by doing things a child of God does, any more than you could make yourself an heir to Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain by walking around in royal clothes and waving kindly at people. The duty of the Christian life--the 'I must...,'--is caused by something else. We may think of the Christian life as primarily about 'He has.' The work of God for our salvation is certainly a significant part of Christianity and is the reason that we are able to live a life of obedience. But even the 'He has...' is not the foundation of Christianity, for that itself is built upon a larger and deeper foundation. The greatest truth of Christianity is summed up in the words 'He is.' Who He is must be understood if we are going to grasp what He has done to save us.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Snyder" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-snyder/we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christianity-primarily-as-i-must-but/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7b/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_274026.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7b/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_274026.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7b/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_274026.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We may be tempted to think of Christianity primarily as 'I must...,' but that is not the starting place. 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Apart from the single instance of Stalinism, it is hard to think of a historical movement that has more squalidly betrayed its own revolutionary origins...For the most part, it has become the creed of the suburban well-to-do, not the astonishing promise offered to the riffraff and undercover anti-colonial militants with whom Jesus himself hung out...This brand of piety is horrified by the sight of a female breast, but considerably less appalled by the obscene inequalities between rich and poor.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Terry Eagleton" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/it-is-most-certainly-christianity-itself-which-is-primarily/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/terry-eagleton-1660_christianity_it-is-most-certainly-christianity-itself_1128458.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/terry-eagleton-1660_christianity_it-is-most-certainly-christianity-itself_1128458.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/terry-eagleton-1660_christianity_it-is-most-certainly-christianity-itself_1128458.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“...it is most certainly Christianity itself which is primarily responsible for the intellectual sloppiness…” — Terry Eagleton", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Christianity is not primarily about lifestyle change; it is about knowing God.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Reeves" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-reeves/christianity-is-not-primarily-about-lifestyle-change-it-is-about/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e52/michael-reeves-23589_change_christianity-is-not-primarily-about-life_1170822.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e52/michael-reeves-23589_change_christianity-is-not-primarily-about-life_1170822.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e52/michael-reeves-23589_change_christianity-is-not-primarily-about-life_1170822.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Christianity is not primarily about lifestyle change; it is about knowing God.” — Michael Reeves", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "THE NINETEENTH CENTURY SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY WAS DUE PRIMARILY TO A NEW BURST OF RELIGIOUS LIFE EMANATING FROM THE CHRISTIAN IMPULSE. . . . NEVER IN ANY CORRESPONDING LENGTH OF TIME HAD THE CHRISTIAN IMPULSE GIVEN RISE TO SO MANY NEW MOVEMENTS. NEVER HAD IT HAD QUITE SO GREAT AN EFFECT UPON WESTERN EUROPEAN PEOPLES. IT WAS FROM THIS ABOUNDING VIGOR THAT THERE ISSUED THE MISSIONARY ENTERPRISE WHICH DURING THE NINETEENTH CENTURY SO AUGMENTED THE NUMERICAL STRENGTH AND THE INFLUENCE OF CHRISTIANITY.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kenneth Scott Latourette" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-scott-latourette/the-nineteenth-century-spread-of-christianity-was-due-primarily-to-a/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kenneth-scott-latourette-23006_century_the-nineteenth-century-spread-of-christi_1380293.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kenneth-scott-latourette-23006_century_the-nineteenth-century-spread-of-christi_1380293.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kenneth-scott-latourette-23006_century_the-nineteenth-century-spread-of-christi_1380293.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“THE NINETEENTH CENTURY SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY WAS DUE PRIMARILY TO A NEW BURST OF RELIGIOUS LIFE EMANATING…” — Kenneth Scott Latourette", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The confessing church of American Ragamuffins needs to join Magdalene and Peter in witnessing that Christianity is not primarily a moral code but a grace-laden mystery; it is not essentially a philosophy of love but a love affair; it is not keeping rules with clenched fists but receiving a gift with open hands.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brennan Manning" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/the-confessing-church-of-american-ragamuffins-needs-to-join-magdalene/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/brennan-manning-959_affair_the-confessing-church-of-american-ragamu_1828529.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/brennan-manning-959_affair_the-confessing-church-of-american-ragamu_1828529.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/brennan-manning-959_affair_the-confessing-church-of-american-ragamu_1828529.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The confessing church of American Ragamuffins needs to join Magdalene and Peter in witnessing that…” — Brennan Manning", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Love, and you are a success whether or not the world thinks so. The highest purpose of Christianity--which is primarily a way of life, not a system of belief--is to love one another.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Sloane Coffin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-sloane-coffin/love-and-you-are-a-success-whether-or-not-the-world-thinks-so-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb9/william-sloane-coffin-4839_christianity_love-and-you-are-a-success-whether-or-no_1966938.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb9/william-sloane-coffin-4839_christianity_love-and-you-are-a-success-whether-or-no_1966938.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb9/william-sloane-coffin-4839_christianity_love-and-you-are-a-success-whether-or-no_1966938.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Love, and you are a success whether or not the world thinks so. 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But even 'He has...' is not the foundation of Christianity, for that itself is built upon a larger and deeper foundation. The greatest truth of Christianity is summed up in the words 'He is.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Snyder" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-snyder/we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christianity-primarily-as-i-must-but-2/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/437/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_2836701.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/437/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_2836701.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/437/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_2836701.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We may be tempted to think of Christianity primarily as 'I must...,' but that is not the starting place. You…” — John Snyder", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Christianity is not primarily a moral code but a grace-laden mystery; it is not essentially a philosophy of love but a love affair; it is not keeping rules with clenched fists but receiving a gift with open hands.”—Brennan Manning”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kay Bruner" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-bruner/christianity-is-not-primarily-a-moral-code-but-a-grace-laden-mystery/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18a/kay-bruner-252703_christianity_christianity-is-not-primarily-a-moral-co_2947004.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18a/kay-bruner-252703_christianity_christianity-is-not-primarily-a-moral-co_2947004.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18a/kay-bruner-252703_christianity_christianity-is-not-primarily-a-moral-co_2947004.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Christianity is not primarily a moral code but a grace-laden mystery; it is not essentially a philosophy of…” — Kay Bruner", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity-primarily/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity-primarily/", "name": "Christianity Primarily Quotes", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity-primarily/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7b/john-snyder-51974_children_we-may-be-tempted-to-think-of-christiani_274026.jpg" }, "description": "Browse 8 Christianity Primarily quotes by 7 authors. 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