--- title: "3 Consistently Quotes By Philip Yancey" description: "3 Consistently quotes by Philip Yancey. Plus more from Philip Yancey and more Consistently sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2e/philip-yancey-840_bolts_if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts_395363.png" --- > [If God consistently sent lightning bolts in response to bad doctrine, our planet would sparkle nightly like a Christmas tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts-in-response-to-bad-doctrine/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2e/philip-yancey-840_bolts_if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts_395363.png) > [Individuals and societies are not helpless victims of heredity. We have the power to change - not by looking "down" to nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/individuals-and-societies-are-not-helpless-victims-of-heredity-we/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/philip-yancey-840_christian_individuals-and-societies-are-not-helple_1607572.jpg) > [Jesus is the best clue we have as to what God is like and He is consistently gracious and merciful, especially to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-is-the-best-clue-we-have-as-to-what-god-is-like-and-he-is/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b4/philip-yancey-840_clue_jesus-is-the-best-clue-we-have-as-to-wha_2739301.png) ## Other authors on Consistently ## More by Philip Yancey > [“God reproduces and lives out His image in millions of ordinary people like us. It is a supreme mystery. We are called to bear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/god-reproduces-and-lives-out-his-image-in-millions-of-ordinary-people/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Curiously, the righteous Pharisees had little historical impact, save for a brief time in a remote corner of the Roman Empire. But Jesus' disciples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/curiously-the-righteous-pharisees-had-little-historical-impact-save/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Love deems this world worth rescuing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/love-deems-this-world-worth-rescuing/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [People instinctively know the difference between something done with a profit motive and something done with a love motive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/people-instinctively-know-the-difference-between-something-done-with/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [In a nutshell, the Bible from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22 tells the story of a God reckless with desire to get his family back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/in-a-nutshell-the-bible-from-genesis-3-to-revelation-22-tells-the/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [You can know the law by heart without knowing the heart of it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/you-can-know-the-law-by-heart-without-knowing-the-heart-of-it/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“I have marveled at, and sometimes openly questioned, the self-restraint God has shown throughout history, allowing the Genghis Khans and the Hitlers and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-have-marveled-at-and-sometimes-openly-questioned-the-self-restraint/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [C. S. Lewis observed that almost all crimes of Christian history have come about when religion is confused with politics. Politics, which always runs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/c-s-lewis-observed-that-almost-all-crimes-of-christian-history-have/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Having spent time around "sinners" and also around purported saints, I have a hunch why Jesus spent so much time with the former group:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/having-spent-time-around-sinners-and-also-around-purported-saints-i/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [We preach sermons, write books on apologetics, conduct city-wide evangelistic campaigns. For those alienated from the church, that approach no longer has the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/we-preach-sermons-write-books-on-apologetics-conduct-city-wide/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [I begin with confession not in order to feel miserable, rather to call to mind a reality I often ignore. When I acknowledge where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-begin-with-confession-not-in-order-to-feel-miserable-rather-to-call/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Jesus reserved his hardest words for the hidden sins of hypocrisy, pride, greed and legalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-reserved-his-hardest-words-for-the-hidden-sins-of-hypocrisy/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“What greater gift could Christians give to the world than the forming of a culture that upholds grace and forgiveness?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/what-greater-gift-could-christians-give-to-the-world-than-the-forming/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“For us who are Christians, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is proof positive that love is stronger than hate, that life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/for-us-who-are-christians-the-death-and-resurrection-of-jesus-christ/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consistently/philip-yancey/#itemlist", "name": "3 Consistently Quotes By Philip Yancey", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If God consistently sent lightning bolts in response to bad doctrine, our planet would sparkle nightly like a Christmas tree.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philip Yancey" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts-in-response-to-bad-doctrine/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2e/philip-yancey-840_bolts_if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts_395363.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2e/philip-yancey-840_bolts_if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts_395363.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2e/philip-yancey-840_bolts_if-god-consistently-sent-lightning-bolts_395363.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If God consistently sent lightning bolts in response to bad doctrine, our planet would sparkle nightly like…” — Philip Yancey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Individuals and societies are not helpless victims of heredity. 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