--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would like to buy about three dollars…" description: "\"“I would like to buy about three dollars worth of gospel, please. Not too much – just enough to make me happy, but not so much that I get addicted. I d..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abd/d-a-carson-2-12097_christianity_i-would-like-to-buy-about-three-dollars_1184602.jpg" --- # I would like to buy about three dollars worth of gospel… ![“I would like to buy about three dollars worth of gospel, please. Not too much – just enough to make me happy, but not so much that I get addicted. I don't want so much gospel that I learn to really hate covetousness and lust. I certainly don't want so much that I start to love my enemies, cherish…” quote by D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abd/d-a-carson-2-12097_christianity_i-would-like-to-buy-about-three-dollars_1184602.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abd/d-a-carson-2-12097_christianity_i-would-like-to-buy-about-three-dollars_1184602.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abd/d-a-carson-2-12097_christianity_i-would-like-to-buy-about-three-dollars_1184602.jpg) > ““I would like to buy about three dollars worth of gospel, please. Not too much – just enough to make me happy, but not so much that I get addicted. I don't want so much gospel that I learn to really hate covetousness and lust. I certainly don't want so much that I start to love my enemies, cherish self-denial, and contemplate missionary service in some alien culture. I want ecstasy, not repentance; I want transcendence, not transformation. I would like to be cherished by some nice, forgiving, broad-minded people, but I myself don't want to love those from different races – especially if they smell. I would like enough gospel to make my family secure and my children well behaved, but not so much that I find my ambitions redirected or my giving too greatly enlarged. I would like about three dollars worth of gospel, please.”” [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A satirical take on wanting just enough religious comfort without moral challenge or personal growth. **In simple terms:** Wanting gospel like a cheap product, avoiding its deeper demands. Key Takeaway Recognize faith’s call to transformation, not mere pleasure. Themes faith consumerism morality identity social tension Mood ironic critical reflective Type satire commentary philosophical When to use this quote - personal devotion - family guidance - community expectations - social media discourse Key Concepts spiritual commodification ethical paradox cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - How does seeking comfort over challenge affect personal growth? - What does this say about modern spirituality? A Different Perspective May limit true spiritual depth and ethical development. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Different races](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-races/) [Gospel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gospel/) ## Related quotes > [The church meets to imagine what our lives can be like if the gospel were true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-brueggemann/the-church-meets-to-imagine-what-our-lives-can-be-like-if-the-gospel/) [Walter Brueggemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-brueggemann/) > [If thou hast sinned, lie not down without repentance; for the want of repentance, after one has sinned, makes the heart yet harder and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/if-thou-hast-sinned-lie-not-down-without-repentance-for-the-want-of/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [“We often want our enemies’ next step to be repentance because we want them to admit what they did to hurt us or how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-stevens/we-often-want-our-enemies-next-step-to-be-repentance-because-we-want/) Todd Stevens > [If you have sinned, do not lie down without repentance; for the want of repentance after one has sinned makes the heart yet harder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/if-you-have-sinned-do-not-lie-down-without-repentance-for-the-want-of/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [Repentance is but want of power to sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/repentance-is-but-want-of-power-to-sin/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [“Strangely enough, when you get older the things you didn't understand when you were a child start to make sense. "When this happened, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsuki-takaya/strangely-enough-when-you-get-older-the-things-you-didn-t-understand/) [Natsuki Takaya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsuki-takaya/) > [I remember listening to like gospel-y blues tunes. I'd just listen to the rhythm and the music was upbeat. Always upbeat if you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kiwanuka/i-remember-listening-to-like-gospel-y-blues-tunes-i-d-just-listen-to/) [Michael Kiwanuka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-kiwanuka/) > [Live it like its gospel , quote it like its scripture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-cooley/live-it-like-its-gospel-quote-it-like-its-scripture/) [Mike Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-cooley/) > [“Somebody says that a student is down here at BYU and he's a member of the church, but he's a mess. And I say,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-eyring/somebody-says-that-a-student-is-down-here-at-byu-and-he-s-a-member-of/) [Henry Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-eyring/) > [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.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/if-you-believe-what-you-like-in-the-gospel-and-reject-what-you-don-t/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [My mother had this huge binder of CDs from everyone she loved, like progressive gospel artists. You know, she loved like how Yolanda Adams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masego/my-mother-had-this-huge-binder-of-cds-from-everyone-she-loved-like/) [Masego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masego/) > [a spiritual life without prayer is like the gospel without Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-spiritual-life-without-prayer-is-like-the-gospel-without-christ/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For me, I just want to sing about life. And since I come from a spiritual background, I turned to jazz, because I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-wright/for-me-i-just-want-to-sing-about-life-and-since-i-come-from-a/) [Lizz Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-wright/) > [When I first heard that song, it was a ballad but it had a lot more. It felt like a gospel song when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-cox/when-i-first-heard-that-song-it-was-a-ballad-but-it-had-a-lot-more-it/) [Deborah Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-cox/) > [Undoubtedly, church fish fries and picnics help build social cohesion. It was at my dad's medium-size evangelical church - my first real exposure to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance-2/undoubtedly-church-fish-fries-and-picnics-help-build-social-cohesion/) [J. D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance-2/) ## More by D.A. Carson > [“again. Here is a sober lesson. Even after times of spectacular revival, reformation, or covenantal renewal, the people of God are never more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/again-here-is-a-sober-lesson-even-after-times-of-spectacular-revival/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“Looking closely at what these young people believe, one discovers that they have evidently never been taught the gospel of Jesus Christ. The absence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/looking-closely-at-what-these-young-people-believe-one-discovers-that/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“If chastening were merely a matter of remedial education to morally neutral people, the timing and severity would not matter very much; we would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/if-chastening-were-merely-a-matter-of-remedial-education-to-morally/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“The initial impetus to cross lines of race and heritage with the Gospel of Jesus Christ arose not from a committee planning world evangelization,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/the-initial-impetus-to-cross-lines-of-race-and-heritage-with-the/) [D.A. 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Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“Where there is flagrant disavowal of the truths essential to the gospel, where there is persistent and high-handed disobedience to the commands of Jesus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/where-there-is-flagrant-disavowal-of-the-truths-essential-to-the/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“To appeal…to some ill-defined and sentimental notion of love as the ground for contravening Scripture may be a lot of things, but it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/to-appeal-to-some-ill-defined-and-sentimental-notion-of-love-as-the/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“In a world of finite gods (often supported by one pantheistic deity), cyclical views of history, sub-biblical understandings of sin, multiplied idolatry, dualism that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/in-a-world-of-finite-gods-often-supported-by-one-pantheistic-deity/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“genuinely righteous people invariably become more aware of their personal guilt and need for forgiveness than those who have become so foul and hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/genuinely-righteous-people-invariably-become-more-aware-of-their/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“By the time of the Mosaic covenant, the peace offering (Lev 17:11ff.) was the divinely prescribed means of maintaining a harmonious relationship between God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/by-the-time-of-the-mosaic-covenant-the-peace-offering-lev-17-11ff-was/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“The truth of the matter is that meeting God is either transcendentally wonderful, or utterly horrific. If God meets sinners—sinners like you and me—in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/the-truth-of-the-matter-is-that-meeting-god-is-either/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“Christians do not restrict their moral horizons to immediate results; they make their ethical decisions from an eternal perspective (p. 52).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/christians-do-not-restrict-their-moral-horizons-to-immediate-results/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [“Forbearance and genuine tenderheartedness are much tougher than niceness, and sometimes…tough love is confrontational (p. 54).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/forbearance-and-genuine-tenderheartedness-are-much-tougher-than/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) [Explore all 56 D.A. Carson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) ## More Christianity quotes > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/) [Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/) > [“God hates Hell. He hates the idea of people going there. 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