--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The more that man is able to distinguish…" description: "\"The more that man is able to distinguish himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of himself as subject, as an \"I\", to whom the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png" --- # The more that man is able to distinguish himself from the… ![“The more that man is able to distinguish himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of himself as subject, as an "I", to whom the whole world is Object, the more does he tend to confuse himself with God, to confuse his spirit with the Spirit of God.” quote by Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png) > “The more that man is able to distinguish himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of himself as subject, as an "I", to whom the whole world is Object, the more does he tend to confuse himself with God, to confuse his spirit with the Spirit of God.” [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human self‑distinction leads to heightened self‑awareness, which can blur the line between self and divine. **In simple terms:** Seeing yourself as separate makes you think you’re like God. Key Takeaway Balance self‑knowledge with humility. Themes identity self‑awareness theology Mood contemplative critical Type philosophical theological When to use this quote - personal reflection - spiritual practice - ethical decision‑making Key Concepts existentialism anthropology Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate self‑importance from spiritual insight? - Can self‑awareness coexist with humility? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on self can cause egoism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Confuse God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confuse-god-403262/) [Confuse Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confuse-spirit-403264/) [Conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) [Conscious Subject](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious-subject-2397655/) [Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Creation Conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation-conscious-403265/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [God Confuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-confuse-403263/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Objects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/objects/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Regard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regard/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Spirit of god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit-of-god/) [Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjects/) [Whole world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole-world/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The more man distinguishes himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of himself as the subject, as an "I" to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-more-man-distinguishes-himself-from-the-rest-of-creation-the-more/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [The development of the meaning attaching to the personal self, the conscious being, is the subject matter of the history of psychology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mark-baldwin/the-development-of-the-meaning-attaching-to-the-personal-self-the/) [James Mark Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mark-baldwin/) > [In the consciousness of the infinite, the conscious subject has for his object the infinity of his own nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-feuerbach/in-the-consciousness-of-the-infinite-the-conscious-subject-has-for/) [Ludwig Feuerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-feuerbach/) > [“God, you confuse me. I don’t think my head has stopped spinning since you walked in the door.” “You can be confused later. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-you-confuse-me-i-don-t-think-my-head-has-stopped-spinning-since/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The enemies of the Christian religion and the Law of God confuse law with faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-terry/the-enemies-of-the-christian-religion-and-the-law-of-god-confuse-law/) [Randall Terry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-terry/) > [“Your consciousness is the only living reality, the eternal head of creation. That which you are conscious of being is the temporal body that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neville-goddard/your-consciousness-is-the-only-living-reality-the-eternal-head-of/) [Neville Goddard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neville-goddard/) > [“I cannot imagine that there could be someone whose childhood could compare to mine. The sky and the earth belonged to me, literally, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-cioran/i-cannot-imagine-that-there-could-be-someone-whose-childhood-could/) [Emil Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-cioran/) > [This is the process of Self realization about which Eastern mystics have written. It is the process of salvation to which much Western theology…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/this-is-the-process-of-self-realization-about-which-eastern-mystics/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [I believe in the spirit of God because I believe in the spirit of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-thurman/i-believe-in-the-spirit-of-god-because-i-believe-in-the-spirit-of-man/) [Keith Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-thurman/) > [“Remember, any day not surrendered to the Spirit of God will likely be lived in the flesh (Gal. 5:16–17).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/remember-any-day-not-surrendered-to-the-spirit-of-god-will-likely-be/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [“Dreams of the proud man, making great And greater ever, Things which are not of God. In wide And devious coverts, hunter-wise, He coucheth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/dreams-of-the-proud-man-making-great-and-greater-ever-things-which/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [“many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Rom 8:14   You are not even considered a son of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-houge/many-as-are-led-by-the-spirit-of-god-these-are-sons-of-god-rom-8-14/) [Adam Houge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-houge/) > [I never yet have known the Spirit of God to work where the Lord's people were divided.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-l-moody/i-never-yet-have-known-the-spirit-of-god-to-work-where-the-lord-s/) [Dwight L. Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-l-moody/) > [“now the Spirit had come, and Mark's account of the baptism makes it abundantly clear that he sees Jesus as the Messianic Son and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-green/now-the-spirit-had-come-and-mark-s-account-of-the-baptism-makes-it/) [Michael Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-green/) > [“But it will be asked, why are they now admonished of their duty, and not rather left to the guidance of the Spirit? Why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/but-it-will-be-asked-why-are-they-now-admonished-of-their-duty-and/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) ## More by Emil Brunner > [What until recently seemed to be only the apocalyptic fantasies of the Christian faith has today entered the sphere of the soberest scientific calculations;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/what-until-recently-seemed-to-be-only-the-apocalyptic-fantasies-of/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [The more man distinguishes himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of himself as the subject, as an "I" to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-more-man-distinguishes-himself-from-the-rest-of-creation-the-more/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [So long as we stand "under the Law", we cannot perceive this hidden unity of all the commandments. It is part of legalism that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/so-long-as-we-stand-under-the-law-we-cannot-perceive-this-hidden/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [Hope is the positive mode of awaiting the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/hope-is-the-positive-mode-of-awaiting-the-future/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [Only at the cross of Christ does man see fully what it is that separates him from God; yet it is here alone that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/only-at-the-cross-of-christ-does-man-see-fully-what-it-is-that/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [The Church exists by mission, just as a fire exists by burning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-church-exists-by-mission-just-as-a-fire-exists-by-burning/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [For the Platonic or Aristotelian philosophy, it is of no importance whether Plato or Aristotle ever lived. For the mystical practice of an Indian,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/for-the-platonic-or-aristotelian-philosophy-it-is-of-no-importance/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [What oxygen is to the lungs, such is hope to the meaning of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/what-oxygen-is-to-the-lungs-such-is-hope-to-the-meaning-of-life/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [Faith is obedience, nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/faith-is-obedience-nothing-else/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [The Church exists by mission, just as a fire exists by burning. Where there is no mission there is no Church; and where there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-church-exists-by-mission-just-as-a-fire-exists-by-burning-where/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [I am inexpressibly grateful that the Lord of my life has granted to me in such abundance these opportunities to take part in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/i-am-inexpressibly-grateful-that-the-lord-of-my-life-has-granted-to/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [The Church exists by mission as fire exists by burning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-church-exists-by-mission-as-fire-exists-by-burning/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [The Revelation of God is not a book or a doctrine, but a living Person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-revelation-of-god-is-not-a-book-or-a-doctrine-but-a-living-person/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) > [Hope . . . is one of the ways in which what is merely future and potential is made vividly present and actual to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/hope-is-one-of-the-ways-in-which-what-is-merely-future-and-potential/) [Emil Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) [Explore all 15 Emil Brunner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/) ## More Conscious quotes > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [If you are not conscious of all of the different parts of yourself, the part of yourself that is the strongest will win out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/if-you-are-not-conscious-of-all-of-the-different-parts-of-yourself/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/) [D. 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Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) [Browse all 3,716 Conscious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The more that man is able to distinguish himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of himself as subject, as an \"I\", to whom the whole world is Object, the more does he tend to confuse himself with God, to confuse his spirit with the Spirit of God.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Emil Brunner" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish-himself-from-the-rest-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish-himself-from-the-rest-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ad/emil-brunner-33461_conscious_the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish_586329.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The more that man is able to distinguish himself from the rest of creation, the more he becomes conscious of…” — Emil Brunner", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Emil Brunner", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-brunner/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The more that man is able...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish-himself-from-the-rest-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-brunner/the-more-that-man-is-able-to-distinguish-himself-from-the-rest-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```