--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't expect nonbelievers to have a…" description: "\"I don't expect nonbelievers to have a desire for the truth, a hunger for the truth or to search out the truth. That's not what unbelievers do unless th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c1/john-macarthur-1117_desire_i-don-t-expect-nonbelievers-to-have-a-de_1696459.jpg" --- # I don't expect nonbelievers to have a desire for the… ![“I don't expect nonbelievers to have a desire for the truth, a hunger for the truth or to search out the truth. That's not what unbelievers do unless they're being prompted by the Holy Spirit.” quote by John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c1/john-macarthur-1117_desire_i-don-t-expect-nonbelievers-to-have-a-de_1696459.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c1/john-macarthur-1117_desire_i-don-t-expect-nonbelievers-to-have-a-de_1696459.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c1/john-macarthur-1117_desire_i-don-t-expect-nonbelievers-to-have-a-de_1696459.jpg) > “I don't expect nonbelievers to have a desire for the truth, a hunger for the truth or to search out the truth. That's not what unbelievers do unless they're being prompted by the Holy Spirit.” [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Believers rely on divine prompting for truth seeking; nonbelievers lack intrinsic desire unless guided by the Holy Spirit. **In simple terms:** Truth seeking needs spiritual prompting. Key Takeaway Seek spiritual guidance for truth. Themes faith truth spirituality Mood reflective serious Type theological inspirational When to use this quote - evangelism - personal study - interfaith dialogue Key Concepts Divine prompting belief search for meaning Questions to Reflect On - How does spiritual prompting influence truth seeking? - Can reason alone inspire truth pursuit? A Different Perspective Nonbelievers may still seek truth through reason or experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Holy spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holy-spirit/) [Hunger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hunger/) [Nonbelievers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonbelievers/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Unbelievers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unbelievers/) ## Related quotes > [“Christians, then, should expect to find nonbelievers who are much nicer, kinder, wiser, and better than they are. Why? Christian believers are not accepted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-j-keller/christians-then-should-expect-to-find-nonbelievers-who-are-much-nicer/) [Timothy J. Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-j-keller/) > [We repeat and again reaffirm that neither a State nor the Federal Government can constitutionally force a person 'to profess a belief or disbelief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugo-black/we-repeat-and-again-reaffirm-that-neither-a-state-nor-the-federal/) [Hugo Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugo-black/) > [“... nonbelievers will insist on their convictions regardless how many miracles are presented to them”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caner-taslaman/nonbelievers-will-insist-on-their-convictions-regardless-how-many/) Caner Taslaman > [“Up to now, most atheists have simply criticized religion in various ways, but the point is to dispel it. In A Manual For Creating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/up-to-now-most-atheists-have-simply-criticized-religion-in-various/) [Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/) > [A Christian's celebration of Christmas should be a lot different from that of nonbelievers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-johnson/a-christian-s-celebration-of-christmas-should-be-a-lot-different-from/) [Monica Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-johnson/) > [Nonbelievers may hear all the notes of science, but without a theistic context and perspective they will not hear the song.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-marsden/nonbelievers-may-hear-all-the-notes-of-science-but-without-a-theistic/) George Marsden > [“the devout can always benefit from listening to nonbelievers. It is in hearing the voice of the devil that we can better appreciate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/the-devout-can-always-benefit-from-listening-to-nonbelievers-it-is-in/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [Let nonbelievers be motivators! If you want it go get it! Put God 1st and chase your dream!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-nonbelievers-be-motivators-if-you-want-it-go-get-it-put-god-1st/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What I learned: Shun nonbelievers. Ignore critics. Do your best for people who want to dance with you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/what-i-learned-shun-nonbelievers-ignore-critics-do-your-best-for/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [“Whenever He answers prayers, God usually prioritizes those by people who, instead of their mouths, have prayed with their hands and/or feet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/whenever-he-answers-prayers-god-usually-prioritizes-those-by-people/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [The transcendent and the numinous can be accessible to the most materialistic of scientists, without positing the supernatural. At the same time, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-cota/the-transcendent-and-the-numinous-can-be-accessible-to-the-most/) Norman Cota > [Hurricanes are evolutions way of punishing nonbelievers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-fowler/hurricanes-are-evolutions-way-of-punishing-nonbelievers/) [Steve Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-fowler/) > [A mission is a place where you ask nonbelievers to come and find faith and hope and feel love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-h-schuller/a-mission-is-a-place-where-you-ask-nonbelievers-to-come-and-find/) [Robert H. Schuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-h-schuller/) > [We are called not simply to communicate the gospel to nonbelievers; we must also intentionally celebrate the gospel before them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/we-are-called-not-simply-to-communicate-the-gospel-to-nonbelievers-we/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [All it takes for America to become a theocracy is for nonbelievers to do nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-hayes/all-it-takes-for-america-to-become-a-theocracy-is-for-nonbelievers-to/) [Judith Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-hayes/) ## More by John MacArthur > [The definition of a Church is crystal clear in the New Testament. We see the picture of it. They came together the first day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/the-definition-of-a-church-is-crystal-clear-in-the-new-testament-we/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [The more you focus on yourself, the more distracted you will be from the proper path. The more you know Him and commune with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/the-more-you-focus-on-yourself-the-more-distracted-you-will-be-from/) [John Macarthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [There are things that God hates, right? One of them is the one who stirs up strife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/there-are-things-that-god-hates-right-one-of-them-is-the-one-who/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [Over the years, I've fought a number of polemical battles against ideas that threaten the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/over-the-years-i-ve-fought-a-number-of-polemical-battles-against/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser or more righteous than anyone else but because God graciously intervened, opening our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-because-we-were-wiser-or-more/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“He call us to obey, not because He needs us but because He knows we need Him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/he-call-us-to-obey-not-because-he-needs-us-but-because-he-knows-we/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“The Spirit works in the church so that men might see Jesus as Lord, recognizing His authority and submitting to His will (1 Cor.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/the-spirit-works-in-the-church-so-that-men-might-see-jesus-as-lord/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [Grace does not grant permission to live in the flesh; it supplies power to live in the Spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/grace-does-not-grant-permission-to-live-in-the-flesh-it-supplies/) [John Macarthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [Sexual expression within a marriage is not an option or an extra. It is certainly not, as it has sometimes been considered, a necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/sexual-expression-within-a-marriage-is-not-an-option-or-an-extra-it/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“18O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/18o-my-god-incline-your-ear-and-hear-open-your-eyes-and-see-our/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“Sin is the monarch that rules the heart of every man. It is the first lord of the soul, and its virus has contaminated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/sin-is-the-monarch-that-rules-the-heart-of-every-man-it-is-the-first/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“Psalm 13 O LORD, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/psalm-13-o-lord-how-long-will-you-forget-me-forever-how-long-will-you/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [Scripture repeatedly makes clear that heaven is a realm of unsurpassed joy, unfading glory, undiminished bliss, unlimited delights, and unending pleasures. Nothing about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/scripture-repeatedly-makes-clear-that-heaven-is-a-realm-of/) [John Macarthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [God's true church has always been a place where people hunger for the truth from the Bible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/god-s-true-church-has-always-been-a-place-where-people-hunger-for-the/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [The lies of systemic racism and the race hustlers dominate the ideologies of universities and even churches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/the-lies-of-systemic-racism-and-the-race-hustlers-dominate-the/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) [Explore all 279 John MacArthur quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) ## More Desire quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [I want the municipality to be a helping hand to the man with a desire of sympathy, to help the fallen when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burns/i-want-the-municipality-to-be-a-helping-hand-to-the-man-with-a-desire/) [John Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burns/) > [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/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“THE ESSENCE OF YOUR DESIRE IS A FEELING”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/the-essence-of-your-desire-is-a-feeling/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [On the brink of being satiated, desire still appears infinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/on-the-brink-of-being-satiated-desire-still-appears-infinite/) [Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. All my life, people have scolded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/in-discovering-books-you-became-free-to-explore-the-full-range-of/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“from THE DEVIL YOU KNOW : She wanted him too. He could see it in the rapid rise of her breasts. He could smell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emery-lee/from-the-devil-you-know-she-wanted-him-too-he-could-see-it-in-the/) [Emery Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emery-lee/) [Browse all 15,155 Desire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don't expect nonbelievers to have a desire for the truth, a hunger for the truth or to search out the truth. 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