--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You and I believed the gospel, not…" description: "\"“You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser or more righteous than anyone else but because God graciously intervened, opening our hearts ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg" --- # You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser… ![“You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser or more righteous than anyone else but because God graciously intervened, opening our hearts to head His Word and believe.” quote by John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg) > ““You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser or more righteous than anyone else but because God graciously intervened, opening our hearts to head His Word and believe.”” [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. Affirms that belief stems from divine intervention opening hearts, not from human superiority, emphasizing humility before faith. **In simple terms:** Divine‑initiated belief Key Takeaway Grace precedes understanding Themes faith grace humility spiritual awakening theology Mood reverent hopeful Type theological statement personal testimony When to use this quote - sermons - personal testimony - faith‑based counseling Key Concepts theology of revelation spiritual experience Practical Applications - preaching on grace - writing devotional material Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to be 'opened' by God? - How does humility affect spiritual growth? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed/) [Believed Gospel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed-gospel-1124890/) [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [God Graciously](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-graciously-1124891/) [Gospel Wiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gospel-wiser-1124892/) [Graciously Intervened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graciously-intervened-1124893/) ## Related quotes > [The believed gospel saves; but it is the believed promise that assures us of this salvation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horatius-bonar/the-believed-gospel-saves-but-it-is-the-believed-promise-that-assures/) [Horatius Bonar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horatius-bonar/) > [Our earnest prayer is that God will graciously vouchsafe prosperity, happiness, and peace to all our neighbors, and like blessings to all the peoples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/our-earnest-prayer-is-that-god-will-graciously-vouchsafe-prosperity/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [“God has graciously planned a good life for you to live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/god-has-graciously-planned-a-good-life-for-you-to-live/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [“God has graciously sewn laughter into our days, bright moments tucked among the shadows of illness and pain, and while those moments don't change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindee-snider-re/god-has-graciously-sewn-laughter-into-our-days-bright-moments-tucked/) [Cindee Snider Re](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindee-snider-re/) > [“In these early anonymous seasons, God graciously grants us the opportunity to wrestle with our appetites before other lives are at stake, to struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-britt-chole/in-these-early-anonymous-seasons-god-graciously-grants-us-the/) [Alicia Britt Chole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicia-britt-chole/) > [I thank my God for graciously granting me the opportunity of learning that death is the key which unlocks the door to our true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/i-thank-my-god-for-graciously-granting-me-the-opportunity-of-learning/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [As death, when we come to consider it closely, is the true goal of our existence, I have formed during the last few years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/as-death-when-we-come-to-consider-it-closely-is-the-true-goal-of-our-2/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [Whatever America's founders believed about Christianity - and they believed a wide range of things - they clearly rejected the idea of an established…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-palmer/whatever-america-s-founders-believed-about-christianity-and-they/) [Parker Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-palmer/) > [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/) > [I never believed that they was such thing as love at first sight but I think I'm having that feeliing @sarahlovemoody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mishack/i-never-believed-that-they-was-such-thing-as-love-at-first-sight-but/) [Mishack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mishack/) > [Aaron Spelling always had his finger on the pulse of pop culture, he knew what the public wanted to see. He was one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyssa-milano/aaron-spelling-always-had-his-finger-on-the-pulse-of-pop-culture-he/) [Alyssa Milano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyssa-milano/) > [Alfred Nobel believed that social changes are brought about slowly, and sometimes by indirect means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertha-von-suttner/alfred-nobel-believed-that-social-changes-are-brought-about-slowly/) [Bertha von Suttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertha-von-suttner/) > [“I didn't know if I believed in 'happily ever after' anymore. I mean, I didn't know what would happen tomorrow, let alone for forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-kate-strohm/i-didn-t-know-if-i-believed-in-happily-ever-after-anymore-i-mean-i/) [Stephanie Kate Strohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-kate-strohm/) > [Though my grandmother had picked up modern ideas in America, she still had some conflicting 19th-century Irish notions. She believed that daughters, educated though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosemary-mahoney/though-my-grandmother-had-picked-up-modern-ideas-in-america-she-still/) [Rosemary Mahoney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosemary-mahoney/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) ## 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/) > [“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/) > [To be a mother is by no means second class. Men may have the authority in the home, but the women have the influence.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/to-be-a-mother-is-by-no-means-second-class-men-may-have-the-authority/) [John Macarthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) [Explore all 279 John MacArthur quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) ## More Believed quotes > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [Though my grandmother had picked up modern ideas in America, she still had some conflicting 19th-century Irish notions. She believed that daughters, educated though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosemary-mahoney/though-my-grandmother-had-picked-up-modern-ideas-in-america-she-still/) [Rosemary Mahoney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosemary-mahoney/) > [“I didn't know if I believed in 'happily ever after' anymore. I mean, I didn't know what would happen tomorrow, let alone for forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-kate-strohm/i-didn-t-know-if-i-believed-in-happily-ever-after-anymore-i-mean-i/) [Stephanie Kate Strohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-kate-strohm/) > [Alfred Nobel believed that social changes are brought about slowly, and sometimes by indirect means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertha-von-suttner/alfred-nobel-believed-that-social-changes-are-brought-about-slowly/) [Bertha von Suttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertha-von-suttner/) > [Aaron Spelling always had his finger on the pulse of pop culture, he knew what the public wanted to see. He was one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyssa-milano/aaron-spelling-always-had-his-finger-on-the-pulse-of-pop-culture-he/) [Alyssa Milano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyssa-milano/) > [I never believed that they was such thing as love at first sight but I think I'm having that feeliing @sarahlovemoody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mishack/i-never-believed-that-they-was-such-thing-as-love-at-first-sight-but/) [Mishack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mishack/) > [“I wish I believed him. He's looking at me like he can see where I begin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-mcnamara/i-wish-i-believed-him-he-s-looking-at-me-like-he-can-see-where-i-begin/) [Amy McNamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-mcnamara/) > [My life had been defined by the apartheid years. Now we were going into an era of democracy... and I believed that I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/athol-fugard/my-life-had-been-defined-by-the-apartheid-years-now-we-were-going/) [Athol Fugard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/athol-fugard/) > [On March 12, 2004, acting attorney general James B. Comey and the Justice Department's top leadership reached the brink of resignation over electronic surveillance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/on-march-12-2004-acting-attorney-general-james-b-comey-and-the/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [No statement should be believed because it is made by an authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/no-statement-should-be-believed-because-it-is-made-by-an-authority/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [I never believed I'd have a six-pack, especially not at 35 years old. I always thought it was a genetic blessing. It's not. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sullivan-stapleton/i-never-believed-i-d-have-a-six-pack-especially-not-at-35-years-old-i/) [Sullivan Stapleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sullivan-stapleton/) > [“For a moment, I believed you.” He ordered me, dryly, recovering his usual poise again. He does not only have a selective hearing, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tionne-rogers/for-a-moment-i-believed-you-he-ordered-me-dryly-recovering-his-usual/) [Tionne Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tionne-rogers/) > [There was a time when idealistic folksingers such as myself believed that Reality TV was a programming vogue that would peak and recede, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-wolcott/there-was-a-time-when-idealistic-folksingers-such-as-myself-believed/) [James Wolcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-wolcott/) > [I felt uneasy, but sometimes, like I said before, I believed in Col. North and there was a very solid and very valid reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fawn-hall/i-felt-uneasy-but-sometimes-like-i-said-before-i-believed-in-col/) [Fawn Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fawn-hall/) > [And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, warranted by the Constitution, upon military necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salmon-p-chase/and-upon-this-act-sincerely-believed-to-be-an-act-of-justice/) [Salmon P. Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salmon-p-chase/) [Browse all 1,214 Believed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser or more righteous than anyone else but because God graciously intervened, opening our hearts to head His Word and believe.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John MacArthur" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-because-we-were-wiser-or-more/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-because-we-were-wiser-or-more/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/john-macarthur-1117_believed_you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-becaus_90368.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You and I believed the gospel, not because we were wiser or more righteous than anyone else but because God…” — John MacArthur", "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": "John MacArthur", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“You and I believed the gospel,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-because-we-were-wiser-or-more/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/you-and-i-believed-the-gospel-not-because-we-were-wiser-or-more/#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 } } ] } ```