--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Work done by non-Christians always…" description: "\"“Work done by non-Christians always contain some degree of God's common grace as well as the distortions of sin. Work done by Christians, even if it ov..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png" --- # Work done by non-Christians always contain some degree of… ![“Work done by non-Christians always contain some degree of God's common grace as well as the distortions of sin. Work done by Christians, even if it overtly names the name of Jesus is also to a significant degree distorted by sin.” quote by Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png) > ““Work done by non-Christians always contain some degree of God's common grace as well as the distortions of sin. Work done by Christians, even if it overtly names the name of Jesus is also to a significant degree distorted by sin.”” [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even Christian work is affected by sin, though it also reflects God's grace. **In simple terms:** Work is imperfect but graced. Key Takeaway Recognize both grace and fallibility. Themes theology work grace Mood reflective serious Type theological inspirational When to use this quote - church leadership - personal vocation - mission work Key Concepts Sin divine grace human effort Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance humility and excellence? - What role does grace play in daily tasks? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on grace may excuse negligence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Depravity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depravity/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [“Properly understood, the doctrine of sin means that believers are never as good as our true worldview should make us. Similarly, the doctrine of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/properly-understood-the-doctrine-of-sin-means-that-believers-are/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Every artifact of human culture is a positive response to God's general revelation and simultaneously a rebellious assertion against His sovereign rule over us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/every-artifact-of-human-culture-is-a-positive-response-to-god-s/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Christians work—they work to kill sin and they work to live in the Spirit. They have rest in the gospel, but never rest in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-deyoung/christians-work-they-work-to-kill-sin-and-they-work-to-live-in-the/) [Kevin DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-deyoung/) > [“Not Christians. We don’t expect things in life to “work for good” of their own accord. When we find things working out beneficially for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-j-keller/not-christians-we-don-t-expect-things-in-life-to-work-for-good-of/) [Timothy J. Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-j-keller/) > [Christians should ultimately do everything that we do with excellence. There's a story about repairs in the Sistine Chapel ... when some repair work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-hanegraaff/christians-should-ultimately-do-everything-that-we-do-with-excellence/) [Hank Hanegraaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-hanegraaff/) > [Genesis 1 logs God's commitment to excellence when it says, "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good" (v. 31).…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kent-hughes/genesis-1-logs-god-s-commitment-to-excellence-when-it-says-god-saw/) [R. Kent Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kent-hughes/) > [“God remembers our sins no more because the work of the cross already has. No further sacrifice remains for sin because the work has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/god-remembers-our-sins-no-more-because-the-work-of-the-cross-already/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [To kill sin is the work of living men; where men are dead (as all unbelievers, the best of them, are dead), sin is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-owen/to-kill-sin-is-the-work-of-living-men-where-men-are-dead-as-all/) [John Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-owen/) > [“Human generosity is possible only because at the center of the solar system a magnificent stellar generosity pours forth free energy day and night…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mckenna/human-generosity-is-possible-only-because-at-the-center-of-the-solar/) [Megan McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mckenna/) > [Christians need the gospel as much as non-Christians do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/christians-need-the-gospel-as-much-as-non-christians-do/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [The world does not consist of 100 percent Christians and 100 percent non-Christians. There are people (a great many of them) who are slowly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-world-does-not-consist-of-100-percent-christians-and-100-percent/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God has made a point of preventing non-Christians from knowing him through their own wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-cheung/god-has-made-a-point-of-preventing-non-christians-from-knowing-him/) Vincent Cheung > [Although most Christian churches advocate some sort of mission to non-Christians, no Jewish group advocates a mission to non-Jews. Proselytization seems to be foreign…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-novak/although-most-christian-churches-advocate-some-sort-of-mission-to-non/) [David Novak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-novak/) > [“few years ago, the Barna Group, a prominent research company, went to every state in the US and asked young non-Christians what their perceptions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/few-years-ago-the-barna-group-a-prominent-research-company-went-to/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [The University of North Carolina-Greensboro has ordered a Christian club to allow non-Christians as leaders. While we're at it, let's put high school dropouts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-thompson/the-university-of-north-carolina-greensboro-has-ordered-a-christian/) [Fred Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-thompson/) ## More by Timothy Keller > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [The more you rejoice in your own forgiveness, the quicker you will be to forgive others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/the-more-you-rejoice-in-your-own-forgiveness-the-quicker-you-will-be/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Evangelism will come organically in friendship if we don’t let our pride, fears, and pessimism cause us to hide our faith and heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/evangelism-will-come-organically-in-friendship-if-we-don-t-let-our/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“The coming of the messianic King occurs in two stages. At his first coming, he saved us from the penalty of sin and gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/the-coming-of-the-messianic-king-occurs-in-two-stages-at-his-first/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [ “24 A few pages later, Delbanco writes the following: \[Alexis de\] Tocqueville’s detection of a “strange melancholy in the midst of abundance” has a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/24-a-few-pages-later-delbanco-writes-the-following-alexis-de/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“To stay away from Christianity because part of the Bible's teaching is offensive to you assumes that if there is a God he wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/to-stay-away-from-christianity-because-part-of-the-bible-s-teaching/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-the-preaching-of-our-ministers-and-the-practice-of-our/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“of temple, presence, and sacrifice; of covenant and faithfulness; of kingdom and victory. When we seek to communicate the gospel to a particular culture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/of-temple-presence-and-sacrifice-of-covenant-and-faithfulness-of/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Finally, you are ready to launch your church. Begin by developing action steps and goals that can be used as benchmarks to track your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/finally-you-are-ready-to-launch-your-church-begin-by-developing/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [If you are a child of God, you don’t lose your status if you have a bad week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-a-child-of-god-you-don-t-lose-your-status-if-you-have-a/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [God's salvation does not come in response to a changed life. A changed life comes in response to the salvation, offered as a free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/god-s-salvation-does-not-come-in-response-to-a-changed-life-a-changed/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“When anything in life is an absolute requirement for your happiness and self-worth, it is essentially an ‘idol,’ something you are actually worshiping. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/when-anything-in-life-is-an-absolute-requirement-for-your-happiness/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Suffering is the stripping of our hope in finite things, therefore we do not put our ultimate hope in anything finite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/suffering-is-the-stripping-of-our-hope-in-finite-things-therefore-we/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Christ will do everything for you or nothing. He's either all of your righteousness or none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/christ-will-do-everything-for-you-or-nothing-he-s-either-all-of-your/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [If we give God things in hope that they'll earn us blessings, we're really not doing anything for him. It's for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-we-give-god-things-in-hope-that-they-ll-earn-us-blessings-we-re/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) [Explore all 843 Timothy Keller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) ## 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. He hates it so much that He was willing to take on human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-minton/god-hates-hell-he-hates-the-idea-of-people-going-there-he-hates-it-so/) [Evan Minton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-minton/) > [“some of my good Baptist brethren in Georgia had done a little preaching from the pulpit against the KKK, I would have a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-moss/some-of-my-good-baptist-brethren-in-georgia-had-done-a-little/) [Norman Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-moss/) > [I pray that wherever we are and whatever duties we have in the priesthood of God, we will be united in the cause to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/i-pray-that-wherever-we-are-and-whatever-duties-we-have-in-the/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [Why do Christians sing when they are together? The reason is, quite simply, because in singing together it is possible for them to speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/why-do-christians-sing-when-they-are-together-the-reason-is-quite/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“every church can treat each discipleship class and each worship service as an opportunity for continual rehearsal of what the words, stories, symbols, rituals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-arthur/every-church-can-treat-each-discipleship-class-and-each-worship/) [Sarah Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-arthur/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [The notion of a non-religious Christmas is ridiculous. But so is the insistence on the part of Christians that politicians and retailers carry out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/the-notion-of-a-non-religious-christmas-is-ridiculous-but-so-is-the/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [A real Christian in an odd number anyway. He feels supreme love for One whom he has never seen, talks familiarly every day to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-real-christian-in-an-odd-number-anyway-he-feels-supreme-love-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. You can save face but you won't ever save your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/because-the-truth-is-that-gossip-is-as-good-as-gospel-in-this-town/) [Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/) > [How else but through a broken heart may Lord Christ enter in?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/how-else-but-through-a-broken-heart-may-lord-christ-enter-in/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Every saved person this side of heaven owes the gospel to every lost person this side of hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-platt/every-saved-person-this-side-of-heaven-owes-the-gospel-to-every-lost/) [David Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-platt/) > [I grew up in Synagogue in the boys' choir. We didn't listen to music in the house; only at temple. Then I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-patinkin/i-grew-up-in-synagogue-in-the-boys-choir-we-didn-t-listen-to-music-in/) [Mandy Patinkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-patinkin/) [Browse all 14,385 Christianity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Work done by non-Christians always contain some degree of God's common grace as well as the distortions of sin. Work done by Christians, even if it overtly names the name of Jesus is also to a significant degree distorted by sin.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Timothy Keller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/work-done-by-non-christians-always-contain-some-degree-of-god-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Christianity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/work-done-by-non-christians-always-contain-some-degree-of-god-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/timothy-keller-240_christianity_work-done-by-non-christians-always-conta_1864110.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Work done by non-Christians always contain some degree of God's common grace as well as the distortions of…” — Timothy Keller", "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": "Timothy Keller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Work done by non-Christians always contain...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/work-done-by-non-christians-always-contain-some-degree-of-god-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/work-done-by-non-christians-always-contain-some-degree-of-god-s/#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 } } ] } ```