Josh McDowell Quotes & Sayings

Knowing that God is faithful, it really helps me to not be captivated by worry. But knowing that He will do what He has said, He will cause it to happen, whatever He has promised, and then it causes me to be less involved in worrying about a situation. — Josh McDowell

You better arm yourselves to answer your children's and grandchildren's questions ... no matter what the question is ... without being judgmental. — Josh McDowell

My greatest asset now is my focus. — Josh McDowell

Prayer is talking with God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. — Josh McDowell

If they had connived a scheme, and Christ had not been raised from the dead, where would have been the hardest place on the face of the earth to convince anyone? In Jerusalem. — Josh McDowell

If one discards the Bible as being unreliable, then he must discard almost all literature of antiquity. — Josh McDowell

The downfall of the church will not come from a lack of apologetic teaching; it will come from disintegration of the families in the church. — Josh McDowell

Every kid needs to say, 'I want what my mom and dad have.' — Josh McDowell

My father's life was changed right before my eyes [when he trusted Christ]. It was like someone reached down and switched on a light inside him. He touched alcohol only once after that. He got the drink only as far as his lips and that was it-after forty years of drinking! He didn't need it any more. Fourteen months later, he died form complications of his alcoholism. But in that fourteen-month period over a hundred people in the area around my tiny hometown committed their lives to Jesus Christ because of the change they saw in the town drunk, my dad. — Josh McDowell

Here's the simplest answer: Within weeks, the disciples proclaimed the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that He had been bodily raised from the dead and appeared to them. — Josh McDowell

Because the New Testament provides the primary historical source for information on the resurrection, many critics during the 19th century attacked the reliability of these biblical documents. — Josh McDowell

This is an important distinction, because most of the modern philosophies that deny that we can know reality, and ultimately truth, make the mistake of constructing epistemological systems to explain how we know reality without first acknowledging the fact that we do know reality. After they begin within the mind and find they can't construct a bridge to reality, they then declare that we can't know reality. It is like drawing a faulty road map before looking at the roads, then declaring that we can't know how to get from Chicago to New York! — Josh McDowell

After more than 700 hours of studying this subject, and thoroughly investigating its foundation, I have come to the conclusion that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the most wicked, vicious, heartless hoaxes ever foisted upon the minds of men, or it is the most fantastic fact of history — Josh McDowell

For centuries many of the world's distinguished philosophers have assaulted Christianity as being irrational, superstitious and absurd. — Josh McDowell

Christianity is not a religion. Religion is humans trying to work their way to God through good works. Christianity is God coming to men and women through Jesus Christ. — Josh McDowell

Belief is knowing what you believe. Conviction is knowing why you believe it. — Josh McDowell

I always tried to be open-minded, but not so open-minded that my brains would fall out. As G. K. Chesterton says, "The purpose of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to close it again on something solid." I opened my mind, and I finally closed it on the most solid reality I had ever experienced. On December 19, 1959, at 8:30PM, during my second year at the university, I became a Christian. — Josh McDowell

You can laugh at Christianity; you can mock and ridicule it. But it works. It changes lives. If you trust Christ, start watching your attitudes and actions, because Jesus Christ is in the business of changing lives. — Josh McDowell

Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort have created a biblically sound course that will not only motivate Christians; it will equip them to fulfill the Great Commission. — Josh McDowell

When it comes to my salvation, all I need is Jesus; after my salvation, everything is Jesus plus the church ... When people preach that all you need is Jesus, they cut you and I off from one of the greatest sources of healing, which is the body of Christ. Don't go it alone - you won't make it. — Josh McDowell

As a reward for their efforts, however, those early Christians were beaten, stoned to death, thrown to the lions, tortured and crucified. Every conceivable method was used to stop them from talking. — Josh McDowell

On that Sunday morning the first thing that impressed the people who approached the tomb was the unusual position of the one and a half to two ton stone that had been lodged in front of the doorway. — Josh McDowell

The Old Testament records the preparation for the coming of the Messiah. The Gospels record the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ our Lord. The book of Acts records the propagation of the gospel (the good news) concerning Jesus Christ. The Epistles (letters) explain the gospel and its implications for our lives. The book of Revelation anticipates and describes the second coming of Jesus Christ and the establishment of His eternal kingdom. From beginning to end, the Bible glorifies Jesus Christ and centers on Him. Its Christ-centeredness is one of its wonderful features. — Josh McDowell

If there were more than one path to salvation then it would totally negate Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, his life, his teachings. — Josh McDowell

After I set out to refute Christianity intellectually and couldn't, I came to the conclusion the Bible was true and Jesus Christ was God's Son. — Josh McDowell

Christ can be trusted to keep His Word that He will exchange our drab existence for joyous living, abundant life! And while true love, total acceptance, and complete security are rare in our frantic world, the biblical evidence that our desires in these areas will be fulfilled in Christ is abundant. — Josh McDowell

I am not a Christian because God changed my life; I am a Christian because of my convictions about who Jesus Christ is. — Josh McDowell

The first thing that stuck in the minds of the disciples was not the empty tomb, but rather the empty grave clothes - undisturbed in form and position. — Josh McDowell

Where I once believed people were there to be used, I started thinking of other people first. — Josh McDowell

Having convictions can be defined as being so thoroughly convinced that Christ and His Word are both objectively true and relationally meaningful that you act on your beliefs regardless of the consequences. — Josh McDowell

Truth is objective because God exists outside ourselves; it is universal because God is above all; it is constant because God is eternal. Absolute truth is absolute because it originates from the original. — Josh McDowell

This is the age of the new tolerance and it is producing a bumper crop of anti-Christian and anti-American sentiment. — Josh McDowell

Every pastor, youth pastor, and every parent is in competition with the Internet and the information it is spreading. Most young people don't get their news from CNN or CBS; they get it from bloggers. — Josh McDowell

When I was a crusade director in British Columbia, all of our meetings were at 9:03. Somebody said 'That's ridiculous. Why did you do that?' It's because you remember it. You've never been to another 9:03 meeting. — Josh McDowell

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have, — Josh McDowell

Few people seem to realize that the resurrection of Jesus is the cornerstone to a worldview that provides the perspective to all of life. — Josh McDowell

While the resurrection promises us a new and perfect life in the future, God loves us too much to leave us alone to contend with the pain, guilt and loneliness of our present life. — Josh McDowell

Paul the apostle recounted that Jesus appeared to more than 500 of His followers at one time, the majority of whom were still alive and who could confirm what Paul wrote. — Josh McDowell

The Internet has given atheists, agnostics, skeptics, the people who like to destroy everything that you and I believe, the almost equal access to your kids as your youth pastor and you have ... whether you like it or not. — Josh McDowell

Well how can a holy, just, righteous God allow sin into His presence? — Josh McDowell

I've never had anyone define purity. You probably can't define purity. Purity is to live according to original design. — Josh McDowell

If someone tries to tell you you are the greatest generation in the history of America, don't believe them. You aren't. You have the capability to be, but you aren't. — Josh McDowell

The words Jesus Christ are not a first and last name; they are actually a name and a title. The name Jesus is derived from the Greek form of the name Jeshua or Joshua, meaning "Jehovah-Savior" or "the Lord saves." The title Christ is derived from the Greek word for Messiah (or the Hebrew Mashiach, see Daniel 9:26) and means "anointed one. — Josh McDowell

Tolerance is the worst roar of all, including tolerance for homosexuals, feminists, and religions that don't follow Christ. — Josh McDowell

We've had a major shift in what truth is and where it comes from. We've gone from being God-centered to self-centered, from being objective to being subjective, and from being internal to external. — Josh McDowell

One who claimed what Jesus claimed about himself couldn't be a good moral man or a prophet. That option isn't open to us, and Jesus never intended it to be. — Josh McDowell

Whenever you do judge, the only basis of judgment is not your own perspective or anything else, it's the very character and nature of God and that's why we are to allow Him to exercise His justice, where I personally want to take it upon myself. — Josh McDowell

It is more rewarding to resolve a conflict than to dissolve a relationship. — Josh McDowell

The Christian faith is faith in Christ. Its value or worth is not in the one believing but in the One believed - not in the one trusting, but in the One trusted. — Josh McDowell

What you are as a single person, you will be as a married person, only to a greater degree. Any negative character trait will be intensified in a marriage relationship, because you will feel free to let your guard down
that person has committed himself to you and you no longer have to worry about scaring him off. — Josh McDowell

We do not develop habits of genuine love automatically. We learn by watching effective role models - most specifically by observing how our parents express love for each other day in and day out. — Josh McDowell

Forgiveness is the oil of relationships. — Josh McDowell

Both Jewish and Roman sources and traditions admit an empty tomb. — Josh McDowell

Parents are heroes already - all they have to do is start acting like it. — Josh McDowell

Jesus claimed He had the power to raise himself from the dead and His followers would be raised from the dead. That's a unique claim in the literature of religion. — Josh McDowell

My heart and mind were created to work in harmony together. Never has an individual been called upon to commit intellectual suicide in trusting Christ as Savior and Lord. — Josh McDowell

If Jesus Christ was who He claimed to be, and He did die on a cross at a point of time in history, then, for all history past and all history future it is relevant because that is the very focal point for forgiveness and redemption. — Josh McDowell

Why don't the names of Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius offend people? The reason is that these others didn't claim to be God, but Jesus did. — Josh McDowell

Anyone with sincere religious beliefs cannot say that all religions are true. That is so illogical it is pathetic. All religion cannot be true because some of them are so diametrically opposed to each other. — Josh McDowell

There was a time when only specialized Christian missionaries needed to be able to defend the gospel of Jesus Christ against the attacks of Islam. Today every Christian has an opportunity and obligation to present the gospel effectively and in Christian love to the Muslims who have permeated our Western society. When your neighbor, your mechanic, your favorite basketball player, your employer or employee, or even your children's friends could very well be Muslims, the need for proper understanding and an effective Christian witness is abundantly clear. — Josh McDowell

I would say 90 percent of Christians do not have a worldview, in other words a view of the world, based on the Scripture and a relationship with God. — Josh McDowell

The fact that God accepts us should be our motivation for accepting ourselves. If we cannot accept ourselves the way we are, with our limitations and assets, weaknesses as well as strengths, shortcomings as well as abilities; then we cannot trust anyone else to accept us the way we are. We will always be putting on a front, building a facade around ourselves, never letting people know what we are really like deep down inside. — Josh McDowell

My greatest platform is not with all my degrees, everything else, it's not all my books, everything. It's that I'm known as a man who loves his wife and spends time with his children. That opens more; I speak as a daddy. — Josh McDowell

Stephen L. Carter coined the phrase 'the culture of disbelief' to describe the prevailing hostility in Western culture toward public expressions of faith. — Josh McDowell

Yet each of us also carries another portrait with us, a picture far more important than any in our wallet. Psychologists have a name for it. They call that mental picture of ourselves, our self-image ... there's always the person whose self-image is bent all out of shape, like a photo carried too long in a wallet.The good news of the tremendous worth we have in God's eyes can light up our inner self-portrait. — Josh McDowell

True love is spelled G-I-V-E. It is not based on what you can get, but rooted in what you can give to the other person ... — Josh McDowell

The New Testament witnesses were fully aware of the background against which the resurrection took place. — Josh McDowell

No matter how devastating our struggles, disappointments, and troubles are, they are only temporary. No matter what happens to you, no matter the depth of tragedy or pain you face, no matter how death stalks you and your loved ones, the Resurrection promises you a future of immeasurable good. — Josh McDowell

Now, whenever you read any historical document, you always evaluate it in light of the historical context. — Josh McDowell

We no longer live in a post-Christian society, we live in an anti-Christian society, one in which the Christian faith is dismissed or ridiculed and Christians are considered suspect and their motives and behavior berated. — Josh McDowell

I thought Christians were walking idiots. — Josh McDowell

Christ appeared alive on several occasions after the cataclysmic events of that first Easter. — Josh McDowell

Rules without relationship leads to rebellion. — Josh McDowell

Where I once constantly lost my temper, I found myself arriving at a crisis and experiencing peace. — Josh McDowell

My joy in life is not because I have not had any problems. I have joy because I have learned there is nothing too great for God's power to deal with, nor anything too small or insignificant for His love to be concerned about. — Josh McDowell

We may very well wake up in the not-too-distant future in a culture that is not only unreceptive but openly hostile to the church and the gospel of Jesus Christ, a culture in which those who proclaim the gospel will be labeled as bigots and fanatics, a culture in which persecution of Christians will be not only allowed but applauded. — Josh McDowell

I once had a lot of hatred, mainly toward my father, an alcoholic. — Josh McDowell

I would say much of religious heresy is the result of a misunderstanding of the basic nature of God. And once we have a proper understanding of God, then usually most of the areas of our life coincide with who God is and what He desires for each one of us. — Josh McDowell

Many people entertain the idea that Christianity,like almost any other religion,is basically a system of beliefs-you know, a set of doctrines or a code of behavior, a philosophy, an ideology.
But that's a myth.
Christianity is not at all like Buddhism or Islam or Confucianism. The founders of those religions said (in effect), 'Here is what I teach. Believe my teachings. Follow my philosophy.' Jesus said, 'Follow me'(Matthew 9:9).
Leaders of the world's religions said, 'What do you think about what I teach?' Jesus said, 'Who do you say I am?'(Luke 9:20) — Josh McDowell

Love can wait to give; it is lust that can't wait to get. — Josh McDowell