Kyle Idleman > Quotes

“These religious types were the fans that Jesus seems to have the most trouble with. Fans who will walk into a restaurant and bow their heads to pray before a meal just in case someone is watching. Fans who won’t go to R-rated movies at the theater, but have a number of them saved on their DVR at home. Fans who may feed the hungry and help the needy, and then they make sure they work it into every conversation for the next two weeks. Fans who make sure people see them put in their offering at church, but they haven’t considered reaching out to their neighbor who lost a job and can’t pay the bills. Fans who like seeing other people fail because in their minds it makes them look better. Fans whose primary concern in raising their children is what other people think. Fans who are reading this and assuming I’m describing someone else. Fans who have worn the mask for so long they have fooled even themselves.”
― Kyle Idleman

“There is no life without death.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Following Jesus isn’t something you can do at night where no one notices. It’s a twenty-four-hour-a-day commitment that will interfere with your life. That’s not the small print—that’s a guarantee.”
― Kyle Idleman

“The biggest threat to the church today is fans who call themselves Christians but aren’t actually interested in following Christ. They want to be close enough to Jesus to get all the benefits, but not so close that it requires anything from them.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Following Jesus will cost you something. Following Jesus always costs something.”
― Kyle Idleman , Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Fans don’t mind him doing a little touch-up work, but Jesus wants complete renovation. Fans come to Jesus thinking tune-up, but Jesus is thinking overhaul. Fans think a little makeup is fine, but Jesus is thinking makeover. Fans think a little decorating is required, but Jesus wants a complete remodel. Fans want Jesus to inspire them, but Jesus wants to interfere with their lives.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Fans mistake knowledge OF Jesus for intimacy WITH Jesus.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Jesus doesn’t expect followers to be perfect, but he does call them to be authentic.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Jesus doesn't hold back with Nicodemus.
Following Jesus would require a commitment that would cost Nicodemus a great deal....In fact, it's true throughout all of Scripture....Following Jesus isn't something you can do at night where no one notices. It's a twenty-four-hour-a-day commitment that will interfere with your life. That's not the small-print--that's a guarantee.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Sometimes, I hear people talk about the different men and women of the Old Testament, and there is a hint of jealousy. They may say it, or just insinuate it, but here's what they communicate...'What would it have been like to hear God's voice and see him move in such powerful ways? I wish it was the same for us as it was for those whose stories we read about in scripture. When I get to heaven I can't wait to ask David, Elijah, or Moses what it was like.' But I think it will be just the opposite in heaven. Before we can ask David what it was like to slay a giant, to win the battles, he'll say, Tell me what it was like on earth to have the Holy Spirit inside of you, giving you strength when you are weak. We might say to Elijah, What was it like to call down fire from heaven before the prophets of Baal and to raise that boy from the dead? And I think Elijah might say, yeah, he actually ended up dying again. You tell me what it's like to have God living inside of you. What was it like to live life on earth with the Holy Spirit giving you joy when you're depressed or giving you the power to overcome that sin in your life? We might say to Moses, What was it like to follow the cloud by day and the fire by night? What was it like to meet with God on that Mountain? And Moses might say, I had to climb that mountain to meet with God. You tell me what it was like to have him dwell in you everyday. What was it like to have the Holy Spirit giving you directions when you didn't know what to do or where to go?”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“So in case someone left it out or forgot to mention it when they explained what it meant to be a Christian, let me be clear: There is no forgiveness without repentance. There is no salvation without surrender. There is no life without death. There is no believing without committing.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“In teaching people what it means to be a Christian, we spend much of our time and effort bringing them to a point of belief without clearly calling them to follow. We have taken “believe” and we have written that in capital letters with bold print: BELIEVE. But everything that has to do with following has been put in small print: follow.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“God has given us the use of his resources for a short time here on earth, and we have much to be grateful for. Go through your day sometime just recognizing that everything is God’s. Get out of God’s bed and walk into God’s bathroom, and turn on God’s shower, and then put on God’s clothes. Eat God’s cereal* and drink God’s coffee. Get in God’s car and head to work. When we start to see all of our resources as God’s it helps us develop an attitude of gratitude that leads to a heart of worship.”
― Kyle Idleman, Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart

“Where Is Your Sanctuary? Where do you go when you’re hurting? Let’s say it’s been a terrible day at the office. You come home and go — where? To the refrigerator for comfort food like ice cream? To the phone to vent with your most trusted friend? Do you seek escape in novels or movies or video games or pornography? Where do you look for emotional rescue? The Bible tells us that God is our refuge and strength, our help in times of trouble — so much so that we will not fear though the mountains fall into the heart of the sea (Ps. 46:1 – 2). That strikes me as a good place to run. But it’s so easy to forget, so easy for us to run in other directions. Where we go says a lot about who we are. The “high ground” we seek reveals the geography of our values.”
― Kyle Idleman, Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart

“We love others best when we love God most.”
― Kyle Idleman

“There is a tendency to treat our relationship with Jesus like the diet we keep meaning to start. I’m going to start eating right, as soon as I finish off this chicken chimichanga. Tomorrow for sure. We treat our relationship with Jesus like the workout program we keep meaning to start. We go to bed telling ourselves, “Tomorrow I’m going to wake up early and exercise.” But the following night we find ourselves getting into bed promising, “Tomorrow for sure.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Here’s the point: idolatry is the tree from which our sins and struggles grow.”
― Kyle Idleman, Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart

“The biggest threat to the church today is fans who call themselves Christians but aren’t actually interested in following Christ.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“What you win them with is what you win them to.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“It's much easier to talk about following Jesus when you are making general statements rather than specific commitments.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“the grace of God doesn’t simply invite us to follow … it teaches us to follow.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“The truth is that most of us go to great lengths to disguise our weaknesses.”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“The battlefield of the gods is your heart. Your heart is shaped by your thoughts.”
― Kyle Idleman, Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart

“Close your eyes, and with Jesus, journey back through your day. As you do, confess sin as you see it...”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ and author of the Four Spiritual Laws chose three words for his tombstone: "slave for Jesus".”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“God will not waste your pain.”
― Kyle Idleman, The End of Me: Where Real Life in the Upside-Down Ways of Jesus Begins

“Without seeing the depths of sin, we’ll never understand the heights of God’s love and grace.”
― Kyle Idleman, The End of Me: Where Real Life in the Upside-Down Ways of Jesus Begins

“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? (James 2:14–16).”
― Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“We were made for God, and until he is our greatest pleasure, all the other pleasures of this life will lead to emptiness.”
― Kyle Idleman, Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart

“God is jealous for your heart, not because he is petty or insecure, but because he loves you. The reason why God has such a huge problem with idolatry is that his love for you is all-consuming. He loves you too much to share you.”
― Kyle Idleman, Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart