Yesterday, Ravi Zacharias passed away at the age of 74 in his Atlanta home following a brief battle with sarcoma.
As founder and leader of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, he launched a global team of nearly 100 Christian scholars and authors who continue to speak and address the questions of millions around the world.
Throughout his lifetime, Ravi’s words of faith reached across our country and the world through his sermons and books such as The Logic of God and Jesus Among Secular Gods. Here are just some of the words of wisdom he shared with us…
On Faith
“Only through repentance and faith in Christ can anyone be saved. No religious activity will be sufficient, only true faith in Jesus Christ alone.”
“Outside of the cross of Jesus Christ, there is no hope in this world. That cross and resurrection at the core of the Gospel is the only hope for humanity. Wherever you go, ask God for wisdom on how to get that Gospel in, even in the toughest situations of life.”
“Who is God? Who are we? What is our purpose? All these questions remain unanswered. I want to reach the genuine seeker of spiritual well-being. My goal is to satisfy the hunger and longing for those who are seeking the truth”
“Only through repentance and faith in Christ can anyone be saved. No religious activity will be sufficient, only true faith in Jesus Christ alone.”
On God
“To allow God to be God we must follow Him for who He is and what He intends, and not for what we want and what we prefer.”
“There is no greater discovery than seeing God as the author of your destiny.”
“The world was made for the body. The body was made for the soul. And the soul was made for God.”
“God put enough into the world to make faith in Him a reasonable thing. But He left enough out to make it impossible to live by reason alone.”
“I think the reason we sometimes have the false sense that God is so far away is because that is where we have put him. We have kept him at a distance, and then when we are in need and call on him in prayer, we wonder where he is. He is exactly where we left him.”
“The older we become, the more difficult it is to fill our hearts with wonder. Only God is big enough to keep filling us with wonder.”
On Life
“My longings, my hopes, my dreams, and my every effort has been to live for Him who rescued me, to study for Him who gave me this mind, to serve Him who fashioned my will, and to speak for Him who gave me a voice.”
“We have a right to believe whatever we want, but not everything we believe is right.”
“But life’s joys are only joys if they can be shared.”
“The world is larger and more beautiful than my little struggle.”
“Beginning well is a momentary thing; finishing well is a lifelong thing.”
“Let your devotional life be the beacon that guides you through the tough terrain you will face.”
“When you think of it, really there are four fundamental questions of life. You’ve asked them, I’ve asked them, every thinking person asks them. They boil down to this; origin, meaning, morality and destiny. ‘How did I come into being? What brings life meaning? How do I know right from wrong? Where am I headed after I die?'”
“You’ll never get to a person’s soul until you understand their hurts.”
On Prayer
“It is important to understand that it is a prayer life that builds character that honors God,”
“I do not believe that one can earnestly seek and find the priceless treasure of God’s call without a devout prayer life. That is where God speaks.”
“The purpose of prayer and of God’s call in your life isn’t to make you number one in the world’s eyes but to make Him number one in your life.”
On Heaven
“The assurance of Heaven is never given to the person. And that’s why at the core of the Christian faith is the grace of God. If there’s one word I would grab from all of that, it’s forgiveness – that you can be forgiven. I can be forgiven, and it is of the grace of God.”
“Like a child who suddenly stops sobbing when he is clasped in the arms of his mother, such will be the grip of heaven upon our souls.”
