Top 300 J. C. Ryle Quotes (2025 Update)
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101. “God has linked holiness and happiness; and what God has joined together we must not think to put asunder.”

— J. C. Ryle

102. “Assurance of hope is more than life, it is health, strength, power, vigor, activity, energy, manliness, beauty.”

— J. C. Ryle

103. “The eye of God! Think of that. Everywhere, in every house, in every field, in every room, in every company, alone or in a crowd, the eye of God is always upon you.”

— J. C. Ryle

104. “Faith in the Lord Jesus is the only sure medicine for troubled hearts.”

— J. C. Ryle

105. “Without a thorough conviction of sin, men may seem to come to Jesus and follow Him for a season, but they will soon fall away and return to the world.”

— J. C. Ryle

106. “The love of our Lord Jesus Christ towards sinners is strikingly shown in His steady purpose of heart to die for them.”

— J. C. Ryle

107. “Let it never surprise true Christians if they are slandered and misrepresented in this world. They must not expect to fare better than their Lord.”

— J. C. Ryle

108. “True Christians delight to read the Scriptures, because they tell them about their beloved Savior.”

— J. C. Ryle

109. “Until we give God our heart, we give Him nothing at all.”

— J. C. Ryle

110. “Do we profess to love Christ? Then let us show it by our lives.”

— J. C. Ryle

111. “Every fresh act of sin lessens fear and remorse, hardens our hearts, blunts the edge of our conscience, and increases our evil inclination.”

— J. C. Ryle

112. “Men fall in private long before they fall in public.”

— J. C. Ryle

113. “God knew what we were before conversion – wicked, guilty, and defiled; yet He loved us. He knows what we will be after conversion – weak, erring, and frail; yet He loves us.”

— J. C. Ryle

114. “We may love money without having it, just as we may have money without loving it.”

— J. C. Ryle

115. “Nothing perhaps affects man’s character more than the company he keeps.”

— J. C. Ryle

116. “Let us cleave to Christ more closely, love Him more heartily, live to Him more thoroughly, copy Him more exactly, confess Him more boldly, and follow Him more fully.”

— J. C. Ryle

117. “Are you tempted? Look unto Jesus. Are you afflicted? Look unto Jesus. Do all speak evil of you? Look unto Jesus. Do you feel cold, dull, and backsliding? Look unto Jesus.”

— J. C. Ryle

118. “The world’s idea of greatness is to rule, but Christian greatness consists in serving.”

— J. C. Ryle

119. “We ought to regard the sacrament of baptism with reverence. An ordinance of which the Lord Jesus Himself partook, is not to be lightly esteemed. An ordinance to which the great Head of the Church submitted, ought to be ever honorable in the eyes of professing Christians.”

— J. C. Ryle

120. “Backsliding, generally first begins with neglect of private prayer.”

— J. C. Ryle

121. “Doctrine is useless if it is not accompanied by a holy life. It is worse than useless; it does positive harm. Something of ‘the image of Christ’ must be seen and observed by others in our private life, and habits, and character, and doings.”

— J. C. Ryle

122. “According to the men of the world, few are going to hell; According to the Bible, few are going to heaven.”

— J. C. Ryle

123. “If you want to find out how much someone loves you, find out how much they pray for you.”

— J. C. Ryle

124. “What is the reason that some believers are so much brighter and holier than others? I believe the difference, in nineteen cases out of twenty, arises from different habits about private prayer. I believe that those who are not eminently holy pray little, and those who are eminently holy pray much.”

— J. C. Ryle

125. “It must not content us to take our bodies to church if we leave our hearts at home.”

— J. C. Ryle

126. “No prayers can be heard which do not come from a forgiving heart.”

— J. C. Ryle

127. “A true Christian is one who has not only peace of conscience, but war within. He may be known by his warfare as well as by his peace.”

— J. C. Ryle

128. “Knowledge of the Bible never comes by intuition. It can only be obtained by diligent, regular, daily, attentive reading.”

— J. C. Ryle

129. “Hearken, my believing reader. What is the cause of your weakness? Is it not because the fountain of life is little used? Is it not because you are resting on old experiences, and not daily gathering new manna – daily drawing new strength from Christ?”

— J. C. Ryle

130. “Whatever you read, read the Bible first. Beware of bad books: there are plenty in this day. Take heed what you read.”

— J. C. Ryle

131. “Live as if you thought that Christ might come at any time.”

— J. C. Ryle

132. “Children are very quick observers; very quick in seeing through some kinds of hypocrisy, very quick in finding out what you really think and feel, very quick in adopting all your ways and opinions. You will often discover that, as the father is, so is the son.”

— J. C. Ryle

133. “The rulers of the earth plan, and scheme, and make laws, and change laws, and war, and pull down one, and raise up another. But they little think that they rule only by the will of Jesus, and that nothing happens without the permission of the Lamb of God.”

— J. C. Ryle

134. “I fear we are in danger of forgetting that to HAVE the Bible is one thing, and to READ it quite another.”

— J. C. Ryle

135. “Troublous times, departures from the faith, evil men waxing worse and worse, love waxing cold, are things distinctly predicted.”

— J. C. Ryle

136. “True worship leads to a more full knowledge of self, God, heaven, duty, doctrine, practice and experience.”

— J. C. Ryle

137. “The cause of Christ does not need less working, but it does need among the workers, more praying.”

— J. C. Ryle

138. “He that would be conformed to Christ’s image, and become a Christ-like man, must be constantly studying Christ Himself.”

— J. C. Ryle

139. “We are all so sunk in sin, and so wedded to the world, that we would never turn to God and seek salvation, unless He first called us by His grace. Without a divine call, no one can be saved.”

— J. C. Ryle

140. “Laughter, ridicule, opposition and persecution are often the only reward which Christ’s followers get from the world.”

— J. C. Ryle

141. “It is not always those who have the most eminent gifts who are the most successful laborers for God. It is generally those who keep up closest communion with Christ and are most constant in prayer.”

— J. C. Ryle

142. “The devil has more knowledge than any of us, and yet is no better for it.”

— J. C. Ryle

143. “The work of the preacher resembles that of the sower. Like the sower, the preacher must sow good seed, the Word of God.”

— J. C. Ryle

144. “Let us strive, every year we live, to become more deeply acquainted with Scripture.”

— J. C. Ryle

145. “If you profess to be a child of God, leave it to the Lord Jesus to sanctify you in His own way.”

— J. C. Ryle

146. “There is one subject in religion, about which you can never know too much. That subject is Jesus Christ the Lord.”

— J. C. Ryle

147. “If you love Christ, never be ashamed to let others see it and know it. Speak for Him. Witness for Him. Live for Him.”

— J. C. Ryle

148. “No one ever said at the end of his days; ‘I have read my bible too much, I have thought of God too much, I have prayed too much, I have been too careful with my soul’”

— J. C. Ryle

149. “Conversion is not putting a man in an armchair and taking him easily to heaven. It is the beginning of a mighty conflict, in which it costs much to win the victory.”

— J. C. Ryle

150. “Young men, I beseech you earnestly, beware of pride. Two things are said to be very rare sights in the world- one is a young man that is humble, and the other is an old man that is content. I fear that this is only too true.”

— J. C. Ryle