If you are looking for powerful quotes by AW Tozer for you to reflect on, I’m glad to say you are on the right article.
In the Bible, we find stories of great men who, through their faith and the great power of the Lord, did great things and who today are known as heroes of faith.
It is easy for us Christians today to feel discouraged or too “small”. After all, we are not other Abrahams, other Marys, or other Paul the apostles. What we forget, however, is that every child of God is worth the same precious blood of the spotless lamb.
We too are great heroes of the faith: men and women who live for the sake of the Gospel, to live it, and to make it known to all people. In this article, you will meet a hero of the faith who was previously just an “ordinary” boy.
He was born at the end of the 19th century, and it marked – remaining to this day – all the brothers.
We’re talking about Aiden Wilson Tozer or AW Tozer.
Who was AW Tozer?
Aiden Wilson Tozer was a pastor, writer, and speaker. He was born in Pennsylvania, USA, in 1896 and converted to Christianity at the age of 17 when walking down the street on his way home, he heard a preacher saying: “ If you don’t know how to be saved, just cry out to God saying: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner. And He will hear.”
After going up to the attic of his house in order to repeat the same words, he began to dedicate his life entirely to the work of the Lord.
At age 22, he began pastoring a church associated with the Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA), although he had no biblical training or in-depth study. It was not until 1950, that Tozer received a degree for his honorary doctorate of letters from Wheaton College.
Tozer was married to Ada Cecilia Pfaut, with whom he had 7 children. He valued the simple life and the constant cultivation of prayer, reading the Word, and daily time alone with God. He finally died in 1963.
The Legacy of AW Tozer
In addition to the churches he pastored and the lives he reached through evangelism – a practice he strongly defended – Tozer left several books, sermons, and editorials were written. Among the topics he addressed the most were:
- Worship;
- The Holy Spirit;
- The presence of God;
- The quest for knowledge of the Holy.
Among his best-known books, “In search of God”, “The crucified life” and “The knowledge of the Saint” stand out.
5 Quotes by AW Tozer for You to Ponder
In this article, we have prepared 5 quotes from Tozer for you to reflect on. Redouble your attention and good reading!
1. About Regret
“It is impossible for anyone to truly repent without having a deep disappointment in themselves.” (AW Tozer)
Repentance, so necessary to the Christian life, must be a daily practice: daily we look within ourselves and reflect on our condition and on the need we have for Jesus and his purification.
In fact, to be saved, the first thing we need to do is repent and recognize that we are sinners. After that, we believe in God’s grace and believe that Jesus is the only one who can save us.
This salvation, which comes from and depends on the Lord, cannot be achieved without repentance, since it is this attitude that makes us believe that the work of Jesus on the cross happened so that we could be brought closer to the Father. One of Tozer’s thoughts deals with:
“The idea that God will forgive the rebel who has not given up his rebellion is contrary to both Scripture and common sense.” (AW Tozer)
And how, then, do we recognize this desperate need for redemption? Tozer answers us:
“A sincere man with an open Bible, a notebook, and a pencil will no doubt find out what is wrong with himself very quickly.” ( AW Tozer)
2. About Suffering
“If the unsearchable riches of Christ are not worth our suffering for, it is good to know that now and stop playing at religion.” (AW Tozer)
Suffering in a Christian’s life is never in vain. Whether our suffering is because of the cross of Christ or because of our fallen human nature, we have hope. Look at these two verses:
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” (James 1:2-3).
“I have said these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have afflictions; however, take heart! I have conquered the world”. (John 16:33 – NIV).
Suffering is part of everyone’s life, and it is completely unavoidable. However, in the life of the Christian, it produces perseverance and leads us to trust in God. In addition, the suffering we go through can help someone else and leads us to witness to them the sustenance that God gives us.
“It is very unlikely that God would use a person who has never suffered deep pain.” (AW Tozer)
3. On Christian Conduct
“A true Christian is a strange person in every way. He feels a supreme love for someone he has never seen; he converses familiarly every day with someone he cannot see; he hopes to go to heaven on the merits of another; empties himself that he may be full; admits to being wrong so he can be declared right; come down that he may go up; is strongest when he is weakest; he is richest when he is poorest; happiest when he feels the worst. He dies that he might live; renounces that he may have; donates that he may keep; sees the invisible, hears the inaudible, and knows what surpasses all understanding.” (AW Tozer).
The Christian life is really contrary to the conduct of the world. While on Earth we need to do something to receive something in return, in the reality of heaven we don’t need to do anything but believe in Christ.
And because of that, by believing and being born again, we no longer live our own life, but the life of Jesus:
“Our great honor lies in being precisely what Jesus was and is. To be accepted by those who accept Him, rejected by those who reject Him, loved by those who love Him, and hated by those who hate Him.” (AW Tozer).
What a great responsibility, from that point of view. Through our words, behaviors, ways of acting and reacting, we carry Christ, and no longer our own name. See one of Tozer’s thoughts about this and reflect:
“Millions of professing Christians talk as if Christ were real, but act as if He were not.” (AW Tozer)
4. On Idolatry
“The essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him.” (AW Tozer).
What comes to mind when you think of idolatry? Most people tend to think of pagan images and statues when in reality idolatry is not just that.
It’s easy to get too attached to material things: our job, the house, the car, the career, a person, a relationship… and end up putting all these things in God’s place. Here, at this point, idolatry is born.
You can even defend yourself by saying don’t get carried away by things that are fleeting, but there is also something else that can easily be idolized and put in the place of the Lord:
“The self is so subtle that rarely does anyone notice its presence.” (AW Tozer)
Have you ever stopped to reflect that we are all constantly prone to idolizing ourselves? We take away the glory from God when we take credit for his work, or when we prioritize our own wills to the detriment of the Lord’s wills – at that moment, we become dangerously idolatrous. One of Tozer’s thoughts addressed exactly this:
“An idol in the mind is as offensive to God as an idol in the hand.” (AW Tozer).
5. About Worship
“God prefers worshipers to workers; indeed, the only acceptable workers are those who have learned the art of Worship.” (AW Tozer).
As active servants in God’s house, we are constantly tempted and prone to fall into activism: we work too hard for the Lord’s work, and yet we are apt to forget that the work is actually His.
Worship runs the risk of ceasing when we lose sensitivity to the voice of the Holy Spirit and begin to live exempt from the awareness of the divinity and sovereignty of the Lord:
“Worship is the lost jewel of the Evangelical Church.” ( AW Tozer).
With that in mind, let us not fail to reflect on how much worship is necessary and indispensable in the life of every Christian. Beyond words or songs: a lifestyle.
So, which of these Tozer thoughts did you like the most? Tell us here in the comments!