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We deal five minutes with a person and their conversion and then we spend the next fifty years trying to disciple a goat into a sheep. I'm not saying this because I'm angry. I'm saying this because countless people are being deceived.
Paul Washer
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Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote critiques the futility of trying to change someone's fundamental nature.

In this quote, Paul Washer emphasizes the challenge of transforming individuals who are inherently different from what we wish them to be, illustrating the frustration of spending excessive time attempting to guide those who do not genuinely seek the change. It serves as a cautionary statement about the limitations of our influence over others, highlighting the importance of recognizing the differences in people's inherent characteristics and motivations.

Themes

TransformationHuman NatureDeceptionGuidanceFrustration

In practice

Example use cases

This quote could be used in a workshop on effective leadership to illustrate the importance of understanding people's natural inclinations.

More from Paul Washer

Pray for the field. If God calls, then prepare for the field. When it is time, go to the field. A life lost for Christ is a life well spent.
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There is no such thing as a great man of God, only weak, pitiful, faithless men of a great and merciful God.
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Those who would send out thousands of questionnaires asking the unconverted what they would desire most in a worship service should realize that ten thousand unanimous opinions of carnal men do not carry the authority of one jot or tittle of God's Word.
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The evidence of conversion is not a decision card filled out, it's a life being lived out.
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Repentance is simply giving up to stop fighting against God and to stop attempting to gain your own salvation through your own works; to literally give up and fall upon Christ. That is salvation.
Paul WasherRead
When we realize what we were before Christ and what we deserved in that state, it further magnifies the enormity of the gospel for us.
Paul WasherRead

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