James Stalker Quotes on Jesus, the Cross, Prayer and Character
James Stalker (1848–1927) was a Scottish pastor and professor who wrote short, clear books about Jesus Christ. His Life of Jesus Christ has been used in Bible classes for well over a century, and Imago Christi and The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ are still read for their warmth and good sense. Stalker had a gift for putting a large truth in one plain sentence.
Every quotation below is copied exactly from his books in TheWay Library, with the book and chapter it comes from, so you can read each one in its setting. For his life story, see who was James Stalker. For a guide to all his books, see James Stalker books.
On Jesus Christ
Nearly everything Stalker wrote was about Christ. These lines come from his lives of Christ and his studies of Jesus' teaching.
But the centre and soul of His preaching was Himself.
The Life of Jesus Christ, The Year of Public Favour
It is a forgotten truth that the manhood of Jesus was from first to last dependent on the Holy Ghost.
The Life of Jesus Christ, The Nation and the Time
The life of Christ in history cannot cease.
The Life of Jesus Christ, Conclusion
He is not only the image of perfection but the Saviour from sin.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Shipwreck of Pilate
We never show so entirely what is in us as by the way in which we are affected by Christ.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Civil Trial
Caesar's empire is over the bodies of men; this is over their hearts.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Civil Trial
As soon as the Church began to live, it began to pray to its ascended Lord.
The Christology of Jesus, The Judge
Christ must give what He demands, or He demands far more than can possibly be given by those to whom His demands are addressed.
The Ethic of Jesus, Epilogue
On the cross
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ follows Jesus from Gethsemane to the tomb. Stalker writes about the cross with reverence and applies it to the reader's own heart.
The true sufferings of Christ were not physical, but internal.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, Calvary
If we understood it, the silence of Christ is the most eloquent of all appeals.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, Jesus and Herod
No one is forsaken who can pray, "My God."
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Fourth Word from the Cross
The glory of Christ is still the greatest sight which anyone can see between the cradle and the grave.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Signs
It is the poignant and intolerable sense of sin that makes the soul cling to the cross of Christ.
John Knox, His Religious Convictions
On following Christ's example
In Imago Christi Stalker shows Jesus as the pattern for every part of life: home, work, friendship, citizenship and prayer.
Though the primary aim of Christ's religion is to make good men, yet good men ought to be good citizens.
Imago Christi, Christ in the State
He is greatest, according to the mind of Christ, who renders the greatest services to others.
Imago Christi, Christ in the State
In real friendship there is always the knitting of soul to soul, the exchange of heart for heart.
Imago Christi, Christ as a Friend
The Jews expected the Messiah to be a prince; but God decreed that He should be born a working man.
Imago Christi, Christ as a Worker
The man who scamps his work degrades himself.
Imago Christi, Christ as a Worker
In their zeal for truth good men have sometimes forgotten to be zealous for charity.
Imago Christi, Christ as a Controversialist
On prayer
Stalker believed prayer has to be learned, and that time alone with God is the source of everything else.
The essential thing is to have the world shut out and to be alone with God.
Imago Christi, Christ as a Man of Prayer
Natural as prayer is, it is only so to those who have learned to pray before.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Seventh Word from the Cross
These hours of quietness are our real life!
The Preacher and His Models, An Ordination Charge
On sin and temptation
In The Seven Deadly Sins Stalker takes up an old list that Protestant writers had mostly left alone. He's plain about sin and plain about the cure.
The essence of sin is selfishness, and pride is the inordinate assertion of self; it would annihilate others, and it disdains to be prescribed to even by God.
The Seven Deadly Sins, Pride
But God cannot save a man who is not aware that he needs to be saved.
The Seven Deadly Sins, Pride
Sin is always a kind of temporary madness; and it was manifestly so in this case.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Great Denial
But not to confess Christ is the next step to denying Him.
The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ, The Great Denial
We must remember that it is no sin to be tempted, it is only sin to yield to temptation.
The Life of Jesus Christ, The Nation and the Time
It is wonderful what a medicine for accidie is found in disinterested and hearty service for others.
The Seven Deadly Sins, Sloth
The grand remedy for such a state of decay is to remember that the normal condition of a Christian is one of joy.
The Seven Deadly Sins, Sloth
On faith, hope and love
The companion book, The Seven Cardinal Virtues, ends with the three Christian graces.
Have you ever thought what a change it would make if you believed with all your heart and soul and strength and mind that God is?
The Seven Cardinal Virtues, Faith
Religion wants to shut no man's eyes: its mission is to open them.
The Seven Cardinal Virtues, Faith
In fact, God Himself is both the inspirer and the object of hope.
The Seven Cardinal Virtues, Hope
The normal effect of love to God is love to man.
The Seven Cardinal Virtues, Love
In The Two St. Johns he writes about the love between friends, thinking of John and Jesus.
Even a single friendship, with a specially gifted man or woman, may be the most golden memory of a life.
The Two St. Johns of the New Testament, St. John's Besetting Sin
On Paul and the gospel
From his handbook The Life of St. Paul:
It is a sunny life of joy, peace and hope which those lead who have come to know this gospel.
The Life of St. Paul, His Gospel
In no saved man's character is it possible to separate nicely what is due to nature from what is due to grace; for nature and grace blend sweetly in the redeemed life.
The Life of St. Paul, His Writings and His Character
On preaching
Last, a few lines from his Yale lectures to young ministers.
In the pulpit not only must a man have something to say, but it must be a message from God.
The Preacher and His Models, The Preacher as a Man of the Word
There will always be a demand for smooth things, and an appropriate reward for him who is willing to supply them in the name of God.
The Preacher and His Models, The Preacher as a False Prophet
Thus to love and to be loved is the secret of a happy and successful ministry.
The Preacher and His Models, The Preacher as an Apostle
And one from The Four Men, first preached to Yale students:
But people no longer respect the cloth, unless there is a man inside it.
The Four Men, and Other Chapters, Chapter IV: The Religion for To-Day
Where to read more Stalker
These lines come from twelve of his fourteen books in the library. If you want one book of his first, read The Life of Jesus Christ, short enough for an evening or two. For a devotional book, try The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ or Imago Christi. All his books are on the James Stalker author page, and our reading guide explains which is which.