Uncomfortable: The Awkward and Essential Challenge of Christian Community

The perfect church does not exist, but committing to a church in spite of its flaws is essential—and worth it. Churchless Christianity is an oxymoron.

Faithful Christians should embrace rather than be embarrassed by their abnormal status and strange practices; not for the sake of being weird, but for the sake of the world.

We grow most when we are outside of our comfort zones. We are more effective when we are on the edge of risk. We hold beliefs more dear and pursue goals more passionately when they are accompanied by a cost.

The cross remains “folly” because it undermines human logic and wisdom.

The New Testament paradigm for homosexual behavior is “emphatically negative,” argues Hays, and “offers no accounts of homosexual Christians, tells no stories of same-sex lovers, ventures no metaphors that place a positive construal on homosexual relations.”

Being a follower of Christ on mission in a hostile world is not for the faint of heart.

If marriage is just about us feeling happy, then the minute a marriage stops delivering happiness, it is easy to justify ending it.

Both the Old and New Testaments consistently forbid homosexual practice.

Christianity would be a lot more comfortable if we could just keep to ourselves and mind our own business. But we are called to mission, to tirelessly serve others and evangelize, which is not easy.