“The fundamental story arc of the Bible is God is passionate about rescuing this world, restoring it, renewing it.”
- Rob Bell
“No one has the last word other than God.”
“When we get to what happens when we die, we don't have any video footage. So let's at least be honest that we are speculating, because we are.”
“A lot of Christians have been taught a story that begins in chapter 3 of Genesis, instead of chapter 1. If your story doesn't begin in the beginning, but begins in chapter 3, then it starts with sin, and so the story becomes about dealing with the sin problem. So Jesus is seen as primarily dealing with our sins.”
“As a pastor, you get invited into the most poignant moments of people's lives. Whether it's a wedding or a funeral or a hospital visit, you get invited into the center of the event, whether or not you know the people.”
“Suffering is traumatic and awful and we get angry and we shake our fists at the heavens and we vent and rage and weep. But in the process we discover a new tomorrow, one we never would have imagined otherwise.”
“Well, I affirm orthodox Christian faith. I affirm the Nicene Creed. I don't think I'm doing anything terribly new.”
“The historical orthodox Christian faith is extremely wide and diverse.”
“What we believe about heaven and hell is incredibly important because it exposes what we believe about who God is and what God is like.”
“When someone sets out to be controversial or provocative or shocking as an end in itself, I don't think that's a noble goal.”
“I am for love, whether it's a man and a woman, a woman and a woman, a man and a man.”
“We live in a world where we have friends, neighbors, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, people we journey with for years who are gay. And we need to love, affirm and all of us together work on the real problems that we have in the world.”
“For a lot of people in our world today, God has become about believing the right stuff so you don't get in trouble.”
“I believe God gives people the right to say no, to resist, to refuse, to reject, to cling to their sins, to cling to their version of their story.”
