Scandalous Grace: A Book for Tired Christians Seeking Rest

by Preston M. Sprinkle

I think many Christians are willing to put up with social outcasts and misfits, but this isn’t grace. It’s tolerance. Where there’s no pursuit, no stubborn delight, there’s a superficial Christianese grace (“bless this food to our bodies”), but it’s not charis. God aggressively and delightfully values and uses thugs and misfits to build His glorious kingdom: abrasive, thickheaded people like Peter, hotheaded racists like James and John, violent brawlers and extortionists like Simon and Matthew, and mentally deranged bag ladies like Mary Magdalene. He doesn’t give them a bowl of soup and shuffle them out of the church. He gives them responsibility—the hallmark of genuine value—and trusts in the God who uses the weak to shame the strong.