Jesus Outside the Lines

WHAT WE’RE READING

If you have ever felt judged, stifled, labeled, or misunderstood in the Christian community, this book is for you. Likewise, if you are tired of the graceless us/them mentality of current culture and are curious about building a more complex understanding of who Jesus is and what it looks like to love your neighbor, this book is for you.

I first discovered Scott Sauls through his 2020 release, A Gentle Answer, which was a soothing balm and much-needed reminder of the calling to model after Jesus’ humble and gentle spirit. I began following his online teaching then and have grown more and more enamored since. So you can imagine my GLEE to discover Jesus Outside the Lines THE VERY WEEK I was launching this ministry. Scott seems to be saying exactly what I am trying to say through The Holy Shift (albeit much better.) And that makes me feel less crazy and more hopeful.

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

“Christianity always flourishes most as a life-giving minority, not as a powerful majority. It is through subversive, countercultural acts of love, justice, and service for the common good that Christianity has always gained the most ground.”

Scott Sauls

“Are we less concerned about defending our rights—for Jesus laid down his rights—and more concerned about joining Jesus in his mission of loving people, places, and things to life?”

Scott Sauls

“Jesus doesn’t call us to simple. He calls us into complexity. The human soul, psyche, mind, and emotions are complicated. And if he calls us to anything, it’s to enter into the mess that is day-to-day life alongside broken people in the midst of chaotic circumstances.”

Scott Sauls

It is a bucket-list-level goal of mine to have Scott join our community for a chat about the importance of kindness, gentleness, and humility in our faith relationships. For now, I highly recommend you read this book or check him out online.

For other resources on humility, read my article, Happy are the Humble, or watch me geek out about it on camera in the video, The Christian’s Call to Vertical and Horizontal Humility, with my friend, Carrie Kittinger.

“Polarizing, us-against-them discussions divide us and distract us from thinking clearly and communicating lovingly with others. Scott Sauls, like many of us, is weary of the bickering and is seeking a way of truth and beauty through the conflicts. Jesus Outside the Lines presents Jesus as this way. Scott shows us how the words and actions of Jesus reveal a response that does not perpetuate the destructive fray. Jesus offers us a way forward—away from harshness, caricatures, and stereotypes. In Jesus Outside the Lines, you will experience a fresh perspective of Jesus, who will not (and should not) fit into the sides.” -Amazon

Have you read this book or any of Scott’s other work? We would love to hear your thoughts!