I will not stay silent so you can stay comfortable

Not long before I left for my holidays someone came up to me and said that the sermon I had preached had made them uncomfortable and I shouldn't preach like that again.
I wasn't quick enough at the time to say that that is what the Gospel does - make people uncomfortable. Christianity is not meant to make people feel like everything is ok - following Jesus is meant challenge us into action, revolutionise what we think, say and do.
It has always been like this, form the beginning - as a reminder of what sort of faith we have here are just a few (of many) sayings of Jesus that always make me squirm a little as I think about what they actually mean and how I can make them relevant in my life....

"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me." Matthew 5:11

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” Matthew 6:24

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear ... “ Matthew 6:25

“Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,’ he said, “Why did you doubt?” Matthew 14:31

“If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.” Matthew 18:8

“Love your neighbour as yourself.” Matthew 22:39

These are just 6 quotes taken from Matthew's Gospel. Think about these and if they don't make you slightly uncomfortable then read them again as you may not have have completely understood them first time. And remember there are a lot more quotes in Matthew as well as another 3 Gospels.

Christianity certainly isn't for those who want to be comfortable...