The Courage to Be Protestant

I just finished reading David Wells' The Courage to Be Protestant. In this book, the author distills into 250 pages the enormous research and insight that went into his previous four books. Wells evaluates the culture of (post)modern America and explores how that culture is shaping the culture of the church. As he writes in the beginning:

It takes no courage to sign up as a Protestant. After all, millions have done so throughout the West. They are not in any peril. To live by the truths of historic Protestantism, however, is an entirely different matter. That takes courage in today's context. (1)

It's one thing to call yourself a Christian, and another to live like it. The world doesn't care what you call yourself, as long as you live like the rest of the world. This takes no courage. But to live like a Christian, to live a life that is radically different from the culture around you, this takes great courage. We should identify ourselves as Christians, not just by our labels, but by our lives.