Homosexuality

Graham Cole on Christianity and Contemporary Sexualities: A Table Talk Prelude

Kirk E. Miller

This post was originally published at Rolfing Unshelved.

On Tuesday Cole delivered a “Dean’s Hour” lecture entitled “Following Christ in a LGBTIQQAAP’s World.” In many ways, this talk served as an introduction to the conversation that will continue at the Table Talk on October 21st.

In this post I’d like to relay some of the key points of this recent talk as a way to stimulate your thinking and prepare you for further conversation at our Table Talk.

First, Dr. Cole addressed the context in which we engage these matters.

(A) For many of us, these matters are extremely personal. Either we experience same-sex attraction ourselves or we know others–friends, family members–who do. We cannot engage this issue as a purely theoretical one.

(B) Furthermore, we engage this issue in a drastically changing culture, a culture of which the fast-past political changes are symptomatic. We live in a world in which these matters are cast as civil rights issues and opposition to them is addressed with a shaming rhetoric and ostracizing actions.

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RECOMMENDED: Q&A with Sam Allberry on Homosexuality (ERLC)

Kirk E. Miller

The ERLC has shared several videos in which Pastor Sam Allberry tackles difficult and important questions regarding the church and homosexuality.

You can see the full collection videos at ERLC’s website.

Below are a few samples.

Why Is Saying “Same-Sex Attraction” Is A Choice So Problematic?

Can You Have A Heart Of Repentance For A Desire You Don’t Control?

Is Same-Sex Attraction A Sin?

How Do We Work To Establish Language, In The Church, That Does Not Alienate Same-Sex Members?

How Should A Church Develop A Culture That Deals Openly With Same-Sex Attraction?

How Can Christians Minister To A Same-Sex Attracted Member Who Is Experiencing Loneliness?

Is Living Out One’s Sexual Desires Necessary To LIving A Happy Life?

How Do Families Explain Same-Sex Attraction To Their Children?

Goodreads Review of Bible, Gender, Sexuality: Reframing the Church’s Debate on Same-Sex Relationships by James Brownson

Kirk E. Miller

Bible, Gender, Sexuality: Reframing the Church's Debate on Same-Sex RelationshipsBible, Gender, Sexuality: Reframing the Church’s Debate on Same-Sex Relationships by James V. Brownson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

If you hold to the traditional, historic Christian position on same-sex relationship (like myself), this is a fantastic book to read in order to engage with the best of the revisionist position. It is well written, structured, and formatted. And his position, although one with which I disagree, is one with which to wrestle. In other words, this is not a “pop” apologetic of the revisionist position. This is a rather scholarly defense. (Don’t read this if you merely want to be able to “straw man” the revisionist view.) I find its position unconvincing and unacceptable; but this position that I hold to be dangerously wrong is nonetheless well presented and argued here. It serves as a fantastic representation of the revisionist position. And it would greatly serve as a catalyst for strengthening and forming a well thought out traditional position on marriage and sexuality. With that said, even though I disagreed with Brownson’s final proposals, I nonetheless learned from him and agreed with much he had to say leading up to those conclusions.

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Al Mohler’s God and the Gay Christian? – FREE

Kirk E. Miller 2 Comments

SBTS has made Al Mohler’s response to Matthew Vine’s book, God and the Gay Christian: A Response to Matthew Vines, available for free. Get it here.

Christians and homosexuality is a hotly debated topic in today’s evangelical world, and Southern Seminary continues that conversation in this publication. Matthew Vines’s new book, God and the Gay Christian: The Biblical Case in Support of Same-Sex Relationships, argues that homosexual orientation and committed same-sex relationships are consistent with a “high view” of the Bible and evangelical Christianity. Southern Seminary president R. Albert Mohler Jr. and four other seminary faculty members refute this claim in the new SBTS Press e-book, God and the Gay Christian? A Response to Matthew Vines.

Each chapter refutes Vines’s claims from six specific Scriptural references to homosexuality. Mohler’s chapter provides an overview critique of Vines’s book. James M. Hamilton Jr., professor of biblical theology, addresses the Old Testament claims; Denny Burk, professor of biblical studies, addresses New Testament claims; Owen Strachan, assistant professor of Christian theology looks at the church history assertions; and Heath Lambert, assistant professor of biblical counseling, answers whether there is such a thing as a “gay Christian.”