Sex and the Single Savior

Sex and the Single Savior
Author: Dale B. Martin
Publisher: Presbyterian Publishing Corp
Total Pages: 282
Release: 2006-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0664230466

Probing into numerous questions about gender and sexuality, Dale Martin delves into the biblical texts anew and unearths surprising findings. Avoiding preconceptions about ancient sexuality, he explores the ethics of desire and marriage and pays careful attention to the original meanings of words, especially those used as evidence of Paul's opposition to homosexuality. For example, after a remarkably faithful reading of the scriptural texts, Martin concludes that our contemporary obsession with marriage--and the whole search for the "right" sexual relationships--is antithetical to the message of the gospel. In all of these essays, however, Martin argues for engaging Scripture in a way that goes beyond the standard historical-critical questions and the assumptions of textual agency in order to find a faith that has no foundations other than Jesus Christ.

Slavery as Salvation

Slavery as Salvation
Author: Dale B. Martin
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2021-03-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 166670072X

Early Christians frequently used metaphors about slavery, calling themselves slaves of God and Christ and referring to their leaders as slave representatives of Christ. Most biblical scholars have insisted that this language would have been distasteful to potential converts in the Greco-Roman world, and they have wondered why early Christians such as Paul used the image of slavery to portray salvation. In this book Dale B. Martin addresses the issue by examining the social history and rhetorical and theological conventions of the times. The first half of the book draws on a variety of historical sources – inscriptions, novels, speeches, dream-handbooks, and agricultural manuals – to portray the complexity of slavery in the early Roman empire. Concentrating on middle-level, managerial slaves, Martin shows how slavery sometimes functioned as a means of upward social mobility and as a form of status-by-association for those slaves who were agents of members of the upper class. For this reason, say Martin, “slavery of Christ,” brought the Christian convert a degree of symbolic status and lent the Christian leader a certain kind of derived authority. The second half of the book traces the Greco-Roman use of political rhetoric that spoke about populist leaders as “enslaved” to their followers, especially to members of the lower class. This provides the context for Paul’s claim, in 1 Corinthians 9, that he has enslaved himself to “all” – that is, to those very people he is supposed to lead as an apostle. Martin thus interprets this statement to mean that Paul identifies himself with the interests of persons with lower status in the Corinthian church, calling on those with higher status to imitate his self-debasement in order to further the interests of those below them on the social scale.

From Queer To Christ

From Queer To Christ
Author: George Carneal
Publisher: George Carneal
Total Pages: 145
Release: 2016-08-28
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0692768394

George Carneal, author of "From Queer to Christ," grew up in the '70s, raised by a Southern Baptist minister in the ultra-conservative Bible Belt. For years he struggled with his Christian faith and a same-sex attraction. George shares his painful journey through a queer culture fantasyland filled with drag queens, drugs, and dangerous situations, a secular world at odds with homosexuality, in addition to a religious world that is hostile to homosexuals before discovering healing, joy, and peace in Christ. Perhaps sharing his journey through the eyes, and mind, of a confused child dealing with a same-sex attraction will give some insight into the pain and difficulty of navigating these two worlds. George would eventually spend 25 years immersed in the homosexual lifestyle (mostly in the Los Angeles club scene) and shares the pitfalls of that life. His story is not about glamorizing a life he once lived. This is merely his journey and what he learned along the way. Deliverance from that bondage is possible. There is hope in Christ! George is a frequent speaker at churches and conferences, has appeared on numerous television and radio broadcasts, as well as contributing quotes to online articles for LifeSite News, Christian Life Magazine, Tennessee Conservative News, and The Christian Post. For more information, please visit: http://www.georgecarneal.com

Sex and the Supremacy of Christ

Sex and the Supremacy of Christ
Author: John Piper
Publisher: Crossway
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2005-06-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1433517906

The Bible has a way of shocking us. If Americans could still blush, we might blush at the words, "Rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight; be intoxicated always in her love" (Proverbs 5:18-19). But, of course, sin always tries to trash God's gifts. So we can't just celebrate sex for what God made it to be; we have to fight what sin turned it into. The contributors to this unique volume encourage you to do both: celebrate and struggle. This book has something for all-men and women, married and single-from contributors like John Piper, C. J. and Carolyn Mahaney, Mark Dever, Al Mohler, Carolyn McCulley, and others.

Making All Things New

Making All Things New
Author: David Powlison
Publisher: Crossway
Total Pages: 105
Release: 2017-08-15
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1433556170

Sexuality was a part of God's good creation from the beginning. But with sin came a world filled with sexual brokenness. Thankfully, God is always in the business of restoration. This book offers hope for both the sexually immoral and the sexually victimized, pointing us all to the grace of Jesus Christ, who mercifully intervenes each moment in our lifelong journey toward renewal. Author David Powlison casts a vision for the key to deep transformation, better than anything the world has to offer—not just fresh resolve, not just flimsy forgiveness, not just simple formulas, but true, lasting mercy from God, who is making all things new.

Rethinking Sexuality

Rethinking Sexuality
Author: Dr. Juli Slattery
Publisher: Multnomah
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2018-07-24
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0735291489

This ground-breaking resource challenges and equips Christians to think and act biblically and compassionately in matters of sexuality. Sexual abuse, sex addiction, gender confusion, brokenness, and shame plague today's world, and people are seeking clarity and hope. By contesting long-held cultural paradigms, this book equips you to see how sexuality is rooted in the broader context of God's heart and His work for us on earth. It provides a framework from which to understand the big picture of sexual challenges and wholeness, and helps you recognize that every sexual question is ultimately a spiritual one. It shifts the paradigm from combating sexual problems to confidently proclaiming and modeling the road to sacred sexuality. Instead of arguing with the world about what's right and wrong about sexual choices, this practical resource equips you to share the love and grace of Jesus as you encounter the pain of sexual brokenness--your own or someone else's.

Biblical Truths

Biblical Truths
Author: Dale B. Martin
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 408
Release: 2017-02-21
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0300227914

A leading biblical scholar’s landmark work challenges the historical realism that has dominated the discipline for more than two centuries How can a modern person, informed by science and history, continue to recite the traditional creeds and confessions of the Christian church? What does the Bible mean and how do we verify biblical truths? In this groundbreaking book, a leading biblical scholar urges readers to be more creative interpreters of biblical texts, mapping out an alternative way of reading that is not first and foremost about understanding what those texts would have meant for the original authors and readers. Limiting our study to the ancient meaning of the text, he argues, has produced either bad history, or bad theology, or both. One cannot derive robustly orthodox Christian doctrine or theology from a mere “historical” interpretation of the Bible. Martin offers instead theological readings of the New Testament that are faithful to Christian orthodoxy as generally understood, but without attempting a “foundationalist” understanding of the meaning of the text. His provocative and ambitious book demonstrates how theology and scripture can remain vital in the twenty-first century.

Sex and Religion in the Bible

Sex and Religion in the Bible
Author: Calum Carmichael
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 518
Release: 2010-03-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0300153783

If we look to the Bible for historical accounts of ancient life, we make a profound error. So contends Calum Carmichael in this original and incisive reading of some of the Hebrew Bible and New Testament’s most famous narratives. Sifting through the imaginative layers of these texts with an uncanny sensitivity and a panoptic critical eye, he unearths patterns connecting disparate passages, providing fascinating insights into how ideas were expressed, received, and transformed in the ancient Near East. Ranging from Jacob’s encounter with Leah to the marriage at Cana to Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well, these readings demonstrate the remarkable subtlety and sophistication of the biblical views on marriage, sexuality, fertility, impurity, creation, and love.

Pedagogy of the Bible

Pedagogy of the Bible
Author: Dale B. Martin
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
Total Pages: 144
Release: 2008-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0664233066

For generations, most seminary teaching of the Bible has focused on the historical-critical method. While this method has been the standard in almost every seminary curriculum, the effects of this approach to Scripture have hardly been examined. From examining the biblical studies courses at ten different seminaries and divinity schools, Dale Martin learned what faculties were doing and what students were hearing. This book presents his discoveries, offering the best-ever inside look at the teaching of the Bible for ministry. Going beyond mere description, Martin argues for a new emphasis on interpreting Scripture within the context of church history and theology. Such a reading would be more theological, more integrated into the whole theological curriculum, and more theoretical (as it would focus on what's at stake in interpretation); however, Martin surprisingly argues, it would be more practical at the same time.

Sex and the City of God

Sex and the City of God
Author: Carolyn Weber
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 229
Release: 2020-08-25
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0830843841

After studying at Oxford University and finding God, Carolyn Weber grappled with a new invitation: to think bigger about love. Through Weber's personal story of courtship, marriage, and parenthood, as well as spiritual, theological, and literary reflection, this memoir explores what life looks like when we choose to love God first.