I've read chapters one through five thus far. I must admit that this would have been an excellent book to have read for a sexual ethics class in seminary. It seems to be a book for pastors, scholars, and those who prefer a heady treatment of a Christian view of sex. Frankly, an unchurched person would struggle with this book. It speaks directly to the Christian subculture that wants an in-depth if not academic approach to the issue of sex.
I personally would refrain from giving this as a marriage building tool to a person or couple struggling with sexual issues. However, I would imagine that this would set well with the college age crowd, in that they would enjoy wrestling with how the supremacy of Christ impacts their sexuality. I envision some late nights discussing the book in Bible study groups on campuses.
The book, as you might guess, is squarely grounded in Scripture. Sometimes excruciatingly so. Save the introduction, I found only a few engaging and relevant passages that get anywhere close to real life application.
The first two chapters, authored by Piper, is a thorough investigation of the supremacy of Christ. It proposes two theses: The first was that sexuality is designed by God as a way to know Christ more fully. And the second was that knowing Christ more fully is designed by God as a way of guarding and guiding our sexuality. While both statements are true, Piper could have handled them more succinctly. He thoroughly outlines how the supremacy of Christ affects everything in our reality. The case he builds for the supremacy of Christ is airtight, but his effort to tie it to human sexuality was a stretch for me.
Our knowing all that God promises to be for us in Christ gives us the power to suffer with joy. And here’s the link: we must suffer in order to be sexually pure. (pg. 45)
I'm glad Piper lost me four paragraphs before his chapters end. I was having a hard time seeing how being sexually pure was related to suffering. Granted, it isn't easy being sexually pure but I personally don't associate it with suffering. I've met people beaten and imprisoned for the Gospel. They didn't mention that going without sex while in prison was a part of their suffering.
Ben Patterson's third chapter was well written and more practical. It's a good mix of orthodoxy and orthopraxy. (I haven't used those words since seminary but felt pressed to do so since reading this book.) Good theology and good application. My kind of stuff.
David Powlison's fourth chapter was...well...long. He was tasked with speaking to Restoring Pure Joy to the Sexually Broken. No new ground broken here. I didn't see much to link the supremacy of Christ to overcoming and healing sexual brokenness. He does make a concerted effort to bring in relevant illustrations.
Al Mohler's treatment of Homosexual Marriage as a Challenge to the Church: Biblical and Cultural Reflections is very well written. This would be a great section for a young Christian to read so they might grasp their theological moorings in our postmodern world. It's a hot social topic for the generations to come so I understand why it was included in the book.
Overall: So far it seems like a good book for the seminarian. Not a book that you want to take your small group through. The theological concepts are, of course, usable in sermons but the practical application would be left to the expositor for the most part. We'll see how the rest of the book goes...
