From the Bookshelf of Easley Library Bookworms…

Sex for Christians: The Limits and Liberties of Sexual Living

Lewis B. Smedes

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

No group discussions for this book yet.

What Members Thought

Mar 08, 2008 Werner rated it really liked it

Shelves: christian-life

This comprehensive treatment of Christian sexual ethics, written by a wise and compassionate professor at Fuller Theological Seminary (one of the world's leading evangelical seminaries), is, IMO, an enormously valuable and significant book, a treatment of one of the most serious topics that every human being has to deal with. Our sexuality is a central part of our identity as human creatures, and our standards for sexual behavior shape all of our human relationships, beginning at the family. Sme This comprehensive treatment of Christian sexual ethics, written by a wise and compassionate professor at Fuller Theological Seminary (one of the world's leading evangelical seminaries), is, IMO, an enormously valuable and significant book, a treatment of one of the most serious topics that every human being has to deal with. Our sexuality is a central part of our identity as human creatures, and our standards for sexual behavior shape all of our human relationships, beginning at the family. Smedes brings the counsel of God, as we know it from the Scriptures, to bear on the subject, and essays the task of interpretation with humility and winsome open-mindedness. (Obviously, I read the first edition of this book; this one differs only with the addition of an appendix titled "Second Thoughts," which the author sums up at the end by saying, "... in the important matters, I have merely tried to say some things more clearly than I said them before.")

Much of the author's treatment strikes a delicate (and biblical) balance between the strictures of the very Victorian/puritanical on the one hand, and the libertine hedonism of a morally adrift society on the other. He clearly recognizes sex as a good part of a good creation (not a necessary evil, nor a defilement of the creation). As something created, then, it's subject to the designs and purposes of its Creator; and those are bound up with the culminating blessing of faithful and committed union between a man and a woman in marriage as the sphere in which sexuality is to be fulfilled. The Christian ethic of fidelity in marriage, and sexual abstinence outside of marriage, thus exists for a reason, grounded in who we are created to be and in how we find true happiness and fulfillment; it's a positive ethic based on what we're for, not on what we're against. (So it's not an arbitrary taboo resting simply on religious prescription.) From this basis, he clearly explains why marital infidelity, uncommitted cohabitation and homosexual activity fall short of this purpose --while calling for love and compassion towards the individuals caught up in any of these behaviors. He also provides a thoughtful and helpful discussion of masturbation (which isn't directly addressed anywhere in the Bible), the role of sexual fantasy in human thought life, and other ancillary areas of sexual life.

Notwithstanding one or two minor disagreements with the author, I think this is (next to the Bible itself) the single most helpful book I've ever read on this subject. I think it would be a constructive read, not just for any Christian, but also for any responsible non-Christian, wanting to better understand his/her own sexuality and how to handle it responsibly and productively as a healthy component of a happy life. ...more

9 likes · Like · see review

Group Home Bookshelf Discussions

Photos Videos

Send invite Members Polls