Christians today must consider difficult questions about sex and gender that would have been unimaginable even twenty years ago. The forsaking of objective truth and the rejection of Scripture as God’s authoritative Word to humankind, along with the embrace of radical individualism, have resulted in a society that accepts no fundamental bedrock of truth or reality, opting instead for the shifting sands of subjectivity and personal desires. The following resources, curated by the Ligonier editorial team, seek to help Christians better understand this modern landscape, as well as how God’s Word can help us make sense of and respond to these cultural shifts.
The New Reformation Catechism on Human Sexuality by Christopher J. Gordon
This resource is a modern, pastoral catechism based on the Heidelberg Catechism (1563) that helps to instruct Christians in the truth of biblical human sexuality. It is divided into four parts that cover questions related to creation, fall, redemption, and restoration. This catechism may be used for Bible studies, Sunday school classes, family devotions, and other discipleship contexts.
The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution by Carl R. Trueman
This book analyzes the development of the sexual revolution, noting that it is simply one manifestation of the larger revolution of the self that has occurred in the West. Dr. Trueman discusses the key shifts in popular beliefs and explores the background of those shifts, saying that the sexual revolution of the last sixty years “cannot be properly understood until it is set within the context of a much broader transformation in how society understands the nature of human selfhood.”
Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age by Rosaria Butterfield
This book addresses five common lies about sexuality, faith, feminism, gender roles, and modesty in today’s secular culture. Written as a memoir, the book approaches these topics from the perspectives of Scripture and theology, cultural studies, literary criticism, and the author’s own personal battle with these lies. It aims to help women embrace godly values around womanhood, marriage, and motherhood while also addressing modern issues such as transgenderism and homosexuality.
What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? by Kevin DeYoung
In part one of this book, Dr. Kevin DeYoung looks at key biblical passages in the Old and New Testaments to articulate Scripture’s overall teaching on sexuality. Part two consists of responses to seven objections that are often raised against the biblical sexual ethic, such as “The Bible hardly ever mentions homosexuality” and “The God I worship is a God of love.”
Gender Ideology: What Do Christians Need to Know? by Sharon James
Christians today increasingly find themselves in situations where they encounter family members, friends, and acquaintances who identify with a gender other than the one they were born with. In this practical guide, Dr. Sharon James looks at how the Bible speaks to the issue of gender ideology, answering questions such as “Can we really change sex?”, “Where did ‘gender theory’ come from?”, and “How should we respond?”
This article is part of the Recommended Resources collection.
Ligonier Ministries