Is God anti-gay?: and other questions about homosexuality, the Bible and same-sex attraction (Practical and sensitive exploration of the Bible's teaching on sexuality) (Questions Christians Ask)

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Sam Allberry seeks to re-centre the conversation to what the Bible actually says rather than on what we want it to say. Allberry covers a lot of ground in such a small book, and in doing so he shows God’s heart toward homosexuals, gays, lesbians, those who have same-sex attraction, and it’s the same heart he has toward all who sin. Nate Collins is the executive director of Aligned Grace Resources, a ministry he founded with his father to equip churches to minister the grace and truth of the gospel to people affected by same-sex attraction. The temptation to provide a creaturely answer to this question in the form of a culturally derived gender identity (such as “gay” or “lesbian”) can be strong. It is telling that Allberry does not have queer Christians who champion his cause, but it is even more telling that his greatest allies are members of the Religious Right who have much to gain and little to lose.

I’m immensely grateful to Sam Allberry for writing this little book, in the Good Book Company’s new ‘Questions Christians ask’ series, for many reasons. If someone thinks the gospel has somehow slotted into their life quite easily, without causing any major adjustments to their lifestyle or aspirations, it is likely that they have not really started following Jesus at all. He invites everyone, burdened with all kinds of sins, to come to him, to repent, and be free from the chains of self-worship. When it comes to the difficult and oft-quoted passages, such as Sodom in Genesis or verses from Leviticus, he weighs up what people say about them and why, before exploring the original wording and wider context of the verses to demonstrate that they clearly condemn homosexual behaviour. Christians, the church and the Bible seems to be out of step with modern attitudes toward homosexuality.

In a moment when everyone else was walking away, Peter recognized that Jesus had the only thing worth having— all other options were no options at all. It’s a useful one to hang on to and refer back to, either to answer your own questions or those of friends.

But even if he hadn’t, it’s not completely far-fetched to suggest the entire book provides a compelling framework to answer this question accurately. Dan works part time for his church in Bristol and part time for Living Out as the Digital Content Manager. Despite his conclusions, Allberry seeks to refute “anti-gay” notions about Christianity and its conservative adherents in particular; he states an answer to the title’s question, “Is God anti-gay? Together with an autobiographical introduction and conclusion, these chapters provide a wise way forward for Christians to be a faithful and compassionate witness to the gospel in our society. This re-balanced, full expression of the Gospel for individuals (with, I would say, a hint of the wider implications) is a helpful one, a positive one, and a good starting point for his discussion of a controversial topic.We look at teaching widely and well on biblical sexuality and dive into some tough questions about Scripture that our young people ask.