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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Few Christians today subscribe to the Pauline views on head covering and hair braiding, dismissing them as applicable only in culture in which they were given. The book appears to be geared towards those who wrestle with understanding the conservative (often described as “Biblical”) case for exclusively complementarian, heterosexual marriage and sexual practice. Allberry is a young Christian pastor who experiences same-sex attraction (SSA) and is committed to a biblical vision for sexuality. There were a few places where I would have liked to see more depth, and there were a couple of concepts/sentences which I expect some more conservative people would struggle with, but overall this is a helpful and pastoral introduction to a complex topic. Anyone looking for that kind of thing would do well to read Jackie Hill Perry’s Gay Girl, Good God, as one such example.

It can be skim-read in an afternoon, but it’s worth taking your time to absorb each chapter, to reflect, and to pray.The purpose of earthly marriage is not to fulfill us, but to point us to the relationship that does. From this, we have a brief and informed discussion of the biblical texts especially relevant to same-sex behaviour. However, I would recommend that you don’t do that, but that instead you take the time to go through it. The cross that leads from our churches, our parents, our siblings, our belonging, and sometimes our livelihood or fundamental way of life is agonizing and tortuous. 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.

It was also great to read a book of this kind written by someone who is actually SSA (his preferred term). Besides, later verses indicate that Sodom's sins included oppression, indifference to the poor, etc. A strategy of the deceiver is to place a barrier between people with SSA and the church, a wall that divides. His conviction that God’s word is ‘deeply and profoundly good’ shines through every page as he focuses again and again on what the Bible tells us.Allberry helpfully reminds us that both marriage and also singleness point to our relationship with Jesus Christ, and that neither is a more blessed state than the other. In the introduction, he says, "Above all I want people to how good Jesus is, in this area of life and in every area of life. In fact, four out of five evangelicals staunchly support an admitted serial adulterer in the White House. After a preliminary chapter discussing marriage and sex within the Biblical text, Allberry devotes a chapter each to homosexuality and the Bible, homosexuality and the Christian, homosexuality and the Church, and homosexuality and the society. Without going into every chapter in detail, suffice it to say that he answers common questions and examines the usual Scripture passages to get to the heart of the issues at stake, but never without losing sight of the fact that this is a deeply personal and delicate issue.

Allberry holds fast to biblical ethics and provides a framework for engaging the LGBTQ community in a way that is loving and filled with truth. incredibly helpful, and I feel better equipped to answer both my own and others questions on the topic. In response to the question if monogamous same-sex relationships are acceptable, he compares the issue to gang-members who are loyal to each other and to an issue cited in Corinthians, where a man married his father’s wife. I definitely recommend this book, and I appreciate Sam’s willingness to make himself vulnerable before the Christian community for our own good. I have found it very refreshing to read a book on this topic, from someone who personally wrestles with issues of same sex attraction, yet stands firmly on the teaching of God's Word.It is not biblical Christianity that insists someone’s sexual disposition is so foundational to who they are, and that to fail to affirm their particular leaning is to attack who that person is at their core.

It is a posture of our hearts to match God’s loving heart is what is required and Sam brings that across so very well. Almost every chapter ends with a gray box with a significant question that many have asked before: “Surely a same-sex partnership is OK if it’s committed and faithful? At the end of every chapter Sam provides questions and answers to some of the objections that people may bring which I found to be a very important part of the book to help aid our understanding should we face the same objections. I must say my judgment made me act quickly regarding the topic of this book before I finished reading it and now that I am done reading it, I must say i am really impressed. Because the Gospel should never be separated from what God does, and talk of sin should never be separated from talk of sin.When someone asks this question, I believe at the heart of their question is this: Is God against LGBTQ people? In this short, simple book, Sam Allberry wants to help Christians understand what God has said about these questions in the scriptures.