Sex and The Supremacy of Christ

1581346972I just read the .PDF version of Sex and the Supremacy of Christ, edited by Justin Taylor and John Piper. Its a good, solid book on sex from a reformed, protestant, American standpoint. But its appeal will go far beyond that group. The book starts off with some typical Promise-Keepery teachings but keeps getting wider and more interesting. It covers more ground than many other books on sex I have bought and brings in a number of voices, although it doesn’t bring the tension of conflicting voices. It has heaps of Bible passages and gives them plenty of coverage. It was great to see Song of Solomon feature so prominently – its a book that I always refer to when teaching on the subject.

Of special interest are two historical chapters on the sexuality of Martin Luther and Puritans in America. I didn’t know this, and it is worth repeating here, the example of Martin Luther who married Katie the ex-nun. According to the book, Luther was such an Xtreme Farter, that when he got married, he bought a new mattress to honor his wife.

“Shortly after their wedding Luther wisely ordered a new mattress for him and his new bride! Luther, who once famously boasted, ”If I break wind in Wittenberg they smell it in Rome!“ undoubtedly had to make some adjustments to his bachelor lifestyle.”

Now thats the kind of advice that will make every wife buy this book for their husband!

At the heart of the book is a challenge to refuse idolatry and keep Christ supreme in our hearts and in our sexual lives. Good word.

Buy the book? Well, if you are looking for such a book, this one is written by many authors, both male and female, and at almost 300 pages there is enough good stuff there to warrant it having a home on your shelf. Yeah . I cant think of a better one. Am I buying the book? Ah . . I am getting free one sent to me for reviewing it .. . so i can put that money towards a new mattress. Thanks Justin for the book and Challies for the tip.

Other reviews:

TheBlueFish

Power of Change

Andrew

Andrew Jones launched his first internet space in 1997 and has been teaching on related issues for the past 20 years. He travels all the time but lives between Wellington, San Francisco and a hobbit home in Prague.

6 Comments

  • I’m in on the same deal and should have the book finished tomorrow. So far it really is a great read.
    Another word on Luther and farting… R.C. Sproul has a qoute in “The Holiness of God” about Luther believing he repelled Satan with his farts. (Someone didn’t return the book to me so I can’t give the exact quote.) If his farts were potent enough to repel Satan it certainly makes sense he’d buy a new mattress for his wife.

  • God bless Libronix! The book is on my computer, here’s the quote:
    “Luther’s chronic stomach troubles have also been linked to a psychosomatic problem. His neurotic phobias all seemed to go directly to his stomach, destroying his digestion. His problem with flatulence has become legendary, due in part to his own exaggeration of it. His writings are sprinkled with references to his constant belching and breaking of wind. He said, “If I break wind in Wittenburg, they will hear it in Leipzig.”
    Fortunately Luther was able to find a sanctified use for his flatulence. He advised his students that the breaking of wind was a most effective device to repel the attacks of the devil. Elsewhere Luther spoke of resisting Satan by throwing an inkwell at him.”

  • Eddy Dueck says:

    Andrew,
    cool review. The whole thing started out as a conference, the teachings were compiled into a book. For everyone who likes to listen to the teaching while driving to work or doing the dishes, here’s the link to the media section of the official webite:
    http://www.desiringgod.org/news_events/dgm_national/2004/media.html

  • Mark says:

    Thanks for the recommendation.
    I think I’ll find this book interesting–it would be interesting to see what body-positive stuff it may have.

  • Julian Malcolm says:

    this is interesting. we are a generation that is certainly perplexed over our sexuality but God must have something in mind for it. Holiness perhaps? John Paul II did a series of sermons on sexuality, which are refered to as “The Theology of the Body.” Its quite fascinating and a bit difficult to sum up. The best way would probably be to describe it as a reflection on marriage and celibacy as a revelation of the Trinity.
    Its getting quite a bit attention these days. A good intro to it might be in Christopher West’s book linked here
    http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1932645349/qid=1117666133/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/002-1699374-7966450?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

  • Big Chris says:

    Nice review (I also reviewed it) and I love the mattress reference at the end.
    Big Chris

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