Themelios 21:1
Digital Verbum Edition
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Overview
Themelios is an international evangelical theological journal that expounds and defends the historic Christian faith. Its primary audience is theological students and pastors, though scholars read it as well. It was formerly a print journal operated by RTSF/UCCF in the United Kingdom, and it became a digital journal operated by The Gospel Coalition in 2008. The new editorial team, led by D.A. Carson, seeks to preserve representation, in both essayists and reviewers, from both sides of the Atlantic. Each issue contains articles on important theological themes, as well as book reviews and discussion—from the most important evangelical voices of our time.
- The Parousia: Getting our Terms Right, by Walter Riggans
- Deliverance: The Evolution of a Doctrine, by Stephen Hunt
- The Bible and Homosexuality, by J. Glen Taylor
Top Highlights
“Rather, we must ask: In which direction on the whole do the biblical winds blow with respect to appropriate sexual expression between persons? By virtually any notion of the ‘literal sense’ of the Bible, these winds blow in the direction of heterosexual marriage, with affirmation being given to celibacy alone as an alternative.” (Page 4)
“Rather, the phenomenon of relative silence probably reflects the fact that homosexual relations were not a major issue in the early church, most likely because it shared the perspective of Hellenistic Judaism that sexual relations of this kind were sinful. In sum, one searches the Bible in vain for the suggestion that homosexual relations were a viable option for the faithful.” (Page 4)
“Homosexual intercourse itself is condemned in the OT primarily on the basis of the doctrine of creation and this view is upheld in the NT within the theologically substantive discussion of what is ‘contrary to nature’ in Romans 1.” (Page 7)
“In light of Romans 2:1, from which it is clear that all of humankind stands without excuse before God, it would be inappropriately self-righteous for anyone to condemn homosexual relations as if these relations were not evidence of a sinful rebellion in which all persons participate. To miss this would be to miss Paul’s point entirely.” (Page 6)
“Significantly then, only when the reference to God as creator and the clear allusions to the creation story in Genesis 1–3 are ignored or significantly downplayed (as in the works of William Countryman, Scroggs and Furnish for example)40 can Paul’s clear teaching that homosexual union is ‘unnatural’ plausibly be regarded as culturally conditioned and thus of very limited (or no) relevance for the modern issue of homosexual relations and the church.” (Page 6)
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