Just finished reading an outstanding book by Stephen Perks, a British theologian and writer. The book is entitled Common Law Wives and Concubines, and is a collection of essays by Perks on a number of issues relating to covenantal Christianity and the current state of Western culture. It is really a worthwhile read.
A couple things that Perks addressed are worth commenting on here. The first is his examination of how the Christian faith — a very public thing — got turned into a “personal worship hobby.” Through various compromises, most Christians today argue for our status to be that of a private cult rather than a public religion. Many of our current problems stem directly from this, a fact that is getting more and more difficult to dispute. We look at the state of marriage in Massachusetts, and we find that outrage is easy. We look at the state of biblical understanding on the relationship of our public faith and the public square, and we discover that repentance within the Church is hard. Which is why nothing changes.
In several essays, Perks tackles the issue of homosexuality directly, and does a wonderful job of showing that homosexuality, as it confronts us today, is the judgment. We should not be concerned solely about a future judgment; the judgment has already started.
I took issue with a few points here and there throughout the book, but the points of difference are minor. This book should be a high priority for pastors to obtain and read. Check with the good people at http://www.kuyper.org/main/main.php
And you can get the book through Amazon in the UK.