For the longest time I have felt actively engaged and intricately involved in fighting the progressive left’s sexual revolution. I speak out (or write) frequently about the dangers of no-fault divorce, articulate why any sane society would recognize that pornography does not fall under the auspices of free speech or free expression, and have warned repeatedly that the demands of the LGBT political lobby will result in consequences damaging to all of us, gay people included.

It’s a culture war that was launched by the sexual revolutionaries dating back to Alfred Kinsey, joined by Hugh Hefner, adopted by Hollywood, and now commandeered by smear merchants like Dan Savage and dangerous activist groups like the Human Rights Campaign. 

Though society only recognizes the highly popularized cultural side of this conflict, there is a soft underbelly that exists on the spiritual level.  And only in the last year or two have I found myself withdrawing from the cultural battlefront while ramping up my efforts on the spiritual side. Not only do I find it much easier to address from that vantage point, I also believe it is the only avenue through which we can hope to have enduring success.

The spiritual tenor of a people will determine the culture. In other words, when your people turn rebellious spiritually, it is absurd to expect them to embrace moral good in their culture. That is surely where we are today, but there is hope in understanding the converse of this formula is just as true. When we fight this battle spiritually, and win spiritually, there will be a cultural effect. Far more triumphant, far more lasting, far more stable.

Along those lines, I have been asked more than once what resources I would recommend for those who want to articulate spiritual truth on this issue of same sex attraction. My standard response is anything from Rosaria Butterfield. Now, there is another. Jackie Hill Perry’s recently released book Gay Girl, Good God is a powerful manifesto of overcoming sin. For Perry, that sin was her same-sex attraction, but what I loved about the book was that it was all about God’s goodness, His faithfulness, His strength in helping flawed human beings find fulfillment. 

This isn’t a story about how Jackie Perry became ex-gay through her own choices. It is a story about how God is faithful to people with same-sex attraction just as much as He is faithful to someone with urges towards other sinful conduct. While same-sex attraction may be a lifelong struggle, Perry commends and celebrates the sufficiency of Christ Jesus:

“The crucified life is the life set on enduring until the end when, once for all, the cross is replaced with a crown…If Jesus needed strength to endure for the sake of obedience to his Father, how much more do we?”

Perry also reiterates what I think is the most crucial point for Christians to understand and articulate amidst a culture that celebrates same-sex attraction perhaps more than any other: “God isn’t calling gay people to be straight.” Bingo. This is about sinners finding fulfillment in Jesus rather than sin. As a sinner who has done that myself (albeit with a different manifestation of sin than those that Perry deals with), I can testify that complete deliverance from the urge or temptation is not immediate, and it is not imminent. The cross may be borne for a lifetime, but carrying it is our privilege as those in submission to Christ’s will over our own.

Perry ends her book with a note of triumph that should be read by every soul this side of eternity:

“Our sexuality is not our soul, marriage is not heaven, and singleness is not hell. So may we all preach the news that is good for a reason. For it proclaims to the world that Jesus has come so that all sinners, same-sex attracted and opposite-sex attracted, can be forgiven of their sins to love God and enjoy Him forever.”

Amen. If I might be so bold, get the book, read it, and then pass it on.