so this book has been out for a couple of months and i’ve finally gotten around to reading it. it is the book that was the result of the Desiring God National Conference (you can find this year’s conference page here) last October that had the same name. if you are unfamiliar with these conferences, they are held annually in Minneapolis, Minnesota at Bethlehem Baptist Church, the church which John Piper presides over. several leading speakers and scholars are invited to attend and give talks or lead seminars for the edification of those who attend.

this book that has been published out of that conference contains chapters written by each of the attending speakers and basically covers what they spoke about in their sessions. the book covers a great expanse of the contemporary sexual spectrum ranging from topics such as homosexuality to helpful advice on how to romance one’s spouse to dealing with singleness, all within the framework of biblical and evangelical Christianity.

in short, this book is a priceless treasure among the gobs of drivel that has been written on these very subjects.

opening with two very powerful chapters by John Piper, two points are made that will encapsulate the rest of the book. the first of these points is that “sexuality is designed by God as a way to know God in Christ more fully,” or put another way “all misuses of our sexuality distort the true knowledge of Christ.” the second point is that “knowing God in Christ more fully is designed as a way of guarding and guiding our sexuality,” or (put negatively) “all misuses of our sexuality derive from not having the true knowledge of Christ” (to see how Dr. Piper works these two points out fully, you’ll just have to read the book!)

these two points serve as the launching point for a discourse in what man has done to the God-glorifying, inspired, and designed act that human sexuality is and gives some insight on how to go about redeeming sex in the individual lives and marriages of Christians with hopes that that redemption will spread to the greater culture. in a culture so plagued with pornography, openness to homosexuality, licentiousness, etc., as well as the flip side which makes sex such a taboo that it seems it’s not to even be enjoyed in marriage, it’s quite refreshing to read a book that gets “back to the basics” of sex and sexuality in order to show its true purpose and design.

having been married for about two months now, this book has been extremely valuable in getting me to a point to realize what (and Whom) ALL relationships, not just sexual ones, are a reflection of and have challenged me to strive for purity in all relationships.

i believe this book to be beneficial to anyone at any point in life. whether they’re single, engaged, newlyweds, or married for 10-50 years, this book can help the reader look at their relatioship with themself, their spouse, and of course with God and give help and comfort to restoring those relationships to what we are Biblically told those relationships should look like.