What’s in February’s ‘The Lutheran Witness’?

As the world moves toward Valentine’s Day, the February issue of The Lutheran Witness looks at a topic the Church is sometimes reticent to discuss: sexuality.

In “Love among the Ruins,” the Rev. Dr. Harold Senkbeil encourages Christians to speak confidently and joyfully about God’s gift of sex, while in “A Way of Escape,” Deaconess Jeni Miller interviews an LCMS member previously involved in a homosexual lifestyle, who talks firsthand about the way in which the Lord delivered her from it.

In “It’s Just Sex” by the Rev. Craig Donofrio, college students learn why promiscuity hurts and how God’s love makes all things new, and the Rev. Andrew Kennell’s “A Beautiful Inheritance” encourages those hurt by the world’s understanding of sexuality to take comfort in the fact that Jesus’ “perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18).

“Explicit Parenting for Explicit Times,” by the Rev. Dr. Lucas Woodford, explains how families can talk about the uniqueness of males and females, even when children are young, paving the way for Dr. Beverly Yahnke’s “Their Way, Their Rules, Their Ruin?” which unpacks the Millennials’ understanding of cohabiting, uncoupling and sex as sport.

Questions about pornography, virginity and even older couples living together outside of marriage are answered in “The Smoldering Wick” by the Rev. Jon Olson, even as the Rev. Tom Eckstein’s “How Do I Help Them?” explains how to speak the truth in love to those who may be struggling with or supporting same-sex attraction.

Finally, the Rev. Theodore Cook offers a brief primer on the Sixth Commandment in “Sin-Corrupted Sex,” encouraging repentance and reminding readers of Christ’s forgiveness.

It can often be difficult and uncomfortable for Christians to discuss sexuality, but Senkbeil notes, “Christ Jesus has paid for all your sins in full — including your sexual sins — ‘not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death’ (Luther’s Small Catechism). By faith, your sins are erased and you’re covered in Christ’s perfect innocence and holiness.”

Posted Feb. 4, 2015