7 See Cornelius Plantinga’s book Engaging God’s World (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002).
8 Romans 8:22.
9 Isaiah 66.
10 Matthew 19:28.
11 Acts 3:21.
12 Colossians 1:19–20.
13 1 Corinthians 15:20.
14 Christ and the Caesars by Ethelbert Stauffer (London: SCM, 1952) is the best book I have come across on Jesus and the Roman Empire. Stunning piece of work. I’d also recommend Richard Horsley’s Jesus and Empire (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2003).
15 Acts 4.
16 It’s interesting that the word church was originally used by Christians as an intentionally political statement about who rules the world.
17 Acts 4:12.
18 Galatians 3:28.
19 Thomas Cahill talks about this fact in The Desire of the Everlasting Hills (New York: Anchor, 2001). This is one of the best books I’ve read about the early church.
20 Acts 4:34.
21 1 Corinthians 15.
22 For an example of this, find a book on Greek mythology and look up Dionysus, also called Bacchus.
23 The entire book of Acts.
24 At first he is called Abram, but then God changes his name to Abraham. See Genesis 17:5.
25 Luke 22:27.
26 John 13 is a powerful example of this.
27 Jesus is actually giving commentary on Torah in his loving your neighbor command, specifically Leviticus 19.
28 Genesis 1:26–27.
29 See James 2:1–13.
30 Matthew 7:14.
31 Revelation 21–22.
32 Luke 15; John 2 and 14.
SEX GOD
Exploring the Endless Connections
Between Spirituality and Sexuality
ROB BELL
Sex God
Introduction: This Is Really about That
Chapter One - God Wears Lipstick
Chapter Two - Sexy on the Inside
Chapter Three - Angels and Animals
Chapter Four - Leather, Whips, and Fruit
Chapter Five - She Ran into the Girls’ Bathroom
Chapter Seven - Under the Chuppah
Chapter Eight - Johnny and June
Chapter Nine - Whoopee Forever
Epilogue - More Balloons, Please
Acknowledgments
Endnotes
INTRODUCTION This is Really About That
Once there were two brothers.
Jacob had smooth skin. But his older brother, Esau, was “a hairy man.”
And not only was Esau follicly well-endowed, he loved to be outdoors. He was a skillful hunter—picture Ted Nugent in sandals. His smooth-skinned brother? Jacob stayed inside and cooked and hung out with their mother.
You can smell the conflict coming.
Which it does. Their father, Isaac, was dying, and the custom in the ancient Near East at that time was for the father to give his blessing to his firstborn son before he passed away. This was a symbolic gesture loaded with significance. Isaac sends Esau out to kill an animal they can eat as part of the blessing ceremony. But Jacob, at his mother’s prodding, covers himself in goat skins and goes to his ailing blind