Counter Culture – Just Beginning

A few weeks ago, Travis invited me to read a book he was working on: Counter Culture, by David Platt. This book won’t find the coffee table of many. Most will view this as extreme and radical, but that really is the whole point. What Christ calls us to is not normal, it is not the accepted path of our society.

We may recognize that what we thought were separate social issues are in fact all intimately connected to our understanding of who God is and what God is doing in the world.

The most difficult thing about this book is to read it with the loving eyes of Christ. We are so easily ensnared by of earthly desire to be accepted that we forget our primary mission is to make disciples of all nations.

This could take a while. Here’s the table of contents. Interested in the journey?

Chapter 1. The Greatest Offense: The Gospel and Culture

• In the Beginning, God
• Our Natural Reaction to God
• The Sin of Self
• Is Jesus Unique?
• The Eternal Offense
• Do You Believe the Gospel?
• A Call to Conviction, Compassion and Courage

Chapter 2. Where Rich and Poor Collide: The Gospel and Poverty

• The Wealthy Aristocracy
• The Convicting Reality
• Free to Work
• “Want To”
• Work Diligently
• Live Simply
• Give Sacrificially
• Help Constructively
• Invest Eternally
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 3. Modern Holocaust: The Gospel and Abortion

• For All of Us
• God and the Unborn
• The Key Question
• Wonderful Works
• God the Judge
• Redeemed and Restored
• Every One Worth It
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 4. The Lonely in Families: The Gospel and Orphans and Widows

• A Story of Redemption
• Mirror of God
• A Culture of Orphans and Widows
• The Right to Redeem
• The Resources to Redeem
• The Resolve to Redeem
• Mara Ruth
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 5. A Ware on Women: The Gospel and Sex Slavery

• Meet Maliha
• Closer to Home
• Modern Slavery
• Created Equal
• Slavery and Pornography
• Fighting With The Gospel
• Hope and Healing
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 6. A Profound Mystery: The Gospel and Marriage

• Male and Female He Created Them
• Christ and the Church
• The Distortion of God’s Design
• Countercultural Marriage
• Once and For All
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 7. Bought with a Price: The Gospel and Sexual Morality

• Loving Boundaries
• Born This Way
• “Did God Really Say…”
• Darkened Hearts, Disordered Minds
• God So Loves…
• A New Identity
• A Costly Call
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 8. Unity in Diversity: The Gospel and Ethnicity

• Church Bombing
• The Human Race
• A Gospel-Less Starting Point
• Ethnicity
• What the Gospel Makes Possible
• One In Christ
• The Sojourner in our Midst
• Off the Sidelines
• A Better Country
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 9. Christ in the Public Square: The Gospel and Religious Liberty

• The First Freedom
• An Alarm
• Dignity in Disagreement
• A Global Perspective
• Proclaiming Christ
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim

Chapter 10. The Most Urgent Need: The Gospel and the Unreached

• Are We Going to Choose Comfort or the Cross?
• Are We Going to Settle for Maintenance or Sacrifice for Mission?
• Will Our Lives Be Marked By Indecisive Minds or Undivided Hearts?
• First Steps to Counter Culture: Pray, Participate, Proclaim