Justin Taylor - Between Two Worlds

Guest review written by Lydia Brownback:

Is there a “right” way to approach Christian courtship and marriage? Recent debate in evangelical circles—much of it heated—reveals that a once simple path has become an intricate and confusing maze. What happened? Clearly we have latched onto some wrong ideas—worldly ideas—and in our attempt to widen the narrow way, we've gotten way off track. Our toleration of feminism and the accompanying loss of cultural masculinity have further obscured our approach. But since the culture has always been opposed to biblical principles, we cannot perpetually point a collective accusatory finger at the latest repackaging of rebellion.

So while it is only wise to recognize the influence culture has had on our compromised practice of Christianity, we do well to acknowledge that we, contemporary evangelicals, are the real core of the problem. When we allow feeling to replace thinking, when we orient ourselves to self-fulfillment, self-actualization, and every other self-centered ideology, when we blend secular psychology with biblical principles—what else can we expect but an erosion of biblical authority in all areas of life? Singleness, marriage, and spanning the gap between has certainly been altered by our culture, but only because we evangelicals have allowed it to do so.

As a result of all this, books advocating a variety of views on singleness, dating, and marriage have hit the Christian market with fresh fervor. With so many to choose from, how do we know the good from the bad? We may consider the experience of the author. Has he or she practiced what’s being preached for any duration? How about training? Has the author sat under the wisdom of experienced mentors? Such categories are helpful for evaluation, but the only criteria that really matters is this: is it biblical? A book with a strong scriptural foundation is not one in which the author has latched on to a passage or two to reinforce his or her views; rather, it is one in which the material presented is based on the Bible as a whole, i.e., one in which Scripture has been used to interpret Scripture.

With One Voice: Singleness, Dating, and Marriage to the Glory of God by Alex Chediak (Christian Focus Publications) is just such a book. Adding a balanced voice to the current debate, Chediak speaks pastorally—and biblically—to young men and women entering the contemporary landscape of courtship.