John Stonestreet interviews Dr. Ben Mitchell of Union University about our culture's divorce from sexual design, and how we can reverse it.

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The sexual revolution of the 1960s was billed as a liberating phenomenon for both men and women. "Out with those outdated, Victorian values, and in with the flashy, new social norm!" What could go wrong, right? Well, a broken society just for starters.

God created sexual relations between men and women as a good thing. But in this fallen world, it has become so degraded by our society, it's now unrecognizable. Today John Stonestreet and guest, Dr. Ben Mitchell, discuss the problem and solution.

 

"Dr. Mitchell," recalls John, "was an advisor of mine when I was a master student at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and is now the Graves professor of moral philosophy at Union University."

Now halfway through our series on sexual brokenness at the Colson Center, we have explored issues like pornography, the reshaping of the sexual economy, and dehumanization. This weekend, we ask the critical question: how did it all start?

"We live in an age when personal autonomy...is the trump card," says Dr. Mitchell. "In other words, if you ask somebody why they should have permission to do this or do that, they will respond: 'because I want to.' Desire satisfaction drives most of our moral positions these days."

According to Dr. Mitchell, our culture underwent a basic and catastrophic change when it adopted this view of sexual morality. When sex was separated from its holy role within an order designed by God, we began to dismantle it piece by piece. Under the banner of "sexual freedom," we saw love and commitment divorced from sex. And with the advent of pornography and the pill, it became easier than ever to pursue irresponsible sexual pleasure without the usual consequences involved.

Sex, says Dr. Mitchell, became less loving, less fulfilling, and less human than it had ever been.

"Where did this divorce happen?" asks John.

"When we divorced our bodies from ourselves, first of all. The notion was that the body was evil and so we didn't have to worry about what we did with it. Just preserve your consciousness, your inner self, and you can use the body any way you want to.

The other phase had to have been during the sexual revolution. "If I want it, I get it." That really was the message of the 1960s. Rebel against authority, challenge every norm, and then follow your own desires. We're living with the consequences of those two major shifts."

Listen to this week's entire program to hear John and Dr. Mitchell forecast the disturbing places these trends might eventually take us, and what we can do to prepare the rising generations to reject the divorce between sex and God's design.

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Learn More...

• Click here and here to listen to John Stonestreet's recent BreakPoint commentaries on pornography and the sexual victimization of women.
  
• Read more about both of this week's program topic by visiting our Colson Center Theme of the Week page. >>CLICK HERE.