I still can’t quite bring myself to believe this statistic. Maybe it’s wrong. But a recent article in New York magazine included this bombshell: “roughly 30 percent of American women under 25 identify as LGBT; for women over 60, that figure is less than 5 percent.”

Maybe you’ve heard about rapid onset gender dysphoria among adolescents and teens. And we’ve seen the prevalence of social contagion in our Instagram age. Is this the fulfillment of what so many have been warning? Is such a revolution in human sexuality so unthinkable in such a short period of time?

Probably not when you consider what’s unfolded in the West during the last 60 years. Historian Carl Trueman covers that ground in his new book, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution (Crossway). He locates the sexual revolution within a broader change in views of the self and identity. Trueman joined me this week for a special extended episode of Gospelbound to help church leaders understand what’s happening. We captured video from the conversation, and I asked questions submitted by listeners.

I’ve seen Trueman say that apologetics used to be about explaining the church to the world. But now it’s more about explaining the world to the church. And that’s what he does in The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self, which is my pick for the most important book published 2020.

Programming note: This is the final episode from the first year of Gospelbound. Thank you for listening and sharing! We have far exceeded expectations, and your encouraging feedback has spurred us to continue this search for firm faith in an anxious age. Lord willing, we’ll return in January. I’ve been reading to prepare, and it looks like we’ll have another strong season for next winter and spring. As always, I’d love to hear any recommendations for topics and guests. The next couple months could give you the chance to preview my most recent thought-provoking read.