Rosaria Butterfield - Grand Parkway Baptist Church - Session 1

How does the transforming power of the gospel reframe our understanding of identity, sin, and true belonging?In this message, speaker and author Rosaria Butterfield shares her conversion story, moving from her former life as a tenured professor of English and women's studies in a committed lesbian relationship to a redeemed life in Christ. Rosaria describes how her initial research into the religious right led to an unexpected friendship with a Christian pastor and his wife, eventually bringing her face-to-face with the authority of Scripture. Grounded in passages like Romans 1 and Matthew 15, this address dismantles modern cultural views on identity, offering a vision of daily repentance, biblical womanhood, and the unshakeable dignity found only in being image-bearers of God.In this episode, we cover:The Power of Christian Neighborliness: Discovering how patient, non-transactional friendship and ordinary hospitality can disarm hostility and open doors for the gospel.Scripture's Interrogating Authority: Realizing that the Bible is not merely paper and glue or a book to be judged by cultural standards, but a holy text with the right to interrogate our lives.Unchosen Sin and Original Sin: Understanding that struggles like same-sex attraction are forms of "Adam's thumbprint"—reflections of original sin that require daily repentance rather than defining one's ultimate identity.Distinguishing Between "Who" and "How": Recognizing that feelings or desires describe how a person may feel, whereas the Bible defines who a person is as an image-bearer made by God.The Ruthless Beauty of the Cross: Embracing the truth that salvation comes in exchange for the life we loved, requiring cross-bearing obedience that yields true understanding and lasting freedom.Be sure to follow us:InstagramFacebookYoutube