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Happy To Welcome You To The Hallelujah Chorus

I will exalt you my God, the King, I will praise your name forever and ever. Every day I will praise you and exalt your name forever and ever. Psalm 145:1-2

Monday, June 25, 2012

"Gay Marriage? Really?"

Over the years I have had many conversations and some very intense counseling sessions with Christians and unbelievers about homosexuality. In my early years I fear much of my teaching and counseling, although Bible based, built more walls than helpful dialogue with some people. In my experience, quoting scripture to win an argument really doesn't because virtually all people will hold on to what they perceive to be true for them.

Every gay person I have ever known quotes from what I call the "gay commentary", their own interpretation of God's word. Without fail, they either begin with or at some point get around to the assumption that "God made me this way". All the research I have seen, even some as recent as the last few years, has failed to find any "genetic" link that is supposed to prove God's own hand in directly causing people to possess at birth some kind of divine mandate that makes them pursue same sex tendencies. But, I feel certain that research will continue to be very high on someone's list of priorities.

Admittedly, there is much more that I don't know than the little I do know. I have no professional degrees in psychology or psychiatry and the majority of my friends and acquaintances are not gay or bisexual. However, I am not totally ignorant on this subject. The Holy Spirit has given me a pretty thorough education on the subject of "sin" and even as much as I know some people abhor that word, we all must admit that God is very serious in his judgment concerning sin, all sin. Here are the Holy Spirit's words -

"Do you not know the unrighteous (ungodly, wicked lifestyle) shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, not idolators, nor effeminate (generally men who dress like women) nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor swindlers shall inherit the kingdom of God. And, such were some of you but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 NASB

Deception is simply believing, assuming something to be true or right which cannot be supported with credible evidence. Obviously, the Holy Spirit did not know that certain people are "born" with a genetic disposition or even, in some cases, a physical condition that was engineered into their DNA by God himself. Paul says, the "Spirit of our God" washed, sanctified and justified them with the same blood of Jesus as the idolators, fornicators, swindlers etc. with the intention of taking all of the "unrighteous" to a more God honoring lifestyle. He later emphasized his point -

"Flee immorality.......or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price; therefore glorify God with your body." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NASB

The gay explosion I have witnessed in my lifetime is a disturbing reality. I would never try to explain it because I am not gay, have not had those kind of temptations and do not live in their skin. However I feel divinely compelled to affirm that God condemns all sin the in same way and for the same reason -- it ignores his sovereign love in order to live a self-willed lifestyle. That kind of attitude refuses to hear the voice of God and the training of his Spirit. It treats the sacrifice of Jesus as something to be despised and ridiculed.

From purely a Bible perspective, the idea of "gay marriage" is nowhere held out to the human family as a viable alternative to what God has forever ordained. There is no way to make the words of God assume that a man can ever serve him as someone's "wife" any more than an idolator can bow down daily before some man made statue and call it "god". In both cases, God has already clearly defined those words from his own perspective and passing laws to legitimize or legalize "gay marriage" wont make it so, at least not to God.

Paul pleaded with the Christians in Corinth to leave all that in the past, change their lifestyle and glorify God with their bodies. His words still stand today whether it be in Washington, New York, Los Angeles, Paris, or Gun Barrel City, Texas. Doing so probably wasn't easy for those Corinthians, and I have no intention of trivializing what for many is obviously an enormous life challenge. Confronting our sin, especially those things we are so easily tempted by, is never simple. But with the Spirit's training and assistance, we can all get there.
I wont answer for you, but for me that is just a huge  HALLELUJAH!

1 comment:

  1. Although I wrote this a while back it just seems to be appropriate today in light of recent events precipitated by our Supreme Court. My reason here is not to condemn or belittle anyone. As a long time believer in Jesus Christ, my primary hope and prayer is to challenge all of us sinners to hear the voice of our Father.

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