The following dialogue was posted on Facebook by a fellow Christian. Considering the comments that came with this and the comments that followed I believe that it is time to consider just what is being said here and what is being implied.
Pastor: Now, according to a few passages in the bible, homosexuality is a sin.
Bob: This is a leading statement. Not that a leading statement is wrong, for most teachers use them. But the question is where is it leading us? Why does he say a few passages? Wouldn’t one statement from God be sufficient? Would it be more sinful if there were many more passages?
Bob: If we consider the context of when the Bible refers to homosexuality we would see it is used to show the extent to which sin had progressed, like when God decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorra. In Romans Paul uses it to show the total abandonment of people who God finally turns over to their vile passions.
Couple of older males in the audience: Amen
Bob: This isn’t an overwhelming response. But if we refrain from judging the motives of these two people we will have to admit that it is not out of place to agree with God’s Word.
Pastor in response to Amen: Now wait I’m not finished. You know what else the bible defines as a sin? Divorce.
-uncomfortable silence-
Bob: There may be several reasons for an uncomfortable silence. Are there people in the congregation that are divorced? Is this a sin Christians have come to ignore? Is the pastor going to address this sin and show what the Biblical response should be?
Pastor: There are countless passages that talk about how divorce is wrong and there are consequences to getting a divorce, such as the wife should be stoned.
Bob: Are there countless passages that talk about how divorce is wrong? (I don’t think so) There certainly are consequences, all of them bad. I wasn’t able to find the one where a wife is to be stoned because a husband divorced her though. If we were to read chapter 2 in Malachi we would find out what God really thinks about divorce. “”for I hate divorce,” says the LORD, the god of Israel, …”” (Mal 2:16 NAS95)
Pastor: Yet I witnessed a divorce just this morning. And I gotta tell you, it was heartbreaking, but I definitely didn’t attempt to throw rocks at the wife, even though she was the one who filed for divorce.
Bob: What is the point? Would you not be heartbroken if you witnessed a murder, or a man who’s wealth was embezzled, a woman raped, a child molested, or a same sex couple who were deceived into thinking that God doesn’t care how they live? The consequences of sin is heartbreaking, especially when it affects other people, which is almost always.
Bob: The Pastor’s comment on throwing rocks totally distorts the concepts of judgment that was carried out in the Old Testament. Stoning was not carried out arbitrarily by an individual who took it upon himself to carry out the punishment of a person breaking the law.
Pastor: We choose to overlook the consequences of divorce because time has proven that they’re inhumane and cruel.
Bob: Obviously Pastor is not talking about consequences. He is referring to the potential punishment. And as yet I have not found anything in the Bible that has anyone put to death because of divorce. So what consequences of divorce is this Pastor talking about that have proven to be inhumane and cruel?
Pastor: The bible doesn’t say anything about the consequences of a homosexual lifestyle. Yet we seem to be spearheading a campaign to ruin the lives of people we don’t even know.
Bob: Leviticus 20 reveals the penalty under the law for homosexual behavior, they shall be put to death. Paul explained it this way: “therefore god gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. for they exchanged the truth of god for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. for this reason god gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.” (Ro 1:24-27 NAS95) The Bible is clear, there are consequences to sinful behavior, and eventually when sin is judged there are penalties.
Bob: What is this Pastor talking about, “spearheading a campaign to ruin people’s lives? Maybe you can help me here because I have never met anyone who was even been involved in a campaign to cause any harm to homosexuals. The Westboro Baptist Church was the exception, not the rule. The accusation this Pastor is making has come from the Gay community, and it is a false accusation in most cases. Of course if you look at it from the Gay perspective, maybe they do think it ruins their lives if everyone doesn’t support their choice of lifestyles. Really I am curious though, does any of you know of anyone spearheading a campaign to ruin the lives of people they don’t even know (I mean Christians spearheading this kind of campaign)?
-the Pastor shifts a few notes around-
Bob: Maybe the Pastor should study the teachings from the Bible of how we as Christians are to deal with our sins and the sins of others. Seems like a lot of you have forgotten.
Pastor: The bible states to love thy neighbor. That’s it. There are no other rules or restrictions to that passage.
Bob: Jesus, in answer to a question, said the greatest commandment was to love God. The second commandment was like it, that we would love our neighbor as ourselves. Sounds pretty simple. But Jesus went on to state that on these two commandments hangs all the law and the prophets (Matt. 22:40). If we knew how to love God and love our neighbor, and did it, then we would be fulfilling God’s purpose for us. Obviously without a little instruction we naturally don’t do that well. The question is: How do we love our neighbor? The answer to this question does not change based upon the moral or spiritual condition of that person. That is why we have the law and the prophets, to teach us how to love God and our neighbor.
Pastor: So, we as a church family have to support equality with a smile on our face, THAT is the true Christian way.
Bob: Support equality? If you mean that two men or two women are equal to a man and a woman in holy matrimony then you are dead wrong. Is this pastor saying that as a church family we should support this sinful behavior that will guarantee that people don’t make it to heaven?, with a smile on our face? Is a sinful lifestyle that God call an abomination equal to the God ordained union of a man and a woman in holy matrimony? And the reason we should do this is because …? Maybe because we support divorce, lying, stealing, adultery, etc, etc.? I am truly confused as to how anyone could derive this behavior as the true Christian way from the Bible. Now if I was a sinner who had never read the Bible, but had heard that Jesus said to love my neighbor, then this Pastors statement would sound good to me, and I would say Amen brother.
Bob: All sin results in unpleasant consequences. Many of these consequences are experienced in this life by the sinner and those whose lives they affected. But ultimately sin leads to death, not just physical but also eternal death, separation from God and hell. Christ died to save us from our sins, not just the penalty (death), but that we might be free from the bondage of sin. If we truly are Christians, then we have been born again, old things have passed away and all things have become new. Sins like adultery, divorce, lying, stealing, etc., should not be normally found in our Church families. If these things are prevalent among us, how can we help the non-believers? Are we really Christians? Have we been set free from the bondage of sin?
Bob: Let us just assume that we have cleaned up our own house. How do we love our neighbor who is a sinner? What if their sins include those that are evident by their homosexual lifestyle?
There is no better way to understand how to love than to look to the example that we have in Jesus. We need to learn to love like He loved. After all it is His work that we have been commissioned to do; preach the gospel and disciple all people, teaching them to observe everything Jesus taught. The gospel is the greatest love that was ever expressed, that God would through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross provide forgiveness and cleansing from all of our sins. This is truly where equality comes in. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. It doesn’t matter if your mother was a prostitute or the wife of a deacon at church, we all need to acknowledge sin as defined by God and repent, turn from our wicked ways and put our trust in Jesus. Then and only then can we through the grace of God experience the transforming power of God as we become a new creature in Christ.
Bob: I know that people upon hearing this message may not at first feel loved, but anything short of this message would not be true love. If we were to withhold the knowledge of the awfulness of sin, or to minimize its effects and ultimate end, it would not be love. We need to share the truth in love. It is only the truth that will set them free, God’s Word is Truth. Love is not telling people what they want to hear. Love is not telling them what makes them comfortable in their sin. Love is confronting them with the truth, sharing God love and provision, and pointing them to Christ.
Bob: Of course if we have not been set free from sin, then we have nothing to offer them. I am afraid that many in the Church today have not experience the truth of the Gospel. That may be why this Pastor’s distorted message gets so many Amens. God hates sin and will not tolerate sin. But God so loved us that He has provided salvation though His Son Jesus the Christ. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
Bob Gunderson