Tag Archives: Homosexuality

Tension: Bible Meets the Real World

Today I read an article from the Fox News.com opinion page, My Lesbian Daughter, The Bible and Sex,  by Shari Johnson, January 6, 2012, who was responding to another Fox News.com article written by Pastor Mark Driscoll on January 3, 2012,  What the Bible Really Says About Sex.

Ms. Johnson explained how she agreed with most of Pastor Mark’s article except for 2 points: Marriage being between a man and a woman and sex outside of marriage being a sin.

As I read her article, I was saddened as to how Ms. Johnson represents so many Christians who are facing real life situations, trying to develop a way of coping, a way of dealing with what the Bible says and the emotions of their life situation.  Instead of dealing with the tension, they decide to eliminate the tension, which inevitably fails to truly remove it, they just find a way to numb themselves to it.

First of all, I went and read Pastor Mark’s article and in no way was it condemning of people who express their sexuality in any manner outside of a marriage between one man and one woman.  In the article, Pastor Mark, even went as far as to point out The Apostle Paul’s writings in Romans 3: 23-26, that states that all of humanity is in need of Christ.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.   Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.   For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past,  for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.    

There are two quotes Ms. Johnson made that I would like to address:

“I am an evangelical Christian who, I am sorry to say, used to be one of the “don’t-confuse-me-with-facts-because-my-mind-is-made-up” type of Christian.” 

 Yes it is sad that there has been and are good hearted Bible believing Christians who develop such narrow mindedness that they are not capable of objectively looking outside of their box of assumptions and beliefs; however, for Ms. Johnson to insinuate that an evangelical Christian who has done legitimate study and expresses his or her view with proper supports, though different from others, is something to be sorry for, is simply wrong.

“When I hear terms like “God’s design” and “Biblical marriage” I have to wonder who decides these things.” 

 When people say things like this, it causes me to think one of three things: first they probably do not view the Bible as God’s infallible written word, second they may have allowed the non-believing views of society to infiltrate their own with or without their awareness, or they have never done their own study of how the Bible came to be and what makes it considered to be Holy Scripture.

 Yes, I agree, there have been many people who have declared a view and provided Scripture as their support while taking that Scripture totally out of context.  Some of these people have done this to be malicious and others have done this simply because they themselves did not do their homework. However, the Bible says what it says and God is the one who decides what his design is and considering he created marriage, He decides what is a Biblical marriage.

 Finally, we are faced with a woman who considered herself to be an evangelical Christian with certain views based on the Bible.  Yet when her own child decided to live a life contrary to the Bible’s teachings, she had to develop a way of coping with the bible’s teachings and her love for her daughter.  Many times when situations come close to home we reexamine our views, such as, when one’s own teen daughter becomes pregnant, one’s view on abortion may alter; or when someone we know, respect, and love does anything contrary to our beliefs, we battle the tension of the value of the person we love and the value of our view or belief.  Sometimes we just need to learn to live with the tension.

 I agree that it is easy to develop a view on tough issues when those issues are not in our faces, but is believing God’s word suppose to be situational?  Is it only something we examine in our “religious” non-confrontational world but not in the “real” world?  Maybe our love for God must outweigh our love for our friends and family.  We can love our friends and family with integrity and not disown our Biblical standards.

 Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/01/03/what-bible-really-says-about-sex/#ixzz1in4iaetZ

 Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/01/06/my-lesbian-daughter-bible-and-sex/#ixzz1imrHq4Ft

 

Homosexual Code?

Yesterday while I was working on the house, my daughters were watching T.V. and stumbled across a daytime talk show, in which, the topic was homosexuality.  There were three people on each side of the issue sitting on the stage and the audience was divided with T-Shirts that signified which side of it they were on.   I debated whether to allow them to keep watching and decided to allow it as I watched from the stairwell.  After the show I initiated a conversation with the girls to teach them what the Bible said about homosexuality and sexual sin in general.  My daughters are 8, 10, and 12 years old.  I realize some may be wondering why discuss such topics with children who are so young, but I realize on T.V. (even kids shows), our music, even television commercials, they are being lead into certain ways of thinking, regardless, if I talk to them about it or not.

As we talked I attempted to share what the Bible had to say about the issue.  With one of my children, who is at the stage of determining her own belief system, this got me the role of the eyes, but she still listened.  As we talked, they were pointing out that God forgives sin no matter what it is and I agreed.  They pointed out that God loves people regardless of their lifestyle and I agreed.  They pointed out that we can’t treat somebody bad for the “way they are.”  Here I was not upset about the idea of not treating people bad, but what honestly disturbed me that somehow they have developed the mindset that practicing homosexuality or any other sexual sin is not something to say is wrong, “if that is the way they are.”

I then changed the conversation to all of us needing a “code to live by,” and in our family that code is the Bible.  I realize over the years many well intentioned people have given the Bible a bad reputation with what society views as debatable issues, but in our family and in our church we do everything possible to do our homework and present Scripture correctly, so they do not have that history.  My wife then joined the conversation and also communicated the need for having a code to live by.   Now our daughters are young and are in different developmental stages, so making the connection with different types of thinking can be difficult, if not impossible, for them right now. But this conversation caused me to think about how many of us adults live life without a code.

The reason this is important is because, if we live life by just listening to persuasive arguments or to what we feel is right in the moment, then we will be changing our views on everything based on the next excellent persuasive speaker or the way we are feeling at the time.   We can’t live by just what we think, here is what the Bible states concerning this type of a lifestyle in Proverbs 16 (ESV):

All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the spirit (v1).

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death (v25).

If we live according to just what we think is right, we will not achieve the results we hope.  What is interesting is that as I just presented a couple of Scriptures for the thought I am communicating, there is a part of me that feels that some will cast it aside and that is true.  Hopefully for you, the words of the Bible go beyond the sometimes bad advertisements of many who use the Bible in their arguments, but speak to your heart as God speaking.

The Bible also states:

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.  But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.  For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways (James 1: 5 – 8, ESV).

I realize right now in our society the issue of homosexuality is a topic and lifestyle that is trying to move into the mainstream culture as a normal and acceptable way of life.  And for many who practice this lifestyle, this blog entry will generate some deep emotions.  I believe the church must become educated not only about how to treat and respond to those who are coming out of the closet, but for all sexual sin, for all sin in general.

I am currently reading and learning about homosexuality and how to help those who find themselves in this lifestyle.  I have also talked with a few friends who have divorced their wives to practice homosexuality, in an attempt to learn their thinking.  But please hear me, If we leave the Bible out of our thinking as we develop views on the issue, in the end no matter how persuasive we sound, it will lead to death.

It is not my current pursuit to learn to view homosexuality as acceptable, but to learn how to help those who for whatever reason, believe  the practice of homosexuality is the answer to their lives.  Now considering the Bible is my code for living, if the Bible were to say that Homosexuality is good in God’s eyes, then I will change my viewpoint; however, I already know what God’s word says on the matter.  The question for me now is how can I show the same Grace toward the person practicing homosexuality as God shows me for my sin.