Posted on 04/07/2015 9:50:01 AM PDT by Gamecock
One thing is very clear. Satan and his minions are excellent liars who spin deception so well that even the elect might be fooled. However, me and mine will follow God!
There is zero doubt that homosexual acts are sinful. Temptation is not sin, but acting or wishing to act on temptation is. That is the key distinction.
I’ll grant that a homosexual can’t help feeling same sex attraction, but he still has the freedom to choose. It’s no different than dealing with any other temptation, like an alcoholic turning away from drink or a husband refusing to cheat on his wife. In none of these cases do we Christians advise people to embrace the sin! Why should homosexuality be any different? (It’s not)
C.S. Lewis wrote the following in a 1953 letter:
But…certainly I feel that very grave dangers hang over us. This results from the apostasy of the great part of Europe from the Christian faith. Hence a worse state than the one we were in before we received the Faith. For no one returns from Christianity to the same state he was in before Christianity but into a worse state: the difference between a pagan and an apostate is the difference between an unmarried woman and an adulteress. For faith perfects nature but faith lost corrupts nature. Therefore many men of our time have lost not only the supernatural light but also the natural light which pagans possessed.~snip~
About remedies to the question is more difficult. For my part I believe we ought to work not only at spreading the Gospel (that certainly) but also at a certain preparation for the Gospel. It is necessary to recall many to the law of nature before we talk about God. For Christ promises forgiveness of sins: but what is that to those who, since they do not know the law of nature, do not know that they have sinned? ... Moral relativity is the enemy we have to overcome before we tackle Atheism.
Look at the results of moral relativism in just the last fifty or sixty years: a baby is aborted every 24 seconds, any mention of God or morality is all but forbidden in public schools, homosexuality is a "right" that is to be put above personal liberty, etc.
And what has become of many "Christian" churches these past decades? Many are pro-abortion, more and more are performing same-sex "weddings" and nearly all look the other way at sex outside of wedlock. Decades ago any Christian would have told you that no church would EVER allow this, yet here it is.
I think that far too many of us have forgotten that our Lord went out of His way to warn us that the wolves would come dressed as sheep. Have we been so busy looking for wolves that we haven't even bothered to look at the sheep? Unconditional love (which NONE of us are even capable of) has become a major catch phrase lately; however, somewhere along the way people began to believe that love was synonymous with tolerance and acceptance and I think that is where so much of the damage started.
Churches must accept homosexuals just as they accept all sinners; however, they need to be accepted in the same manner in which a hospital accepts a heart attack victim. Our sin is a terminal condition that is far more dire than a heart attack and it must be treated, not just ignored. I'm sure that homosexuals feel "accepted" when they go to these "churches" filled with like-minded relativists, but that acceptance pales in comparison to the love they would know if they truly repented and received God's forgiveness because that love is the ONLY thing that will fulfill the longing that every sinner has in his soul.
You are right Wag.. But no one spoke for the Jews.. like them we have no advocates outside our ourselves
“And what has become of many “Christian” churches these past decades? Many are pro-abortion, more and more are performing same-sex “weddings” and nearly all look the other way at sex outside of wedlock. Decades ago any Christian would have told you that no church would EVER allow this, yet here it is. “
Many of these churches are falling apart. Look at the rise of nondenominational churches breaking with the main line churches. I know this first hand, as my best friend and minister was fired for sticking to...you guessed it MORAL ABSOLUTES. He and I started our own nondenominational church. It is going very well after 2 years.
Is it a tax-exempt org? or is it unregistered?
Unregistered
unaffiliated (except for God)
uncontaminated
Glad to see you on Cruz control : )
Not that I disagree with you wags, but for the record, ALL sexual immorality is incompatible - To include homosexuality - But also to include fornication, adultery, and etc... And by extension, easy divorce/remarriage (which IS adultery according to the Scriptures)... It is too easy to draw a distinct line at homosexuality, but in fact, there is no ground to stand upon if we all don't recognize that churches of all stripes have let marriage become sullied long before this issue gained traction.
Not only 'one man and one woman', but 'for life', and 'sex only within the bonds of marriage' is the only standard that is wholly defensible in the scriptures. To lessen the strictures against fornication and adultery implies inherently the 'authority' to change the Word, and in that, would allow any change whatsoever. One cannot engage in this battle without returning to what the Bible requires.
I agree completely and mentioned sex out of wedlock in post 42.
As far as I know, Satan hasn't stolen any souls by telling people that he was going to ruin their lives, he does it by promising pleasure, power, money, etc.
Churches began to tolerate sexual immorality as a way to make everyone feel "welcome" and everything became focused on not offending anyone; this IS NOT the purpose of Christianity, Christianity is about salvation for our sins...PERIOD. Don't get me wrong, fellowship is wonderful whether it be in a small prayer group or at a church picnic, but fellowship cannot take the place of the Gospel of Christ's salvation for our sins and to suggest that certain sins are no longer sins is offensive.
To lessen the strictures against fornication and adultery implies inherently the 'authority' to change the Word, and in that, would allow any change whatsoever.
Correct and the Word has been so distorted that the members of many current "churches" would feel right at home among the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah.
“Churches began to tolerate sexual immorality as a way to make everyone feel “welcome” and everything became focused on not offending anyone; this IS NOT the purpose of Christianity, Christianity is about salvation for our sins...PERIOD. Don’t get me wrong, fellowship is wonderful whether it be in a small prayer group or at a church picnic, but fellowship cannot take the place of the Gospel of Christ’s salvation for our sins and to suggest that certain sins are no longer sins is offensive.”
NAILED it.
bump
Beautifully said, dear brother in Christ!
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