Gay Marriage—a big stick to beat the church with

Creation.com ^ | Published: 6 March 2014 (GMT+10) | Gary Bates

[JSDude1]

A line in the sand issue for Christians

Currently in the US and many other countries, so-called ‘gay marriage’ is being promoted via the media. In the secular, politically correct world we live in, the reporting of this issue is rarely balanced and dissenting views are treated as marginal. For example, at the time of writing, laws opposing homosexual behavior (or at the very least, not condoning it) in countries such as Russia and Uganda have made international headlines. One supposedly apolitical radio station here in the US called NPR (National Public Radio—it is funded by donations) described them as ‘draconian’ laws. Because legal acceptance of gay marriage is being celebrated as a victory for civil liberties, it seems as if the media is really out to shame any country, person or group who does not toe the politically correct line on this issue. So this will be an increasing challenge to churches and Christians.

Will religious views be exempt?

Such volatile actions by the gay lobby are actually causing Churches and individual Christians to retreat from engaging this issue for fear of being branded and out of step with the culture.

To some extent, common sense has prevailed on this issue in the past by allowing dissenting views under the banner of religious freedom, and individuals who have publicly spoken out against homosexual unions have generally been exempt from prosecution. Inside churches, Christians have been safe, but the tide is turning rapidly because the exemptions can be easily overturned.

[Darteaus94025]

Uh, you could’ve used phrase other than “a big stick”

[miele man]

What country does this guy live in? Does he really think NPR is “apolitical”? Apparently, he hasn’t heard any of their broadcasts.

[Jack Hammer]

It’s an interesting field for speculation - what might have happened if the Cities on the Plain had been politically organized along modern lines.

Perhaps they would have published a newspaper with endless editorials about equal rights; perhaps they would have appointed and paid an Office of the Psychologist General which would have done its best to convince everyone that anything and everything was “normal.”

Possibly they would have agitated in the name of Democracy, doing their level best to conflate the words, “All men are created equal,” with, “All men are the same.”

The end result, of course, would have been just as written in history, since you may come to control significant segments of society, the media, and the legislature, but, try as you might, you can’t bullshit the Celestial Home.

The pisser is that we’re ALL going down with the ship.

[P-Marlowe]

He was being sarcastic.

[elengr]

Same sex marriage (homosexual relationships are not gay, they are sad, so call it sad pseudo-marriage if you must) is not really a problem so much as it is a symptom.

When it comes to innate sexual preference, only a very small percentage of people are truly cross wired (1 to 2 percent), so whatever crybaby noise homosexuals make about their pain at being born mildly defective really does not make much difference one way or the other. All of the noise about same sex marriage is just a symptom of the left’s ongoing assault on strong, independent families that produce moral civil citizens free from feral government dependency.

But the real damage has been done by the proliferation of easy, no-fault divorce, which has resulted in an ever increasing number of children being raised in broken homes (3 out of 4 in the case of Americans of Amish decent).

[Yosemitest]

This is what we get when we FAIL to OBEY God.
For it is written:

“ For whosoever shall commit ANY of these abominations,
even the SOULS that commit them
SHALL BE CUT OFF from among their people. ”

Those who support homosexuals are against our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ.
These anti Christ people only bring destruction on us ALL.
I have NO sympathy for homosexuals!

Homosexuality is a "Mark" of disobedience.

It was given by our Heavenly Father to test us
to see ... if we will OBEY our Heavenly Father,
and abide by His commandments, statues, and ordinances.

Someone once asked

"Why are they [homosexuals] all so angry?"

The answer is in the definition of "REPROBATE".

rep·ro·bate \ˈre-prə-ˌbāt\ a. [L. reprobatus, reprobo, to disallow; re and probo, to prove.]

1. Not enduring proof or trial; not of standard purity or fineness; disallowed; rejected.


Reprobate silver shall men call them, because the Lord hath rejected them. Jer. 6.




2. Abandoned in sin; lost to virtue or grace.

They profess that they know God, but in works deny him, being abominable and disobedient, and to every good work reprobate. Titus 1.

3. Abandoned to error, or in apostasy. 2Tim. 3.

And the reason"why" is given in the Bible.

God has a cure for homosexuals.

But will we OBEY our Heavenly Father?

"Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect
that God is just,
that his justice cannot sleep forever."

[Jonty30]

Here’s an interesting take on how the government might force churches to accept homosexuality.

Many churches have accepted the IRS classification of being non-profit. To stay non-profit, they cannot discriminate according to the federal guidelines. At some point, the IRS may enforce this rule to force churches to allow unrepentant homosexuals to preach at the pulpit.

Any non-profit church that continues to discriminate may find their non-profit classification yanked and could be forced to pay up all the taxes they would owe for the entire time that they were a non-profit organization, which for denominations could be millions or even possibly billions.

[Cubs Fan]

it seems as if the media is really out to shame any country, person or group who does not toe the politically correct line on this issue.

True. Except when it comes to muslims. Who are given a complete pass.

Some "victims" are more important than others.

[Burkean]

I don’t know if the article has been edited since you read it, but he calls NPR “supposedly apolitical,” which absolutely expresses doubt as to the truthfulness.

[elengr]

Great picture (sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words). Succumbing to prurient desires is truly to fall into the pit. Man is inherently flawed and weak, so I don’t fault a man for his proclivities or imperfections, just his actions.

All children are born innocent and deserve to be raised by their natural parents who are bonded to each other in marriage. It is an act of despicable selfishness to knowingly create children to be raised in any other circumstance.

[JSDude1]

I didn’t write the article.

[CitizenUSA]

One can be 100% opposed to gay marriage for completely secular reasons. Homosexual sex uses the human body in ways it is most clearly not designed. Nature also has a vote, and no same-sex “union” can ever be viable. In fact, it’s impossible to even have a union in the natural sense of the word, because the parts don’t fit.

There is nothing wrong with holding homosexual relationships in less regard than heterosexual ones, because the latter involve using our bodies and minds (male and female minds are different of course) as designed. Not only that, but a good percentage of heterosexual unions (the word is actually appropriate here) are indeed viable, and society should be interested in seeing that the offspring of such unions are raised well. The best way to do that is to give cultural approval, via the law for example, so that the union is an enduring one, thereby creating a stable environment for the children with their biological parents.

Again, none of this is based on religion. It’s simple nature and reason. Anyone who disagrees and tries to claim homosexual sex is equivalent to heterosexual sex is, frankly, not thinking rationally. That doesn’t mean we can’t tolerate homosexuality, but it’s absolute lunacy to say its equal to normal, natural, male/female unions. Homosexuality is dysfunctional. Heterosexuality is normal.

[JSDude1]

We cannot obey the Father that is the trick..

“Our righteous works are as filthy rags”.

Only through Faith in Christ are we given a new heart that includes those Christians who were unrepentant homosexuals, but now have a new heart and mind through Christ!

[CitizenUSA]

“The pisser is that we’re ALL going down with the ship.”

Yep, because there’s a reality out there that could care less what we believe, and it’s brutal. It’s not swayed by majority votes, the media, or ivy hall musings. It just is, and the more we move away from natural law, the worse things will get.

[Fai Mao]

One potential way around this is for churches to not do any “legal” weddings in the church. The the homosexual lobby will not have a suit in court.

Given that the state has usurped a religious sacrament this is, I think a logical position.

No wedding in the church of any kind.

No weddings by a minister of the church if there is a “legal” Wedding license.

The only location where these type services would be performed are public ones available to everyone (hotel Ballrooms and such)or private homes.

I am of the opinion that at this point no Christian or Jewish or even Muslim couple should be legally wed by the state. It is no longer illegal to live together in the eyes of the state without being “officially” married so why pay the cost of a marriage license. Have a ceremony that is valid in the eyes of God but not the state. You no longer have to show you are married to receive EIC/Wick/other government payments. So let State sponsored marriage die a slow agonizing death.

Notice I am advocating this not because I want to destroy marriage but because I want to save it. This would not even be an issue if the State had stayed out of the wedding business in the first place.

Let the State have it’s legal weddings.

[melsec]

I am really surprised at the amount of people who call themselves Christians who are pro gay marriage. A lot of them are vicious in their condemnation of Christians who do not think the same way calling them heartless and unforgiving and worse. They are harder to talk to than homosexuals themselves!

[JSDude1]

I don’t know how someone can be a Christian and be “pro-gay marriage” they are either blind/foolish or not really saved because to do so (hold these anti-Biblical opinions) is to deny the saving power of Christ!

[JSDude1]

I refuse to give in, especially because I am not married yet. So I will not give into the homosexuals out of some trick like what you propose. They may force the state to accept their behavior (and I do not), but they cannot destroy true marriage-and we should not surrender!

[Yosemitest]

"We cannot obey the Father, that is the trick..

You have been deceived.
That is Satan's trick.

Read again

" Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. "

And read again:

" But he that heareth , and doeth not,
is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth;
against which the stream did beat vehemently ,
and immediately it fell ;
and the ruin of that house was great. "

Can you remember reading about "a thorn in their side"?

"But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you;
then it shall come to pass,
that those which ye let remain of them
shall be pricks in your eyes,
and thorns in your sides,
and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.
Moreover
it shall come to pass,
that I shall do unto you,
as I thought to do unto them."

Someone once said:

"The only way one can accept the truth and retain their sanity is to trust God."

They may be more to it than that.
Doing is important.
I believe the "fiery trial" has already started.
We haven't been very diligent " ... to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses ... "
and there are consequences for our actions and in-actions.
We are living in the time of those consequences.