Posted on 02/27/2011 8:24:18 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Though many Christians are going to try to deny "the obvious," evangelical leader Dr. Albert Mohler believes gay marriage is going to become normalized.
"I think it's clear that something like same-sex marriage is going to become normalized, legalized and recognized in the culture. It's time for Christians to start thinking about how we're going to deal with that," he said Friday on the Focus on the Family radio program.
Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, was speaking in response to the Obama administration's decision this week to stop defending the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act – federal law that defines marriage as between a man and a woman – in the courts.
Conservative groups and Christians have criticized Obama for going against his duty as president to defend the law.
"When a president takes oath of office, he's upholding ... defending the laws of the United States of America," said Mohler, who also noted that DOMA had passed as a bipartisan effort.
"The White House has clearly made a calculation that it can do this now with far less political risk than it could even two years ago."
Though Obama has always expressed his desire to repeal DOMA, his personal view on marriage had been traditional.
While on the campaign trail, running as the Democratic presidential nominee, Obama asserted his belief that marriage is the union between a man and a woman. He added, while being interviewed by Pastor Rick Warren, that "for me as a Christian, it's also a sacred union. God's in the mix."
Recently, however, he has stated that his views on gay marriage are "evolving."
The Obama administration has been pro-gay since taking office two years ago and Mohler noted that there has been a long trajectory on the issue of gay marriage pointing to this day.
With the Justice Department now pulling its defense of DOMA, pending legal challenges against the federal law will likely result with the nullification of DOMA, Mohler predicted.
"You can say, the cards are pretty much stacked against DOMA," he illustrated.
He warned that when Christians feel threatened, they have to be careful not to lash out with a predictable response.
The Southern Baptist made it clear that he was not saying that they are giving up. Marriage is still an institution Christians need to save, particularly in their own community. But Christians also need to start learning how to deal with the shifting culture and even face the fact that they may lose a few from their flock.
"I think we're going to be surprised and heartbroken over how many people are going to capitulate to the spirit of the age," he noted. "We're going to find now that there may not be as many of us as we thought."
Nevertheless, Christians must be prepared to make marriage one of the many topics where parents have to have "the talk."
"It's interesting now that the world is so morally upside down that when we talk about marriage we have to make a distinction between natural marriage – heterosexual marriage – and this new thing that people are calling marriage," Mohler said.
"We have to prepare our children to be in a context in which they're going to be in a playground with children who have two dads or two moms or who knows what kind of combination will come."
Ultimately, the worldview or the belief that God designed marriage to be between a man and a woman only makes sense if one understands the Gospel, Mohler pointed out, which raises a critical point:
"This whole situation reminds us that we are, first of all, to be Gospel people who are fellow sinners ... saved by grace, with the responsibility to share the Gospel with others."
“Absolutely. The entire agenda has been about revolution, from the beginning. Destruction, intolerance, domination and utter control - that’s what they want, and they’ve been clear about admitting it. they want to turn the world into a disgusting fag bath house.”
No, I think that is beyond their goals...although it is very clear they are in the recruiting business. I think they are so obsessed with the deviant lifestyle, when they really want to be “normal.” So, to be “normal” they have to make the rest of us so it is so.
The homosexuals are the open enemy, there are many other groups like militant atheists that present a more direct danger to the free exercise of religion. The militant atheists want to stop out religious belief of any kind. The homosexuals just want it to bend to their inclinations.
The bigger issue in my view is that Christians need to withdraw their support for state sanctioned marriage. Licensed marriage is a really bad financial deal for most couples. And why should Christians pat to subsidize the leftists’ bastardization of the sacrament of marriage?
Let the state define “marriage” as between 3 goats and an effeminate eunuch. Who cares? Our response should be to refuse to subsidize it and have only spiritual marriages.
I cannot recant of my accusation of his capitulation on the language, which is very telling in the broadcast. He even uses the contrived, political term "homophobic" in the interview, something that anyone with any sense of the goals of the militant sodomites has. Even using this term to deny the accusation that it implies is a grave error - like answering the question: 'do you still beat your wife?'
Y&es I know, and it is pathetic!! Not to mention nauseating, flat out wrong, will be our undoing, and yes evil.
I agree pretty much, but the homosexuals and aggressive atheists/secularists are joined at the hip. One of the main tactics of the homosexual agenda pushers is to attack churches or any religions organizations and accuse them of evil “bigotry”; various Catholic adoption agencies have closed up beacuse they were targeted for not placing children with homosexuals. The homosexual agenda is part and parcel of the war against religious freedom and expression.
Dr. Mohler is not one to use ascerbic verbage in his writing or presentation. He doesn’t intentially provoke anyone. His primary purpose in this or any other issue is not political or social, per se. He opposes “sin” because God does, but to merely oppose sin is not enough. The ultimate goal is to make the “sinner” aware of his sin so he will turn to Christ in repentance and faith. That is what Dr. Mohler’s primary purpose is...to lead people to Christ. Merely suppressing the homosexualization of our society is only treating a symptom not the disease.
Critizing Dr. Mohler is not conducive to the real, God mandated, goal of spreading the Gospel.
Again, I'm not impugning Dr. Mohler's credentials, his laudable history of true Christian integrity and work, or his motives. If you will read my posts, unless I'm not expressing myself accurately, I'm saying that he is grossly underestimating the Devil's servants. They won't be coddled into believing with "niceness" and "quietness." Many times, the truth must be proclaimed loudly and without apology. The truth is respected more in this way, I believe. It's the way Jesus presented it - despite the many people he offended.
And, again, ask yourself why an interview like this broadcast of Dr. Mohler makes the homosexual lobby absolutely giddy with thoughts of their next advance and retribution.
And on this note, the Gospel begins primarily with the problem of SIN. I believe it was Keith Green who mentions this when he said, "what would they need to be saved from. Fun?"
“Dr. Mohler is also not above criticism.”
Of course he is.
“The bent toward putting leaders, particularly religious leads, on a pedestal of near “infallibility” is very disturbing.”
I never said any such thing. I’m saying you have wrongly critized him. I’m also saying that he is a more reliable source for wisdom and guidance than you. You are arrogant to put yourself above him.
“Even the apostle Peter was criticized by Paul for preaching the necessity of an Old Covenant observance, circumcision.”
Paul was also an Apostle as Peter; he made that clear in Galatians where you get this from. Are you claiming “Apostolic” authority? You need to humble yourself a whole bunch....the age of apostles ended with the death of John.
Once again, go read the 200+ articles Dr. Mohler has written and then you will potentially have the moral authority to critize him. You are being counter productive. Albert Mohler is well aware of the problem...maybe his faith in God is stronger than yours?
Of course he is.
Wow! Nothing more in common to discuss here.
“Dr. Mohler is also not above criticism.”
Of course he is.
Wow! Nothing more in common to discuss here.
Actually, that WAS really a typo on my part. I really meant to type, “Of course he isn’t”
However, I agree that we have no more reason to discuss this issue. You are attacking fellow evangelical conservatives wrongly, but your pride won’t let you back down from it. That means it is useless to attempt to dialoge with you further. I know your type all too well. Because I’m very much like you and was much worse when I was younger. I wanted more ascerbic statements from religious leaders when they chose to be more iremic. I was mostly wrong, but my zeal wouldn’t let me see that. So, I wrongly trashed persons of faith and did more harm than good. You will have to learn this on your own time and as God determines. The Good Lord still has to spank me regularly for my mouth and arrogance.
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