Posted on 06/02/2013 3:56:47 PM PDT by rhema
The church’s engagement with the culture involves a host of issues, controversies, and decisions–but no issue defines our current cultural crisis as clearly as homosexuality. Some churches and denominations have capitulated to the demands of the homosexual rights movement, and now accept homosexuality as a fully valid lifestyle.
Other denominations are tottering on the brink, and without a massive conservative resistance, they are almost certain to abandon biblical truth and bless what the Bible condemns. Within a few short years, a major dividing line has become evident–with those churches endorsing homosexuality on one side, and those stubbornly resisting the cultural tide on the other.
The homosexual rights movement understands that the evangelical church is one of the last resistance movements committed to a biblical morality. Because of this, the movement has adopted a strategy of isolating Christian opposition, and forcing change through political action and cultural pressure.
Can we count on evangelicals to remain steadfastly biblical on this issue? Not hardly. Scientific surveys and informal observation reveal that we have experienced a significant loss of conviction among youth and young adults. No moral revolution can succeed without shaping and changing the minds of young people and children.
Inevitably, the schools have become crucial battlegrounds for the culture war. The Christian worldview has been undermined by pervasive curricula that teach moral relativism, reduce moral commandments to personal values, and promote homosexuality as a legitimate and attractive lifestyle option.
Our churches must teach the basics of biblical morality to Christians who will otherwise never know that the Bible prescribes a model for sexual relationships. Young people must be told the truth about homosexuality–and taught to esteem marriage as God’s intention for human sexual relatedness.
The times demand Christian courage. These days, courage means that preachers and Christian leaders must set an agenda for biblical confrontation, and not shrink from dealing with the full range of issues related to homosexuality. We must talk about what the Bible teaches about gender–what it means to be a man or a woman. We must talk about God’s gift of sex and the covenant of marriage. And we must talk honestly about what homosexuality is, and why God has condemned this sin as an abomination in His sight.
Courage is far too rare in many Christian circles. This explains the surrender of so many denominations, seminaries, and churches to the homosexual agenda. But no surrender on this issue would have been possible, if the authority of Scripture had not already been undermined. And yet, even as courage is required, the times call for another Christian virtue as well–compassion.
The tragic fact is that every congregation is almost certain to include persons struggling with homosexual desire or even involved in homosexual acts. Outside the walls of the church, homosexuals are waiting to see if the Christian church has anything more to say, after we declare that homosexuality is a sin. Liberal churches have redefined compassion to mean that the church changes its message to meet modern demands.
They argue that to tell a homosexual he is a sinner is uncompassionate and intolerant. This is like arguing that a physician is intolerant because he tells a patient she has cancer. But, in the culture of political correctness, this argument holds a powerful attraction. Biblical Christians know that compassion requires telling the truth, and refusing to call sin something sinless. To hide or deny the sinfulness of sin is to lie, and there is no compassion in such a deadly deception.
True compassion demands speaking the truth in love–and there is the problem. Far too often, our courage is more evident than our compassion. In far too many cases, the options seem reduced to these–liberal churches preaching love without truth, and conservative churches preaching truth without love.
Evangelical Christians must ask ourselves some very hard questions, but the hardest may be this: Why is it that we have been so ineffective in reaching persons trapped in this particular pattern of sin? The Gospel is for sinners–and for homosexual sinners just as much as for heterosexual sinners. As Paul explained to the Corinthian church, “Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” [1 Corinthians 5:11].
I believe that we are failing the test of compassion. If the first requirement of compassion is that we tell the truth, the second requirement must surely be that we reach out to homosexuals with the Gospel. This means that we must develop caring ministries to make that concern concrete, and learn how to help homosexuals escape the powerful bonds of that sin–even as we help others to escape their own bonds by grace.
If we are really a Gospel people; if we really love homosexuals as other sinners; then we must reach out to them with a sincerity that makes that love tangible. We have not even approached that requirement until we are ready to say to homosexuals, “We want you to know the fullness of God’s plan for you, to know the forgiveness of sins and the mercy of God, to receive the salvation that comes by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, to know the healing God works in sinners saved by grace, and to join us as fellow disciples of Jesus Christ, living out our obedience and growing in grace together.”
Such were some of you . . . The church is not a place where sinners are welcomed to remain in their sin. To the contrary, it is the Body of Christ, made up of sinners transformed by grace. Not one of us deserves to be accepted within the beloved. It is all of grace, and each one of us has come out of sin.
We sin if we call homosexuality something other than sin. We also sin if we act as if this sin cannot be forgiven. We cannot settle for truth without love nor love without truth. The Gospel settles the issue once and for all. This great moral crisis is a Gospel crisis.
The genuine Body of Christ will reveal itself by courageous compassion, and compassionate courage. We will see this realized only when men and women freed by God’s grace from bondage to homosexuality feel free to stand up in our churches and declare their testimony–and when we are ready to welcome them as fellow disciples. Millions of hurting people are waiting to see if we mean what we preach.
The Body of Christ, that is the Christian Churches, cannot embrace sin and still be legitimate. Jesus said we have to be in the world but not of the world. He also said we must take up the cross and follow him.
Too many Christians think that by accepting Jesus, they will have no problems, and no conflicts. Just claiming to be Christian is not sufficient. We must publicly proclaim Christ and let the chips fall what may.
If some of the members of the church will not remain in the church because they prefer to continue in their sinful lifestyles, we at least owe them the truth. Then they can leave Christianity with full knowledge and not proclaim their ignorance of the ways of Christ.
We cannot be lukewarm, for Our Savior told us he would spit us out if we behave this way.
A group of people who agree to Same Sex marriage and Homosexuality are not a Church.
They are worshipping false idols, they are condemning themselves.
I know many people have Homosexuals in their families and they want their children or relatives to be happy.
Love the sinner but hate the sin, if it is your daughter or your son you can love them without accepting their perversion.
Accept them in your home, make them welcome, alone—not with their pervert sex partner.
“Love the sinner but hate the sin, if it is your daughter or your son you can love them without accepting their perversion.
Accept them in your home, make them welcome, alone—not with their pervert sex partner.”
Amen! But so many have a hard time understanding this simple point and the Church needs to speak loudly on this but has failed to do it over the last 30 years.
Ping
This is where Moeler and a lot of other man-pleasing evangelicals go squishy.
The beginning of the gospel is NOT, "for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son..." (John 3:16), but rather, "...the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness..." (Romans 1:18).
There is NO repentance possible for those who don't think they have sinned and are not sinners. THE GOSPEL IS NOT FOR THEM. Presenting the "what God can do for you" gospel to them is an exercise in futility, and is likely to confirm them FURTHER in their sins.
There is a serious weakness in the “love the sinner, but hate the sin,” slogan. Sure it is a legitimate rule in practice, as we are all guilty to some extent, but will God really just throw “sin” into hell, and not the people who practice it?
‘Amen! But so many have a hard time understanding this simple point and the Church needs to speak loudly on this but has failed to do it over the last 30 years.’
I wonder if all of them have such a hard time understanding this or just pretend not to since a large part of their strategy is to manipulate and emotionally blackmail people into “agreeing” with and “endorsing” them.
It takes tough love.
If they do not want to come to your home without their partner live with the fact that they won’t be home.
Good Question and I will answer that this way, “Fifty Shades of Grey”.
A huge manifestation of the Evil men do. They know Right from Wrong, but try to say they can do a partial Right to clear their conscious. This is Evil and the way it works...
I have been to many Churches but have never heard any of the preachers talking about homosexuality, and i imagine that is because since it is a sin against nature who would think that any one would be so stupid that they would have to be told.
This world is under the control of satan and he knows that he only has a short time so he is going to throw everything he can against God.
The actual number of homosexuals may make Sodom look small but the number of people who seem to except it is staggering.
By listening to the news you would think at least half of the people in America were queer.
I am not saying that it is not a problem, i am just saying that it is sort of a slogan for those who hate God.
If you hate God, stand up, but in this case stand up for the homosexuals.
Any one who really believes in God, would be ashamed if they had the tendency to be gay, they would know it was wrong with out a preacher telling them.
Even some one who don,t believe in God knows it is wrong.
Homosexuality is the final symptom of a world going to destruction.
I've experienced the same. In fact, I just gave the pastor of the very large evangelical church I've been attending in my city a piece of my mind and my "dear John" letter for his refusal to call out the homosexual corruption in society. The church is very large and potentially influential in my city, but he refuses to mention it, even after the city council added "non-discrimination" requirements FORCING all businesses, schools and organizations to pander to homosexuals and cross-dressers.
I'm sure his wanting to avoid controversy and conspicuous attacks by activist homosexuals is the reason, but it's the coward's way.
I’m sure his wanting to avoid controversy and conspicuous attacks by activist homosexuals is the reason, but it’s the coward’s way.
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