J. Matt Barber at OneNewsNow addresses an argument often heard these days, specifically that Christians spend an inordinate amount of time condemning homosexuality.
Barber does a good job of answering this charge, but I'd like to add my two cents to hopefully make it just a tad clearer as to why there is some truth to this charge, but that in substance it is unjustified.
1. Acceptance of homosexuality is vociferously demanded by all avenues of pop culture, including music, television, movies, schools, news, and politics. No matter where you go, you cannot long escape the expectation that you not only tolerate homosexuality, but that you give hearty approval of it.
2. There is almost certainly no other sin which is not only overlooked, not only excused, but is claimed by pop culture to be completely legitimate, normal, natural, healthy and moral.
There are many people who drink, have sex before marriage, commit adultery, do drugs, steal, rape, vandalize. Yet when is the last time someone said drunkenness/premarital sex/adultery/substance abuse/theft/rape/vandalism were morally wholesome and approved of by God? Can you think of a single instance, much less hearing such a message of approval from all corners of pop culture?
Even those who do such deeds will seldom claim they are morally wholesome and approved of by God. They'll try to excuse and justify the behavior, of course, but I doubt you'll ever hear these behaviors lauded as morally legitimate.
In such an environment where the topic is endlessly raised, and there are endless, repeated demands that the behavior be accepted as morally legitimate, those who know that it is not only unhealthy but immoral have two choices:
1. They can either capitulate and say nothing
2. They can answer "no" every time pop culture says "yes"--which is A LOT
Within this firm stand that God's people must take, we must not forget to love. Each of us was a sinner, and still sins. We need God's forgiveness and grace as much as anyone--including the homosexual.
But even as we love, we must not excuse. (This goes back to what I've been saying about Mike Huckabee's lack of balance on the grace/law issue--you have to have both). If excusing sin was the right thing to do, then there would have been no reason for Jesus to die on the cross. But Jesus sacrificed himself for a sinful human race (1) because we needed his grace, and we needed it because (2) God is a holy God and cannot simply excuse or tolerate sin. The price of sin had to be paid, and Jesus paid it for us.
God says "no" to sins such as homosexuality, adultery, lying, theft, violence and others because he loves us too much to leave us mired in such destructive behavior. As His people, we should love others too much to ignore their slavery to destructive sin, too.
So if you believe what God said, then you know that you have a duty to be the "salt and light" in a dark, fallen world. And you know that you not only have a duty to love, you have a duty not to fall prey to the propaganda of the enemy which calls you to abandon on an altar of fake love (cowardice?), your duty to speak the truth.
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Friday, November 02, 2007
Homosexuality: Saying 'No' is the Loving Response
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