Unbalanced
I've been thinking through a lot of things lately, one of which pertains to one of the major issues in society these days. Whether or not homosexuality is a sin, and how we as Christians should react to it.
One of my main thoughts is that it is a sin. It is not how God originally created people to be, and is a result of the fall of humanity in the garden of Eden. One of my other main thoughts is that we are supposed to be the salt and light to this world, and that means we need to love God and love others as we love ourselves. How can we show others how much God loves them if we, Christ's ambassadors on this earth, do not love them? Jesus had dinner with the most hated and shamed people in His day. The tax collectors, who stole from people out of greed, and the prostitutes. These were people who were not allowed in "good society", the upstanding folk of the day didn't so much as talk to them, much less go into their homes and eat food with them. They were sinners! Yet God loved them so.
Why do we have such a difficult time with it? For example in movies and TV shows these days murder, adultery, sex, lust, lying, and all forms of violence are totally commonplace. If someone in a movie gets murdered, we don't react, it's part of the storyline. If someone in a movie leaves their spouse because they're a jerk, and the protagonist is great, we cheer them on! If someone in a movie is lying through they're teeth, we hope they get away with it. However, if someone in a movie or TV show, or even a commercial shows the slightest hint of homosexuality, we say "that's sick", we turn away, we change the channel, we question why that had to be put in there. We cry foul when it's put in new movies, and have arguments over it. The whole world seems to blow up. Why?
Why do we have such an unbalanced view of sin? Why do we freak out about one, when the rest are now commonplace. In God's eyes, sin is sin, no matter which one it is. One is not worse than the other! He never says, "don't lie, but really don't murder, 'cause that's worse". No! He says "don't lie, don't murder, don't commit adultery..." He doesn't rank them, so why do we?
Are people who practice homosexuality sinning? Yes. Should we love them anyway? Also yes. Why do we separate love and truth? Is it not possible to love someone in spite of the wrong they do? Didn't Jesus Himself have dinner with prostitutes and tax collectors? The most vile people of the day? God came to save the lost, He came to save those who are trapped in their own sin with no visible way out! He LOVES THEM! He DIED for THEM! How can we do any less?
Sometimes I think we, including myself, get caught up in the political scene. We get caught up in emotions, in feelings, and trying to do what's right, we get caught up in trying not to offend anyone, and we get caught up in trying to make sure we stay on the "right side". Maybe we should go back to the Bible. Maybe we should go back to what God has called us all to do. It's right there for us, all we have to do is read it, all we have to do is ask Him!
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.... He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Him.
Why don't we go back to the basics? Why do we get so caught up in all the little complications of modern day society? Humanity is unbalanced, we're trying to make sure everyone feels happy and safe on the surface, but we're not dealing with the heart issue. Are we out there, with the people, like Jesus was? Are we out there preaching the gospel? Or are we out there talking to specific issues and telling everyone they're wrong? Everyone has a different opinion, everyone thinks they're right, but really the only one who is right about any issue, is God Himself. Let's go back to the beginning. Let's go back to the Word. Let's stop yelling at people, on any side. Let's start speaking light, life, truth, into peoples' lives. No one will listen to the truth if they think you hate them. Everyone makes mistakes, but God still loves us.
Go and make disciples of all nations... of all people.
God is complex, He is both merciful and just, forgiving and jealous, loving and truthful. We will never even begin to comprehend His beautiful complex nature, but that's just how He is. We humans don't get it, so we try to pick one or two of His qualities to tack onto Him, and we parade that around and base all our actions on it. We often forget that truth, love, mercy, forgiveness, and justice go hand-in-hand when it comes to God. We forget that He loves everyone, we forget that He is the one who convicts, who brings hearts to the truth. All we need to do is to represent Him. That is not an easy job my friends, not at all. It's going to take a lot of prayer, trust, faith, hope, perseverance, patience, self-control, and especially love, the kind that doesn't give up when someone makes a mistake.
Loving someone is hard. Loving someone you disagree with is even harder. Loving people you don't know, yet want to see come to the truth, to Jesus, and not knowing how to make that happen is hard. God never said this would be easy. Jesus called people to follow Him, telling them as they did that the world would hate them because they hate Him. But you know what He did? He loved them. They hated Him. The world, the people in His own culture, hated Him so much that they killed Him. Just because He told the truth, just because He loved people, just because He rescued the lost and the broken, just because they were offended. He called people out, yes, but have you seen how much He loved? He saved a prostitute from being stoned to death because He loved her. He found Zacheus, the worst tax collector of the bunch, and went to his house for lunch. He didn't stop, even though He knew what was coming. Jesus DIED to save them. To give them life! He was passionate about it! He died for them! For us! How can we not share that! How can we sit behind our computer screens and point fingers? Why are we not moved with compassion for the lost? Why are not excited about this?
Jesus didn't stay dead. He came back, He completely destroyed death. It had no power over Him. He came back from the dead so that we too can live. He told His disciples to go and tell. They did. Are we? Are we telling people that Jesus loves them? Are we seeing that sin has entered the world, that these people are hurting, that this is how things are right now? Are we also seeing that Jesus is the Light of the world, and that the darkness cannot survive in the light? Are we sharing that light? Or are we keeping it to ourselves? Why don't we get passionate about the truth, rather than the lies? Why don't we get passionate about Jesus, rather than what the world is doing wrong. If we stand in the truth and the light, don't you think people will come to that?
After all that, this is my point. First: we should stop treating homosexuality as worse than any other sin, it's not any more disgusting than a lie, or murder, or adultery, or gluttony, or lust, or gossip. Second: we need to refocus, stop throwing up such a holler about what's wrong, and start living and preaching the gospel, what's true. In the beginning, and the end, what really matters is God, what He has to say about this, how He lived, and loved. We need to read the Bible again, pray again, look first to the truth, and then love people, no matter what. God has given everything to save the lost and the broken, so shouldn't we?
One of my main thoughts is that it is a sin. It is not how God originally created people to be, and is a result of the fall of humanity in the garden of Eden. One of my other main thoughts is that we are supposed to be the salt and light to this world, and that means we need to love God and love others as we love ourselves. How can we show others how much God loves them if we, Christ's ambassadors on this earth, do not love them? Jesus had dinner with the most hated and shamed people in His day. The tax collectors, who stole from people out of greed, and the prostitutes. These were people who were not allowed in "good society", the upstanding folk of the day didn't so much as talk to them, much less go into their homes and eat food with them. They were sinners! Yet God loved them so.
Why do we have such a difficult time with it? For example in movies and TV shows these days murder, adultery, sex, lust, lying, and all forms of violence are totally commonplace. If someone in a movie gets murdered, we don't react, it's part of the storyline. If someone in a movie leaves their spouse because they're a jerk, and the protagonist is great, we cheer them on! If someone in a movie is lying through they're teeth, we hope they get away with it. However, if someone in a movie or TV show, or even a commercial shows the slightest hint of homosexuality, we say "that's sick", we turn away, we change the channel, we question why that had to be put in there. We cry foul when it's put in new movies, and have arguments over it. The whole world seems to blow up. Why?
Why do we have such an unbalanced view of sin? Why do we freak out about one, when the rest are now commonplace. In God's eyes, sin is sin, no matter which one it is. One is not worse than the other! He never says, "don't lie, but really don't murder, 'cause that's worse". No! He says "don't lie, don't murder, don't commit adultery..." He doesn't rank them, so why do we?
Are people who practice homosexuality sinning? Yes. Should we love them anyway? Also yes. Why do we separate love and truth? Is it not possible to love someone in spite of the wrong they do? Didn't Jesus Himself have dinner with prostitutes and tax collectors? The most vile people of the day? God came to save the lost, He came to save those who are trapped in their own sin with no visible way out! He LOVES THEM! He DIED for THEM! How can we do any less?
Sometimes I think we, including myself, get caught up in the political scene. We get caught up in emotions, in feelings, and trying to do what's right, we get caught up in trying not to offend anyone, and we get caught up in trying to make sure we stay on the "right side". Maybe we should go back to the Bible. Maybe we should go back to what God has called us all to do. It's right there for us, all we have to do is read it, all we have to do is ask Him!
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.... He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Him.
Why don't we go back to the basics? Why do we get so caught up in all the little complications of modern day society? Humanity is unbalanced, we're trying to make sure everyone feels happy and safe on the surface, but we're not dealing with the heart issue. Are we out there, with the people, like Jesus was? Are we out there preaching the gospel? Or are we out there talking to specific issues and telling everyone they're wrong? Everyone has a different opinion, everyone thinks they're right, but really the only one who is right about any issue, is God Himself. Let's go back to the beginning. Let's go back to the Word. Let's stop yelling at people, on any side. Let's start speaking light, life, truth, into peoples' lives. No one will listen to the truth if they think you hate them. Everyone makes mistakes, but God still loves us.
Go and make disciples of all nations... of all people.
God is complex, He is both merciful and just, forgiving and jealous, loving and truthful. We will never even begin to comprehend His beautiful complex nature, but that's just how He is. We humans don't get it, so we try to pick one or two of His qualities to tack onto Him, and we parade that around and base all our actions on it. We often forget that truth, love, mercy, forgiveness, and justice go hand-in-hand when it comes to God. We forget that He loves everyone, we forget that He is the one who convicts, who brings hearts to the truth. All we need to do is to represent Him. That is not an easy job my friends, not at all. It's going to take a lot of prayer, trust, faith, hope, perseverance, patience, self-control, and especially love, the kind that doesn't give up when someone makes a mistake.
Loving someone is hard. Loving someone you disagree with is even harder. Loving people you don't know, yet want to see come to the truth, to Jesus, and not knowing how to make that happen is hard. God never said this would be easy. Jesus called people to follow Him, telling them as they did that the world would hate them because they hate Him. But you know what He did? He loved them. They hated Him. The world, the people in His own culture, hated Him so much that they killed Him. Just because He told the truth, just because He loved people, just because He rescued the lost and the broken, just because they were offended. He called people out, yes, but have you seen how much He loved? He saved a prostitute from being stoned to death because He loved her. He found Zacheus, the worst tax collector of the bunch, and went to his house for lunch. He didn't stop, even though He knew what was coming. Jesus DIED to save them. To give them life! He was passionate about it! He died for them! For us! How can we not share that! How can we sit behind our computer screens and point fingers? Why are we not moved with compassion for the lost? Why are not excited about this?
Jesus didn't stay dead. He came back, He completely destroyed death. It had no power over Him. He came back from the dead so that we too can live. He told His disciples to go and tell. They did. Are we? Are we telling people that Jesus loves them? Are we seeing that sin has entered the world, that these people are hurting, that this is how things are right now? Are we also seeing that Jesus is the Light of the world, and that the darkness cannot survive in the light? Are we sharing that light? Or are we keeping it to ourselves? Why don't we get passionate about the truth, rather than the lies? Why don't we get passionate about Jesus, rather than what the world is doing wrong. If we stand in the truth and the light, don't you think people will come to that?
After all that, this is my point. First: we should stop treating homosexuality as worse than any other sin, it's not any more disgusting than a lie, or murder, or adultery, or gluttony, or lust, or gossip. Second: we need to refocus, stop throwing up such a holler about what's wrong, and start living and preaching the gospel, what's true. In the beginning, and the end, what really matters is God, what He has to say about this, how He lived, and loved. We need to read the Bible again, pray again, look first to the truth, and then love people, no matter what. God has given everything to save the lost and the broken, so shouldn't we?
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