Today's culture can ... be characterized by Paul's words. In Paul's second letter to Timothy, Paul states that there "...will be terrible times in the last days. People will be... lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God..." - 2 Timothy 3:1, 4. Of course both secular and religious systems that value pleasure before God have always existed since sin came on the scene, and they still exist today. However today there is an ideology running rampant within the walls of the Christian church that suggests that what God pronounces as sinful is good if the sin is something innate.[i]
The above quote is from an article I recently wrote that is entitled The Gay-Christian Movement Is Mixing God's Goodness With Evil. The 'evil' that the article discussed was the amalgamation of the sin of active homosexuality with one's identity as a Christian. Members of the Gay Christian Movement preach that someone can be both a practicing homosexual and a practicing Christian. I do not go into why that simply is impossible, but instead I went into why one should not tie their sin (e.g. homosexuality) with their Christian identity. However there is some ambiguity in the above citation. It begins to concentrate on: ones focus on their pleasure rather than on God; and then its focus changes to: homosexuality as something innate. In the aforementioned article I argued why the alleged innateness of homosexuality does not determine homosexuality being good but I didn't highlight how Paul's words in 2 Timothy 2:1 & 4 also apply to homosexuality. I am going to do that here.
The relationship between homosexuality and Paul's words to Timothy is not homosexuality itself but rather the person, but not as a homosexual but as a sinful human being. Scripture is clear that homosexuality is something that is condemned as sinful. In Moses' time the homosexual act was declared evil (cf. Genesis 19) and declared a capitol crime (cf. Leviticus 18:22, 20:13). Paul reminds his readers that among many different choices of lifestyle people who chose the homosexual lifestyle will not inherit the kingdom of God (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). He also explains the origin of the sinful nature which gives birth to a variety of sexual immoralities of which homosexuality is merely one, (cf. Romans 1:18-32).
Unwrapping Romans 1:18-32
Unwrapping Romans 1:18-32
Although we as God's creation naturally know God we do not glorify him or recognize him as God (cf. Romans 1:21). What causes us to recognize God's existence but not give him glory or recognize him as God? We naturally suppress the truth of God, (cf. Romans 1:18-20) namely "God’s invisible qualities [such as] his eternal power and divine nature..." (cf. Romans 1:20). We reject God's omnipotence and its implication on reality and His nature that is the standard for moral choices, His divine wisdom, His divine will (His desires to have things done in a certain way) and so forth. This deliberate abandonment of God-focusness caused futile and foolish intentions on our part, (cf. Romans 1:21) resulting in foolish thinking and obliviousness to that very fact; in sum we claim to be wise, but our actions speak of a different story. Instead of being God-focused we turn and offer glory and divine recognition to the created order, (cf. Romans 1:22-23).
How did God respond? He let us go. If we human beings want to abandon Him as our God and give worship to inanimate objects (cf. Romans 1:22), then so be it. God let us go to not just invent pseudo gods but serve ourselves as our own god. Our rebellion took us over to the degrading of ourselves; of which is evidence of foolish thinking and self-centeredness. The example Paul gives is shameful sexual desires, (cf. Romans 1:24-25), such as just as how many men exchange natural sexual relations [heterosexual] for sexual relationships with each other [homosexual] many women do the same. (cf. Romans 1:26-27).[ii] The last stretch in this fall from God-focusness is to not "think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave [us] over to a depraved mind, so that [we] do what ought not to be done." - Romans 1:28.
By nature all of us - adult and child alike - naturally lean on our own way of thinking and look out for our own desires (cf. Romans 3:23), and homosexual people are no exception. This is what causes members of the Gay Christian Movement to attempt to reinterpret the portions of Scripture discussed above. The sinful nature is self-centered and so the Gay Christian Movement aims to make Scripture friendly to their desires instead of making themselves friendly to Scripture. In an informal debate between Dr. Michael Brown and gay activist, Matthew Vines, on the relationship between being a follower of Christ and a practicing homosexual, Vines asked Brown:
...do you acknowledge that there are some people for whom life long celibacy is the consequence of an absolute rejection of a same-sex relationship...?[iii]
Given the topic of the discussion Vines' question is clear:
Listen to the podcast below to hear Brown's answer to that question and the discussion in its entirety; however if I was asked that question my answer would be simple: "Yes. For the true Christian whose sexual orientation has not changed and is something that they simply cannot overcome, life-long celibacy would be the natural consequence." I alluded to the true Christian because it would only be the true Christian who would be aiming to serve Christ in both devotion and deed. For the true Christian who is exclusively same-sex attracted and has not changed on that front, a sexual, emotional and spiritual intimacy would be the sacrifice that he or she would have to make.[iv] This of course does not negate the fact that that the gay man or woman still will desire to be with in an intimate relationship with someone who they are sexually, personally and emotionally attracted to; but ones desires do not likewise negate the consequences for rejecting truth of God's Wisdom and Will, (cf. Mathew 7:21-23).
'Do you acknowledge that the doctrine, that same-sex relationships are actively sinful necessarily requires the Christian who is irreversibly same-sex attracted to forsake spiritual, sexual and emotional intimacy?'
Listen to the podcast below to hear Brown's answer to that question and the discussion in its entirety; however if I was asked that question my answer would be simple: "Yes. For the true Christian whose sexual orientation has not changed and is something that they simply cannot overcome, life-long celibacy would be the natural consequence." I alluded to the true Christian because it would only be the true Christian who would be aiming to serve Christ in both devotion and deed. For the true Christian who is exclusively same-sex attracted and has not changed on that front, a sexual, emotional and spiritual intimacy would be the sacrifice that he or she would have to make.[iv] This of course does not negate the fact that that the gay man or woman still will desire to be with in an intimate relationship with someone who they are sexually, personally and emotionally attracted to; but ones desires do not likewise negate the consequences for rejecting truth of God's Wisdom and Will, (cf. Mathew 7:21-23).
To conclude picture in your mind a three step staircase with a landing extending from the top step and one protruding from the bottom step. The second and third steps is the stage described in Romans 1:22-28 and this is where society (from the macro perspective) is today; but we are very close to falling completely onto the third step (cf. Romans 1:24-28) - the stage of the complete rejection of the knowledge of God and the complete focus onto ourselves as the god of our own lives. As a society we no longer even try to daily recognize God as God, and give him glory and thanks, (cf. Romans 1:21). Paul's words in Timothy describes today's culture because we are loving pleasure - what we want - rather than God, namely what God wants.
However being on the third step in this staircase of morality is not irreversible. Every Christian, gay and straight ought to take a good look at themselves to determine where on that staircase they personally lie. The landing from the bottom of these three steps is the point of no return, as is the landing at the top of the first step; both these represent the crossing over to eternity were the bottom represents eternal damnation and the top eternal life (cf. Hebrews 9:27); but while any one is on the first, second or third step they are not out of God's reach. As Paul promises if you actively "...declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." - Romans 10:9
However being on the third step in this staircase of morality is not irreversible. Every Christian, gay and straight ought to take a good look at themselves to determine where on that staircase they personally lie. The landing from the bottom of these three steps is the point of no return, as is the landing at the top of the first step; both these represent the crossing over to eternity were the bottom represents eternal damnation and the top eternal life (cf. Hebrews 9:27); but while any one is on the first, second or third step they are not out of God's reach. As Paul promises if you actively "...declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." - Romans 10:9
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[i] - http://acrazychristian.blogspot.ca/2014/11/the-gay-christian-movement-is-mixing.html - accessed November 7, 2014
[ii] - It is important to note that homosexuality is not the only example one can give for wrong sexual practices; it is merely the example Paul gave to illustrate his point.
[iii] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-bTqIJP2JI - accessed November 7, 2014
[iii] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-bTqIJP2JI - accessed November 7, 2014
[iv] - This of course does not include close friendships between persons of the same sex. It is very fortunate for someone if they can find that same-sex friend to whom they can develop an intimate friendship and bond with. There is a clear difference between close friends and lovers. The biggest dividing line between the two is sexual intimacy.
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