“Some of you were once like that. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:11 NLT)
Every human being who has ever lived, yes, even Jesus, has been born with the capacity to sin, with the desire and means of pleasing ourselves instead of God. How ever you paint it sin is a choice, nothing more, nothing less. And our choices will determine where we spend eternity and why.
James explains in chapter 1:12-15: “God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him. And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, ‘God is tempting me.’ God is never tempted to do wrong, and He never tempts anyone else. Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.”
Sin is sin, and largely due to the environment in which we are born and grow up, we each develop our sins of choice. Sexual sin, in whatever form it may draw us, is a major sin of choice because we are sexual creatures. We are born male or female and, most people are given the capacity to procreate. That’s a gift that God gives us and, like every other detail of our being, is given to be a means of pleasing and honoring God.
Taking sex out of its original context and turning it into something God never intended, nor desired for it to be, is where sin enters the picture. That’s why the Bible teaches against all means of using sex to please ourselves in ways that are dishonoring to God, both homosexually and heterosexually. But while one way is not more wrong than the other, the social implications of one seems to override the other in some people’s minds.
There are people in my life, as I’m confident there are in yours, who have children or others they deeply love who have same sex attractions. On many levels this is an emotionally tormenting issue, but I’d like to approach it from a Biblical perspective. Let’s say that your son lives with his girlfriend out of wedlock. He and his fiancée decide to get married, so in your joy and enthusiasm you quickly bless and support their decision and it never enters your mind not to attend their wedding.
On the other hand, let’s say your gay child comes to you and invites you to their wedding to a same sex partner. Now the sweat starts pouring down your neck and you’re uncertain as to how to respond. Here’s my question: why does it matter? Yes, of course, one is more socially acceptable, but both children in this scenario – the one marrying a person of the opposite sex and the other marrying someone of the same sex – have been living in blatant, sinful, disobedience to God. Both are guilty of what the Bible describes as “sexual sin.”
Marriage in either scenario doesn’t in and of itself make them right with God or push them any further away. They are still sinners in need of a Savior. We typically do our best to support our children in the decisions they make, not necessarily agreeing with their life’s choices, but continuing to love them through the difficult choices they make, seeking to keep the channels of communication open so that someday they may allow us the privilege of introducing them to the Savior.
The main difference between these two scenarios is the resultant social pressure. We’re concerned that those whose opinion we value will see our attending our child’s wedding as “supporting them in their sin.” I understand that, but personally would rather err on the side of loving my child than caring what the people on my Facebook page think, or even the people whose opinion I value at my church.
Does God’s love for us change or stop when we disobey? Of course not, so why should we not clearly, and often against pressure to do otherwise, do what will most effectively express our undying love for our children?
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 