Why Christians Eat Shellfish But Don’t Stone Homosexuals

One of the most common objections posed to Christians when discussing the Bible or homosexuality is, “Why do Christians eat shellfish and wear mixed fabric, but not stone homosexuals?  Aren’t they just cherry picking which verses of the Bible they hold to?”

This objection comes up time and time again.  The objection specifically refers to four verses.  The first two are Leviticus 11:10-11 which says:

“But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you. 11 You shall regard them as detestable; you shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses.”

The next verse covered in this objection is Deuteronomy 22:11 which states:

“You shall not wear cloth of wool and linen mixed together.”

The final verse mentioned in the objection is Leviticus 20:13 which says:

“If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.”

Here we see three separate laws given from God and yet Christians seem to hold to none of them.  How can this be?  How can so many Christians stress holding to the laws of God and yet completely disregard these three commands?  The answer to this question comes from the same collection of books that the previous three commands were found in: the Bible.

Even though this objection incorporates four Bible verses, I can basically guarantee you that virtually no one that uses this objection has actually read the Bible with a significant level of thought.  How can I say this?  I can make that statement because if those people were to read further into the rest of the Bible, they would have their question answered.

That being said, in some ways, you can see the point the objection is making when you see verses like Matthew 5:18 where Jesus says:

“For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (NIV)

This Matthew 5:18 makes the objection of this chapter seem even harder to answer until you read the verses surrounding it.  Let’s look at the passage as a whole (Matthew 5:17-20):

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven” (NIV)

Jesus has fulfilled the law with His death and resurrection.  What people often fail to recognize is the fact that there isn’t just one type of law in the Bible that Jesus fulfilled; there’s three which are known as moral, ceremonial, and civil law.  Let’s break these different types of law down to better understand their differences and why it’s important to make distinctions between them.

Moral Law

 

The moral law could be summed up as the Ten Commandments.  These laws are ingrained into the very fibers of our being.  This set of laws, unlike the other two types, is unchangeable.  Jesus addresses this type of law in verse 20 of the Matthew passage above.  He says that unless you can follow the law perfectly (“unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees”) you are unworthy of the Kingdom of Heaven.  This means that in order for humans to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, something must cleanse us of our sin and fix our problem with the moral law.  Jesus fulfilled this through His death and resurrection by paying for our sins and making us right with the law.

 

Ceremonial Law

This type of law, like the civil law, is one that applies only to the nation of Israel.  The ceremonial laws refer to laws like not eating shellfish or not wearing clothes of mixed fabric.  These laws also include the sacrificial system set in place in Israel.  These laws helped make the Israelites unique when compared to all other nations.  God put these laws in place so that anyone outside of Israel could look at the Israelites and their behavior and immediately know there was something different about them.  God was going to use Israel to bless every other nation on Earth.  By seeing the stark contrast between the behavior of the Israelites and the other nations, a person was supposed to be able to say, “There’s something different about the Israelites and I want to be like them”

Then, the Israelites could have shown them who they followed and showed them how to follow God.  After Christ rose from the dead, the nation of Israel was no longer God’s only chosen people.  Now, anyone who repents of their sin and has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is considered a chosen one of God.  Because of this, Christians don’t need to hold to all of the ceremonial laws given specifically to Israel because now to differentiate themselves they take after the actions of Christ and embody Him.  This is their way of acting uniquely from the rest of the world.  Also, the sacrificial laws aren’t needed anymore because Jesus Christ came as the final sacrifice when He died on the cross.  He covered all of our sins by giving Himself up for us, so that, in part, we don’t have to sacrifice animals anymore to atone for our sins.

Civil Law

The civil law was meant to help the nation of Israel run their government.  The nation of Israel was a theocracy, which is not the typical kind of government seen today.  Because we aren’t the nation of Israel and don’t live in a true theocracy, we aren’t required to hold to the civil law.  An example of civil law can be seen in Leviticus 20:13, which was included above.  The command to put people practicing homosexuality to death was a civil law that helped lay out the proper punishment for the act when committed in the nation of Israel at that time.  The part of the command regarding homosexuality is still valid because it is affirmed in the New Testament and reflects God’s plan in marriage for all of creation.  See the distinction?  The moral laws are upheld in the New Testament (Romans 1:26-27, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, and 1 Timothy 1:8-11) while many of the ceremonial and civil laws are not

Before you claim that it’s a cop-out to say that because we’re not the nation of Israel we aren’t held to this law, understand that we encounter situations like this daily.  We see different laws applying to different people from different places all of the time.  For example, California has very strict laws in regards to sustainability.  I live in Missouri, and because of that, I don’t have to hold to the laws from California that aren’t also laid out in the state laws set aside for Missouri.  But, Californians and Missourians both have to hold to federal laws that are meant to apply to everyone in the United States rather than just a single state.  Think of the ceremonial and civil laws as state laws and the moral law as a set of federal laws.  The civil and ceremonial laws, like state laws, apply to a very specific group of people while the moral laws, like federal laws, apply to a much larger group of people.  I know that illustration isn’t perfect, but I think it gets the general point across.

All three types of law are important, but only the moral law must be held to today.  The ceremonial and civil laws are important, not because we must hold to them today, but because they give us insight into God’s plan for Israel and His providential plan for the world.  Understanding the ceremonial and civil laws helps us understand the culture that many of the Old Testament books were written to.

All of that being said, regardless of which type of law we discuss, Jesus came to fulfill it.

Jesus’ Fulfillment of the Law

Galatians 3:23-25 reminds us of Christ’s fulfillment of the law when it says:

“Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian”

The moral law is the only law that Christians are specifically held to.  Understanding this and the distinctions and purposes of the laws of the Old Testament, as well as how they apply to the New Testament are vital to really grasping much of the Bible.  As a Christian, I can eat shellfish (although I never would because I don’t like eating fish bait) and I can wear clothes of mixed fabric because the laws prohibiting those things don’t apply to me.  Understanding the context of the passages of the Bible that you read is imperative.  Understanding context and understanding to read narratives can even clear up other objections like, “Doesn’t the Bible support polygamy?”

The answer to this objection is, of course, no.  While the Bible mentions polygamy, it never endorses it.  Just because a character in the Bible does something doesn’t mean that that particular action is good or approved of by God.  If you read the Bible, what you’ll find is that anyone with multiple wives is always miserable or at least endures a good amount of grief because of it.  God never once endorses polygamy.  We make distinctions and realizations like this all the time when we read or listen to other things and we must make sure to do so when reading the Bible.

It’s imperative that we take the proper time and effort to actually process the verses and commands of the Bible.  A flippant reading (or even more irresponsible, neglecting to read) what the Bible actually says can lead to unnecessary and harmful confusion.  Christians and non-Christians are guilty of this.  Don’t make proclamations about the Bible until you’ve actually read it.  This isn’t asking more than what you would expect in any other situation for anything else.   Understand the context and read the narrative of the Bible correctly and you’ll find that many of the objections you have will be answered coherently.  Even more importantly, when you actually read the Bible and take time to process what it says, you cannot help but be put in awe by the wonder of a God and Savior who loves more than you could ever imagine.

Homosexuality Part 2: What Does the Bible Actually Say About Homosexuality?

In part one of this two part post on the Christian view on homosexual marriage I laid out the Christian view of marriage.  Now that we’ve discussed Christianity’s view of marriage and some of its implications, we can move on to what the Bible actually says about homosexuality.  Before we get started, I want to lay out an important reminder.  I don’t write about topics like this for fun.  This topic is one that has given way to so much hate and sadness.  I’m only writing about this because I take it so seriously and desperately want understanding between various worldviews in regard to the Christian view on homosexual marriage.  I also want to lay out two important truths to help diffuse some of the frustration and anger that you might have in regards to the Christian positon.  1.) While the Christian worldview may deem homosexual practice as a sin, it preaches a deep love for all people, including homosexuals themselves.  2.) A person can be dispositionally gay and still be a Christian.  I’ll elaborate on these points later on, but I thought it was important to make those points clear upfront.  With that being said, let’s see what the Bible actually says about homosexuality.

Believe it or not, for as much uproar as this topic causes, there are only seven passages in the entire Bible that discuss homosexuality (four in the Old Testament and three in the New Testament).  Some of you may have heard talks such as Matthew Vine’s (called God and the Gay Christian) that try to reconcile homosexual marriage and Christianity using the Bible.  An objective reading of the text will show you that this hope of reconciliation is misplaced.  But don’t just take my word for it.  Let’s look at these texts and see exactly what they say.  We’ll start with the Old Testament verses:

Genesis 19:3-8

“But Lot insisted, so at last they went home with him. Lot prepared a feast for them, complete with fresh bread made without yeast, and they ate. 4 But before they retired for the night, all the men of Sodom, young and old, came from all over the city and surrounded the house. 5 They shouted to Lot, ‘Where are the men who came to spend the night with you? Bring them out to us so we can have sex with them!’ 6 So Lot stepped outside to talk to them, shutting the door behind him. 7 ‘Please, my brothers,’ he begged, ‘don’t do such a wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two virgin daughters. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do with them as you wish. But please, leave these men alone, for they are my guests and are under my protection.’”

Leviticus 18:22

“You shall not lie with a male as a woman, it is an abomination.”

The Bible labels multiple things as abominations, not just homosexuality.  Any sin is an abomination in God’s eyes.  My lust and lies are just as abominable in God’s eyes as homosexuality.

Leviticus 20:13

“If a man lies with a male as a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood upon them.”

Obviously we don’t kill people for being homosexual today.  This is one of the civil laws of the Old Covenant that we are not held to in the New Covenant now that Christ has been resurrected.   The point is clear, though: homosexuality is wrong in God’s eyes.  It is seen as an abomination.

Judges 19:22-23

“As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, worthless fellows, surrounded the house, beating on the door. And they said to the old man, the master of the house, ‘Bring out the man who came into your house, that we may know him.’ 23 And the man, the master of the house, went out to them and said to them, ‘No, my brothers, do not act so wickedly; since this man has come into my house, do not do this vile thing.’”

As you can see, the Old Testament is pretty harsh when referring to homosexual acts.  Words like abomination are used.  While that may seem incredibly bigoted to use language like that, I want you to seriously think about something for a second: if God is real and He truly designed marriage and sex to help symbolize the most sacred relationship a human could possibly have (a relationship with Christ), a distortion of it would be very serious.  Also think about this:  the Bible labels homosexual acts as a sin.  Every sin is an abomination to God.  Sin is so serious that it required God to send His son Jesus Christ to be sacrificed to save us from our sins.  If sin is really that serious and requires such a price to be saved from it, then it’s no wonder God takes any sin, including homosexual acts, so seriously.

Now let’s see what the New Testament has to say about the matter:

Romans 1:26-27

“For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.”

1 Corinthians 6:9

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous[a] will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,”

1 Timothy 1:10

“understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, 10 the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers,[a] liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound[b] doctrine,”

It’s clear that in both the Old and New Covenant, homosexuality is seen as a sin.  The important distinction is in noting that the Bible doesn’t make homosexuality the ultimate sin.  Homosexuality is a sin, but not the banner-head sin that many Christians seem to make it out to be.  Paul doesn’t instruct us to single out homosexuality as the worst sin, but rather lists it with many other sins in 1 Timothy 1:10.  Again, after reading that verse, it should be blatantly obvious that the Bible doesn’t find homosexuality to be any “worse” of a sin that many of the sinful acts that Christians (and the rest of the world) partake in every day.  Every time I give into lust or lie I’m sinning at just as severe a level in God’s eyes.  If many Christians treated their sins (that are of equal level according to the Bible) the same way they treat homosexuality, they would have a totally different perspective on sin and just how broken they are.  Once, while talking with a homosexual friend about Christianity, I mentioned to them that their sin was no worse than mine and that there’s no place they should be more welcomed to than the church and they were blown away.  No homosexual should ever have a reaction like that because Christians shouldn’t be treating them with disdain, but with love.

For Christians, it’s vital to understand that homosexuality in someone else is no worse of a sin than your struggles with lust or lying.  It’s also vital that Christians refrain from making someone’s homosexuality the biggest part of their identity.  I don’t introduce myself saying, “Hi!  My name’s Caleb.  I’m heterosexual and I struggle with lust.”

If the first thing you think of when you see someone is that they are homosexual then your attitude towards homosexuality is wrong.  This can be incredibly hard for Christians, even if they don’t vocalize it.  When Christians can work past this, a truly biblical view of homosexuality is easier to attain.

Nowhere in the Bible is there ever a verse that is even indifferent towards homosexuality.  People will go to great lengths with biblical gymnastics to try and make it seem like the Bible isn’t against homosexuality, but a simple reading of the text will shoot any attempt like that down.  Rule number one of Bible hermeneutics: never make large, definitive claims on gray areas or shaky interpretations of the text.  People like Matthew Vines will try and say that in the original languages of the texts, the words translators denote for homosexuality don’t actually refer to homosexuality as we see it today.  Understand that this is merely semantics.  This is their attempt to fool people with the sound of academia.  Some will claim that Paul, when he talks about homosexuality, is on referring to older men sexually abusing young boys.  In truth, this claim, as well as the liberal hermeneutical claims, are false.  It takes an extremely liberal interpretation to get an even indifferent attitude towards homosexuality to come out of the text.  The Bible never affirms homosexuality, but it does call it a sin.

Abstinent Same-Sex Relationships

One question I’m often asked is if it’s biblical to have an abstinent same-sex relationship.  The short answer to that question is no.  But it’s important to understand why, because I understand the temptation to have a relationship like that.  When everyone else seems to be dating, it’s completely understandable to desire a relationship and someone to show affection to.  Here’s the logic behind the short answer: sex is an integral part of marriage.  We can see that in 1 Corinthians 7:3-5:

“The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4 For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 5 Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.”

If you don’t have sex within marriage, you actually are not carrying out your marriage in biblical manner.  You aren’t supposed to withhold sex from your partner within marriage.  Therefore, if you try and have a marriage where sex would be unbiblical (like in a homosexual marriage) then the marriage itself can’t be biblical on top of the fact it alters God’s original design.  If you’re in an emotionally intimate relationship with someone, it’s virtually certain that physical desires will be awakened for the other person.  But if you can’t have sex with them, there’s no appropriate way to satisfy those desires.  Because of this, you will surely lust for the other person.  Therefore, that relationship is leading you into sin.  God did not foreordain a relationship as important as marriage that would lead us into sin.  There’s no logical way to have a homosexual marriage/intimate relationship without some sort of sin that’s innate to that relationship.  To be a gay Christian means to be celibate.  But remember, as I talked about earlier, that celibacy and singleness are not a demotion in anyway.

 

Can Someone Be Dispositionally Gay and a Christian?

 

It’s important for Christians to understand that you can be gay and a Christian simultaneously.  Having a disposition towards something isn’t sinful in and of itself.  Thinking on those desires, entertaining them, and acting on them is what is sinful.  Often times you will see Christians argue over whether or not homosexuality is a choice.  This argument misses the point entirely.  It makes no difference whether or not someone is born gay.  Being born with certain dispositions doesn’t make them right.  For example, some people are born with the disposition to be violent.  Surely no one thinks it’s okay for someone to hurt others because they are born with that disposition.  It just means that the person must work to control those desires.  It is the same with homosexuality.  Persons with homosexual proclivities must work to control those desires and not act on them or entertain them in order to live biblically.

Another important clarification that needs to be made is that homosexuality and race are not similar.  I can choose not to act on my sexual desires, but I can’t control the fact that I was born a certain race.  It’s disrespectful to even attempt to make them the same issue.

Do All Homosexuals Go To Hell?

The answer to this often posed question is absolutely not.  A homosexual disposition doesn’t get you to Hell any faster than a heterosexual disposition.  Now what do I mean by that.  I mean that just being homosexual doesn’t mean that you have a harder time getting to Heaven.  Heterosexuality doesn’t get you to Heaven.  In fact, it’s just as easy for a heterosexual person to be led into sin as it is for a homosexual.  Heterosexuality isn’t a ticket to heaven; a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is.  If you are dispositionally gay and have a personal relationship with Christ, you will go to Heaven to partake in a perfect relationship with God.  Jesus Christ died just as much for homosexuals as He died for heterosexuals.  Just like a heterosexual person must repent from their sins, a homosexual person must do the same, along with expressing their need for Jesus Christ, in order to be saved.

 

Oppression and Hypocrisy From Christians

While I am indeed writing about the topic of homosexuality to help bridge the gap of understanding between Christians and non-Christians, I am also writing about it because I want Christians to have an accurate understanding of what the Bible says.  Uneducated and misinformed Christians have caused much pain and oppression to homosexuals because of the irresponsible way they handle the topic of homosexuality.  There is no way for a Christian to deny that fact.  In the name of Christ, many Christians have treated homosexuals in exactly the opposite way that Christ would have.  For that, I am deeply sorrowed.  If you are a homosexual and have ever been hurt by a Christian over this topic, I am so sorry.  That should never ever happen.  As hard is it might be, I want to ask you to separate that pain and sorrow from your view of Christianity.  Jesus Christ treated all human beings with love.  Christians should do the same.

I have spent this entire post explaining the biblical view of marriage and homosexuality but now I’m going to make a statement that may shock some Christians and possibly cause controversy.  While I am a Christian and am against homosexual marriage (for biblical reasons which I will explain in another post), if I wasn’t a Christian I would absolutely be for homosexual marriage.  Before anyone gets up in arms, let me explain.  If I wasn’t a Christian, and I didn’t strive to shape my views according to the Bible, I would have no reason to be against homosexual marriage.  Especially if I was an atheist and held a secular worldview, I would have no justification for being opposed to it.  Here’s the important thing for Christians (and non-Christians) to remember: Christians are not to judge non-Christians according to a Christian’s standards.  Paul articulates this in 1 Corinthians 5:12 when he says:

“For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church[b] whom you are to judge?”

What’s important to understand here is that Paul is talking to Christians about sexual immorality.  Instead of talking about sexuality immorality outside of the church, Paul is referring to sexual immorality inside the church.  Rather than casting judgement on the lifestyles of those outside of the church, Christians should be judging and holding accountable those inside the church.  I cannot stress how vital this is to grasp.

By judging and oppressing homosexuals, many Christians have pushed a great number of people away from the greatest relationship man can have: a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  They have done the exact opposite of what Jesus Christ commanded them to do in Matthew 28:19 which says:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”

A Christian’s treatment of others should be so pure and full of love that they should mirror the life of Christ.  Non-Christians should be asking what’s driving the Christian to live so well, not what is causing them to be so hateful.

I realize that I’m probably not going to change many opinions with what I’ve written and that’s ok.  I wrote this to help bridge the gap of understanding between Christians and non-Christians and to help Christians better understand their own position.  You may not agree with the Christian position but I want you to at least understand why the Christian holds it and why marriage and sexuality are so important to them.

Understand that if God is real and He really did design marriage with such special purpose and symbolism, then we should try to partake in marriage as He instructed in His Holy Word, the Bible. This logic applies to anything designed.  If something is designed for a specific purpose, then using it in ways other than that purpose will result in harm to the user and possibly others.  The same thing is true with marriage.  If God really designed us and marriage, He knows exactly the best way to go about marriage.  When He warns us of the consequences of abusing His great gift and symbol to humanity, we should take His warnings seriously.  It would be safe to say that He would know best if He really created everything, including sex and marriage.

Even if you aren’t a Christian, when you understand the Christian position on marriage, you can understand why they take it so seriously.  If marriage is really supposed to symbolize our relationship with Christ, the most sacred relationship a human can have, then a distortion of it would be incredibly offensive.  That fact can’t be avoided.  Homosexuality is just a personal of an issue for Christians as non-Christians.

Tolerance

In much of this post, I challenged Christians to take a look at their assumptions about homosexuality and their treatment of homosexuals.  I would be remise if I didn’t make an important challenge to secularists.  So often the word tolerance tossed around with the issue of homosexuality.  Many secularists will proudly proclaim their tolerance when talking about different points of view.  This is one of the most ironic and untrue things I have ever heard.  That might sound harsh, but it’s absolutely the truth.  There is nothing tolerant about secular tolerance.  Agreeing with only those that agree with you is not tolerant.  If there was true tolerance, secularists wouldn’t be protesting the Christian position on sexuality.  Instead, they would be accepting it with open arms.  The reason we see this hypocrisy is twofold.

The first reason is the major gap of misunderstanding between Christians and non-Christians.  Take arguments over religious freedom laws.  Secularists say these allow Christians to deny homosexuals services.  They say the laws cause discrimination.  When we argue about this issue of Christians denying homosexuals services for religious reasons what we’re really arguing is whose rights are more important or whose rights take precedence.  For the secularist, it seems obvious that the homosexual’s rights regarding their intrinsic sexual choice should take priority over the Christian’s so called “religious reasons”.  But here is where there seems to be a major misunderstanding.  Many secularists view a Christian’s convictions as vastly less important than sexuality.  But I would argue that the opposite is true in regards for Christians.  For a true Christian, their faith takes precedence over their sexuality.  This is why we see so many Christians forego any sexual intercourse because they are called to pursue God without a spouse.  This is exactly what Jesus did.  We have to at least come to this joint understanding when discussing this issue.

The second reason for the hypocrisy is the foundation that our secular culture is built on.  Our secular culture has been erected on a foundation that says that what’s right for me is right for me and what’s right for you is right for you.  On the surface this sounds great, but in practice this is impossible.  Not everyone or every view can be right.  It’s possible that all views are wrong, but not the opposite.  Universal truth is impossible.  But, because our culture lives with a foundation of universal truth, we run into situations where two groups claim things that contradict each other.  In these situations, where decisions have to be made, one view ultimately takes precedence over another which is exactly the opposite of what secular culture supposedly preaches.  See the contradiction?  While universal truth sounds great in theory, it reality it’s unlivable.  Yet because it hides behind the façade of tolerance, secularism’s intolerance and discrimination seems to be unnoticed.  Any honest or objective person will see the problems and contradictions here.  Therefore, my challenge to the secularist is to either allow the opposing view of gay marriage or shed the claims of tolerance that you hold so dearly to.

Pro-Person

There’s something incredibly important that must be said before this comes to a close.  A Christian can biblically oppose homosexual marriage but still not live according to Jesus’ teachings. If you preach and protest against homosexual marriage but yet you neglect the homosexual person, you have fallen completely short of what Christ said.  To truly live like Jesus, you have to be pro-person, not anti-homosexual marriage.  Rather than screaming and yelling on the street, Christians should have open arms to homosexuals.  They should be helping homosexuals understand the Christian view of marriage and how to live as a Christian with a homosexual disposition.  If I preach the law but neglect the person, I’m nothing more than a Pharisee.  Jesus Christ died for everyone, whether homo or heterosexual.  While Christians may disagree with the homosexual position, they should fully love and care for the person.  Because I think homosexual marriage tarnishes God’s plan and symbolism for marriage I oppose it, but I love each and every person that hold the position.

Being a gay Christian can be incredibly difficult, but it is just as rewarding as being a straight Christian.  If you are a Christian and wrestling with homosexual desires, pray that God might help them fade away.  Pray for strength in temptation and pray that you would be ultimately satisfied in Christ.  If a Christian, gay or straight, can get to this point in their walk, it changes the equation.  While we will never achieve full satisfaction in Christ while on Earth, the more we become satisfied in Him, the less prevalent all other desires become.

As hard as singleness can be for gay Christians (or straight Christians for that matter), understand that singleness is also a picture of heaven.  As I said earlier, marriage will cease to exist in Heaven.  We will all be single, yet satisfied in Christ.

If you are a homosexual, you may be asking yourself why God allowed you to be that way.  Understand this: homosexuality, on one level is a symptom of the fall and sin’s permeation of the world, but God foreordained your homosexuality to allow you to do special things for the Kingdom.  A homosexual Christian has a special ministry that allows them to disciple other Christians and people struggling with homosexuality.  God may very well have blessed you with your particular sexual desires to allow you to minister to those dealing with similar struggles.  That may be incredibly hard to grasp, but it’s true.  God puts hard things in our lives to help us grow closer to Him.  Whether it’s the death of a family member, drug addiction, homosexuality, or whatever, God allowed that to happen for you to be in closer relationship with Him.  When we begin to understand that, we can begin to grow even more in Christ.  As we work towards total satisfaction and intimacy in Christ, our worldly struggles and desires and proclivities fade away.

I don’t write about topics like this for fun.  Topics like this are tough and incredibly draining, but they are nonetheless important.  If you have any questions or struggles with any of this, don’t hesitate to talk to a trusted Christian friend or leader or even me.  I would love to talk with you about this hard topic.

As I said earlier, my biggest goal here is to bridge the gap of understanding between Christians and non-Christians.  You may totally disagree with the Christian position on this matter, but I want you to at least try and understand the Christian position because here’s the deal: if God is real and the Bible is true, then we should model our marriages after their instructions.  If we neglect these instructions and distort the one relationship modeled after the most sacred relationship available to humans, terrible consequences could be in store for us.  With that in mind, it’s easy to see why Christians are so passionate about this issue.  Until you disprove the existence of God and the truthfulness of the Bible (which, by the way, no one has yet) the Christian position is still a valid one and should be treated as so.

Here’s the reality: we can argue constantly about homosexual marriage, but if we spend all of our time arguing, we’ll completely miss the greater relationship we were made for.  It’s like arguing over who gets a penny when someone is offering us both a billion dollars.  If we constantly argue we’ll miss the offer entirely.

Jesus Christ didn’t die so we could argue about homosexuality and a temporary relationship.  He died so we could partake in the ultimate love and an eternal relationship with Him.  Whether you’re straight or homosexual, Christian or non-Christian, Jesus Christ wants you to know of the amazing love He has for you.  He died on the cross to save you from whatever sin is present in your life so you could partake in a personal relationship with Him and be free of your sin.  That personal relationship with Christ is greater than any heterosexual or homosexual marriage.  There has never been a more inclusive person than Jesus Christ.  Be included in the incredible offer He has extended to you and begin a personal relationship with Him.

Homosexuality Part 1: Understanding the Christian View On Marriage

I don’t write about topics like this for my own enjoyment.  In fact, I take no pleasure in writing about topics like this.  There’s so much pain and hate infused into this topic.  So understand that I’m writing about this only because it’s an issue that absolutely has to be addressed in order to help end the pain and hate and establish a clear understanding between Christianity and secularism.

Christianity and homosexuality (particularly homosexual marriage) seem to be at extreme odds with one another.  In our modern secular society, it’s a virtual certainty that homosexual marriage will one day be fully legalized in America.  Day-by-day, the Christian position against homosexual marriage is slipping further into the minority.  Because of this, some Christians are even beginning to change their position on the matter out of pressure from their secular peers.  Christians have even been said to be on the “wrong side of history” on the matter and have been called bigots because of their stance.  Recently, a young man named Matthew Vines even tried to reconcile homosexual marriage and the Bible, saying that the Bible wasn’t against homosexual monogamous relationships in order to try and reconcile the two positions.

As one of the last major groups of people to be against homosexual marriage, Christians had better have a good reason.  I say this because, let’s be honest, short of a divine justification, there is no good reason to be against homosexual marriage.  Christians believe they have divine justification and before passing judgement its vital that we take a look at the evidence.  In this post, part one of a two part piece, we’re going to look at the Christian view on marriage.  In the next post, we will take a look at what the Bible actually says about homosexuality and look at the answers to some of the biggest questions surrounding the Christian position on homosexual marriage.  Non-Christians: I encourage you to seriously take the time to process all of this and make a sincere effort to understand the Christian position.  Christians: I plead with you to seriously process all of this and think about the ways you live out your faith.  Even though your stance towards homosexuality may seem biblical at first, in reality, it may not be.  If your stance is off track at all, it is vital that you work to change it so as to end the rampant misrepresentation of the biblical view.

Before we dive in, there are two quick points I want to make that might diffuse some of the tension this topic brings up.  1.) While the Christian worldview may deem homosexual practice as a sin, it preaches a deep love for all people, including homosexuals themselves.  2.) A person can be dispositionally gay and still be a Christian.  I’ll elaborate on these points later on, but I thought it was important to make those points clear upfront.  That being said, let’s take a look at the Christian position on homosexuality.

For Christians, it’s easy to feel like our position is bigoted and wrong.  It may even feel hard to explain a true reason why homosexuality is wrong short of saying, “The Bible said so.”

While, “the Bible says so” is part of the right answer, Christians (and non-Christians) must understand why the Bible says that.

To really grasp the Christian position, one must first understand the importance of marriage to Christianity.   That must be understood before we can go any further.  Marriage is part of the core fibers of Christianity.  “Why”, you might ask?  Because it’s the closest relationship we can experience here on Earth to the one we have with Christ.  Few things in Christianity rival the significance of one’s personal relationship with Christ.  It is through that relationship that we are ultimately saved from our sins.  It is also through that relationship that we can be in communion with God.  Short of the love found in the Trinity, there is no more important relationship than the one between God and man.

Love and Our Relationship with Christ

When God created marriage, among other things, he created it to be a symbol of our relationship with Christ.  When we look at marriage, we should be able to see a glimpse of how great a relationship with God can and will be.

Marriage is often considered synonymous with love in our culture.  Few will argue this.  But what few might realize is the depth in which the Christian view of marriage reflects the full definition and meaning of love.  It’s important that you understand this depth of love in marriage.  The best way to do this is to better understand what the word love means.

In our culture, love can mean many different things.  We say things like, “I love pizza” or “I love the Kansas City Royals” or “I love you”.

All of these uses of the word love have different implications.  Because of this, the Greeks had four different words for love:

Agape: unconditional love

Philia: brotherly love or a deep love between friends

Eros: a deep, intimate love (could refer to sexuality)

Storge: an affectionate love often found between parents and their children

Only in the case of marriage and our relationship with Christ are all four of these loves found.

In marriage there is an agape love in the deep, unconditional love someone has for their spouse.  This love gives way to a lifelong commitment regardless of the circumstances.  In marriage, we also see philia love because your spouse is supposed to be your best friend.  There is an incredible and deep friendship between spouses.  We also find eros love in marriage because of the deep intimacy in marriage, both sexual and non-sexual.  Finally, in marriage we find storge love because, through procreation (or adoption), parents have an intense storge love for their children.  Marriage covers the depths of each type of love.  This is part of what makes it so special and beautiful.  This is part of what make most of humanity long to be in a marriage relationship.

We see those same types of love in our relationship to Christ, but at an even deeper level.  In a relationship with Christ, we see a deep and unconditional love between Christ and humanity.  If you want clear evidence of the deep commitment to the relationship, see how God continually pursues Israel even when they turn away from Him and worship false gods.  This same commitment is supposed to be evident in marriage.  This is one of the reasons divorce is so detrimental and so strongly opposed by the Bible.  Just like we should never break our permanent covenant with God in that relationship, we should never break our covenant with our spouse. When we say, “I do”, we are committing ourselves to that person.  We should live like we’re under that covenant, not like we are merely emotionally and physically infatuated with them.  Infatuation fades, commitment and true love doesn’t.  Jesus Christ was so committed to us that He laid His life down for us.  Love doesn’t get any deeper than that.

In a relationship with Christ, we see a deep philia love.  There is an intense friendship between Christ and the person.  But it is important to realize that the relationship is so much more than just a friendship, as evidenced by the other types of loves found in a relationship with Christ.

In a relationship with Christ even eros love is found.  This might seem strange and incredibly awkward.  While there isn’t literal sex in a relationship with Christ, that same incredible intensity and intimacy is present.  A relationship with Christ is so intense and incredible because of the ultimate level of intimacy.  Often times, when the Bible refers to a couple having sex, it will say that a so and so knew another person like in Genesis 4:1 when it says:

“Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ‘I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.’”

The word “know” is perfect for referring to sex.  When a couple has sex, they strip away everything and are completely vulnerable with each other.  Through sex, they have full knowledge of the other person.  Nothing is hidden when sex happens.  The reason sex inside of marriage is so beautiful is because the couple is completely vulnerable both emotionally and physically.  They know each other at the deepest level humanly possible.

In a relationship with Christ, we are completely vulnerable.  There is nothing hidden in that relationship.  Christ knows us to the very fiber of our being.  There is an intimacy that can be found nowhere else.  When Jesus says He wants to know us, He means in the deepest sense possible; deeper than a sexual or emotional sense.  He wants to know us spiritually.  This is the eros love that causes people to be so on fire for Christ.  Even among our deficiencies and our downfalls (all which Jesus knows in full), He still loves and pursues us.

Finally, in a relationship with Christ, there is an intense storge love.  We are children of God, and He loves us with a greater intensity than even the greatest earth father.

As you can see, the parallels between a relationship with Christ and marriage go deep.  This is why these two relationships are held in such high regard.  But, the parallels don’t end there.  Procreation represents a parallel between the two.

Procreation

The incredibly intimacy of marriage ultimately leads to children, just as the incredible intimacy of a relationship with Christ should lead to new children in Christ.  Here’s what I mean by that.  You should be so swept away by the love of Jesus Christ that you should be telling everyone about the opportunity they have to share in the same love.  This should lead to people coming to faith in Christ and becoming new children in the faith.  Just like real children, these spiritual children will grow and mature and ultimately help lead others to come to faith in Christ.  Just as two parents raise their children in traditional marriage, Christians are to take part in developing new Christians as they embark on the amazing adventure of a relationship with Jesus.

Procreation is ordained by God within the confines of marriage.  God specifically instructs Adam and Eve in this in Genesis 1:28:

“God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth.’”

Procreation is an important part of marriage.  It’s obvious that procreation can’t happen without a man and a woman.  Physically and anatomically it’s not possible.  We all know this.  Marriage as a secular institution might blow this aspect of the relationship off, but in Christianity it’s considered important.  Now, this point might be debated my some Christians when it comes to modern day application (I agree with it, but other Christians may not), but no one can argue that among God’s original intentions for marriage was pro-creation.

This symbolism between a relationship with Christ and marriage must be understood to grasp the Christian view of marriage.

There is one important distinction to be made.  With all of this being said about procreation, there are some couples that can’t have kids.  Adoption is a just as good of an option for them.  Adoption is uplifted and supported by Christianity.  Loving and caring for an orphan is absolutely living in-line with what Jesus Christ taught.

Complementary Natures

Also vital is the understanding of the complementary nature of men and women as well what sex stands for in marriage.  When it comes to the complementary nature of men and women, the Bible is clear that it exists.  Men and women were specifically made by God to complement each other emotionally and physically.  God made Eve specifically to help/complement Adam (Genesis 2:18).  God hasn’t made humans of the same gender to complement each other in the same way, no matter how many opposite-gender tendencies someone may have.  This point becomes incredibly evident when you see the dynamic between many homosexual couples.  Among many homosexual couples, one member typically takes on what is traditionally the man’s role while the other typically takes on what is traditionally the woman’s role.  This happens to varying degrees for various couples, but the point is that it almost always happens.

Sex

Finally, it is vital for you to understand the significance of sex to the Christian view of marriage.  I touched on this some earlier, but I want to make sure the point is clear because this applies to more than homosexuality.  It applies to heterosexuality too.  Sex is intended to be the consummation of a marriage relationship in the Christian view.  The Bible makes this clear in Genesis 2:24 when it says:

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”

Sex is supposed to be the greatest form of physical intimacy possible.  When two people have sex, their bodies are making promises to each other.  That promise can basically be summed up as this: I’m going to be totally open and committed to you emotionally as I am physically.  Because sex, in the Christian view, was designed to confirm and affirm the commitment in marriage, the Bible warns about sex outside of marriage.  It basically says that you shouldn’t do with your body what you’re not willing to do with the entirety of your life.  We can see clear evidence of the design and intent of sex by looking at what happens when sex is abused.  The reason we see emotional damage in people that have sex outside of marriage is because they have broken the promise their bodies made.  Someone might interject and say that they feel none of this remorse when they have casual sex or sex outside of marriage.  That may be true for them, but for the vast majority of people, even if they won’t admit it, they have a hard time getting over relationships where they have had sex or gone far physically.  It’s almost like having a mini divorce because of the intensity of the commitment made by their bodies.  This bodily promise is also why we see people trying to stick around after hooking up.  Their bodies made a promise to someone else and even though there was supposed to be no commitment, they feeling of some kind of bond and commitment is virtually unavoidable.

This bodily commitment is further seen in the chemical releases of couples in sexual relationships.  During sex, oxytocin is released and testing has revealed evidence of “chemical bonding” between the members of the couple.  This makes the breaking of the bond so much harder.  It shouldn’t surprise us that separating from a sexual partner can be difficult.

Sex inside the Christian institution of marriage is supposed to be incredibly fulfilling.  And unlike sex outside of marriage, it should get better with age because the commitment in all other areas of life strengthens with time.  So when an older couple has sex, it should be even better because they are affirming a promise they have held for years.  Their connection is even stronger than it was when they first got married.

The Christian marriage isn’t a singular denial of homosexual sex, rather it is saying that any sexual action outside of marriage (this includes heterosexual sex as well) is not within the bounds set by God.

Many non-Christians I know will say that Christianity has such a low view of sex.  The Sexual Revolution in America has completely changed how our culture views sex.  For our culture, the Bible saying sex is meant for heterosexual marriages only is awful.  It’s considered prude and an inhuman.  The Sexual Revolution boasts that its view of sex is much higher.  The irony is that the opposite is true. The Bible holds sex in higher regard than secular culture.  To God, sex isn’t just important, it’s sacred.  The Sexual Revolution says that people should be able to have sex with whoever they want, whenever they want, however they want.  Nothing about that is sacred.

Our culture makes sex out to be the ultimate thing in life (if you don’t believe me, just check out the ads, music, and movies that surround us).  If we truly had sex all the time with anyone we wanted, wherever we wanted, and however we wanted, it would cease to be sacred or special.  That’s exactly what has happened as a result of the Sexual Revolution.  Rather than having a high view of sex, our culture really has a much lower view of sex than it thinks.

This is not the case with the Christian worldview.  Sex is held in such high regard that it is instructed to be kept within the confines of the most sacred and special human relationship on Earth.  The same cannot be said of secular culture.  Sex is considered to be ordained as a gift by God to symbolize the incredible intimacy within a human’s personal relationship with Christ.  You can’t get much more sacred than that!

Another objection from secular culture is that by denying people, particularly homosexuals, the chance to have sex, Christianity has made them out to be less than human.  Our culture has, in many ways, made sex out to be synonymous with personhood.  Personally, I take offense to the secular view.  At this point in my point in my life, I have never had sex.  Does that make me less of a person?  Of course not!

What I love about the Christian worldview is that it doesn’t make sex out to be the ultimate thing in life.  Rather than get frustrated by the secular view of sex, I just get saddened by it.  Millions of people are living in a worldview where sex is one of the highest things you can attain and take part in.  In Christianity, sex is nothing compared the pleasures waiting for the Christian in Heaven.  The pleasure of sex is temporary and only satisfies for a short while.  The pleasure in Heaven will be eternal and totally satisfying.  There is nothing greater than being in perfect communion with God, which is exactly what it will be like in Heaven.

There won’t even be human marriage in Heaven because we will be in the true marriage we were meant for: our marriage with Christ.  The Church will finally be married to her Husband.

Singleness

There is a conclusion that is inevitable with the Christian worldview.  If homosexuals can’t have sex or get married in a homosexual fashion, then they must be celibate and single.  This may seem awful to many, but I want you to consider something that may calm that disgust.  Christianity has an incredibly high view of singleness.  In fact, it views married and single people as equals.  Marriage, and sex within marriage, while incredible isn’t the ultimate for Christians.  Paul affirms this in 1 Corinthians 7:6-8 when he says:

“Now as a concession, not a command, I say this. 7 I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another.  8 To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is good for them to remain single as I am.”

Paul isn’t saying that marriage is bad or more important.  What he’s saying is that singleness isn’t good thing.  For many, they would be able to accomplish more for God’s Kingdom if they remained single as Paul did.

Marriage isn’t easy.  In fact, it’s incredibly hard.  It may be great, but it is no better than singleness.  Marriage can actually retract from what someone could do for the Kingdom if the person marries unwisely.  In Christianity, singleness is just as much of a calling as marriage.  My current singleness doesn’t make me less important in God’s eyes.  In fact, because of I’ve been single for the past few years, I’ve been able to accomplish many things for God’s Kingdom that I would have never been able to accomplish if I were dating someone.

Of course I want to be married someday, but I don’t look upon my singleness as a problem to be solved, but as a current calling from the Lord.  A Christian’s relationship with Jesus Christ is better than any marriage because there is a deeper love and intimacy.  That is the relationship we should be living for.

Jesus himself remained completely single and celibate His entire life, so sex clearly isn’t the ultimate thing to personhood or life in general.  He’s not asking homosexuals to do anything different than He Himself did.  A final important note about singleness: while I have talked about the greatness of marriage over and over again, I want to stress that singleness is just as highly-viewed in Christian worldview as marriage.  Again, if Jesus chose to remain single His whole life on Earth, singleness must be just as important as marriage.  Few worldviews outside of Christianity have such a high view of singleness.

Closing Remarks  

If you have any questions over any of the content of this post, please don’t hesitate to contact me.  I would love to help you better understand the Christian position on this important matter.  Remember that this is part one of a two part piece.  I will post part two tomorrow.  As said earlier, part two will lay out exactly what the Bible says about homosexuality and will answer some of the biggest questions surrounding the Christian position on homosexual marriage.  I don’t write things like this for fun.  I take topics like this very seriously.  I understand the implications of writing about a topic like this.  There are many cases of Christians laying out their position on the matter of homosexual marriage and being fired or punished.  I’m taking a risk here because I am so passionate about the message of Jesus Christ.  I truly believe that if you take the time to seriously understand the Christian position on homosexual marriage, you will see that this is not a message of hate but of love.  Jesus Christ died on the cross for both heterosexuals and homosexuals.  He has the utmost love for heterosexuals and homosexuals.  He wants to be in a personal relationship with both heterosexuals and homosexuals.  That personal relationship is better than any heterosexual or homosexual marriage.

Indiana’s Religious Freedom Law

Few stories have filled social and mass media recently like the religious freedom law approved in Indiana by state governor Mike Pence.  #BoycottIndiana and other rally cries have filled the internet in reaction to the law.  Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff proclaimed over Twitter that he would cancel all events that would require employees and customers to travel to Indiana.  The law has even been called dangerous.  With all of this outcry about the law, it seems obvious that the law is hurtful and should be repealed, right?  Before we talk about such direct moves, we have a couple important questions to ask: do the people calling for the repeal of the law actually understand what it says?  Do they understand the context surrounding the law?

These may seem like obvious questions, but to many I’m not so sure they are.  If the law specifically discriminates against homosexuals, and you stand for true equality, you should be against the law.  No view supporting discrimination like that can give way to true equality.  Initially, after reading through Twitter, Facebook, and several media sites, I came away disgusted at the law (without reading it yet).  I felt a similar passion against the law, but then I did something that changed my view of the whole situation: I actually read through some of the law and sought out various academic opinions on the law.  After doing all of that, I’m not sure that I can say that most of the people rallying against the law have done the same.  Now, obviously there are many people that have different worldviews than mine that may very well still disagree with the law after researching it, and that’s fine.  The point is that at least those people would have taken the time to research the law before jumping onto the popular bandwagon protesting it.

What I’ve noticed is that so many people make proclamations without doing their homework about the things they are proclaiming.  For example, few people actually understand the logical out-workings of their worldview.  It’s amazing how few people (especially my age) can explain how (and if) their worldviews are logically coherent (this goes for Christians and non-Christians).  If asked about their beliefs, most people would have no idea that some of the beliefs they hold deeply contradict each other.  I’ve encountered such a small number of people from any worldview that can articulate their beliefs in a clear and logical fashion.  This is part of what pushed me into my passion for apologetics.  I realized that if I was going to be intellectually honest, I needed to pursue truth vigorously.  This meant being willing to abandon beliefs I’d held for my entire life if they weren’t ultimately truthful and coherent.  Why believe something if it’s not true?  I wanted to be able to articulate my worldview coherently and rationally, but even more important, truthfully.

Intellectual honesty is so incredibly important.  When people aren’t intellectually honest and they neglect to do their homework, they can end up making fools of themselves, their belief systems, and they can make incredibly offensive statements that have no actual backing.  Take for example Christians making homosexuality out to be a banner-head sin.  Christians with that mindset end up rejecting homosexuals from entering their churches and, ultimately, they give the church and, more importantly, Jesus Christ a terrible name.  What these Christians would find if they did their homework is that nowhere in the Bible is homosexuality elevated as a sin.  The clearest example of this is seen in 1 Timothy 1:10:

“The law is for people who are sexually immoral, or who practice homosexuality, or are slave traders, liars, promise breakers, or who do anything else that contradicts the wholesome teaching”

After reading that verse, it should be blatantly obvious that the Bible doesn’t find homosexuality to be any “worse” of a sin that many of the sinful acts that Christians (and the rest of the world) partake in every day.  Every time I give into lust or lie I’m sinning at just as severe a level in God’s eyes.  If many Christians treated their sins (that are of equal level according to the Bible) the same way they treat homosexuality they would have a totally different perspective on sin and just how broken they are.  Once, while talking with a homosexual friend about Christianity, I mentioned to them that their sin was no worse than mine and that there’s no place they should be more welcomed to than the church and they were blown away.  No homosexual should ever have a reaction like that because Christians shouldn’t be treating them with disdain, but with love.

Now, you’ll notice that I still labelled homosexuality as a sin.  In the Christian worldview that’s exactly what it is, but not for the reasons most people think. To clarify, the Bible isn’t against the person but rather the sin.  A proper grasp of the Christian rationale for the belief usually gives way to a state of understanding from even those that oppose the Christian worldview (I can vouch for this after many conversations like this).  Now, we don’t have the time to cover the rationale and full explanation of the Christian stance towards homosexuality in this post, but I’ll give the full reason in a separate post.

That being said, I’m going to make a statement that may shock some Christians and possibly cause controversy.  While I am a Christian and am against homosexual marriage (for biblical reasons which I will explain in another post), if I wasn’t a Christian I would absolutely be for homosexual marriage.  Before anyone gets up in arms, let me explain.  If I wasn’t a Christian, and I didn’t strive to shape my views according to the Bible, I would have no reason to be against homosexual marriage.  Especially if I was an atheist and held a secular worldview, I would have no justification for being opposed to it.  Here’s the important thing for Christians (and non-Christians) to remember: Christians are not to judge non-Christians according to a Christian’s standards.  Paul articulates this in 1 Corinthians 5:12 when he says:

“For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church[b] whom you are to judge?”

What’s important to understand here is that Paul is talking to Christians about sexual immorality here.  But instead of talking about sexuality immorality outside of the church, Paul is referring to sexual immorality inside the church.  Rather than casting judgement on the lifestyles of those outside of the church, Christians should be judging and holding accountable those inside the church.  I cannot stress how vital this is to grasp.  If someone is not a Christian, they have absolutely no reason to hold to many of the things Christians do, even if they end up holding to some of those things anyways, but that’s a post for another day.

With that all being said, let’s get back to the original topic at hand: the Indiana religious freedoms law.  Before talking about Christianity and homosexuality, I had stressed the importance of intellectual honesty and the need for people to do their homework before making proclamations.  I said all of that because there are many claims being made about the law with virtually no real knowledge of it or its context.  First off, it’s important (and probably surprising for many) to know that this law isn’t a new one.  According to the Wall Street Journal,

“Measures similar to that signed into law by Indiana Gov. Mike Pence this week are already in place at the federal level and in some 30 states”

30 states = 60% of the states in the U.S.  An appropriate term for this percentage would be a majority.  A majority of the states in this nation have laws similar to the one passed in Indiana.  In 1993, Bill Clinton signed into action Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 which is basically the same act as the one stirring up all of this controversy.  For those who might have forgotten amidst the shock of this news, Bill Clinton was (and is) a Democrat, which makes his signing the act even more amazing.  So why, if this law has been around for so long, have you never really heard of it?  That answer comes in the form of the major change in opinion of homosexual marriage in the past 20 years.  In 1993, homosexuality wasn’t talked about or accepted like it is today.

It’s also important to note that a similar law is in place in Washington D.C.  So when various CEOs and governors (like the one in Connecticut) claim they are going to boycott Indiana, they would, if they were going to be consistent, have to boycott Washington D.C. too.  I would be shocked if that happened.

Now, the controversy of Indiana’s law is so red hot because many are claiming it gives people the right to deny services to homosexuals because of “religious reasons”.  While that concern is certainly understandable for secularists, it’s absolutely essential for you to understand that in the 20+ years laws like Indiana’s religious freedom law have been in existence, they have yet to be used in that manner.  Let me repeat that: in the 20+ years laws like Indiana’s religious freedom law have been in existence, they have yet to be used to deny services to homosexuals.  Please grasp this.

When we argue about this issue of Christians denying homosexuals services for religious reasons what we’re really arguing is whose rights are more important or whose rights take precedence.  For the secularist, it seems obvious that the homosexual’s rights regarding their intrinsic sexual choice should take priority over the Christian’s so called “religious reasons”.  But here is where there seems to be a major misunderstanding.  Many secularists view a Christian’s convictions as vastly less important than sexuality.  But I would argue that the opposite is true in regards for Christians.  For a true Christian, their faith takes precedence over their sexuality.  This is why we see so many Christians forego any sexual intercourse because of they are called to pursue God without a spouse.  This is exactly what Jesus did.  We have to at least come to this joint understanding when discussing this issue.

That being said, Christians shouldn’t be denying homosexuals services on a whim.  There’s only a small number of instances where there would be a legitimate moral dilemma.  One would be a Christian wedding planner being asked to provide services for a wedding he sees as not morally acceptable.  Christians should never be denying homosexuals because of their sin, outside of those few instances because, by that logic, they would have to deny their services to all others, including themselves ,since everyone sins.

As has been hammered home multiple times in this post, intellectual honesty is vital.  In few places is it as crucial and required as in the media since the media helps shape so much of the public’s opinion on the news.  When headlines claim the Indiana law is intolerant and discriminatory towards homosexuals, it shows a major lack of intellectual honesty for no clearer reason than the fact that the actual law says nothing about homosexuality.  In an article in the Wall Street Journal, Daniel O. Conkle, a professor of law at Indiana University Maurer School of Law, was quoted as saying:

“The reaction to this is startling in terms of its breadth—and to my mind—the extent to which the reaction is uninformed by the actual content of the law,”

To claim that the Indiana law is directly discriminatory to homosexuals in an absolute lie.

All of that being said, I completely understand the concern from the secularist when it comes to the possible implications of the law.  I could see a scenario where religious freedom and homosexuality were pitted against each other in the future because of the law.  But again, it’s crucial that we remember that in over 20 years since the original act was passed this hasn’t been the case.

Ultimately, though, this whole controversy comes down to an issue that has been debated for centuries in this nation: the separation of church and state.  As someone who dedicated their entire high school senior thesis to this topic, I have a fair bit of knowledge about this issue.  My exact thesis question was, “Should there be separation between the church and the state?”

After an entire year of research, I came to the conclusion that there should, in fact be a line of separation between the two.  This may surprise some, but it was the conclusion I came to while I was striving to be intellectually honest.  Of course I wish our government was totally Bible based and of course I wish everyone was a Christian, but that’s just simply not the case.  There’s an incredible myriad of different views held in our nation, and the only way we can live fairly within that diversity is to have laws of religious freedom like we do in our great country.  One of the best things about America is that we are free to believe what we want.  That freedom is something we should never take for granted because so many countries have no such freedom.

In order to be fair to all worldviews, our government can’t assume the identity or message of one particular belief system.  It must stay as neutral as possible.  Obviously with laws of religious freedom like we have, controversy is bound to happen because of the way so many worldviews contradict each other.  The import thing is that our government recognizes the various worldviews and stays as neutral as possible.  This is where I think we have a serious, yet hidden problem today.  In an effort to appear as neutral as possible, the government has faded out religious influences and references within itself and that is totally fine.  But what the government has failed to do is recognize the way it is influenced by worldviews that don’t classically get labeled as religions.  The biggest example of this is secularism.  While Christianity has been faded out of much of the government (so much so that we are now labeled as a “post-Christian” nation by many), secularism has slipped into the mind of the government almost unnoticed.  This is important to recognize because a government functioning under the influence of secularism isn’t neutral; not in the slightest.

At this point, some of you might be saying, “But secularism isn’t a worldview!”

It’s here that I will vehemently disagree.  Secularism is just as much of a worldview as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, or New Age Spirituality.  All of these things provide a set of lenses through which people view the world.  All of these things set out to answer the four main questions of a worldview (made famous by Ravi Zacharias): origin, meaning, morality, and destiny.  Atheism, scientism, and naturalism all fall into the category of worldviews as well.

What’s really happened in our government is that it has traded its predominantly Christian influence for a secular one.  This is not religious or worldview equality neither can it be called neutral.  But because secularists so often hide under the façade that secularism isn’t a worldview, this goes totally unseen.  Let me be clear: I’m not saying this to attack secularism.  I’m saying this because I want as pure of worldview equality in this nation as possible; something I think we all want.  The irony of the whole situation is that while the secularist pushes for Christianity to be evicted from the government for purposes of worldview equality, they simultaneously move into the very place they wanted the Christian removed from.  It doesn’t get more duplicitous than that.  Again, this isn’t meant to be an attack on secularism.  I merely want to point out a major phenomenon happening in our government today and push for true equality.  I’ll absolutely march with the secularist for worldview equality, but if I make the sacrifices necessary to make that happen, I expect them to do the same.  A recent editorial board post from the Washington Post displayed the duplicitous nature of secularism clearly while crying out against the Indiana law when it said:

“For instance, a bill the Georgia Senate approved this month bars the state government from infringing on an individual’s religious beliefs unless the state can demonstrate a compelling interest in doing so.”

To the editorial board, this move by the Georgia Senate was considered questionable, if not wrong.

But, if we want true equality and freedom, the government shouldn’t be able to infringe on someone’s rights unless there is an extremely good reason for doing so.  That’s just an inherent part of the freedom we all so want to affirm and enjoy.

We talk so much about discrimination of homosexuals today, yet we miss the subtle discrimination that occurs against Christianity daily.  Now, I’m not about to sit here and claim that Christians have it bad in America.  That would be a lie.  Clearly, homosexuals are under more pressure and discrimination in the U.S.  And clearly, Christians are still in very high number in our nation.  But I think it is important for us to recognize any discrimination when it happens.  The large number of Christians in our nation, along with the exponential growth of secularism, is often why we miss discrimination against Christians.  A great example of this comes in New York, where many churches that have, for years, met in public schools on the weekends (when the schools are not in use) are possibly going to be forced to find other places to meet.  Now, this may seem like a positive when striving for worldview equality, but not when one considers that secular organizations are allowed to meet in those same schools.  What kind of message does it send if we reject some worldviews to use schools while allowing others that same right?  It definitely doesn’t send a message of equality.

We live in the greatest nation in the world that allows us the freedom to worship and believe as we so choose.  Let’s strive to keep it that way.

But there’s a lesson to be learned from all of this: while we constantly see discrimination in various ways in our country today, we don’t see any in the Bible.  Romans 3:23 says:

                “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”

We’re all equal in God’s eyes.  We are all broken and sinful people who desperately need a savior.  The beautiful thing is, we have that savior.  He died in our place on a cross just over 2000 years ago so that we might enjoy a perfect relationship with God in Heaven.  This week marks the celebration of that Savior’s death and resurrection.  Rather than fighting over these issues, let’s celebrate our savior.  His name is Jesus Christ and He wants to be in a personal relationship with you.  Take Him up on it and you’ll understand what true equality and love are really like.

Citations

Editorial Board. “Keeping Them Safe from Gay Marriage.” Washington Post 26 Mar. 2015: n. pag. http://Www.washingtonpost.com. 26 Mar. 2015. Web. Mar. 2015. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/keeping-them-safe-from-gay-marriage/2015/03/26/88ea407c-c772-11e4-a199-6cb5e63819d2_story.html&gt;.

Peters, Mark, and Jack Nicas. “Indiana Religious Freedom Law Sparks Fury.” WSJ. N.p., 27 Mar. 2015. Web. Mar. 2015. <http://www.wsj.com/articles/indiana-religious-freedom-law-sparks-fury-1427491304&gt;.

Mohler, Albert. “The Briefing 03-31-15.” Audio blog post. http://Www.albertmohler.com. N.p., 31 Mar. 2015. Web. 31 Mar. 2015. <http://www.albertmohler.com/2015/03/30/the-briefing-03-20-15-2/&gt;.