Comments on The Rebel God: An Evangelical Approach to Homosexuality - A Propo...

This is an old post and I'm coming upon it new...

2010-12-15T20:29:06.974-08:00

This is an old post and I'm coming upon it new. Too many people have said and written too much about the issue of homosexuality, even me. The OT legislates against homosexual actions and schedules punishments. The NT excludes people who live homosexual lifestyles from salvation (possibly). Jesus Christ Himself, I don't believe, deals with this issue at all, but He does say things that seem to put personal behaviors on a lower footing than having personal faith in Him: "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live…" Even holy apostle Paul seems to say things of the same kind, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved," and this even in the same letter where he condemns homosexual behaviors (Romans). Obviously, the one modifies the other. The question is, does the inclusive statement modify the exclusive, or the other way round?

Orthodox Christianity deals with homosexual issues on a one by one basis, using a broad interpretation of scripture, and not letting anything get in the way of a person's salvation, in the spirit of Romans 8:38-39, "nothing can separate us from the love of Christ…" unless we let it, of course. I am not promoting Orthodoxy as better, just stating what I know as a member of this faith. The issue is not simple; in reality it is an amalgam of many issues, and must be treated as such. That's why it's harsh and unbiblical to simply lump it all into a single category and condemn it.

For anyone actually interested enough to read what one Greek Orthodox Christian has to say about these issues, here's some links:

http://cost-of-discipleship.blogspot.com/2010/08/lowly-love.html
http://cost-of-discipleship.blogspot.com/2010/07/names.html
http://cost-of-discipleship.blogspot.com/2009/09/modern-world-culture-has-made-delight.html
http://cost-of-discipleship.blogspot.com/2006/11/to-endure-cross.html

I disagere, there's a different between love a...

2010-05-15T10:05:39.656-07:00

I disagere, there's a different between love and aceptance. They are not the same.

Christ ate with repentent sinners, that's the difference. Many elements of liberal protestantism now days don't see homosexual acts as anything to repent of. The Christian anthropological understanding is dead, replaced by a sense of entitlement, specificly an entitlement to sexual activity and a consideration of chastity as impossible or bizarre.

I excerpted a few of your thoughts at my place ask...

2010-03-20T10:43:10.755-07:00

I excerpted a few of your thoughts at my place asking readers to endorse your moratorium.

Blessings, Bob
http://kansasbob.com/

Thank you for what you have said. I pray that mor...

2010-01-18T07:34:46.269-08:00

Thank you for what you have said. I pray that more Christians who profess to love their neighbours, but clearly don't, will read and ponder on your post.

This brought tears to my eyes more than your post ...

2010-01-12T07:07:09.910-08:00

This brought tears to my eyes more than your post at the top of the page. I agree with your viewpoint - Jesus loved sinners, and made every effort to show that, allowing himself to be tortured and killed (for all of us humans), so we could see that it was a possible thing. I find myself remembering that every time I begin to question another's life, choices, or lifestyle. Thank you for allowing me to read this.

Well said! Some church goers understanding of The ...

2010-01-05T16:22:20.695-08:00

Well said!
Some church goers understanding of The Way of Christ is beyond me. If we stop letting sinners come to Church we would all be at home on Sundays watching football and shopping online. When did one sin become worse than any other and who said "they" could decide what sin is for someone else?

I think that it is mostly the Fundamentalists that...

2009-12-31T13:21:04.751-08:00

I think that it is mostly the Fundamentalists that have the big issues here.. even though they call themselves Evangelicals their behaviors towards gays betray them.. and their words and actions are loud ones in our country. They are really OT folks at heart and prefer a legal solution to one of the heart.. compassion is in their theology but not in the practice.

Amen. I think the more helpful thing if you are i...

2009-12-27T14:42:08.891-08:00

Amen. I think the more helpful thing if you are in this position of wondering where the boundary is between "accepting someone and condoning their behaviour" is to just sit with that, mull it around in your head, taste it on your tongue, to try on different hats, to not be scared that you are going to fall into great unbelievable licentiousness by loving someone you do not condone. Because the other side of that space shows how ludicrous it is to believe that it is ever your right or your space to be the person who is condining someone else's behaviour.

Hearty Amen.

2009-12-27T11:23:18.015-08:00

Hearty Amen.

Great thoughts. But really quite sad that these th...

2009-12-27T01:19:13.757-08:00

Great thoughts. But really quite sad that these things still need to be said. Why have parts of the church singled out this sin as worse than all others? Gay people need Jesus just as much as anyone else, and they are as loved by Him as anyone else. They also need to repent, the same as anyone else, no more no less.