Do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.-Matthew 7:1-2

Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister-1 John 4:20-21

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God-John 1:1

Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind; it is an abomination.-Leviticus 18:22

 

Watch the Hatred Burn

 Mama, take a look around at all your friends.
So piously locked in their position.
They’ve made up their minds that I’m a sinner.
Forgetting that to judge just isn’t Christian?
Our LORD said as we judge we will be judged.
He warned us to be careful how we measure.
For, in every soul we judge unworthy,
God sees His own child whom He treasures

They all insist I’ll go to hell for my desires
Because they claim I’m wrong to be “like that”
They show me random verses from the Bible
Which to me, seem unreflective of the facts.
Jesus chose to be silent on this topic
He never spoke of same-sex attraction.
Silence is not the same as condemnation
Just as desire is not sin without the action.

We all have thorns with which we struggle;
Their purpose beyond our comprehension.
But compared to the struggle of our Lord,
Our thorns are too insignificant to mention.
Yet, other thorns don’t create so much wrath,
Neither do they cause others such concern.
I don’t dare discuss my thorn in church
If I don’t want to watch the hatred burn.

But I will rely on God’s help to bear my thorn.
Knowing full well His Grace will be enough.
I will ask Him to keep me from sexual sin,
As I search elsewhere for intimacy and love.
I hope one day they’ll see we’re not so different,
Although we struggle with very different thorns.
Still, we all became equal in the eyes of God
When through the blood of Jesus Christ we were reborn.
©Linda Troxell 10/17/2018

 

Christianity has a reputation as a violent religion based on the many atrocities committed in its name throughout history. And while I have no desire to dispute the facts responsible for this reputation, I really think that this history of violence is irrelevant to any discussion of the position or doctrine of the church today. I think many of those who want to dwell exclusively on the church’s history of violence and oppression are individuals who are resistant to Christianity but cannot successfully discredit it based on doctrine. Therefore, as the church has no plans, as far as I know, to begin a modern-day crusade I’m not overly concerned with this issue.

However, I am concerned about the smaller scale emotional violence that some of us in the church continue to commit through our judgment of one another and our holier-than-thou attitudes. It is insidious and it seems to be woven into the very fabric of the church. This emotional violence is so destructive because it transforms the church from a sanctuary of peace and grace, where the love of our church family protects us from the risk of being authentic, into a space of anxiety and distrust where we must hide our authentic selves in protection from our church family. The judgment is often displayed as an overblown concern for the soul of a member of the church family. It is often offered, in a condescending manner, as “God put it on my heart to tell you…” To be fair I guess the concern is sometimes the real motive for offering our negative opinions to others, but I believe that is the rare case.

Unfortunately, the group who are presently suffering the brunt of this emotional violence are Christian gay men and women. I believe that if we asked the average man or woman on the street, he or she would tell us that Christians hate gay people and don’t allow them in their churches. In fact, I’m sure that if we asked the average gay person on the street, he or she would say that Christians hate them and do not welcome them in their church. This thought literally brings me to tears.

It enrages me, saddens me and scares me that we, Christians, have given individuals who are gay the idea that we believe they are not good enough to come to our church to worship THEIR God. It enrages me because God does not hate gay people. So if someone who professes to be a Christian hates gay people, they need to go back and read the New Testament. In particular 1 John 4, where we are told that “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.”- 1 John 4:20-21. So, I wonder, is not loving your brother or sister more or less sinful than being gay?

It saddens me that so many individuals who happen to be gay have been driven from the church and denied one of the most important practices of our religion, and a basic need of our humanity, that of fellowship. This because some Christians, even though our Lord has told them not to judge others, have judged people who are gay as too sinful to be members of the church. ”Do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.-Matthew 7:1-2. Again, I wonder is it more or less sinful to break this command from Jesus than it is to be gay?

It scares me because there are people I love very much whose very salvation is at risk because they believe they are not wanted in the Christian church. This is a crisis that the church needs to address NOW! Come on, there are so many unchristian elements inherent in the attitude that those who are gay are not as good as we are. Or in the belief that their sin is somehow worse than our sin. Why is their sexual orientation any of our business unless they choose to share it? And why, if they do share it, do we assume that they are actually having same-sex-partner sex?

And if they do share that they are having same-sex-partner sex, why do we then regard them with disdain. Do we regard a Christian who discloses they are having sex but are not married with the same disdain? Or what about the person who divulges they are having an adulterous affair, struggling with pornography, or lust or lying, or stealing? Do we treat those people anywhere near as badly as we treat someone who has same-sex attraction, whether or not they are acting on that attraction? Of course, we don’t. But have you ever asked yourself why we don’t?

I think the majority of Christians believe the Bible says that being gay is a sin. The Bible does not say that being gay is a sin. The bible does say that a man who has sex with another man is committing a sin. That is not the same as saying that having a same-sex attraction is a sin. After all, the Bible tells us that any sex outside of marriage is sinful. Is that the same as saying that being attracted to someone outside of marriage is a sin? I don’t think so.

I think it has pretty well been established that most Christians believe it is a sin to have sex with a partner of the same sex. I must admit that I struggled with this idea. I have, of course, read the Bible, including the verses listed in the concordance of my Bible as including this prohibition. I did not find that, in the King James translation, Romans 1:24-26, 1 Corinthians 6:9 or 1 Timothy 1:10 clearly state that sex between men is forbidden. However, Leviticus 18:22, “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind; it is an abomination.” and 20:13, like it, clearly state that a man shall not have sex with another man. So with what do I struggle?

I guess I struggle with the same thing others struggle with when considering this book of the Bible. We lay aside many of the laws in Leviticus as not being applicable to our age. We say a lot of the food laws and health laws are not applicable because now that we know more about food safety and the transmission and cure of most diseases those things are no longer a danger to us. We lay aside the punishments for various sins dictated in Leviticus, such as stoning to death a child who dishonors their parents, because to us, in this age, that is barbaric. We obviously lay aside the laws governing divorce. So, then, why can’t we lay aside this decree? I struggle with why.

I am not saying that sex with someone of the same sex is not a sin. And I’m not saying that it is. I’m saying that I struggle with the decision. There are obviously more learned scholars than I who have come to the conclusion after studying the Bible, some for many years, that it is a sin. And there are those who have studied the Bible for as many years who have come to the conclusion that it isn’t. I struggle with what I think. But I don’t struggle with knowing, that for the topic we are discussing, it is a moot point.

It’s a moot point because no matter what sin these children of God are struggling with, God loves them, they need Jesus, and it’s our job to love them regardless of their particular sin. We are charged with loving our neighbor as ourselves. And we are clearly told by John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, that anyone who receives Jesus, anyone who believes in His name is given the right to become a child of God. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.-John 1:12. (Emphasis added) It does not say all except those who have committed sin. It doesn’t even say all except those who have slept with someone of the same sex. It says ALL who receive him, who believe in His name ARE children of God. I don’t think God likes the way we’re treating his kids.

God has asked us to model our lives after His Son. We are charged with reflecting the love of God to everyone we meet just as Jesus did. So how do you think Jesus would have reflected the love of God to gay sinners? Would he have refused to allow them to worship with Him? Would He have refused to break bread with them? No, He would have walked beside them and helped them to carry their burden. He would have taught them of the endless love of the Father. He would have taught them about eternal life with the Father. He would have done whatever He could for as long as He could to bring them to the Father through love.

Likewise, we are charged with bringing everyone to Christ, or at least helping them to stay in Christ. And who they sleep with or who they would like to sleep with is not our business. Telling them that who they sleep with is a sin isn’t our job. Believe me, they have been taught many times, in many ways that the world thinks they are sinful and worse. Our job is to walk with them in love, show them they are accepted just as they are and make a safe environment for them where they can decide between themselves and God if what they are doing is a sin. Can’t we trust God to help them to reconcile whatever thorn He has given them? If we can’t, who should we trust?