LGBTQ-AC-XYZ... same sex marriage

6/9/2012
Brothers and sisters, I want to begin by stating that we, as Christians, are not called to live by the Law, but are called to live by the Spirit, given to us by the grace of God. There is nothing you can do to deserve this grace, or to lose this grace, you can only accept it. Whether black, white, gay, transexual, inter-sex, married, unmarried, man or woman, or anything else for that matter. If you were created by God (which you are), then you're welcome to this grace. You cant earn it and you can't do anything to deserve it. There is simply nothing you can do. Nothing. Except accept it.

If you are so freely welcome to it, indeed your brother and sister next to you - no matter how uncomfortable it makes you - is also welcome to it.

So stop judging them, stop telling them they need to be saved. Stop telling them they are lost or some how inferior to you and denied your grace. Remember, you did not earn it, and neither can they.

No. Our God freely gives this grace, this spirit, this unconditional un-dying love - to anyone, anyone who chooses to accept it.

Whether you like it or not.

In this light, I believe, the law is irrelevant. Jesus made the law- which leads to death- irrelevant. To follow the law is to lead yourself to death. Be free. Leave the Law behind. The law that condemns you will condemn you to hell. You will never escape it or please it.

But there is good news- there is Gospel!

 You can be free of the law. Christ has come and He has risen! He has put the law to death and given us the spirit to live by - living through and by the spirit leads to life. And this spirit sees everyone as loved by God. As a perfectly imperfect impression of God and His love, and this spirit loves unconditionally - just as God does. It knows not how to hate or judge or condemn, but only to love.

The true mark of this Spirit within you is unconditional love for all. No matter what. No matter if this person is loving another, or torturing you. You are called to love them, to welcome them with open arms, to validate them as Gods child.

So my challenge and question to Christians is this - 

Christ says from the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.

What comes out of your mouth?

Check yo self.

This being said, below is an exploration of my diving in to the Bible to see what the Bible has to say about same sex marriage. Above is my conclusion- below, and in the posts that follow- is the evolution.




5/20/2012


With the marriage amendment coming up soon, I have been thinking and praying a lot about same sex marriage. As a christian, this shouldn't be, but is a tough topic. Sure, the Bible says same sex relations are an 'abomination'. Google search defines abomination as

Noun:

A thing that causes disgust or hatred. A feeling of hatred.

 Yes, indeed it is. One only need to look at a few headlines today, like this one, or news stories like this one to see that same sex relations do indeed cause feelings of hate or disgust. But this is a shortcoming of people, not of God. God loves all, everyone, all sinners (which we all are).  If he accepts any of us (even just one), he must accept us all. For no sin is greater than another, and we are all sinners. Jesus atoned for our sins and gave us new life, new freedom from sin if we follow him. Christians are called to follow Christ, this means to love others as Christ did, and judge not. Although we may not all support same-sex relations, we are not to judge or condemn those who engage in them (whether they be 'right' or 'wrong'). And, we are especially called to love them just as we are called to love everyone else; by serving them, not by condemning them.

Some christians argue that to not take a stance against same-sex marriage is to support same sex marriage, and because of their religious convictions they must take a stance against it. To this I say that we, as Christians, are not called to force others to carry our own convictions. Religious convictions should not be the same as the convictions of the state. As Christians, we are called to be a part of God's Kingdom, not of this world. It is not our call to force our will upon others. It is our call to love them, radically. True love is never forced. Because we are not citizens of this world, if this world condones same-sex marriage (even if you think it's wrong) it isn't on your hands. We are not responsible for the behavior of others (not even other citizens of Gods Kingdom). Especially not those of this world. Why? Because we are not called to pledge allegiance to this world. Does this mean we are not responsible for our own behavior? Absolutely NOT. But, because we are not of this world, we are not responsible for what this world governs as legal, or illegal.

We are not to abide by the law of this land, but instead to abide by God's law. But not through force, through love and by choice. Through a decision and a desire to follow Christ. Does God force us to love Him? No, what kind of love is that? Forced love is no love at all. We are allowed to choose our relationship with God. God wants us to choose a relationship with Him, because He knows that through choice comes willingness. God does not seek forced relation, but willing relation in which we desire to have God move in our lives and change our hearts. It is through this willingness that we are called to follow God's law obediently. If we obediently follow Gods law, to love radically, there is no need for worldly laws.  One whose heart and will are aligned with Gods wants the best for all and peace (at the cost of their own life, not the life of another). It is a heart of service, not of force.  We are to be ambassadors of the Kingdom of God, here on earth. Just as if we were to travel to a foreign country. It is not our duty to force the world to conform to our beliefs or standards, but it is our call to love the world and to live by Gods standards, regardless of what the world thinks or does. Are we called to live differently? Yes. Absolutely. But this does not mean forcefully. And this does not mean denying others the right to a relationship through the state.

Others say that if the State allows for same sex marriage, but the 'church' stays against same sex marriage, that the 'church' will be seen as actively engaging in acts of discrimination and hate. This deeply saddens me. The church should have never been made into an institution. The Church Christ talks about is a living, breathing body of people who believe in and follow Christ and His teachings. It is you, and me. It is your hands that Christ uses to feed the hungry, your eyes through which He sees the world, your feet on which He walks. It is us, individuals, who make up the body of Christ.  Not an institution. However, yes, the church (little c for the institution) may be seen in this light, and that's a tough situation to be in. In my opinion, if the church is seen this way it is a failure on behalf of the church. The church is called by God to love, and to be seen as a place of hate or discrimination shines a light directly where it needs to be shined. For my brothers and sisters, our greatest failure as a Church will be where we have failed to love.