Topic : 06/06 "I'm Gay, OK?"

Ok, I'll give it to you on the "incest" as you have shown that the word fornication includes incest, but porneia also means immorality....what all does that include?  Could that also mean homosexuals?  

I understand that Jesus treated women with the uttmost respect, but I still don't find anywhere in what you have written that Jesus "says" not to beat your wives.  Just as you say Jesus didn't preach about homosexuality, I say he didn't teach not to beat your wives.   

I admire the messages of Christ, too...what does that have to do with this discussion?  If He were here in the flesh today, I would bet my life on it (even though I'm not the betting kind) that He would make it plain and clear what God says on the topic of homosexuality.  You might as well throw the rest of the Bible away if you can't glean the clear message in the other books besides the gospels.  

Did you know that this was an exhortation to the church?   

Yet many people use this portion of scripture to condemn those who practice immoral behaviors.  One knows that this is an exhortation to the church because the Apostle Paul then continues to say....   

"And such were some of you..."   

I regret many things in my life but I will never regret surrendering my life to God and living according to His word the best I know how.   

When debating about homosexuality we always return to an ethical debate, whether or not homosexuality should be seen as moraly right or not.  We also lean towards the debate whether or not homosexuality is inborn and if then, if it is inborn again it returns to an ethical debate.  In a society that does not value absolute truth it  become hard to debate ethics.  There will always be a time where two sides will have to agree to disagree and in peace go there seperate ways.   

It's not my place to say whose name is writen in the lamb's book of life.  "To him who over comes will he receive a new name and his name be writen in the lamb's book of life,"    

I know the call of God on my life and this is my conviction and the life that I choose to live.  It's by no means an easy road to walk down but this is the path that I have chosen.  I recognize that there are some things I can't choose but there are some things I do have the power to over come, to live above and beyond the human limitations that come to all.   

"all things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful.  All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.  Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods, but God will destroy both it and them.  Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.  And God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power."   

And this is why I respond...   

"I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings."   

There is no resurrection without death and the Christian life is all about self sacrifice, it's about being a living sacrifice before the one true living God.  His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts.  And the problem with being a living sacrifice is the human tendency to keep hoping off the alter.  It is human nature to want to control our own lives and to create our own destiny and do what we think is right no matter how skewed from God's word that becomes, if it seems right then we want to believe that it's right.   

What is real are the conflicts that we face in life.  And I am a firm believer that conflicts can be a bridge towards intimacy.  And here is my spiritual journey, a journey of allowing God into every corner of my life.     

I do find these desires in conflict...   

1. The desire to love God Vs The desire to be loved in a way God prohibits   

2. The desire for a normal sex life Vs The desire to satisfy feelings that seem natural--but aren't   

3. The desire to be transparent Vs The desire to avoid the pain of misunderstanding   

One thing I have come to understand is how good God realy is.  People want me to say one of two things....   

1.  Either I agree that gay's can be Christian  (or)   

2. Gay's can't be a Christian   

And when I take kind of a view point from a perspective that is just a bit different from the two points here people can't figure out where I am going with this and it becomes difficult for people to understand what exactly  I believe.  And how on earth does my faith in Jesus Christ fit into this seeing as I don't claim that I have had a change in my sexual orientation.  And I don't dismiss the testimony's of gay's and lesbians encounter with God as being null and void just because their sexual orientation happens to go against what God's word says is natural.   

Salvation realy is very simply, it's a reconcilation between us and God and it's based upon the work of Christ on the cross...   

"It is by grace you have been saved not by works lest any man should boast,"   

Salvation is as simple as receiving from God His free gift and that is exactly what it is.  It's a free gift not based upon any sort of condition....salvation realy isn't a gay or straight issue.  And as far as anybody entering into the Kingdom of God, the working out of our salvation (with fear and trembling) that's between God and the person themselves.     

I don't see the Christian mandate as pointing out scripture to show where any one person is missing the mark.  That isn't what God is all about.     

When talking about the issue of homosexuality, it calls for us to go back to the basics of Christianity.  "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world."   

And here is a question....   

As Christian we talk freely about God's free gift of salvation and emphasize that salvation is not about works but then, as Christian's we preach something totaly different to those who are gay?   

I will say this though...Jesus teaching on the parable of the weeds...   

You know the parable of the weeds?   

Do you know how one tells the difference between the weeds and the wheat?   

And Jesus Christ said this is the Kingdom of God, that while the homeowner was asleep an enemy came and sowed weeds in his feild.  When the wheat appeared the servants asked, "should we pull out the weeds,"  The owner told them to leave them and let them grow up with the wheat and in the harves seperate them.    

This is how one tells the difference between the weeds and the wheat... is that the heads of the weeds are full of air and so there is no weight in them but the heads of the wheat are full causing the wheat to bow down.  So while the weeds stick right up refusing to bend, the wheat bends over.  That is how one tells the difference between the weeds and the wheat.  And if the Kingdom of God is like the parable of the weeds then this question remains for all people.... (and I emphasize all people.)   

Is Jesus Christ Lord of your life?  Who do you worship? Do you worship what is carnal or do you worship God?  Is Jesus Lord over all areas of your life, or do you tell God...you can have this part of my life but not that part because I want this.  Is your Christian life about carrying your cross or is it about meeting the desires of your flesh?  I mean these are all very hard questions but it's to show that the Christian life is all about the war between the flesh and the spirit.     

First comes death then comes the resurrections.....and Jesus is not only the life but He is also the resurrection, and all of us can know the resurrection power of Jesus Christ.     

Did you know that this was an exhortation to the church?   

Yet many people use this portion of scripture to condemn those who practice immoral behaviors.  One knows that this is an exhortation to the church because the Apostle Paul then continues to say....   

"And such were some of you..."   

I regret many things in my life but I will never regret surrendering my life to God and living according to His word the best I know how.   

When debating about homosexuality we always return to an ethical debate, whether or not homosexuality should be seen as moraly right or not.  We also lean towards the debate whether or not homosexuality is inborn and if then, if it is inborn again it returns to an ethical debate.  In a society that does not value absolute truth it  become hard to debate ethics.  There will always be a time where two sides will have to agree to disagree and in peace go there seperate ways.   

It's not my place to say whose name is writen in the lamb's book of life.  "To him who over comes will he receive a new name and his name be writen in the lamb's book of life,"    

I know the call of God on my life and this is my conviction and the life that I choose to live.  It's by no means an easy road to walk down but this is the path that I have chosen.  I recognize that there are some things I can't choose but there are some things I do have the power to over come, to live above and beyond the human limitations that come to all.   

"all things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful.  All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.  Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods, but God will destroy both it and them.  Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.  And God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power."   

And this is why I respond...   

"I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings."   

There is no resurrection without death and the Christian life is all about self sacrifice, it's about being a living sacrifice before the one true living God.  His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts.  And the problem with being a living sacrifice is the human tendency to keep hoping off the alter.  It is human nature to want to control our own lives and to create our own destiny and do what we think is right no matter how skewed from God's word that becomes, if it seems right then we want to believe that it's right.   

What is real are the conflicts that we face in life.  And I am a firm believer that conflicts can be a bridge towards intimacy.  And here is my spiritual journey, a journey of allowing God into every corner of my life.     

I do find these desires in conflict...   

1. The desire to love God Vs The desire to be loved in a way God prohibits   

2. The desire for a normal sex life Vs The desire to satisfy feelings that seem natural--but aren't   

3. The desire to be transparent Vs The desire to avoid the pain of misunderstanding   

One thing I have come to understand is how good God realy is.  People want me to say one of two things....   

1.  Either I agree that gay's can be Christian  (or)   

2. Gay's can't be a Christian   

And when I take kind of a view point from a perspective that is just a bit different from the two points here people can't figure out where I am going with this and it becomes difficult for people to understand what exactly  I believe.  And how on earth does my faith in Jesus Christ fit into this seeing as I don't claim that I have had a change in my sexual orientation.  And I don't dismiss the testimony's of gay's and lesbians encounter with God as being null and void just because their sexual orientation happens to go against what God's word says is natural.   

Salvation realy is very simply, it's a reconcilation between us and God and it's based upon the work of Christ on the cross...   

"It is by grace you have been saved not by works lest any man should boast,"   

Salvation is as simple as receiving from God His free gift and that is exactly what it is.  It's a free gift not based upon any sort of condition....salvation realy isn't a gay or straight issue.  And as far as anybody entering into the Kingdom of God, the working out of our salvation (with fear and trembling) that's between God and the person themselves.     

I don't see the Christian mandate as pointing out scripture to show where any one person is missing the mark.  That isn't what God is all about.     

When talking about the issue of homosexuality, it calls for us to go back to the basics of Christianity.  "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world."   

And here is a question....   

As Christian we talk freely about God's free gift of salvation and emphasize that salvation is not about works but then, as Christian's we preach something totaly different to those who are gay?   

I will say this though...Jesus teaching on the parable of the weeds...   

You know the parable of the weeds?   

Do you know how one tells the difference between the weeds and the wheat?   

And Jesus Christ said this is the Kingdom of God, that while the homeowner was asleep an enemy came and sowed weeds in his feild.  When the wheat appeared the servants asked, "should we pull out the weeds,"  The owner told them to leave them and let them grow up with the wheat and in the harves seperate them.    

This is how one tells the difference between the weeds and the wheat... is that the heads of the weeds are full of air and so there is no weight in them but the heads of the wheat are full causing the wheat to bow down.  So while the weeds stick right up refusing to bend, the wheat bends over.  That is how one tells the difference between the weeds and the wheat.  And if the Kingdom of God is like the parable of the weeds then this question remains for all people.... (and I emphasize all people.)   

Is Jesus Christ Lord of your life?  Who do you worship? Do you worship what is carnal or do you worship God?  Is Jesus Lord over all areas of your life, or do you tell God...you can have this part of my life but not that part because I want this.  Is your Christian life about carrying your cross or is it about meeting the desires of your flesh?  I mean these are all very hard questions but it's to show that the Christian life is all about the war between the flesh and the spirit.     

First comes death then comes the resurrections.....and Jesus is not only the life but He is also the resurrection, and all of us can know the resurrection power of Jesus Christ.