Tough Questions: Homosexuality
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Intro
Intro
No judgmentalism
Christians are to be people of Grace and Truth.
Truth without grace is brutality
Grace without truth is hypocricy
Lead with grace, land in truth.
Typical patterns Christians take:
We forget we are broken sinners so we highlight the sin we don’t struggle with.
OR
We pit God’s love against his design and ignore the reality that Scripture teaches both.
Genuine love demands BOTH grace and truth.
SSA vs. Gay/homosexual/LGBTQ
Carnivore illustration
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
Homosexuality and God’sDesign
Homosexuality and God’sDesign
Sex is God’s plan
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
provides the wide-angle of God’s plan. “Be fruitful and multiply!”
demonstrates the difference in the sexes.
It is not good for man to be alone!
Ezer = helper or life saver? see ;
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
Sex is uniquely tied to marriage
Be fruitful!
Scripture teaches that sex outside the context of marriage is sin
He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”
Greek word porneia = sexual immorality This word is used to describe all sexual activity outside marriage, see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
Unity in marriage is meant to reflect God’s nature.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
Hebrew word ehad = one This word signifies unity rather than a number, see Gen 2:24.
The unity of marriage is designed to be a beautiful picture of the unity of God.
Marriage is designed to be the way in which people would fulfill God’s command to be fruitful and multiply
MOST IMPORTANTLY: marriage is designed to reflect the unique relationship between Christ and his church
“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.
Ephesians 5:
The church is not the same as Christ and Christ is not the same as the church, yet they are designed to be in a permanent union.
Scripture’s teaching on marriage the foundation for how Christians are to think about the issues surrounding sexuality and marriage.
Homosexuality and theBible
Homosexuality and theBible
There are only a handful of passages that deal directly with homosexuality. Scripture speaks to the subject but it is not fixated on the subject. Therefore, what Scripture says must be read in light of Scripture’s grander themes.
Old Testament passages
; the destruction of the city of Sodom.
In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.
and 20; there was to be no homosexual practices in Israel.
New Testament Passages
“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.
; the serious nature of homosexuality.
lev
“ ‘If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.
; the great cost of homosexuality.
; homosexuality is not inescapable.
; speaks specifically of male homosexuality.
Lev
These passages aren’t easy to read. They confirm the serious nature of homosexuality. However, if Scripture is our standard, we must not avoid it.
What is the Biblical precedent for sexuality? It is marriage between one man and one woman or celibacy.
In , Jesus sets the high standard for marriage. The disciples respond by saying, “It’d be better to not marry!” Pay attention to the way Jesus responds:
Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born that way, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others—and there are those who choose to live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”
Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born that way, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others—and there are those who choose to live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”
Homosexuality and the Christian
Homosexuality and the Christian
For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope
R
All of creation is subject to the fall. There is sickness, death, and so on. Christians are not exempt. We should expect some Christians to experience SSA (same sex attraction).
What should the Christian do who experiences SSA?
Pray - God is and always will be your Father.
Talk to God about your distress or confusion.
Talk to God about your temptations.
Talk to God about your sins.
Challenge your thinking
SSA does not disqualify you from salvation.
SSA does not define you.
“they are part of what I feel but not part of what I am fundamentally.”
Carnivore illustration
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
Seek the support of others in the church
Can God change sexual desires? Absolutely yes! But Scripture never promises to do so.
Scripture is clear that we live between two realities:
When we became Christians, we are made new.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
But we have not yet received the fullness of salvation as God’s people
Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.
Can we really expect unmarried Christians experiencing SSA to remain single?
Some have enjoyed marriage to people of the opposite sex even though their primary attraction is homosexual.
What about those for whom that choice is not realistic? Absolutely. Sexual fulfillment is not required for a full life. If we make that claim, the Apostle Paul and Jesus neither lived full lives.
Is there a healthy singleness? (unfortunately we speak and treat singles as second-class citizens)
Paul speaks of singleness as a gift from God
I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.
The Bible is very positive about singleness
Singleness has certain advantages
But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this.
But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this.
I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.
1 cor 7
Singleness also provides particular opportunities
I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord’s affairs—how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife—and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.
What are the main struggles for a Christian who experiences SSA?
Loneliness. This unfortunately leads many to isolation.
Sexual temptation. Many Christians experience a form of sexual temptation.
How could this be part of God’s purposes?
How could this be part of God’s purposes?
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
Romans 8:28
or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
2 Cor 12:7
Homosexuality and the Church
Homosexuality and the Church
His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
What should we do if a gay couple start coming to SCCC?
First and foremost, people are to be loved and welcomed.
Our initial response is to assume people need confronted immediately. Do we do the same with heterosexual couples who are unmarried?
It’s always best to start at the center and work to the edges rather than vice versa.
This means we start with the death burial and resurrection of Jesus and work our way outward into the day-to-day patterns of our lives.
What should we do to support Christians facing SSA?
Be willing to talk openly and lovingly
Honor singleness
Remember that church is family
Deal with biblical models of masculinity and femininity, rather than sterotypes
Provide good pastoral support
Homosexuality and theWorld
Homosexuality and theWorld
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most liberating and needed message in the history of the world.
How should I respond when a friend “comes out?”
Thank them for being open and trusting you with something so sensitive.
Assure them that their fears of being rejected by you are unfounded.
Listen to them.
Pray for them.
How do we share Christ in these scenarios?
Make sure they know you are for them, not against them.
Love them more than the gay community does.
Love them more than their sexual preference
Don’t simply explain how the Bible says they are wrong. Explain how God has a right to say what we do with our bodies and how genuine joy may be found in following Him.
Explain how singleness may be the best option but even in singleness, everyone in the church is pledged to one husband, Jesus.
“Union with Christ forever is what the earthly states of both marriage and singleness actually point to. The purpose of earthly marriage is not to fulfill us, but to point us to the relationship that does. The purpose of singleness is not to show that we are sufficient, but to point us to the one who is.” Sam Allberry pg. 82.
How can the church be an effective witness to the world on this issue?
By the quality of our lives together
By the clarity of our message
By the relational credibility we will earn by loving people.
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Turning to Jesus will be costly!
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.
