These are very interesting times to be alive! (I've always held the word "interesting" to be neutral in nature). We are faced with very challenging questions regarding diversity, community, free-speech, church standards of conduct, and Christian compassion. I applaud the Criterion editor's decision to allow students of either sexual orientation to express their opinions. I am referring to the much talked about SDA Kinship ad; I couldn't agree more with the need for people of either sexual orientation to identify themselves without fear of retaliation. But the issue is not so much about free-speech; it is about what our community is doing to meet the needs of these people.
For example, anyone could start a hypothetical support group for people with say, murderous tendencies and encourage these individuals to come out of the closet. I would like to know if such a support group would give these [hypothetical] people guns, bullets, and encouragement to go out on a killing spree. I hope not. So much for analogies; I meant to write about Christian compassion for all sinners. Yes, this is as much about Christian compassion as it is about homosexuality. Do I believe that homosexuality is wrong? Yes. In fact, make it a resounding yes! Do I think less of a homosexual? No. Make that an even more resounding no! A very big distinction must be drawn between an individual's behavior and their God-worthiness; God is capable of loving and assigning worth to a homosexual. To prove the point, Jesus protected the prostitute: "Neither do I condemn you," said Jesus. "Go away, and from this moment sin no more." (John 8:11, New Jerusalem Bible) In fact, Christ had several dealings with this woman, and we think she chose to change.
I have cringed many times when the story of the prostitute is used as an excuse for continuing a behavior condemned by the church. Many think that if a behavior is condemned by organized religion, and if Christ loved the sinner, then organized religion must be wrong; that is the kind of dualistic thinking we cannot afford! When Jesus said to the prostitute "Neither do I condemn you.", did He mean "go therefore and encourage others to become prostitutes"? Do people have to become sexually deviant to receive God's love and compassion? I hope your answer to those questions were emphatic no's (see Romans 6:1, 2). God loves every sinner, including the sexually deviant. As kids, we were taught that there are no larger or smaller sins. We have all sinned: I have sinned, so have you (Romans 3:9). If I told a lie, I have committed just as much a sin as a murder criminal or a homosexual. The mere fact that I am not a homosexual, does not make me a holier person: we have all sinned, and we need to experience God's grace and love in our lives; only the Holy Spirit can change us. In the meantime, the church has the delicate and difficult responsibility to treat every sinner with Christian compassion.
Questions we should ask:
1) What Christ-like policies should La Sierra University (or your company) put in place regarding homosexuals?
2) How do we deal with those who encourage sexual deviance?
3) How can we treat each other with the dignity, respect, love, and compassion God has for each one of us?
4) What can we do about the outbreak of sexually transmitted diseases among those who choose to be sexually promiscuous?
You are visitor number