Greeting
in the Name of Jesus,
This month I would like to deal with the
topic of how we are to relate to those who struggle with sin. In my previous articles that dealt with my
discussion with Rev. Neff and my response to him was about weather
homosexuality is a sin. The danger for
us is to think that homosexuality is worst than any other sin and to shun
homosexuals because it seems more socially repugnant than other sins. I think the issue is very relevant to us
because it is just been announced that Dick Cheney has a homosexual
daughter. Dick Cheney response to his
daughter is to support and love her and affirm her in her homosexuality. The republican candidate for congress, Allen
Keyes told reporters that he would love his daughter like Dick Cheney but he
would tell her that homosexuality is a sin.
How should we as Christians respond to those around us who struggle with
homosexuality, or of course any other serious sin?
The first thing that we need to understand
is that homosexuality is not any worst than any other sins in God’s eyes. Sin is sin and it separates us from God. Next we need to understand that to be
tempted in a certain way is not sin.
When the Bible speaks of sin it speaks of sinful actions not the
direction of temptation. Sin is when
temptation is acted upon and we give into it as the Apostle John writes, “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact,
sin is lawlessness” (1Jo 3:4). Temptation is something that we as a Christian
will never be free from; it will be a life process to learn to resist it. We speak today about homosexual
orientation, really what we are saying is the way a person is tempted. We all have some sort of orientation; some
area that we are consistently tempted in; some sinful attraction that draws our
hearts, whether it is coveousness, or lust, or overeating, or pride, or
adultery, hatred, anger, malice, slander and so on. The list could be endless.
Here is how we know that temptation is not
sin, because the Lord Jesus was tempted.
Here are just a few references.
“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil” (Mt
4:1). Now in order for Jesus to be
tempted there must have been some attractive force at work in Jesus’ heart that
pulled him in the wrong direct or it would not be a temptation. Hebrews takes this idea a step further when
its writer says, “Because he himself
suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being
tempted” (Heb
Satan has two strategies one is to
convince us that we have to give into temptation and that we are powerless
against it. The other is to make us
feel guilty that when are tempted, and to convince us that it is wrong for us
to feel that way so that we become discouraged and give up and give into the
temptation. The beauty of the sinless
temptation of Jesus is that he offers us an alternative. We can be free from the futile thinking that
temptation or desire makes us automatically sinful. As one tempted, Jesus holds out the help we
need so that we are not powerless again the temptations that we face.
Many today have drawn the wrong
conclusion, they think that because a person has an inclination in a given
direction, that is the way they were made, and therefore it is right to
practice their natural desires. I.e.
if a person has a attraction towards a person of the same sex than that is the
way they are, and it is right for them to act upon their natural desire. One may be tempted to murder, or to steal,
or to embezzle, or to take another man’s wife, if we followed to logic of
today, that because we are orientated in that direction it must be right and
therefore good. Do you see how that
would lead to social chaos? The fallen
world in which a person grew up in and the brokenness of their circumstances
may orientate someone towards homosexuality, but to jump to the conclusion then
that it is than right to practice what the God condemns, is the wrong
conclusion.
We
as the
We need to help people realize that the
devil is a good fisherman and he know just the lure that will capture our
attention. God is not the author of
temptation, in other words he did not make you that way. But the fact that a given sin is attractive
is a manifestation of our own broken circumstance. James put it this way, When tempted, no one should say, "God is
tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;
but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and
enticed Jas 1:13-14 . Jesus Christ
who has been tempted in every way just as we are is able to deal gently with
the tempted and give them the grace that they need to overcome it. That is a message that we must trumpet as we
love the weak and point them to Jesus how is able to save to the uttermost.
I agree with Dick Cheney, I would love my
daughter unconditionally if she came to me and said that she was tempted to be
a lesbian. I also agree with Allen Keyes
that I would make sure that she understands that it is a sin to practice
homosexuality, but I would assure her that just because she is at times tempted
by a desire for other women sexually it is not sin until she gives into the
temptation and acts upon it either through homosexual practice or lust, because
I would not want her to be over burdened with false guilt. I would point her to
Jesus who can forgive all her sins and who has the power to help her resist the
temptation to practice homosexuality.
I would encourage her to give her body to Jesus as a living sacrifice
and to be celibate and chaste as the bride of Christ and to prepare for his
coming. Finally I would assure her that
singleness is desirable and honorable alternative for her.
God
Bless you all,
Pastor
Steve Wenner