For a long time I have had it in my mind to write down my thoughts about a very touchy subject – homosexuals. Not specifically about those who claim to be homosexual, but for those who claim Christ as our Saviour & Lord.
Can homosexual men and women be a Believer in Christ? Can they enter in to Heaven? Can they be saved? How do we approach them when talking about Christ? How do we approach them when it comes to our Churches?
These are questions that come up in conversations every time this subject is brought up. Here is typically how a conversation goes when an ‘average Christian’ decides that they are going to ‘confront’ someone who they think is a homosexual person:
C – “Are you gay?”
H – “Yes I am. Why?”
C – “God tells us that being gay is a sin and unless you repent from your sin, you cannot enter into Heaven and you will spend forever in hell”
H – “I think you are a homophobe and a bigot”
C – “You need to give up your sick lifestyle and turn to Christ or you will burn in hell”
H – “Well, you can go to …. “
And the conversation continues to escalate from there … if it continues at all.
Where does this anger come from? Where does this disgust come from? Because it cannot come from God. Someone might say to this question, “Love the sinner, but hate the sin”, but somehow the ‘hate the sin’ turned into ‘hating the sinner as long as he is still sinning’. It is as if we think that somehow anyone can give up ANY sin just by will power, and unless they do, they will not and cannot enter into Heaven. This is NOT a biblical approach at all.
Here is some Biblical truth. Christ came to redeem the World! Christ came to take away the sins of the world. Christ came to give life to the dead and give life to them more abundant!
Galatians 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world
John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly
1 Corinthians 6:11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
The only way anyone can have Life – eternal life and Life Himself (Christ) is by believing and trusting in His finished work on the Cross and in His resurrection.
Romans 10:9-13 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation … 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
There are places that talk about ‘repentance’ in the New Testament. So it is a real word and it is something we must do. But what is repentance? Repentance is a change (turning) of mind – a believing and a trusting in something that you did not believe in or trust in before. Before becoming a Believer (A Christian) we believed and trusted in ourselves, in religion or in nothing. We must repent of that thought and understand that Christ died for us to redeem the world and came back to life (was resurrected) to give us Life and salvation!
So the truth is this – if you are heterosexual, homosexual or something in between … and you have not believed and trusted in Christ for eternal life – you will spend eternity separated from God (hell). Your sexual preference is not really the issue, everyone is a sinner … everyone is born dead in our sins … we do not need to change our actions, change our sexual orientation, or our religion – we need Life! We need Christ.
So, can homosexual men and women be a Believer in Christ? Can they enter in to Heaven? Can they be saved? YES! If they truly believe and trust in Christ’s finished work on the cross and His resurrection for their salvation!
And how do we approach them when talking about Christ? Like anyone else. If they are dead – they need Life – They need Christ like ANYONE who is lost. Focus on Christ and His redemption and grace for all who do not believe. If needed, I sometimes use the law to show a need for anyone to know Christ for salvation. But since the issue isn’t what sin – the issue is they are dead in ANY sin – use one that doesn’t put the ‘gospel wall’ up. Start with lying, stealing or even pride. Lead them to a place where they see a need for Christ and what He has already done with EVERY sin and what He will do for them – give them Life and life more abundant.
How do we approach them when it comes to our Churches? INVITE them! Why wouldn’t we want them to enter into our buildings and worship our creator God with us? Why wouldn’t we want them to see the wonderful community that Christ has built and brought together on Sunday to worship and celebrate Life!
This should be our heart and attitude for every person who does not know Christ – let them see HIM in you … not you!
I will end with one last thought on same-sex marriage. For 100’s of years the ‘Christian World’ has tried to legislate morality and have tried to keep those who do not know Christ as their Saviour to follow any rule they deem necessary. For example: no purchases on Sunday, no drinking alcohol, and ‘sodomy’ laws (including same sex marriages). I think it had been wrong and is still wrong for us to legislate anyone else’s morality. If anyone desires to live any different lifestyle than me – they should be able to do it … with ONE exception – it does not interfere with my lifestyle (beliefs) or anyone else who cannot defend themselves. If everyone in our country could allow others to say what they want, think what they want and act like they want (as long it does not interfere with other’s life) then we would have a different world! Obviously not every scenario can be discussed in this article, but I will address same-sex marriage. If two people of the same sex want to marry each other – go ahead; however, I have the right to say I do not like it, I have the right, as a pastor, to not perform the marriage, and I have the right not to participate in that wedding if I do not want to. And that should be okay and not be offensive to anyone. If anyone claims to be offended by that (or anything else in this article), then they are not giving me the same right I am giving others. This has nothing to do with salvation, Christ, heaven, redemption or grace – this is just common courtesy among fellow humans.
Let others see Christ in your life – let them see Christ’s Life!
Blake's Thoughts on Life 