We actually have two issues to face today:
A.
Homosexuality as
a chosen
lifestyle
“Do not practice homosexuality,
having sex with another man as with a woman. It is a detestable sin. Leviticus 18:22 (NLT)
It is not my desire to attack anyone today. As such, my sincere hope is to encourage the
Biblical, middle-way between keeping a clear witness of the sinfulness of
homosexuality as a chosen lifestyle, and unquestioned respect for all persons
who choose homosexuality as their pathway.
All persons are of unquestioned and inestimable worth in God’s eyes. That is why He died for us…all of us.
B.
Covenant-breaking
by a bishop
There are six things the LORD
hates— no, seven things he detests: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that
plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a
family. Proverbs 6:16 - 19 (NLT)
Breaking of Covenant
A timeline concerning retired Bishop Talbert’s actions:
·
Gen
Conference 2012….Bishop Talbert spoke on the floor in support of full inclusion of LGBTQ[1] and promised to officiate at
same sex unions/marriages if asked.
·
Oct 7,
2013 – announced plans to conduct a same sex ceremony; subsequently asked by (North
Alabama Conference) presiding bishop Debra Wallace-Padgett to reconsider.
·
Oct
26 – Bishop Talbert defied Bishop Wallace-Padget’s request and broke church law
by officiating at the ceremony. In this
he broke
covenant with all clergy who have covenanted together to abide by
orders and Discipline. (In this particular instance, among those of the United
Methodist Church).
When God declares something (homosexuality)
detestable…who is an earthly bishop to “correct” God? The Bishop in question purports to have done
this out of a sense of moral conviction that the overwhelming majority of
United Methodists who affirm homosexuality to be sin – are “wrong, immoral and
unjust.”[2]
Moral convictions are supposed
to cut in every direction, including prestige, salary & benefits. I do not read where Bishop Talbert
surrendered such in protest.
In an egregious act of defiance, Bishop Melvin Talbert has
publicly and flagrantly violated the covenant that binds United Methodists
together by officiating at a service of holy union between two men in
Birmingham, Alabama. We understand the emotional and sensitive nature of
the sexuality debate within The United Methodist Church. At the same
time, same-sex marriage is not legal in the state of Alabama, nor is it
permitted by the United Methodist Discipline. Not only did Bishop
Talbert defy church law, he ignored the urging of both Bishop Wallace-Padgett,
bishop of Northern Alabama, and of the executive committee of the Council of
Bishops not to preside over the service. Elected and sworn to an office
of unity, Bishop Talbert has instead chosen to use his position to foment
greater division within the UM Church.
As Bishop Michael Coyner has recently stated, “A bishop of the
church, whether active or retired, has a special responsibility to teach the
faith, to guard the church, and to order the administration and discipline of
the church… I don’t think we can be ‘church’ together without a commitment to
such order.”
Good News calls upon the Council of Bishops to exercise discipline
and hold Bishop Talbert accountable, as they have publicly promised to do on
several occasions. A failure to hold accountable Bishop Talbert and other
clergy who are flaunting our church’s policies will result in the unraveling of
our church’s covenant and order. Formal separation may not be far behind.
How do you feel about homosexuality?
Feelings (pro & con) about homosexuality are subjective and beside
the point. What is in the foreground of
concern for the created order is what the Creator intended. And, only God can speak for God. Fortunately, God does speak. In Scripture God has given us ample
understanding that sexual relationship is intended for only heterosexual,
monogamous persons. For those who are
unmarried, sexual abstinence is required.
Truth forever on trial
Humans (even Bishops and other clergy) obscure the truth
because of their own guilt:
Sara Thompson Tweedy is an elder in the New York
Conference. Charges are pending for
being a practicing lesbian. Indeed she
was married to a woman in Canada in 2008.
This after being ordained in 2006 – with full knowledge that
homosexuality is a “chargeable offense” (meaning she can be dismissed, her
credentials withdrawn).
Tweedy said of the impending church trial:
What
kind of ‘just resolution’ can come out of an unjust process?[4]
How is a process unjust if it is known and accepted?
Sometimes truth becomes a victim of rationalization
because of lust; people sometimes blame their sin on God for making me this way.
Bishops sometimes get it wrong because of pride.
3 Statements about homosexuality
1. Homosexuality is not an acceptable lifestyle
“Do not practice homosexuality, having sex
with another man as with a woman. It is a detestable sin. “A man must not
defile himself by having sex with an animal. And a woman must not offer herself
to a male animal to have intercourse with it. This is a perverse act. “Do not
defile yourselves in any of these ways, for the people I am driving out before
you have defiled themselves in all these ways. Because the entire land has
become defiled, I am punishing the people who live there. I will cause the land
to vomit them out. You must obey all my decrees and regulations. You must not
commit any of these detestable sins. This applies both to native-born
Israelites and to the foreigners living among you. “All these detestable
activities are practiced by the people of the land where I am taking you, and
this is how the land has become defiled. So do not defile the land and give it
a reason to vomit you out, as it will vomit out the people who live there now.
Whoever commits any of these detestable sins will be cut off from the community
of Israel. So obey my instructions, and do not defile yourselves by committing
any of these detestable practices that were committed by the people who lived
in the land before you. I am the Lord your God.”" Leviticus 18:22-30 NLT
Do
not! This is not a suggestion; the Bible not vague
here. When the Bible is silent, leave
room for interpretation. When the Bible
is definitive, proclaim its truth like your life depends on it.
Greco-Roman culture accepted homosexuality; many emperors were homosexual. But although it has been culturally and
legally pushed in our culture so that a majority tolerates equal “rights”, have
you noticed that there is now a new quest?
The next frontier is conquering moral legitimacy. In short, now we are in a battle for the
church, unquestioned bastion of moral authentication. What signs are there signifying this new
front?
Shift from 70’s to present…
|
Sexual preference
|
“Preference” and “alternative” (which presume choice)
gave way to “orientation” and “identity” a more I-was-made-this-way-don’t-blame-me
friendly label.
The battle for the church
From without the church
Most attacks center on typecasting believers as
intolerant, uneducated and bigoted. The
main strategy is to make the church look bad…perception creating its own reality.
The most common tool is to twist Scripture out of its contextual
direction to support the premise that to be “conventionally-Christian” is to be
anti-everything.
For instance, when Jesus said “judge not”, he meant
it; we are not to arrogantly judge others’ intentions or their heart. When it is used by enemies of the church it
is more likely to mean: leave
me alone so I can sin without your helping of guilt.
This is nothing new.
A larger problem however is…
Decay from within the church -----
Bishop Talbert’s letter:
On May 4, 2012 (during the 2012 United Methodist General Conference), I
declared that the church’s official position is wrong and evil …it no longer
calls for our obedience.” [5]
With all due respect, Bishop Talbert does not speak church law into existence
for the United Methodist Church. He may
have stated it, but that does not make it a declaration of independence for
anyone but himself. It only convicts him
of the premeditated act of willfully-violating his ordination vows, his
promises to the church and God.
Officiating at same-sex unions is a chargeable offense under the Book of
Discipline. Clergy convicted in a church court can face a loss of clergy
credentials or lesser penalties. However, church law does not censure those who
disagree with church teaching on this matter — only those who take actions that
violate church law.
Again, respectfully – what Bishop Talbert did was break covenant with
all (particularly) UMC clergy; he is free to speak for or against any issue (as
am I and all clergy); he is not free, according to his
vows of ordination and commitment as a bishop to break the church laws.
Agree or not, I have trouble with his subsequent, almost cavalier
statement:
“I have openly spoken out against my own church,” he said.
“What they do, I can’t begin to say. Personally, I’m not losing any sleep over it.”
I believe I would lose sleep over what threatens the
church’s fellowship and future…no matter which side of this I feel compelled to
follow.
Bottom Line:
Homosexuality is Not
acceptable to God whose authority sets our boundaries. Moral legitimacy or “tolerance” means
progression down that track to accept other behaviors lumped (by Scripture)
together with homosexuality:
(Bestiality, Sadism, Polygamy, Child sacrifice, Euthanasia)
It is not acceptable to God because it is harmful to
humans! In Romans, writing of those who
stood against God, in favor of personal choices, Paul charges that God gave them
over -(to reprobation)- God withdraws when man insists! The natural consequence of homosexuality is moral moron syndrome - when you will not make Godly choices, the time comes
when you cannot make Godly choices
2. Homosexuality may or may not be “natural” but either way presupposes choice
"So God abandoned them to
do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile
and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God
for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the
Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God
abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the
natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the
men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for
each other. Men
did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered
within themselves the penalty they deserved. Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he
abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should
never be done." Romans 1:24-28 NLT
There are two prevalent strains of thought today. Homosexuality is extant because of sexual identity
(DNA), or because of personal preference (sociological peer
pressure).
Genes? God does
not intentionally create evil or vileness. (Note the highlighted scripture
above - v.27)
So, is it sociologically-induced behavior “against the
natural”? Are people who have a vile
nature drawing others into the lifestyle?
It’s not DNA, but rather evil design?
It hardly matters.
Either way all of us inherit Adam’s sinful nature. Whether genes or social conditioning the result
in us is that we follow our inner proclivities towards chosen behavior.
As an example, I must consider that it is unnaturally
human for me to want as much chocolate as could be used to construct a
Buick….but I want it nonetheless. In the
end it matters not whether my genes force me to lust after Hersheys by the
wagonload, or if some evil chocolate dealer got me hooked – God has other
rules…about gluttony…eating that much chocolate is bad (even for a
preacher).
I have a choice about how I will behave and God
requires us to “choose holy”:
"For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am
holy.”" 1 Peter 1:16 NLT
Result (consequence) of choosing other:
There is “cause and effect” for every part of God’s
created order. Choosing sexual
immorality is no exception:
"But I will tell you what
will happen to cowards and to everyone who is unfaithful or dirty-minded or who
murders or is sexually immoral or uses witchcraft or worships idols or tells
lies. They will be thrown into that lake of fire and burning sulfur. This is the
second death." Revelation 21:8 (CEV)
3. Christ provides THE way out of homosexuality
"Don’t you realize that
those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves.
Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or
are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy
people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will
inherit the Kingdom of God. Some of you were once like that. But you were
cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the
name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. Run from sexual
sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual
immorality is a sin against your own body. Don’t you realize that your body is
the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?
You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you
must honor God with your body." 1
Corinthians 6:9-11, 18-20 NLT
There are reasons why many homosexuals never hear
this:
Pride
Being “washed and made holy” presupposes a prior
filth. Pride won’t admit to needing the
salvation of anyone.
Spiritual blindness
Sometimes we don’t see because we refuse. Those who choose pride over surrender to
Christ fail to see because they won’t back off from their spiritual sickness
long enough to engage with the Healer of Galilee.
There is a couple who are dear friends of mine. We served together in a little church in
north Florida. Their son, Danny got
trapped early in the gay lifestyle.
Their hearts were broken, but they kept the lines of communication open,
and the prayer line hot.
Years went by and their teen became a twenty-something,
then early thirties. Danny had AIDS and
this was before many of the sophisticated drugs we have today, so it was a
death sentence.
Danny’s Mom had never led anyone to Christ before, and
had that as one of her heart’s desires.
Nearing the end, Donna and Dan spent many hours and days in the hospital
with Danny.
On the night before he died Danny began to ask
questions about life after death. He had
watched his Mom and Dad’s faith and certainty of Christ’s love over the
years. He wanted to know!
In the wee hours of the morning Donna led her son to
the throne of God’s grace, and Danny prayed to receive Jesus.
Both fell asleep, Danny, frail, pale and simply skin,
bone and spirit; Donna, exhausted, hurting and filled with joy.
In the early dawn, Donna woke to the strangest sight;
Danny was smiling. She hadn’t seen his
sweet smile in weeks…but there it was.
She wasn’t really sure, so she asked him, “Danny, are you all
right? Do you hurt, son?”
“I’m fine, mama.
The man said it will be all right.”
“What man?
Danny, there’s no one here; what man are you talking about?”
“Him,” said Danny, pointing to the end of his hospital
bed. “It’s the man with the wings. He said I’m going to get to go home this
morning.”
A few hours later, hope and seeing through a glass
darkly became a reality for Danny.
There is a way out of homosexuality. In those last hours it was not Danny’s
hundreds of partners he wanted – only his family – and a forever family!
What should I do?
The saying attributed to too many to know who said it
first is:
In essentials – unity, in non-essentials – liberty, in
all things - charity
Essentials – sin is sin.
Christians are not called to argue with everybody over
who’s right; we are called to witness.
Don’t walk around condemning everyone’s actions. Rather live the good news until you earn the
right to share it with your neighbor.
Non-essentials
Don’t get bogged-down in outward appearances or even
others’ behavior. Remember you were once
a condemned sinner also.
Charity in all things
Be ready to meet needs, love like Jesus who gave
himself
As for Bishop Talbert and all who would tear the UMC
apart with their love of false doctrine – why not start your own denomination?
God hates those who cause strife and division in the
family.
Source
References
Throughout this message, direct quotes have been attributed
by footnote, however, I acknowledge hybridization of a number of concepts,
joining the thoughts of (sometimes) several authors, and here list my
source-file which contained many pages of reading.
Proverbs 28:25, James 3:14-16, 1 Timothy
6:1-5, Galatians 5:20
John Piper: http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-other-dark-exchange-homosexuality-part-1
Wayne Major: Homosexuality
and the Push for the Church, on SermonCentral.com
Doug Raymer, What About Homosexuality, on
SermonCentral.com
Bishop Talbert http://umcconnections.org/2013/10/26/bishop-talbert-performs-alabama-wedding-two-men/
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