Mass delusions
Eddie from Houston just posted this in my guestbook at jenaustin.com. I usually only check it once or twice a week, but I'm glad I was able to catch this today.
Eddie says, "I really don't see how you can reconcile Christianity and homosexuality when God, in the Old Testament, destroyed two cities for their sin. I don't believe its possible nor do I support the fact that you can be both. The Book of Revelation talks about mass delusions, perhaps this is the time."
I've posed the question before, "Does defending our faith really mean we have any faith at all?" Defending myself in a quest to feel more validated and accepted would not prove that I have faith or that I am somehow more worthy of Eddie's support. Rather I think it would demonstrate some weakness and prove that my "house is built on the sand (Matthew 7:26)." Houses without solid foundations get tossed around easily, and I'm not going to allow a little wind to toss me into a frenzy. Faith is just that...faith. And by having it, sometimes a person has to endure judgment and doubt without defense. Eddie has an opinion and I respect it. It just doesn't line up with what I have discovered to be true about God. I'll do my best to share that experience.
I've already devoted a blog or two to Sodom and Gomorrah so I'm not going to spend time rehashing that, but I will address the subject of mass delusions. Our connection to God is key.
One Wednesday night during a sermon at Cathedral of Hope I felt like God spoke to my heart and showed me a clear picture of what it means to be a gay Christian. I saw a line between God and me that seemed to light up the more I owned the connection, and I realized that everything in our lives outside of that connection is purely peripheral. We (okay I) tend to view jobs, relationships, the completion of goals, etc. as destinations, when they are actually just things that happen on the side of the road on the journey toward God. They are not destinations as much as they are tools that refine us and allow us to grow closer to God. Sometimes they are vessels that allow God to work through us purely for someone else's benefit. Sometimes they are the sandpaper that will smooth over our rough edges and teach us something profound about the way we react in certain situations. They are never without a purpose, but at the same time they are not a destination. They are much more fluid and marginal than that. It's the lifeline to God that gives it all meaning. God is the ultimate destination.
I can own this connection to God just as easily as Eddie can. We are all connected to God no matter what another believer may say, and we are connected continuously. The more energy we expend on that connection, the stronger the connection becomes. As it becomes stronger and lights up with greater intensity, it fuels us and enables us to perform the other tasks that God has for us in the periphery.
This is all to say that a person who owns the connection to God cannot be considered delusional. There is far too much strength, goodness, and love that travels back and forth through this lifeline, and it always results in positive growth. Delusions can be strong, but they don't usually spill out into a person's life in a way that promotes health and happiness, or provide such strong evidence that the Spirit is present. This is not a connection that God has any desire to destroy. This house is built on the Rock, and it becomes stronger by the day.
Perhaps this is the time for the mass delusions that Revelations speaks of. But perhaps we're viewing things from the wrong angle.
Eddie says, "I really don't see how you can reconcile Christianity and homosexuality when God, in the Old Testament, destroyed two cities for their sin. I don't believe its possible nor do I support the fact that you can be both. The Book of Revelation talks about mass delusions, perhaps this is the time."
I've posed the question before, "Does defending our faith really mean we have any faith at all?" Defending myself in a quest to feel more validated and accepted would not prove that I have faith or that I am somehow more worthy of Eddie's support. Rather I think it would demonstrate some weakness and prove that my "house is built on the sand (Matthew 7:26)." Houses without solid foundations get tossed around easily, and I'm not going to allow a little wind to toss me into a frenzy. Faith is just that...faith. And by having it, sometimes a person has to endure judgment and doubt without defense. Eddie has an opinion and I respect it. It just doesn't line up with what I have discovered to be true about God. I'll do my best to share that experience.
I've already devoted a blog or two to Sodom and Gomorrah so I'm not going to spend time rehashing that, but I will address the subject of mass delusions. Our connection to God is key.
One Wednesday night during a sermon at Cathedral of Hope I felt like God spoke to my heart and showed me a clear picture of what it means to be a gay Christian. I saw a line between God and me that seemed to light up the more I owned the connection, and I realized that everything in our lives outside of that connection is purely peripheral. We (okay I) tend to view jobs, relationships, the completion of goals, etc. as destinations, when they are actually just things that happen on the side of the road on the journey toward God. They are not destinations as much as they are tools that refine us and allow us to grow closer to God. Sometimes they are vessels that allow God to work through us purely for someone else's benefit. Sometimes they are the sandpaper that will smooth over our rough edges and teach us something profound about the way we react in certain situations. They are never without a purpose, but at the same time they are not a destination. They are much more fluid and marginal than that. It's the lifeline to God that gives it all meaning. God is the ultimate destination.
I can own this connection to God just as easily as Eddie can. We are all connected to God no matter what another believer may say, and we are connected continuously. The more energy we expend on that connection, the stronger the connection becomes. As it becomes stronger and lights up with greater intensity, it fuels us and enables us to perform the other tasks that God has for us in the periphery.
This is all to say that a person who owns the connection to God cannot be considered delusional. There is far too much strength, goodness, and love that travels back and forth through this lifeline, and it always results in positive growth. Delusions can be strong, but they don't usually spill out into a person's life in a way that promotes health and happiness, or provide such strong evidence that the Spirit is present. This is not a connection that God has any desire to destroy. This house is built on the Rock, and it becomes stronger by the day.
Perhaps this is the time for the mass delusions that Revelations speaks of. But perhaps we're viewing things from the wrong angle.
posted by Jen Austin at 1:39 PM
6 Comments:
To the extent that biological or social factors may contribute to a person's bent toward homosexual behavior, this does not excuse it. Some people have a strong bent towards stealing or abuse of alcohol, but they still choose to engage or not engage in this behavior�the law rightly holds them accountable.
The final report of the Baptist Union of Western Australia (BUWA) Task Force on Human Sexuality states 'that a person becomes a homosexual ultimately by choosing to be involved in same-sex activity... This is in contrast to innate characteristics such as gender and ethnicity.'7 The report affirms that 'the Bible is clear that sin involves choice, and it unequivocally condemns homosexual behavior as sin'.
The foundational teaching on marriage and sexual issues is found in Genesis chapters 1 and 2. When Jesus was questioned about marriage, He referred to these 2 chapters (Matthew 19:1-12; Mark 10:1-12). Genesis teaches us that 'male and female He created them' (Genesis 1:27). We were created to a plan�male and female complementing each other. That is, God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve, nor Madam and Eve.
Genesis also teaches that God instituted and designed marriage between a man and a woman (Genesis 2:18-25). There are a number of reasons why He did so.
1. The complementary structure of the male and female anatomy is obviously designed for the normal husband-wife relationships. Clearly, design in human biology supports heterosexuality and contradicts homosexuality.
2. The combination of male and female enables man (and the animals) to produce and nurture offspring as commanded in Genesis 1:28�'Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth'. This command is repeated to Noah after the Flood (Genesis 8:15-17). But procreation is not the only reason God made humans as sexual beings. The BUWA report affirms 'that sexual intimacy between husband and wife is good, and is intended by God for bonding, pleasure and procreation.'
3. Thirdly, God gave man and woman complementary roles in order to strengthen the family unit. Woman was to be the helper that man needed (Genesis 2:18). However, the woman's role as the helpmate is certainly not an inferior one. The enterprising God-fearing woman in Proverbs 31:10-31 is an inspiring role model.
Nobody else's business?
Gay activists claim that homosexual activity is nobody's business other than those involved in the relationship. However, this is not true. God, our Designer and Creator, has authority over all aspects of our lives. He makes the rules, and He quite specifically forbids homosexual behavior.
'You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination' (Leviticus 18:22; see also Leviticus 20:13).
Disobedience of such a clear command indicates rejection of God's authority.
Some people argue that the Old Testament law (including Leviticus 18 and 20) was superseded with the coming of Christ. However, we should at least consider as binding those aspects of the law that are renewed in the New Testament. The teaching of Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 was certainly reaffirmed in the New Testament.
Equally valid?
Some people claim that homosexual behavior was only condemned in the Bible because it was associated with idolatry (e.g. 1 Kings 14:24). However, it is clearly condemned apart from idolatry as well (e.g. Leviticus 18:22). It is described in Scripture as an unnatural, immoral perversion.
'For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another...' (Romans 1:26-27).
The Greek word arsenokoitai used in 1 Timothy 1:10 literally means 'men who sleep with men'. It is the same Greek word used for 'homosexual offender' in 1 Corinthians 6:9, variously translated as 'abusers of themselves with mankind' (KJV), homosexuals (NASB) or homosexual offender (NIV).
Some people claim that the sin involved in Sodom was rejecting hospitality customs or selfishness rather than homosexual behaviour. Certainly, the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah was great and their reported sin was grievous to God (Genesis 18:20). God sent angels to Sodom and...
'Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. And they called to Lot and said to him, 'Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may have sex with them' (Genesis 19:4-5).
"While it is true that the Hebrew word yadha does not necessarily mean 'to have sex with,' nonetheless in the context of Sodom and Gommorah, it clearly had this meaning. ...It means 'to know sexually' in this very chapter when Lot refers to his two daughters not having 'known' a man (19:8)."9 You would not offer virgins to appease a mob if their sin was lack of hospitality, but only if their desire was sexual.
Although Ezekiel 16:49 condemns Sodom for its selfishness with regard to poverty etc., this does not contradict its condemnation for homosexual practices. "The very next verse of Ezekiel (v.50) calls their sin an "abomination". This is the same Hebrew word used to describe homosexual sins in Leviticus 18:22."10
It is also used in Scripture to describe such things like the practice of offering children to Moloch, but never such things as mere selfishness or lack of hospitality. Even in legal parlance, the word used to refer to one aspect of homosexual practice is 'sodomy'.
Isaiah 56:3 states that eunuchs will not be excluded from God's presence ('my temple'), but practising homosexuals are not eunuchs. Eunuchs have no sexual relations at all.
Other scriptural arguments for homosexuality can similarly be easily refuted. It is clear that heterosexual marriage is the only form of marriage sanctioned in the Bible and that homosexual practice is always condemned.
Punishment
The Bible not only describes homosexual behavior as detestable, but it also calls for the punishment of those involved (Leviticus 20:13). Their unrepentant attitude caused God to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24-25).
Just as homosexual conduct has been punished in the past, so it will also be punished by God in the future.
"...Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
Needless to say my point is clear and no matter how much post-modernism you want to throw at me, I am still right.
-Eddie Aguire-
Houston, Texas
"I'm right and you're wrong...na na na boo boo". Perhaps it's time for some of us to grow up a little bit.
What I find interesting is that Jen, early in her post, is very clear about respecting Eddie's opinion even though her experience of God is dramatically different from his. In contrast, Eddie must point out that he "is right" no matter what. Hmm....
I also find it interesting that he is using a Baptist report to support his points...hmmm... possible that report is slightly skewed to fit an agenda? While I agree that many gay christians also quote from skewed sources, Jen has worked hard for many, many years to read scripture from different angles. She has also relied upon the Holy Spirit to direct her interpretations.
Arsenokoitai has also been interpreted, "literally" to mean male prostitutes or abusers of mankind.
So Eddie, I will respect your desire to live in a black and white world, but I will continue to live surrounded by millions of shades of grey. (Makes life more interesting...but that is just my opinion)
Eddie needs to get his own blog.
-Kate
Eddie-
You will never be right.... only by the grace of God, and thats the same grace he shares with Everyone even a homosexual.
One quick question for Eddie based upon this comment. If the mob at Lot's door in Sodom was a group of homosexual men, why would lot offer his daughters? The mob would have no use for them. It seems that Lot had to choose between protecting his daughters and protecting the angels, and he chose to protect the angels so he would not commit the sin of inhospitality. This must be understood in a cultural context, and at that time inhospitality was a chief concern.
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