Christmas

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, ¹⁰nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, ESV, emphasis added

I won’t mince words: Homosexuality is a sin. Not only is that the position of historical Christianity, more importantly it is the position put forth within the Scriptures themselves.

However, the New Testament does not make any special effort in pointing out the sin of homosexuality. When it is mentioned, more often than not, it is mentioned in lists of other sins, sins which permeate the church but which barely register on the radar of Christian discernment next to the hot button issue of homosexuality.

Frankly, I think you’d be hard pressed to find a Christian who doesn’t struggle with idolatry or lust (which Jesus equates with adultery, which appears in the above list). To single homosexuality out is to lessen the gravity of the scores of other sins, and to single homosexuals out — especially in hateful protest — is bordering on reviling them, which incidentally also appears in the above list of sins.

Yes, I believe homosexuality is a sin to be repented of (along with gluttony, idolatry, coveting, murdering, lying, and so on). Yes, I believe the biblical model for a family precludes a homosexual couple from being biblical.

That isn’t any huge revelation to most of you, I’m sure. However, I’ll go out on a limb here;¹ I do not believe that the definition of marriage should be a constitutional amendment or anything of such like. I was pleased when I found out that Dr. Ron Paul also opposes such legislation.

If a person wants to be gay, that is there business; I believe that such a lifestyle can be no more legislated against than could legislation be drafted which prohibits monkeys from picking each other’s nits.²

In other words, I believe that, constitutionally, Bible believes have the right to believe & preach against homosexual marriage. I believe that ministers should have the freedom to refuse marrying whoever they want, upon whatever grounds.

On the flip side of a coin, if homosexuals want to get married, there are certainly other means of going about it rather than through Christian ministers who are opposed to the concept. The government should not attempt to restrict those other means — whether through Sodomy Laws or through legislation such as the Federal Marriage Amendment.³

At the very least, the decision to legalize or criminalize homosexual unions should be made at a local level — state or lower — so that the decision more accurately reflects the populace of the region. After all, isn’t that what having a government “by, of, and for the people” is all about? Attempting to make such impactful legislation at the federal level ensures that the people of the nation will not be accurately reflected.

I’m still shaky on that, though, as it simply doesn’t seem like marriage is something the government needs to have its hands in anyway. I’m speaking there as an aspiring biblical purist who recognizes that biblical marriages shared few similarities with today’s elaborate ceremonies, rituals, and assorted traditions.

What is America if not a melting pot of culture? Frankly, I find that absolutely beautiful, and it ought to be an unceasing reminder to the Christians of the nation that the Father is saving souls out of every tribe, tongue, and nation.

And yeah, I dislike homosexual marriage; however, I find myself much more irked by various other sins.

But at the same time, homosexuals are still human; biblically, they bear the image of God, and I am just as sinful as they could ever be. There are 8×8 beams in my eye that need removing before I need to every worry about the sawdust in theirs!

According to the Declaration of Independence, it is self-evident that all men are equal and that all men have unalienable Rights, [and] that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Many men are happy in their sins, and biblically we are not mandated to force them onto the righteous path.

Additionally, so long as a person’s exercise of the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness does not infringe upon anyone else’s rights, the government seems to have no real reason to meddle.

Even within the church, the most we can do is to excommunicate someone, so that they can continue in their sins as Satan destroys their bodies.⁴

I’m still pretty much a neophyte where politics and the convergence of politics & religion are concerned, so I would appreciate anyone’s feedback on this.

I will conclude by saying that those conservatives who are fighting tooth & nail to outlaw homosexuality are doing the body of Christ no favors. The only way someone will joyfully & willingly give up a sin is through Holy Spirit-borne regeneration & repentance. There needs to be far more “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand” and far less political protest. Only then will a genuine, lasting change be effected.

Just my 2¢US.

Merry Christmas.

Popularity: 14%

1. And this is a limb which I feel is more sturdy than, say, the limb many fundamentalist convictions can be found upon. [↩]
2. I’m not equating homosexuals with monkeys; please don’t read that much into my analogy! [↩]
3. The Federal Marriage Amendment, if passed, would have federally defined marriage as the union of 1 man & 1 woman. Incidentally, Ron Paul opposed its passage! [↩]
4. See the first several verses of 1 Corinthians 5 for more on this. [↩]

Have you ever tallied up just how much stuff you’d have after 12 days of receiving gifts from your true love, if the gift giving matched exactly that famed carol?

Let’s run it down quickly:

• 12 partridges in pear trees
• 22 turtle doves
• 30 French hens
• 36 calling birds
• 40 golden rings
• 42 geese a-laying
• 42 swans a-swimming
• 40 maids a-milking
• 36 ladies dancing
• 30 lords a-leaping
• 22 pipers piping
• 12 drummers drumming

The grand total is 364 gifts, 140 of which are people. (Heh, and you thought Christmas materialism was a recent thing…)

It’s difficult to believe¹ that the partridge in a pear tree is supposed to represent Jesus Christ when there are fully twelve of them given in the song, whereas Jesus was sacrificed once for all time. (However, that site does claim it to be a Catholic catechismal thing, so I suppose it could be tied into the supposed repeated sacrifices of Christ made anytime a priest blesses the elements of the Mass.)

At this point, I’m a little wearied of the song anyway, and have appreciated the radio station at work mixing things up a bit with variations such as “The Eight Polish Foods of Christmas”; and if that isn’t up your alley, try out The 12 Days of Theology.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Popularity: 9%

1. Okay, I don’t really consider Catholic.org a reliable source, and this comes off as very revisionist; an unbiased history of the song would be great if you have one to share. [↩]

The 2008 Presidential Primaries are rapidly approaching. For those states which have closed Primaries, party-changing deadlines are approaching even more rapidly (or have already passed).

You can find a schedule of the primaries, caucuses, registration deadlines, and party-change deadlines on Ron Paul’s campaign site.

As my dad pointed out at the Christmas gathering yesterday at his house, the primaries are when you really have a choice.

And because voter turnout for primaries is so much lower than on Election Day, your choice will be that much more valuable.

Write in your candidate-of-choice if you have to, but get out there and vote!

Popularity: 7%

I still remember one of the things David emphasized the first time we hung out. It was that every human being is an image bearer (hence the name of his website), that within each of us is the likeness, the tselem of God.

An Image Bearer
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It is oftentimes so hard for me to remain conscious of that fact.

And it’s difficult to ignore the guilt welling up within me at that admission. It’s not like I spend the day around murderers, rapists, and the like.¹ Working with the public, albeit in a small town, five days a week, I interact with a beautiful mix of people. I often forget they are all image bearers, though, because what I often witness is a potent reflection of the human condition.

Teenagers get their kicks by being destructive with our property, walking away from the mess while giggling. Parents threaten their kids with leaving them behind or beating them, simply for having a case of the “I wants” (If you’re not willing, as a parent, to properly deal with your kids’ desires, why take them to a toy department?). And God forbid that an Invisible Woman action figure is not readily available on the shelf!

An Image Bearer
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I find myself at times concluding that far too many people are petty materialists who have little interest in things other than “self.” Okay, people are selfish; that’s hardly revelatory.

We are told in the Scriptures of a Son who willingly took sin upon Himself, dying in sinners’ stead, so that others may have a relationship with His Father. Selflessly was He beaten, selflessly was He pierced and poured out upon Golgotha.

Humanity bears His image, so much so that while we are given the freedom to kill & to eat cattle, fowl, and fish, we are told that the murderer of man must in turn be executed, so that He whose image we bear may exact proper judgment.²

An Image Bearer
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I’m writing this post as a reminder to myself and others, particularly during this time of year which is supposedly marked by “holly jolliness” and a “yuletide spirit,” that our attitudes toward others is going to reflect our attitude toward God. Jesus could boldly demand that we not only love God but also our neighbors because He knew that they were of unspeakable value. Not only do they bear the image of the Creator, but they are given life and sustainment by Him from whom all blessings flow!

Yes, sin mars the image, but it cannot wipe it out completely. If Christmas is about “peace on Earth and good will toward man,” then check yourself: are you loving others as much as you can? When you see others, are you reminded of the Divine? I added several pictures from Flickr to this post; I’m making no claims to the spirituality of the people presented, but I will state that your attitude toward those features may just reflect your own spiritual health.

An Image Bearer
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Jesus showed unspeakable compassion toward the so-called outcasts of His society; how do we treat those on the fringe of ours?

This Christmas, if you are more concerned with people who say “happy holidays” or “Merry Xmas”³ than with loving others, take a step back and spend some time in reflective thought: If you have interest in wishing people a merry celebration of Christ, may His attitude & outlook toward others merrily flow forth from your life!

In conforming our attitudes to His by treating everyone with the dignity due an image bearer of God, we are embracing being the light and salt of the world, and we are actively moving toward true peace on Earth and good will toward man. In obeying Christ, we further establish and show forth the kingdom of God on Earth!

Popularity: 8%

1. Even then, that would be no excuse to forget that they too are image bearers. [↩]
2. Genesis 9:6. Capital punishment is inherent in the Noahic Covenant, which exists between Noah and his descendants (v. 9), including you and me. [↩]
3. Christians were the first to use “Xmas,” by the way. [↩]