Misunderstood
Published 7-Feb-14 in The Times
With a potential marriage amendment being bandied about in the state capital, there are plenty of words being said, but I fear not much communication. That would involve useful information being both expressed and received - bilaterally. Consequently, there is a lot of misunderstanding. While there are certainly political aspects to this topic, the two groups that have been forced against one another are the gay community and Christians.
I say forced, because for many years, the two groups coexisted without major controversy. And I’m speaking about the broader groups of gays and Christians, not localized disputes within families which include other contributing elements. In America, we have historically enjoyed living beside others with diverse views. And even if opposing views were expressed, they were tolerated. Everyone knew where each other stood and generally respected the boundaries. As no society will ever be perfect, there has been the occasional skirmish, but these were exceptions.
However, for various reasons, but including the self-imposed division, there existed a void of information regarding each group’s disagreeing viewpoint. Throw in the increase of unhelpful political correctness and the art of discussing uncomfortable or disagreeable topics became extinct while the information gaps surged. Christians have misunderstood homosexuality and that gay people have real feelings and face real issues that are very different from their own. And gays have misunderstood Christianity and that Christians can hold unwavering beliefs about the misery of sin and the sacredness of marriage while still loving those that believe differently.
While the above situation certainly wasn’t conducive for a societal group hug, it was the aforementioned exceptions that really forced today’s conflict. It was the immature Christian or imposter who spoke or acted in a hateful manner against gays. As a Christian, I apologize on their behalf and would never advocate such behavior, nor would Christ. And it was what I’ll call the radical activist homosexual who antagonized and demonized Christians for merely disagreeing with them. I’m sure there are plenty of thoughtful and tolerant gays out there who would apologize for the bigotry of such radicals. But neither the misspoken Christian nor the radical gay activist should be used to stereotype their entire group.
However, these radicals have worked in recent years to rally many to their cause and exploit the misrepresentation. They have ignited the kindling of misunderstanding and fueled the controversy. Since Christians are generally conservative in nature, the flames caught the attention of liberal politicians who saw great gain in demonizing their opponents and polarizing America with this divisive debate. Thus, radical gay and liberal groups organized to promote their cause and use it as a political-legal weapon to punish those who simply disagree. Areas such as free speech and religious freedom lay as vulnerable targets (i.e. Indiana's RFRA Controversy).
Because traditional marriage is a sacred institution of Christianity, when you start altering it, you start altering the religious and vocal freedoms of Christians. This is why Christians do and must take a stand on protecting traditional marriage. Radicals seek to promote lifestyle choices as “civil rights” and use laws to bully and limit who churches marry and what Christians say. It is already happening. And while hateful radicals know and desire this, those who respect freedom should be more understanding. Regardless of one’s views, as Americans we should all be concerned when freedoms are threatened. Understand this: if they are gone for one group; they will eventually be gone for everyone.
I say forced, because for many years, the two groups coexisted without major controversy. And I’m speaking about the broader groups of gays and Christians, not localized disputes within families which include other contributing elements. In America, we have historically enjoyed living beside others with diverse views. And even if opposing views were expressed, they were tolerated. Everyone knew where each other stood and generally respected the boundaries. As no society will ever be perfect, there has been the occasional skirmish, but these were exceptions.
However, for various reasons, but including the self-imposed division, there existed a void of information regarding each group’s disagreeing viewpoint. Throw in the increase of unhelpful political correctness and the art of discussing uncomfortable or disagreeable topics became extinct while the information gaps surged. Christians have misunderstood homosexuality and that gay people have real feelings and face real issues that are very different from their own. And gays have misunderstood Christianity and that Christians can hold unwavering beliefs about the misery of sin and the sacredness of marriage while still loving those that believe differently.
While the above situation certainly wasn’t conducive for a societal group hug, it was the aforementioned exceptions that really forced today’s conflict. It was the immature Christian or imposter who spoke or acted in a hateful manner against gays. As a Christian, I apologize on their behalf and would never advocate such behavior, nor would Christ. And it was what I’ll call the radical activist homosexual who antagonized and demonized Christians for merely disagreeing with them. I’m sure there are plenty of thoughtful and tolerant gays out there who would apologize for the bigotry of such radicals. But neither the misspoken Christian nor the radical gay activist should be used to stereotype their entire group.
However, these radicals have worked in recent years to rally many to their cause and exploit the misrepresentation. They have ignited the kindling of misunderstanding and fueled the controversy. Since Christians are generally conservative in nature, the flames caught the attention of liberal politicians who saw great gain in demonizing their opponents and polarizing America with this divisive debate. Thus, radical gay and liberal groups organized to promote their cause and use it as a political-legal weapon to punish those who simply disagree. Areas such as free speech and religious freedom lay as vulnerable targets (i.e. Indiana's RFRA Controversy).
Because traditional marriage is a sacred institution of Christianity, when you start altering it, you start altering the religious and vocal freedoms of Christians. This is why Christians do and must take a stand on protecting traditional marriage. Radicals seek to promote lifestyle choices as “civil rights” and use laws to bully and limit who churches marry and what Christians say. It is already happening. And while hateful radicals know and desire this, those who respect freedom should be more understanding. Regardless of one’s views, as Americans we should all be concerned when freedoms are threatened. Understand this: if they are gone for one group; they will eventually be gone for everyone.
~ Below is additional commentary not included in the published article. ~
While we can certainly disagree about one another’s behavioral choices, but we must realize this disagreement is a necessary part of civil freedom. But we must also recognize that governments didn’t institute marriage; God did. But because traditional marriage comes from God & is therefore based on truth, it has tremendous value to society. Consequently, it has become foundational to many cultures & state / national laws. But when governments fail to protect it or start to tamper with its meaning, then it opens the door to attacks on religious organizations & personal freedoms. This is because there is the high potential of a backflow of contradictory moral teaching about marriage and sexuality that would violate church teachings & personal beliefs.
The Bible explains that the marriage relationship of 1 man & 1 woman is representative of the most sacred relationship available to mankind – the relationship between God & His people. This is no tepid, uncertain or insecure relationship, but one that is absolute, robust, dependable, trusting, faithful & committed for life. The husband is to emulate God in that he is to lavishly & sacrificially love his wife, being 1000% committed to her & staunchly protecting that relationship above all else. And the wife is to emulate the church in her strident devotion & respect, being creative in companionship & seeking personal holiness & pure fidelity in the relationship. This is the stuff marriage vows are made out of (Eph 5.21-33).
And this is the stuff the Gospel is made out of. The Gospel is the good news that God made a way for us to have a relationship with Him. Although we have all rebelled against our Heavenly Father – doing things contrary to His pure holiness, He loves us anyway. He pursues us & wants us to know about this Gospel. Though other rebellious people have never loved you in such a pure way, God’s ways are higher than ours (Isa 55.8-9). Going beyond all human displays of love, He demonstrated the ultimate expression of love through Jesus Christ.
In our rebellion, we’ve all done things (sin) that violate God (Rom 3.23, 1 Jn 3.4). Because of God’s extraordinary holiness, our sin cuts us off from God (Isa 59.2). Not only that, but it demands that His absolute justice punish us for our sin (Heb 10.30-31). To spare us from His just wrath, God’s love stepped in & made a way not only for us to have a relationship with Him, but also to satisfy His justice. But there was only 1 way this was possible.
The eternal & holy God had to die in our place to absorb this wrath. He did this when He stepped into humanity as Jesus Christ. Jesus never sinned, yet His purpose in coming was to die a criminal’s death when he was crucified. And He tells us that if we admit our sin deserves death & trust that He took that punishment for us, then God’s justice has been fully satisfied on our behalf. Not only that, but this immediately establishes a permanent relationship with God. So permanent that it results in eternal life because it is Jesus’s perfect life that qualifies us for heaven.
This Gospel sets us free from sin, provides eternal forgiveness, cleanses our guilty consciences, gives us a new heart that beats for God & brings us into an everlasting relationship with a faithful God. Now that is a marriage made in heaven!
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes – Rom 1.16
Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” - Jn 8.32-33
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. – Jn 3.16-18
What a person desires is unfailing love – Pr 19.22a
While we can certainly disagree about one another’s behavioral choices, but we must realize this disagreement is a necessary part of civil freedom. But we must also recognize that governments didn’t institute marriage; God did. But because traditional marriage comes from God & is therefore based on truth, it has tremendous value to society. Consequently, it has become foundational to many cultures & state / national laws. But when governments fail to protect it or start to tamper with its meaning, then it opens the door to attacks on religious organizations & personal freedoms. This is because there is the high potential of a backflow of contradictory moral teaching about marriage and sexuality that would violate church teachings & personal beliefs.
The Bible explains that the marriage relationship of 1 man & 1 woman is representative of the most sacred relationship available to mankind – the relationship between God & His people. This is no tepid, uncertain or insecure relationship, but one that is absolute, robust, dependable, trusting, faithful & committed for life. The husband is to emulate God in that he is to lavishly & sacrificially love his wife, being 1000% committed to her & staunchly protecting that relationship above all else. And the wife is to emulate the church in her strident devotion & respect, being creative in companionship & seeking personal holiness & pure fidelity in the relationship. This is the stuff marriage vows are made out of (Eph 5.21-33).
And this is the stuff the Gospel is made out of. The Gospel is the good news that God made a way for us to have a relationship with Him. Although we have all rebelled against our Heavenly Father – doing things contrary to His pure holiness, He loves us anyway. He pursues us & wants us to know about this Gospel. Though other rebellious people have never loved you in such a pure way, God’s ways are higher than ours (Isa 55.8-9). Going beyond all human displays of love, He demonstrated the ultimate expression of love through Jesus Christ.
In our rebellion, we’ve all done things (sin) that violate God (Rom 3.23, 1 Jn 3.4). Because of God’s extraordinary holiness, our sin cuts us off from God (Isa 59.2). Not only that, but it demands that His absolute justice punish us for our sin (Heb 10.30-31). To spare us from His just wrath, God’s love stepped in & made a way not only for us to have a relationship with Him, but also to satisfy His justice. But there was only 1 way this was possible.
The eternal & holy God had to die in our place to absorb this wrath. He did this when He stepped into humanity as Jesus Christ. Jesus never sinned, yet His purpose in coming was to die a criminal’s death when he was crucified. And He tells us that if we admit our sin deserves death & trust that He took that punishment for us, then God’s justice has been fully satisfied on our behalf. Not only that, but this immediately establishes a permanent relationship with God. So permanent that it results in eternal life because it is Jesus’s perfect life that qualifies us for heaven.
This Gospel sets us free from sin, provides eternal forgiveness, cleanses our guilty consciences, gives us a new heart that beats for God & brings us into an everlasting relationship with a faithful God. Now that is a marriage made in heaven!
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes – Rom 1.16
Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” - Jn 8.32-33
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. – Jn 3.16-18
What a person desires is unfailing love – Pr 19.22a
Additional Resources
Related Pages:
(!*) No Time for Political Correctness (*!) Half Baked Indiana's RFRA Controversy Should Christians judge? Can you trust the Bible? Indiana Marriage Equality & Pride |