Travelin' By Faith by Donna Quinn

I think it's probably dangerous to think out loud but I just couldn't help myself.

I had a conversation awhile back that I can’t get off my mind. Someone shared with me that a friend of hers told her she was gay. Actually she said she wasn’t gay she liked both men and women but right now her “partner” is a woman. She mentioned how hard it was to talk to her/listen to her and not tell her that her lifestyle isn’t right in the eyes of God. I wonder if she struggles with the same thing many people struggle with, how to love and befriend a gay person without judging, condemning and ultimately rejecting them. It looks to me like the “majority” of Christians have taken a stand to reject them. As Christians we claim it is the sin we hate not the sinner. Is it really? I saw a book entitled “I’m Fine with God…It’s Christians I Can’t Stand.” Are we doing something wrong?

I was reading a book the other day that told how the Jews didn’t recognize Jesus as the Messiah. They had expected Him to come as royalty and be king over Israel in their day and time. The author of the book had mentioned that their prejudices had blocked their perception. Did they have the things of men in mind rather than the things of God? I wonder if that happens to us as God’s children. Are our own prejudices blocking our ability to be Christ-like? Are our own prejudices causing us to be bitter, to hate, to be angry towards others, to judge, condemn and reject them? Have you ever noticed how easy it is to condemn others for sins you haven’t committed and how hard it is to condemn them for sins you have committed? (at least those we willingly admit or are even aware of) What will happen to the person if we can’t condemn the sin in them that we don’t see? If we are truly doing this for salvation sake then shouldn’t we be more concerned about the sins we can’t see? Are we standing up for God’s righteousness or are we standing up for our prejudices? Is it our own prejudices that are giving us permission to judge, condemn and reject or do we really believe we are speaking on God’s behalf?

I had a friend a while back who said the reason being gay was worse than other sins is because it is a choice. Is it? IF it is a choice, does that mean that those of us who are with the opposite sex are with them because we have made a conscience decision to choose the opposite sex? In other words, do all women have a desire to be with another woman but they decide to be with a man for righteousness sake? Do all men have a desire to be with another man but decide not to for righteousness sake? I’m guessing the answer is NO. I’m guessing for some people the answer is OH HECK NO! What if it is a genetic disposition? Isn’t sin itself a genetic disposition according to God’s written word? Why would we think the sin of homosexuality is any different? And who are we to decide which sins are more acceptable than others? Didn’t Jesus die for ALL sins?

The group “Casting Crowns” has a song titled “What This World Needs” and there is a speaking part by a few young adults that states “…people aren’t confused by the gospel, they’re confused by us. Jesus is the only way to God but we are not the only way to Jesus. This world doesn’t need my tie, my hoodie, my denomination or my translation of the bible, they just need Jesus. We can be passionate about what we believe but we can’t strap ourselves to the gospel, we’re slowing it down. Jesus is going to save the world but maybe the best thing we can do is just get out of the way.” I like this!

Mercy: implies compassion that holds back from punishing even when justice demands it. Jesus is God’s compassion to the world.

God has asked us to love others as He has loved us. “As” in the dictionary means: to the same extent or degree; equally. Do we?

I’m just wondering…