Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Is the Gay Life Wrong





There is a debate among many concerning the gay life. Proponents of the gay lifestyle maintain that it is an alternate lifestyle that is not morally wrong, while others decry homosexuality as a sin. The Bible, which was inspired by the Creator of us all supports the latter view, however, for the sake of argument, let us take a closer look at sexuality, sin, human nature and the divine design and purpose of man.

We were created as sexual beings, from the dawn of time, God commanded mankind to be fruitful and multiply. The sex act in humans and throughout the animal kingdom is the means of perpetuating the species. In the divine design, God put in the pleasure factor, making sex an intensely pleasurable act that encouraged the reproduction process. The pleasure feature in human nature also is at work in the appetite for food, ensuring that people eat to receive the nutrition they need for survival.

In addition to producing physical pleasure, there are also emotions involved in the sex act. I do not want to go too deep into the emotional aspects of sex; I will leave that to the respective experts in the field. However, I would like to mention that the Bible says regarding the sex act that two become one. In sex, there is a bonding that is physical, emotional and perhaps even spiritual.

It is an irrefutable fact that the Bible denotes homosexuality as a sin along with a whole host of other activities that humans engage in. What is sin? Sin is missing the mark of God’s standard of living. We have all missed that mark and it humanly impossible to meet God’s holy standards, only Jesus lived a perfect sinless life; only through placing our faith in Him can people be placed in a right relationship with God. If sin is missing the mark of God’s standard for living, why do people sin? It is in our nature, it is pleasurable, sin fulfills our selfish motives.

Propensity to be Tempted

Within the human nature there is the propensity to sin; we are all created as individuals that are tempted to surrender to different sins. While we are all are tempted by sin in general and at times are tempted by temptations that span the broad spectrum of wickedness, there are some that have a weakness and are driven to specific acts of evil. In my opinion, the reason some are driven towards some sins more than others may be genetics, environment, their upbringing or things that happened to them in their past. Concerning genetics, there is a long history of evil that has transpired down through the ages, who is to say that the evil has not become a part of our genetic code. However, the bottom line is that through Jesus we do not have to yield to temptations, whatever their root cause, but through the power of redemption and His indwelling Holy Spirit we can be free from sin.

In the case of sexual sins, sexual sins appeal to our desire for pleasure. Apart from rape, which is related more to violence than pleasure, most sexual sins are pleasure related. Sexual pleasure within the parameters God has set is not wrong (God’s parameters being between a man and wife who are married). If we would be honest, we engage in sex because first it starts in our mind as a pleasurable thought, it originates from some visual stimuli, a touch, something we read, flirtatious conversation, oversexed imagination, natural physical desire or anything that starts the mind to thinking on sex. From the thoughts, we move on to the sex act, you know the rest of the story.

However, not all thoughts that turn us on are proper thoughts. Some sexual thoughts are about people that we are not married to, some may have improper thoughts about children, some imagine perverse sex with animals and in the case of homosexuality, sex with people of the same sex. Improper thoughts can lead to improper desires and if not dealt with improper actions. If we believe God’s word we must acknowledge that the homosexual sex act is sin, a sin to repent of and be delivered from.

The argument that some may raise is that they are born with the desire for members of the same sex or that they are so strongly drawn towards members of the same sex that it must be right. While I do not pretend to know all of the emotional issues involved in homosexual relationships, however, I have experienced the emotions involved with heterosexual relationships. However, apart from emotional issues, sex is a pleasure driven activity. Whether it is raw physical pleasure or the pleasure of receiving emotional comfort or satisfaction, sex is very pleasurable. Just because someone feels that it would be pleasurable to be intimate with someone of the same sex does not make it right. The erroneous train of thought that says that our natural inclinations are the right course for our lives is flawed. By that way of thinking we could excuse most any bad behavior. Liars could excuse their lying by saying that they were naturally borne liars, serial killers could say that they were just doing what they were born to do and the list goes on. The bottom line is that if we believe the Bible is God’s word and contains the answers for this life and the one to come, we need to conform to its teachings and not our natural inclinations.

If you have read this far you have probably realized that I am a Christian who believes that homosexuality is a sin. You are correct in this assumption, however, I believe it is a sin that God will forgive and deliver from. I do not pretend to know all the struggles that gay people experience and do not want to be classified as a gay-basher, but I believe God’s word is true. I would like to be seen as someone who offers hope to those living the homosexual life, by letting them know that God loves them and desires that they turn from their sin and embrace His son, Jesus who died for the sins of the world and was raised from the dead.

I write this not as a perfect, holier than thou Christian but as a believer that battles temptations of my own on a daily basis. The temptations that I face are heinous offences that would make most people blush, but just because I am tempted does not mean I have to give in, but through the power of Christ I resist temptations. Not that I always resist, I still stumble but Jesus is always ready to forgive when I confess my sins and call on Him. In closing, whatever sin you are struggling with, know that God’s grace is sufficient enough to forgive you and deliver you from any sin.


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