Name:Michael Country:United States State:Michigan Metro:Flint Birthday:5/16/1983 Gender:Male
Interests:Worshipping God, loving Jesus, fulfilling the great Commission, Loving and cherishing my Stephanie, Talking to my beloved and simply being with her, Singing for the glory of God, playing the trumpet, mentoring young men, spending quality time with friends, running, hockey, baseball, camping, hiking, rock climbing, backpacking, kayaking, mountain biking, ....anything outside :)...isn't God's Creation Awesome!? Expertise:Business ownership techniques, sales representation, music ministry, landscape design and installation procedures, Commercial and Residential Landscape management, public and human relations. Occupation:Administrative Industry:Other
Dear Family and Friends, The last week has been a whirlwind of activity, stress, and no sleep. On Monday the 23rd, Hudson came down with a cough that increasingly worsened over the course of Wednesday and Thursday. We tried several homeopathic methods recommended to us by our midwife and pediatrician, but his situation came to a head at 5:30pm, Thursday night the 26th. Five minutes after I left for evening work, he fell into a coughing spell and stopped breathing. Stephanie quickly tried to help him, but then decided to call 911. Through the instruction of the 911 attendant, Stephanie successfully resuscitated him after 4 attempts. His body had turned very blue and completely limp during this time.
Moments later, the EMS team arrived and rushed Stephanie and Hudson to the Children's Medical Center of Dallas. I got a quick call from Stephanie and immediately left work and headed to the hospital. Between 6:30-10:00pm they performed several tests on him, included a chest x-ray, spinal tap, blood tests, etc...
After receiving oxygen help, he started to regain his color and strength. However, by this time he had lost 1.5 pounds and was severely dehydrated. At first his chest x-ray showed evidence of neo-natal pneumonia, but now the official diagnosis is "pertussis." This is more practically known as the Whooping cough.
Around 3:00am he had another episode and went "code blue." Praise be to the Lord, he recovered fine and now is resting well. To say the least, we need your prayers. Many, many wonderful, loving people have blessed us with their visits and prayers and we are so grateful to the Lord for their care. The doctor said that he has never seen I child with this leave earlier than 4 days or later than 34 days. So, it may be a while. He was supposed to be able to go 12 hours without artificial oxygen before he can leave and is now officially off oxygen, but still has coughing episodes and turns blue so they don't want to release him until he stops doing that.
We do ask for your prayers during this time. Please pray that Hudson will recover thoroughly and quickly, without any lasting side effects. Also please pray for my dear Stephanie, that she would also heal from her sickness (she also has the whooping cough) and is extremely exhausted. Please pray also that I will be able to balance my school work (that is rapidly piling up), work, and family.
Thank you for your prayers and encouragement. We love you all!
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flame will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. ~ Isaiah 43:2-3
Have you ever awakened early with the sole purpose of seeing the first exquisite glimmers of daylight? Well, one morning just a few years ago I decided to begin my day of work with such a pleasure. Looking forward to those sweet, yellow and orange hues, I awoke just in time to enjoy the bright dawning of the sun before a long day of landscaping. Yet as I peered out of my bedroom window at the first shaft of light on the eastern horizon, I heard some clanging noises coming from the dark, damp annals of our basement room. This was a noise I had heard consistently, even quite incessantly for more than four years, but today it prompted me to walk down two short flights of stairs to speak with the one making all the racket.
Sweat and Steel
As I approached the door to the basement, the noise grew louder. I heard a “swish” and a boom, then a grunt followed by a deep sigh. Finally I arrived where I found my brother sprawled out on a bench as he pumped hundreds of pounds of solid iron. Through the dim light of one bare light bulb one could easily see he was sweating profusely. His veins bulged from under his torn muscle shirt and his tendons seemed to twitch at every breath. He was the picture of physical strength and fitness.
As I stood there looking down at my “little brother” who now was not so little at all, I kind of got jealous. Who wouldn’t? The guy was tossing up over 275 pounds on a bench press and he only weighed 165 pounds!
Somewhat inspired by my jealously, I fell to the ground and starting vigorously knocking out push-ups on the concrete floor. A few moments later as my face bulged from strain, I heard a chuckle come from the weight bench area. My brother now sat up with a grin on his face as he watched me press on with my undisciplined workout routine. When I finished my little round of exercises, my brother had one thought for me. He said, “You know Michael, I could easily compete in a body-building competition if I made one compromise. All I would have to do is take steroids for about six weeks and I would be in prime condition. But, you know what? Three weeks after I quit taking steroids, you know what I would look like?” To which I replied, “sure you would be huge!" He responded, “Wrong. I would have already lost 50% or more of the muscle mass I would have gained in the six weeks of steroid use. That’s why you see body-builders running around in loose-fitting jogging suits when they are not in competition. They don’t want people to see they are really fakes.” He then responded with one final thought that has never left me. He remarked, “It has taken much longer for me to build up muscle mass without anabolic steroids, but if I were to stop working out or lose the ability to do so, I would still have 90% or more of that same mass more than a year later.”
The Workout of our Lives
As I sat down on a pile of laundry, and pondered the lasting effects of body-building the “natural way,” I was reminded of Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. Here Paul admonishes the believers in the often undisciplined or disorderly church in Corinth to look at spiritual growth and maturity through the lens of a serious, professional athlete. This ought to get our attention:
“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore, I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.”
Now listen here. Paul is not talking about “earning” our salvation through our works, but instead telling us, as already regenerate believers in Christ, that we can gain eternal rewards and grow in Christ-likeness through the continual actions of Spirit empowered self-control and discipline. The question is, do you and I run the race of our lives and the boxing match of our days as if it is a real event? Or, do we actually swing our spiritual fists as if we are only in an imaginary fight? It takes serious endurance, strength, and discipline to complete a marathon. Certainly those who run do so for a tangible prize. In Paul’s day, they ran for the glory of Rome and a wreath of honor on their heads. Today, most professional athletes compete for the power of the dollar and honor among their peers. No doubt, there are some who, in the faith, compete professionally for righteous reasons. But nevertheless, all the accomplishments of any sports competition will fade and the satisfaction of victory rapidly slips away.
But for us who run the race of our lives for the Glory of the King, our prize is “imperishable!” Our rewards will never fade and never wane in their satisfaction! For they are not of this world, but for eternal dividends that calculate unto glory for our Lord. Therefore, our motivation for discipline should be all the stronger. This race we run as followers of Christ is the real and lasting event that truly matters for all eternity.
Real Strength
Thinking back now to the discipline of building muscle tissue, there seems to be something wrong with many “new” ways of becoming spiritually strong. Many of us have bought into a mentality that Christ-likeness can be gained at weekend conferences or quick evening seminars on spiritual growth. Yet lasting, godly maturity is often left unnoticed. People such as myself; think that if we can just have a few pick-me-ups here and a strong dose of spiritual steroids there, then we will somehow end up mature Christians. Yet, there seems to be a strong parallel between spiritual body-building and the physical realm of muscle tone.
Too often the tissue of our spiritual maturity is as lasting as that body-builder three weeks after the competition. Because we do not develop consistent, disciplined patterns of prayer, Bible Study, worship, and service, we end up weak and flimsy Christians who rely on once-a-month doses to guard against the temptations of the flesh. It takes lasting and persistent resolve to develop lasting strength in our spiritual lives. If our desire is to emulate Christ and become more like Him every day, we need to do more than a few spiritual push-ups here and there. We are in need of something much more persistent. We need the kind of incessant desire to “be strong” as I saw in my brother early that one morning. We are going to have to be “clanging around making noise” when other people may still be resting, in order to develop the kind of spiritual growth that will result in one who is daily progressing in sanctification. We will do much better in the workout as well, if we pump spiritual iron with people alongside of us. Perhaps for this same reason, body-builders flocked together in gyms so they can work off each other in their progress of strength.
Flabby Suits or Steel Armor?
The time has come for us as disciples of the living God, to shake off faulty notions that are pressed on us by pop-the-pill Christianity, and decide to get serious with our Savior. As we dive into the riches of His Word and the strength of His power, we shall truly make a difference in the world at large for the glory of God. Perhaps we also will be able to get out of our loose-fitting jogging suits and instead aptly handle a set of spiritual armor. May His glory be known and His power shown in and through our lives!
In Christ Alone, Michael
2/07/2009
For more muscle building sessions check out Galatians 5:16 and Hebrews 12:1-3.
Lessons from a Jetliner After two weeks of relaxation and Christmas season fun, Stephanie and I set out on several connecting flights from frigid Michigan to sunny Texas. We both were exhausted from the early morning start to our journey and late night hurried packing. So as we boarded our connection flight from Detroit to Cincinnati, we were hoping to settle into a calm one and a half hour nap.
As the jet took us soaring above the early afternoon clouds we soon drifted off to sleep. Oh what bliss of post-nocturnal rest would be mine. However, just several minutes into my deeply satisfying slumber something jarred me awake. Directly in front of us sat a middle aged man and an equally aged woman, who from all indications had become newly acquainted on the flight. Only minutes into my slumber, they had become intensely involved in a discussion that is not at all uncommon in any circle – professional sports.
On and on they went, energetically describing every detail and statistic known to the wide world of sports on this happy Sunday afternoon. I am not exaggerating. Being an avid sports fan myself, I was truly shocked as these two average Americans exhaustively outlined their thoughts, predictions, and New Years projections for every major sport in the USA. From the NFL, to the NHL, from the NBA to the grand old MLB; on and on they detailed the most impressive knowledge bank I had heard on athletics in quite some time.
After forty-five minutes of non-stop, rapid exchange of Saturday’s highlights and Friday’s scores, I began to wonder if the woman was a sportscaster for the national media, but unfortunately none of her sideline tangents indicated such a theory. These two individuals appeared to be just normal, average citizens with a very common insatiable desire. For another solid hour, the exciting and highly informative debate continued. One would have to truly stand in amazement at the level of sheer knowledge, memorization, and mental capacity of these folks.
We are talking hard facts and sound, analyzed predictions for nearly two hours. This kind of thing just is conjured up on a whim. These two had obviously dedicated themselves to the insatiable desire of sports.
Taking the Lesson to Heart As I leaned back in my chair, and pondered all the information that was pouring into my ears, a thought came that has been nagging me ever since. For many years I too had the same insatiable desire for any and everything related to sports. I rattled off dozens of batting averages, soaked in every inning, and intently watched every “period” and “quarter” of my favorite teams. At any moment’s notice I would proudly show off my prowess and throw out a few valuable and interesting statistics. I had an insatiable desire to know every single minute detail of every major happening in sports.
Yet, for me as a believer in Jesus Christ as Lord of the universe and in the Bible as God’s authoritative guide for all life, faith, and practice, I had OFTEN not even tried to know every thought, detail, and statistic in His Word. While so many of us, myself included, will pay hundreds of dollars to witness live action in a stadium with 30,000 other fanatics, and cover ourselves in clothing that shouts of our desire, we rarely if ever have that same insatiable, craving desire for the life-giving, power-imputing, authority granting Word of God.
Charles Spurgeon would often tell his young pupils in preaching that, “if you are cut, you ought to bleed the Word of God!” So often it is easy to skip over a paragraph or chapter simply because it “seems” or “feels” uninteresting. Yet would we do the same if we received in tomorrow’s mail next year’s playbook from every major coach in professional sports? I don’t think so. You and I would probably, first of all, proudly notify all our friends of what has come into our possession. Then secondly, we would intensely and intently study every sentence with excruciating detail. Do we have that same insatiable desire for God’s living Word?
How much greater should be our desire to know ever sentence in the Book that brought us out of death and into life! While millions gather around the world to shout, jump, and scream for other fallible human beings running or skating around on a tiny patch of God’s green earth, let us run with an insatiable desire for the very knowledge of the Holy One as found in His revelation to us – the Holy Bible.
I know for myself, I all too often become so easily engrossed in anything other than God’s Word. The Bible truly is a completed letter of love from our heavenly Father simply waiting to be read. The Psalmist, David, continues all throughout his writings with the passion he has for the Word of God and the courts of worship. Particularly, in Psalm 119:97 he shouts, “O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.” Do you and I have this same longing for the Bible? Do we really think about and walk according to His Word “all the day?”
Unfortunately, for me the answer to this question is often, no. Yet, God calls us to this joyful life in His Word with emphatic command. David once again in Psalm 119 declares, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (v. 105).” Is God your first resort rather than your last when seeking guidance and direction for life? Every single word, phrase, and sentence has been specially designed and crafted by the Holy Spirit as the specific and perfect instruction for our lives. Therefore, it is our duty to be students of this Word through and through.
Perhaps for you, the desire is not sports, but rather movies, music, novels, fast cars, boating, politics, or even dare I say facebook and blogging. While none of these are inherently wrong, and certainly can be enjoyable and relaxing, to have an insatiable desire for these cannot be anything but wrong. I therefore urge myself as well as you, to shake yourself from the desires and wants that so easily divert us from the Word of Life.
Run hard in an insatiable desire for the Lord and His Word alone, and I promise you, the world around will know and see the difference. May God’s glory be known and His power be shown in and through your lives.
“Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of faith…” (Heb 12:1-2a)
This work that I wrote this past week serves as a position paper which deals with aspects of anthropology (study of humankind) and hamartiology (study of sin) concerning how they relate in the bewildering confusion surrounding the issue of homosexuality in current culture. The purpose of this paper is to aid the reader in understanding a Biblical position regarding this topic and assist them in their articulation of the same. Misconceptions and misunderstandings abound, especially in discussions as the one you will find below. So, I encourage you to read the entire article, even though it is of considerable length. Also note: there are various references that were used to compile the information and argument of this paper. But because of the format of facebook notes, I have chosen to list citations that were only used for direct quotes. However, you can mark my words as accurate and well testified. In large part, the work below was brought together by my personal research in the primary sources of current culture.
My prayer is that God will use this article to bring insight and understanding to a very confusing and often widely skewed debate, and help us more aptly witness of the true hope and life found in Jesus Christ.
The Story of Pop Culture
Never at any time in human history has the practice of homosexuality been viewed as an activity that was necessitated by one’s biological constitution. It has never been perceived to be a foundational social moor, such as the ever-traditional family unit, and never was justified by a philosophy that declares such a lifestyle or mindset is not governed by the choice of the individual or other extenuating circumstances that occur after birth (such as abuse etc…). While all kinds of sexual perversion have been practiced and promoted by various societies since the very beginning of time (Gen 18:16 – 19:29), it was not until very recent years that such a lifestyle was viewed to be more than the result of a person’s moral degradation, but an actually identity of which that individual has no control.
As the cultural fabric of our society begins to unravel through the orchestration of Satan’s deception, I believe it is imperative that we understand and properly articulate God’s message of truth. And, without exception the primary and most highly promoted lie from the enemy in our present age is that of homosexuality. The effects of this lie can be felt not only in the secular realm of art and academia but they also have matriculated into the highest courts of religion, including those who claim Christ as their Savior.
Just two years ago, the former president of the National Association of Evangelicals and pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs was revealed to have been involved in homosexual behavior. News of Ted Haggard’s sin seemed to send shock-waves through the entire North American church and undoubtedly caused many to question the validity of their faith. He first denounced the charges against him saying that he “loved his wife” and thoroughly enjoyed being a father to his five children. However, after the evidence of his moral failure became insurmountable, he finally relented and confessed he had struggled with homosexual desire his entire adult life. [Ted Olsen, “'I Am Guilty of Sexual Immorality ... A Deceiver and a Liar,' Haggard Confesses,” in Christianity Today (2006).]
Just months before, Haggard had enjoyed a lengthy interview with NBC’s Tom Brokaw on the great influence of evangelical Christians in American culture, yet now it seemed he was nothing but a fraud. As his thriving mega-church scrambled to pick-up the pieces of chaos he had created, he thankfully retreated to the wise counsel of several leading Christian pastors and chose to submit himself for counseling and reconciliation to the proper design of God. However, the storm was not over…
Less than one month ago on September 12th, former Christian songwriter and artist, Ray Boltz, formally announced that he was “gay.” He is quoted as having said that he had struggled with feeling this way all his life, and finally had decided to end the fight and give in to what he believes to be the “way God made him.” He has no remorse for his decision and seems to fully believe that he has made the right choice. The divorce of his long-time wife has just been finalized and he now says that he is “living a normal gay lifestyle.” The buzz of his “coming out of the closet” again sent shock-waves throughout evangelicalism, yet it seemed that a more tolerant attitude towards his decision was more readily found amongst various internet forums and comment threads. In contrast to Haggard’s eventual confession, we now find individuals like Boltz simply stating their decision as a fact of life! In his case, there is of course no request or admission for counseling, because he firmly believes that he is finally living the way he was supposed to live all his life![Mark Moring, “Ray Boltz Comes Out,” in Christianity Today (2008).]
This kind of attitude reminds me of the words of Christ when he spoke of certain signs of his return in Matthew 24:11-12, “Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.” There has been an overwhelming tide by those prominent in our culture to break away from the moors of our society which were primarily founded on God’s Word. This tide demands of us to accept all beliefs, religions, and lifestyles as good and just. Such men as Ray Boltz, who are highly visible, followed leaders, have not only “come out of their closet,” but have most assuredly brought doubt and confusion to countless others.
The Deception of our Time
From Ted Haggard to Ray Boltz, where has our society gone? Countless other stories could be mentioned about other secular personalities who have also given way to this lie of the enemy, but looking simply within the Christian community will aptly suffice for our argument. We as a community of faith have in great majority bought into the opinions of the culture by our very words and attitudes. You see, when you or I say that he or she “is a gay” or “is a lesbian,” we have identified that sin as a part of their being, a part of their biological constitution. This is really no different than saying “I am an adulterer” (as in that is who I am as a person), or take for instance in less innocuous terms, “he is a masturbator” (as in that is who he is as a person). If a young man were to stand up and say he was a pedophile and that was simply the way he was born and made to live, he would be rejected (though probably not for long in our society). Yet, when we use the terminology of our culture to describe a person who is repeatedly committing an errant act that is clearly against the unified authority of the Bible and God’s design, we are unconsciously labeling that sin not as an act or choice, but as an identity. As a people we have condoned and confused sin because we have minimized it into mere victimization or an “identity-crisis.”
This is the deception and this is the lie from the Evil One – that whatever sin committed is not done out of choice according to a sin nature, but out of a designed natural inclination that is irreversible and unchangeable. This deception of our time and the lies of our culture are so well articulated and promoted by the mass media, that to make any attempt to bring a counter argument to the table is largely ignored. Sin-tolerant ideals are turned into adult cartoon jokes and prime-time television for the titillation of the masses. High School and College campuses are filled with programs and events that are promoted as sharing the keys to finding your “true sexual identity.” Coffee houses and clothing stores are filled with discussion that jokingly says “that tea is just gay” or “those jeans are so gay.” The sad and confusing thing is that most of this type of propaganda and talk is performed with little acknowledgment or reference to the physical, emotional, and spiritual damage often caused by living such a lifestyle. The results of living outside of God's intended design often bring devastating consequences. This can be lucidly seen not only in those who practice homosexuality, but also in a wide variety of other vices as well. We must therefore approach our daily lives with a response mechanism of perceptive love and mercy, not one of flippancy and jocularity. If we are to truly present the powerful Gospel of our Lord to this world, we must not enjoy getting a good laugh out of their present situation. To do so most certainly grieves the One who has brought us "out of darkness and into His marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9), and could likely drive a greater wedge between those we intend to reach and the Gospel we convey.
What Stand should we Take?
Some may be surprised by my use of terms or feel even a little dirty by reading them; however, the apostle Paul would be neither surprised nor shaken by the culture of our day. The society he ministered to was most likely just as “gay tolerant” as ours today, perhaps even more so. While living in a time such as this, he was led by the Holy Spirit to write his grand thesis of theology to the Romans. And, in this book we will find the answer to the stand we should take on the issue at hand. [Edith M. Humphrey, “What God Hath Not Joined: Why Marriage Was Designed for Male and Female,” Christianity Today, September 2006, 39.]
In Romans 1:18-32, we find the clearest Scriptural treatise on the reason for the presence of sin in all of humanity. Beginning in verses 18 and 19, Paul explains to us how the very “wrath of God” is made known against those who live in sin and “suppress the truth” through their unrighteous behavior. This is performed on account of their predisposed rejection of what is seen of God within them and all around them in creation. Someone once said, “Through the natural revelation of God shown in creation we are all condemned, and only through the special revelation of the Word Jesus Christ we are redeemed.” Because we are the very creation of God, yet born in sin through Adam’s fall (Genesis 3), we are all destined to sin and unrighteous behavior and ultimately the wrath of God, except for the saving work of God incarnate Jesus Christ. Simply, we are all born sinners. Paul declares that because of the vibrant and evident witness of God’s attributes throughout creation, all of humanity is without exception and has no excuse for their unrighteousness (v.20). We as a race have rejected God and have no other choice but to live in rebellion, or in righteousness through Jesus Christ (Rom 6:23). There are only two options.
Following Paul’s treatise to verse 21 and 22, we find reiteration that the sinful and ungodly have no excuse because we all have known of God and of his power. Yet, in prideful rebellion the unbelieving have decided in their hearts and through their lives to disregard God and extend no thanks to Him, and therefore as Paul writes, “…they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools (v.22).” Futility, darkness, and foolishness are the result of rebelling in unbelief and dishonoring the One who created us. Unfortunately many have chosen to remain in darkness, and because of this pride their end will sadly be death and everlasting destruction.
The rebelling and unbelieving (out of their inherent desire to worship something) chose then not to worship the Creator, but all ridiculous replications of the created (v.23). And, as a result of their idolatry of self and creature, and the refusal to honor the Creator, God decided to hand them over into the peril of their own devices. Paul writes, “Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them (v.24).” Why did God deliver the unbelieving to the judgment of sin? Herein is the crux of the issue. Paul declares to us that an exchange happened on the greatest scale, and on one side of this scale is the weight of the deception of our time and on the other side is the grounding where we must make our stand. Here is Paul’s answer, “For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator…” (v.25) The unbelieving have handed over the worship of the true God for the worship of self, and for this reason God decided to not only deliver them to their own devices (v.24), but also give them over to passions that bring degradation (v.26).
The example Paul uses for these “degrading” passions is shockingly clear to our twenty-first century eyes, “for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error (vs. 26b-27).” Verses 28 through 31 go on to list a whole variety of other acts and practices that are the result of this massive exchange of truth for self. However, the sin of homosexuality holds the clear place of prominence in this passage as the prime example of what has and will occur as a result of our rebellion against the created, orderly design and worship of God. While there are many other references in Scripture that clearly speak of man’s fallen nature, this one strikes a perfect chord with the position we need to take when understanding the depravity of man exuded in homosexual behavior.
There has been much discussion about whether people are inherently “born homosexual” or simply ascertain these attractions through abuse, childhood neglect, or through some other extenuating circumstance. While it is very likely (as data shows) that individuals may be more predisposed to this particular perversion through circumstances somewhat out of their control, I believe the central issue to the entire argument is that we have all been born into this world predisposed to sin. We all have a propensity to be in rebellion against God and his ways, and as Paul clearly declares we all face eternal judgment apart from the saving work of Christ. What we see pervading our society today is the result of man’s rejection of the Creator and the worship of self wreaking havoc on the human race.
God knew that this kind of deception of self-worship would one day reign supreme on earth and therefore he spoke of it. Once again, Paul’s words ring true to our times when he closes the first chapter of Romans with the following phrase, “…and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.” (Rom 1:32) Do we think that those who vociferously promote the “alternative lifestyles” and homosexual behavior not know of what God has said in His Word about the subject? According to the book of Romans, they do know and are therefore guilty by their neglect of the “ordinance of God.” However, they not only disregard God’s Word on the subject, but they also continue doing the same and give everybody a high-five for joining them in the perversion!
So, is it really an identity or is it the choice of fulfilling the gratifications of the nature of sin already pre-existing in every person? I believe the fundamental answer to the question is found in the latter. Everyone on earth is born completely depraved and has every capability of the most grievous of sins (Rom 3:23). Whether or not homosexuality is on a higher scale than other sins is matter for another debate, but the most important point we cannot afford to stumble over is that all of us have an identity of sin and self-worship, unless through faith we become identified with Christ (Rom 6:4-7).
What should our Answer be?
Allowing homosexuality to be seen as an irreversible identity takes the power out of Christ’s Gospel and turns the truth of God’s Word into a fraud. For just as the adulterer, fornicator, and drunkard can come to victory over sin so can the effeminate and homosexual. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 says, “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” What a wonderful hope exists for all those who call upon the name of the Lord! Even the very worst of sinners has the opportunity to be washed, sanctified, and justified through Christ. This is the power of the Gospel and we must not let anyone fog our minds with any contrary opinions of the day.
In the balance, it must be understood that claiming Christ is certainly not a quick “fix-all” for every problem, but a walk that is a daily discipline of abiding in the Spirit’s power and enablement to live a life that pleases the Lord (Gal 5:16). Throughout life this walk is matured, strengthened, and kept vital by the power of Christ’s working in our lives (2 Peter 1-3-11). And, when all this life is over we shall have the wonderful realization of the very presence of God in the glory of His perfect and holy heaven.
If one says that he was “born that way,” our answer could very well be, “yes you were born in sin, however God desires you to be forgiven and made righteous through His Son.” We were all born with the innate propensity to sin and be separated from the Holy God (Rom 3:23). However, we have the great and wonderful need to proclaim the hope and truth of God’s Word that grants forgiveness, freedom, and righteousness through the supreme work of Jesus Christ. This is the hope of our salvation and the dire need of our generation. They must hear that they do not have to stay in the heavy chains of bondage to sin, but through Christ may have life and have it more abundantly! Whatever confusion reigns in our culture we can know that to all who trust in Christ as Savior, their identity no longer has to be that of sinfulness, but one of righteousness (Rom 1:16-17). May we give all thanks to our Lord for His wonderful salvation.
Taking a Position
As we seek to address the questions and confusion that permeate our culture, I believe it is absolutely essential that we take a position on the nature of sin, especially pertaining to the homosexual movement. This “position” is not meant to be one of hatred or fear, but one of true hope, freedom, and salvation. Because it is vital for us to take such a stand, you will find below a list of posits that I believe we need to make when it comes to this issue. These points may seem simple or perhaps even trite, but the reality is that they are the essentials of the Gospel and must be taken to their fullest extent in all of life. May we stake our claim on the omnipotent power of the Gospel, so that when the storms and winds of culture blow we will be firmly planted on the foundation that will never be shaken, wherein is life in all its fullness.
The Stance of the Gospel:
I believe it is absolutely imperative that we…
A. …Express Christ-like love. (Rom 2:4; 3:23; 5:6-8; John 3:16) B. …Realize the inherent need of all peoples. (1 Cor 6:9-11; Rom 1:20-27; 3:23; 6:23; Eph 2:8-9) C. …Cut through the lies and deception of our day with the timeless truths of God’s Word. (Matt 24:11-12; Rom 1:16-17, 32; 1 Cor 2:14)
We will do so by understanding that... 1. We were all born sinners. (Rom 3:23; 5:12-13) 2. We all are depraved and prone to a wide variety of sins. (Rom 1:28; 3:23; 5:6-8, 12-13) 3. We all need freedom and forgiveness of sin. (Rom 2:11; 6:23) 4. We must not condone or accept a lifestyle that is sin and thereby deny the power of Christ’s Gospel. (Rom 6:1-2, 14-18, 22-23; 2 Peter 1:3-11; 1 Cor 6:12-20) 5. We must promote and preach that life is a battle between two forces (good and evil i.e. the natural man and the spiritual man) and only Christ gives the power to daily win that battle and bring ultimate victory. (Rom 7:14-25; 2 Peter 1:3-11 esp. v. 9; Rom 1:16-17; 1 Cor 6:12-20) 6. Christ came to forgive and grant victorious life. (Rom 8:1-2, 35-39; Col 3:5-11) 7. Only life in Christ is abundant, full, and free. (Rom 8:35-39; 1 Tim 1:13-14; John 10:9-10; Eph 3:14-20)
Conclusion
As I close this discussion on such a heavy topic of sin, I find it most appropriate to remind myself, as well as you the reader of what we all have been guilty of and saved from. We all once lived and walked in our own desires and impulses, yet through the humility and mercy of Christ, He came to set each believing sinner free. In reminding ourselves of our own faults and fallacies and in humble exhortation to us all, Colossians 3:5-11 speaks to us as a wonderful conclusion to this work:
“Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him – a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.”
Have you ever experienced a time in your life when
everything was going simply wonderful... and then reality struck a hard blow
right at the very climax of your happiness? Or perhaps, have you ever gone
through a week of not knowing how you were going to make it through the next?
Sometimes the grit of life grinds hard against the oftentimes tender flesh of
our humanity. And, it is during periods like these that we often discover the
reality of how deep our faith may truly be.
When life stretches our emotions to the breaking point we learn. Yes, we learn
through hard times. In fact, I believe it would be honest to say that I have
been taught far more invaluable lessons during times of angst, stress, and loss
than amidst the soaring times of joy and happiness. But, why must this be so?
Why do we have to go through hardship to grow and learn? Why does it take a
swelling tear to come a step closer to the Master?
Many days I have pondered this question and for many days I have not had an
answer. Yet, eventually by the mercy of God I found that in my questioning, the
answer had already been given. The answer happened to lie in the valley itself,
and in the swelling tear of discouragement. I found that this answer was
simple, yet "hard". The answer is "hard" in that it is
difficult to accept from our so-often worldly mentality. And, as frustrating as
it might seem, this lesson has to be learned over and over and over again - at
least this is true for me.
Falling On Hard Times
Just about one month ago I yet again went through an experience that taught me
of the answer to this question. It was not easy or smooth sailing, it was not
soaring high with joy and happiness, it was not even fun at all... it was just
the opposite. However, after having gone through similar lessons before, there
remained a certain level of hope and faith that God was in it all, and in this
time I would again learn of the answer to the question.
Upon our arrival back here in Dallas after our unbelievable, "mountain
top" honeymoon of bliss, Stephanie and I were presented with a tough
dilemma. After settling into our new apartment and finally climbing out of the
hills of boxes, we began to discover that we were fast approaching zero in our
bank accounts. This did not bode well at all because both of us knew that our
expenses were only going to rise (especially once my school tuition bills
starting coming in the end of July).
However, with a general budget in hand we began seeking out jobs that would
hopefully help us meet our needs. Stephanie applied to more than half a dozen
positions around the area, yet after several weeks it appeared that nothing was
going to "pan out." More than a month went by and with events at the
church running low on my work schedule; I too went looking for something extra
to add on to my duties. With many thanks to the Lord, He opened up a door just
a couple weeks later for me to do some marketing work for Tommy Nelson's Song
of Solomon Bible Resources. This certainly was an answer to our prayers and
would definitely help our financial situation. And during this time it was also
confirmed to our most pleasant surprise that a little "Peanut" had
been planted during our honeymoon in northern Georgia. WOW! What a wonderful
joy... yes a mountain top. But over the past two and a half months of scraping
by with little work and having significantly increased expenses for rent etc...
our situation still looked quite dim.
The past month of August was discouraging at times and even involved some
panic, yet we continued to believe that God would provide and keep us out from
under the heavy load of debt. I began working on my new job which seemed to be
going pretty well, until just as I began the second week of work I came down
with strep throat and could not eat solid foods, let alone work for more than
five days. And, our bills for tuition, rent, insurance, and others kept flowing
in. This was a period of inner strife for me because every other time I had run
low I had always been able to work myself out of the hole and get back to
"running again." Yet, this time I could do nothing but lay in bed
sipping on tea and trying to swallow yogurt. Stephanie did her best to take
care of me, even though she herself was severely struggling with morning sickness
due to pregnancy. What a wonderful wife God has given me.
As that week came to an end, I slowly started to recover and once again began
to look over our finances. Glancing ahead at all the bills due right around the
first of this month, I first began to panic... but then as Stephanie reminded
me, we again cried out to the Lord for our needs to be met. We both believe
that God knows all our needs before we even ask Him, yet felt entirely prompted
to ask of Him a specific amount that would cover our expenses and asked of Him
that He would be pleased to answer our prayer by the end of that week.
Down to the Wire
By Wednesday I had only $15 in my checking account, yet remained at peace that
God would show His power. And show us He did! On Thursday Stephanie had an interview
for a part-time nanny job and was offered the position, and that same day she
also acquired a new piano student! While these things would not offer us an
immediate solution to our pending bills, they certainly brought much needed
encouragement from our Lord. That evening we thanked God for the wonderful
events of the day and again brought our needs before Him.
On Friday morning (the end of the week) I woke up and decided to check our bank
account online to see if my regular paycheck had gone through. As I rubbed the
sleep away from my eyes, I could not believe the number that stared back at me
from the screen of my laptop. With my heart pounding and tears welling up I
clicked on the account status to see if, in fact, what I was seeing was true
and not just a figment of my imagination. And, low and behold there was an
amount sent along with my paycheck from some dear friends that would meet all
the major pending bills that I would need to pay in the next several days...
Wiping the emotion from my eyes I ran into the bedroom and quickly brought
Stephanie over to the computer so she could see for herself that our God had
heard our prayers. As we both wept and praised the Lord for His goodness that
morning, we realized that God had taught us a very important lesson about faith
and trust. Yes it was VERY hard to go through such a test, yet we had grown
closer to our Savior and to one another as well.
As we hand over our self-trust for belief in God, we come to realize that life
is not about us, but about Christ and His glory. The events and experiences of
this life on earth do not measure one cord to that which is to come in His
great Kingdom. Yet, through these days of life that are woven together with
hard times and with the good, we see that He is at work and we see His hand.
His hand is shown in our lives not that we may have what we want, when we want
it, but that He might show the excellencies of His grace toward us who are in
Christ Jesus.
To know that He is near and to believe that He is sovereign - literally
watching over every circumstance of our lives; this is the answer to the
question! Life is not learned until there is pain. Until we know the anguish of
death and loss we will never know the value of life. Until we have nothing we
will never learn the value of one single dollar. And, until we surrender our
self-trust into simple belief in the omnipotent Lord will we learn to see His
hand.
And then, when all this life is over and we lay our heads to rest we shall
enter the streets of gold and cast the crowns that we have earned by our faith
through Christ at the foot of the throne of our Powerful God and crown Him King
of Kings and Lord of Lords. For it is all for Him and by Him and for His great
glory.
May we wholeheartedly say as Paul wrote to the Church at Philippi during his
imprisonment (an obvious hardship), "For me to live is Christ and to die
is gain." (Phil. 1:21)
Watch for His hand... He is waiting to show His glory.
May His glory be known and His power shown in and through our lives for the
praise of His glorious grace.
