Upon the Bible can I only claim

I was hoping to mop up all the messiness from the last entry in a self contained blog. But this problem is so big that it could not all fit in one entry.  I hope I made the case that our current problem is our need to be accepted on both sides of the debate. It was inevitable that Christians would be outed as having issue with sin. But Christians have fallen for the very thing that homosexuals want: cultural acceptance. 

This blog is for Christians to understand the Biblical view of this, if this was for homosexuals the conversation would be very different. Not in truth but in presentation. The Gospel trumps discussion of mastering personal sin. 

This was never supposed to be about this specific sin but the way the cultural war has gone we cannot but comment at this point because we will inadvertently being backing a specific world view. At this point if we do not stand on the Bible on this issue we will be backing the worldview that makes it out to be not that big of a deal. This is about acceptance, if it would stay there that would be one thing but it will not and has not. It is coming to the point where Christians either cave or are bigots, as if honest communication is not an option anymore. Well it will not be if we continue to only capitulate or say nothing. 

As I mentioned we all want to be accepted and all want to fit in. That is normal. And the Christian job is not to make people feel uncomfortable, however it may be that we are being called to that discomfort ourselves. If we stand for something that the culture does not like we should expect blow-back. The way we know this is because the Bible calls for us to be humble on what it teaches. It says we will suffer as he did. We are not free to seek comfort over what God asks of us. So let's look at why we are not free to capitulate on a topic that is so culturally hot that we would want to.

1 Thessalonians 2:4
But just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts.

Proverbs 29:25
The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe.

John 12:43
For they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

Homosexuality is a hot topic not just because it is current but it affects the very lives of people, the very lives of people in a very intimate way.  As I said before it also speaks to where we are culturally. This is something that the church has failed to recognize. We think it is a simple sin issue but it affects the way people view themselves and the way they find intimacy.  It also is indicative that the culture is already in quite a different place. This is why we need to be clear on why we believe what we do, because it has such impact. And when we communicate it to non-believers we have to understand the sub-text of what we are saying and the depth that is affects people.

It is difficult, yes. It was a thing in the nineties to say that Christianity was counter cultural. It was fun and almost cool to say that, but well, it finally is.

But God doesn't ask people to combat sin, that is why he conquered sin in death himself. The Gospel is not "Straighten out your life and then come to me!" The message is "You can't straighten out yourself so you need to come to me." It does involve addressing the sin for sure but if we tell people about their sin problem as if it is something they need to fix without presenting it humbly within the context of the Gospel we leave people in a feeling of helplessness. If this is something that someone identifies with an identity then they are going to feel doubly lost aren't they? In order to present the Gospel to homosexuals or anyone really we have to understand what the Bible says about it. Why they need the Gospel.

So what does it say, is it really a sin?

Now a common objection is that the command against homosexual activity is given in the Old Testament. The Old Testament! case closed, right? Why aren't we more upset about all those other silly laws?  This objection is not the smoking gun that is assumed. A lot of Americas saw the program West Wing when the fictional president gave this very objection to the fictional conservative talk show host condemning her to also focus on pigskins and mixing fabrics, oh my! So unless we want to impose all those other uncomfortable laws we are out of luck, or at least hypocrites?

Well the issue is this, not only does the New Testament reiterate this specific command, but the very issue of what Old Testament laws gentiles-Christians needed to follow was addressed in the Jerusalem council in the book of Acts chapter 15. Also Paul also wrote a book about it called Galatians because this was a big topic in the first century.  The conclusion of the council was this:
Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, 20 but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood.

The apostles teach that new converts still must uphold and continue to avoid idolatry, sexual immorality, and food that was strangled and from blood. Idolatry is continued to be avoided by the church and rightfully so.  As far as strangulation and blood, the issue was a strangled animal would not have been drained of blood. So drain the blood and then cook it, we pretty much already do this. But Paul speaks to this as well, if we do not know about the food preparation do not make inquiry unless a weaker brother is conflicted.  In order for unity and love to continue. 

But the central issue here is the gentile Christians are still to hold to the rules of sexual immorality. The question is where do rules for sexual immorality come from? Well rules for immoral sexual practice come from Leviticus 18 and 20 and there are rules for marriage covenants as well, which is always between a man and a woman. This is where the Jewish person is going to go for these instructions, this is where the Jewish person would point the Gentile wondering what defines sexual immorality. The Law does inform these practices. This is why Paul reiterates homosexuality, and why Jesus repeats adultery, and why Paul gets mad at the Corinthian church for allowing a man to have his Father's wife. Why not simply allow this if they are loving consenting adults? Why not let grace abound on this Paul? Paul knows that this act is specifically mentioned in this list. This is also why incest and bestiality is also still prohibited, despite what interests our culture.

To argue that this list is not still in vogue is to tell Paul he can't be mad about adultery, incest, bestiality, and specifically this episode from first Corinthians. This is to tell Paul that when he mentions homosexuality many times that he doesn't understand grace and certainly not love. Jesus furthers clarifies this list when speaking to the underlining problem of lust. Lust makes them all out of bounds, this is why pornography is also a problem. Lust makes sex about us. Lust means we throw off the commands of love and sex and demand our own ways. Lust says "This is how I feel", not what is right. Lust means we want it our way and we do not care about what the creator of our bodies and of sex says. In 1 Corinthians 6 Paul further tells us that sexual sin seems to have a special problem for all people:

The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14 And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! 16 Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” 17 But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. 18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

This type of sin, sins against the temple of the Lord. The questions is are you a temple of the Lord or not? If so then you should avoid sexual immoral practices all the more. The non-Christian doesn't believe they are a temple so why belabor the point? Paul even mentions homosexuality specifically in the lists of sins that people who practice them will not inherit the kingdom of God. This should be scary enough to avoid. But if a homosexual does not believe in God or the Bible then they should simply say "Well I don't believe that." But instead what we get is reasons why it should be OK. Well to a Christian I have all the reasons I need. Just as I have all the reasons to believe that Jesus is Lord. If God created us then he gets to set the standard. If he is Lord then he gets to tell me "Yes" or "No" . Again these are Christian truths based on a Christian worldview.

As a Christian I have to agree with what God says about the way he designed sex to work. As I Christian I am not allowed to practice homosexual sex. As a Christian I am not allowed to practice adultery. As a Christian I am not supposed to have sex outside of the marital covenant. As a Christian I am not allowed to have sex with animals. As a Christian I am not allowed to have incestuous sex. If any of these pose a temptation, we have to recognize that and give it to God to be nailed to the cross, not identify with it.

 ¹³ No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

This doesn't mean you will not fail but that there is a way out, if you are interested. And we remember...

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

There it is! The problem is that the wadges of sin is death. So the answer to our why question is that sin distances us from God and leaves us in eternal separation form him. The message here is not "God hates Fags!" It is that God hates people to die without relationship to him. He desires that none should perish. The reason that God has such strong language against sin is because it robs people of relationship with him. 

If people are unwilling to even acknowledge sin, then they aren't going to be interested in the savior from it.

If homosexual sin is enticing to you, then that is your temptation, but you have to face it the same way a heterosexual man or woman faces their own sexual temptations: in obedience or rebellion, in humility or pride. As a Christian I have a responsibility of obedience because I am not the King, and the good news is when I fail there is a God who forgives. But a Christian needs to hold to what the Bible teaches on such matters. A non-Christian does not, that is their choice.

But our sinful proclivities do not excuse our acquiescence to them. God is inviting us all to himself if we will only come.

thanks 

Sex and Violence

Based on a previous post about the comedian and my response to that I recently had a short discussion with a friend of mine on the merits of Christian consumption of entertainment. Specifically about how our entertainment speaks and how we receive, respond, and even have a voice with it.  I had that discussion and while I was still pondering how this works I heard a radio discussion about why Harry Potter was not allowed to have Christian themes or anything redemptive because of its use of magic. 

I know that Harry Potter was so five years ago but this still speaks to the current problem of what do we consume for entertainment. Now I have read all the Harry Potter books and watched all the movies. That perhaps lets me speak to the issue or admit that I can't because I have already succumbed to its "magic" as another Christian dupe. But I will attempt to cast my spell and see if I have any influence at all.  Expelliarmus!!

Now perhaps my obvious bias will turn off a few but kidding aside, Christians do need a response on entertainment, but it should be based on the Bible and reason and not fear. I will focus on just a few areas used within entertainment: sex, violence, and magic with pagan practices.

So let's ask some hard questions should Christians watch "R" movies?  What content should be avoided?  Are some subjects too evil for Christians to view? Can Christians engage in any of these without it being sin?

I will admit that the one that I think makes the most sense is sex.  This is one with the least nuance. This is the one that Bible tells us to flee from.  This is the one that Job made a covenant with his eyes over.  This is the one that proverbs warns us against. This is the one that can cause marriages to be destroyed.  This is the one that Leviticus has the most addendums to for wrong practices. This is the one that gets repeated in the New Testament over and over again to take extra caution over. 

So what should the Christian response be? Shame? Fear? No we have tried that and it doesn't work. The Christian response should not therefore be that it is evil or shameful, but it does need a warning.

Some want to say "Well, that is the Old Testament" and true enough it is, but these warnings and commands are reiterated in the new Testament by Paul and then again at the Jerusalem council.  The issue was on what, if any, parts of the law Gentiles need to pay attention to. See Romans, 1 Corinthians, and Acts. Then some say "But Song of Songs is all about sex!"  True it is, but a theme of the book is not to awaken it before its time.  This is the point, sex is an amazing thing, when it's in the right context. 

The song of songs is meant to celebrate sexual love. Which it is, a celebration of a gift of God.  The Bible even contains stories of sex, but when it does the purpose was about the heirs that come from them and not for the purpose to arouse, when it is not about a bigger purpose the Bible is replete with warnings after warnings on this subject.  

Let's teach our kids that it is not a hateful, shameful thing, but that it is a wonderful thing but that it is reserved for marriage. So sexual content? In marriage? Good. For arousal and entertainment outside of marriage? Bad. For more information read your Bible. This is why porn is a problem, it involves actual people most of the time and its cause is for arousal. Christ clarified the way this sin works with the mind, so lust is the real problem, this happens with actual contact or not.

It seems to me that in the 80's and before, sex was often used in movies to communicate that the couple actually loved each other. Obviously this had range as well, but now it seems that sex is simply used to entice.  It sells, it always has, but it didn't used to be only for a enticement.  It seems as the times go on and as we become much more "mature" and able to handle these things we are simply injecting it into more and more of our entertainment.  

I once had a friend who had recently got married and told me that he still went to topless bars.  I was surprised not because he was a Christian, because he wasn't, but because this type of sin actively wars against the vows of marriage. I asked him why and he gave me the typical response, that he simply looked and didn't touch.  I told him that I could never do that because it causes desire which leads to darker more, tactual places. Then I asked him how long did he think it would be before only looking wasn't enough?  He got the point.

So 50 shades of Grey? Nope.

Moving on...

Violence, this one is perhaps more nuanced than sex because it is in all stories. The Bible is full of stories of war and battles and the victors are viewed as heroes and God frequently communicates himself to us as a warrior which is something to be looked up to.  Ecclesiastes says that there is a time for war. War involves violence. God frequently involved his people in war and conflict, and used it as a legitimate punishment for evil. Even if the evil was other forms of violence.

The Bible encourages people to view warriors and victors as honorable and worthy or praise. The question then becomes all violence?  Well no, the Ninevites for example are historically known for their brutality and gory shows that they put on to scare their enemies.  This is why Jonah didn't want to preach repentance to them because of the gross nature of their violence. The rule of an eye for eye was implemented not to make the world go blind as Gandhi said, but was to restrain evil.  This was to put a cap on violence. We tend to go overboard with this stuff. 

True enough that in the New Testament Jesus comes and shows a more excellent way.  He shows the way of restraint and he seems to teach passivity when it comes to our experience of personal violence.  But God himself essentially says leave the violence to me. "Vengeance is mine."  Actual violence is to be avoided by Christians.  But violence is given to the government to restrain evil, that is until God arrives on the scene to deal with it himself. God doesn't himself have a problem with punitive justice.

So violence is nuanced, God uses it, but should we be entertained by it?  Well again the Bible frequently uses valor and victories to tell a story, so that does not seem so out of bounce. But what about gore? What about slasher flicks?  Well I would draw the line there. It would be similar to the games of the Roman empire. Sure there were victors with stories of honor but essentially it was slaves in a bloody sport to the death for the citizens entertainment.  Like how WWE is only for entertainment, except people were actually killed, and the acting was better. I don't believe that Christians should have attended the Roman games and we should avoid gory entertainment, especially when there isn't any redeeming factor. I wish zombie movies could tell there bleak and human survival stories without having to emphasize and capitalize on the gore, maybe a pipe dream?

The gore element seems to be the 'lust' factor in violence, it is only to entice with death. It seems silly to discuss brutality factors but that does seem to be the point. What is this violence enticing me too? Is it causing me to honor soldiers and valor or is it enticing me to glory in death? This may be why the Gospels exclude the gory details of crucifixion. The fact the word excruciating had to be invented to describe it should be enough to make the point. If not Mel Gibson helped us on this bit. 

A further nuance? Well violence in films and TV do not hurt actual people in the making.  The way Jesus addressed this sin was anger leading to violence. When we view violence it is not typically fueling anger in the person watching as porn does with lust. Violence is usually a MacGuffin, which is why we walk away with such themes as self-sacrifice, justice, honor, service, camaraderie, valor etc. While again in porn there is no MacGuffin it is about the acts being witnessed, it is to stimulate. This is why a book or a movie about the gulf war or famous battle is fine. 

So Saving Private Ryan? Fine.

So for the Christian the purpose is how do I think Christianly about this?  The Christian must answer these questions to engage culture. It must be more than a knee-jerk reaction to offense but a Biblical response, especially when the outside world loves to point out hypocrisy. So take the time to learn why the Bible says what it says and when it says it. Learn why the Bible had battles and had heroes.  Psst. it had something to do with God's judgement. For another example that maybe defies the gore element I spoke on?  To avoid a knee jerk reaction, think about  the Passion of the Christ. It was gorier than most films but the point was to show what Christ suffered for us, the extent of his suffering. I think that that is very redemptive. This was a unique situation where the gore did help the point, but again use your Christian mind to decide.  

This is just such a big topic that these first two points have taken longer than I had thought, so I will do part two next time.

thanks