Homosexuality Sermon #1, 11/11/13, Stephen Jones

But by the same token, there are horrible things being done in reaction: mockery, bullying, I
want to distance from that as well, completely. Now today the word . .. somebody to call you a
homophobe is almost the worst type of accusation that they can make, but I want to state very
plainly that if you are stating the biblical position lovingly, it is not homophobia; and your manner
in stating also should not be homophobic. But what the world is after is not just to
homophobia; it is homophilia, to accept as just another choice.

So whats the Bible say? And I want to also be clear because its equally important what does
the Bible not say? My prayer going into this is that may be clear and biblical passages, loving
and hope giving. those here that struggle with same sex attractions, and I want you to have
hope from the scripture because as we sang what Christ did on Calvary, what he did there it
brought hope from despair. And we have the answer that we need. But as I go into this, I want
you to know that I also have close homosexual friends. Several of them are unsaved, and Im
trying to be a testimony to them. They know my position. Were close friends. In fact one of the
nicest guys I know is a homosexual. And I have a tremendous burden for him. I also have
friends who are saved who are battling same sex attraction, and I want to encourage you .I have
friends who are saved who are winning the battle, who are being fruitful in their ministry for the
lord despite their ongoing battle with something they have fought for as long as they can
remember. But those who imitate God, if we are with God, what can we say? if were
imitating God, we have to imitate what he says. We can only say what the bible says.

I want as we start off to address something that was given to me last week by Mr. Daulton
written to a student, and I will not use all of the words written in this. To a male student:

You ____. You dont belong here. This is a Christian school. Get out. God doesnt love gays.
You dont belong or deserve to be here, so go burn.

From: wouldnt you like to know.

P.S. Do us a favor and just end it. No one likes you anyway.

Well that was last week, and we still dont know who wrote it, but the Dean of Mens ofce is
looking into it. And I am telling whoever wrote it even if it is the person himself looking for
attention, you have 24 hours to talk to your supervisor about it and own up to it. If you dont, and
we gure out who wrote it, you wont be part of this student body because that represents
nothing of the spirit of Christ, and that will not be accepted here. And theres 24 hours from now
for whoever wrote that to come clean.

Now the issue when were dealing with homosexuality and same sex attractions is not how nice
these people are because they are - hes one of the nicest guys I know. and most interesting
and fascinating guy to me is a homosexual. The issue is not how wrong Christians have
sometimes been, and they have been. The issue is not that God loves homosexuals. He does.
The issue is what does the Bible say. What does it say? Well have three points that well deal
with today and tomorrow.

First of all, the Bible clearly presents Gods ideal.

Second, the Bible clearly prohibits homosexual activity.

And third, the Bible clearly provides hope.

Alright, so rst of all, the Bible clearly presents Gods ideal. Open if you would to Genesis
chapter 1. The Bible is clear in its presentation of Gods ideal. God is creator. He made the
world. It is his right to say how it should run and how its creatures should behave. So well start
in the old Testament. What is the Biblical ideal. Then well look in the New Testament - what is
the Biblical ideal. Is it underlined anywhere?

First in the Old. In Genesis 1 verse 27: So God created man in his own image, in the image of
God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said
unto them, Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion
over the sh of the sea and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon
the earth.

Then look over at chapter 2 verse 18: And the LORD God said, it is not good that the man
should be alone; I will make him an help meet [unintelligible - suitable] for him.

And then verse 24: Therefore, shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave
unto his wife, and they shall be one esh. And they - speaking of Adam Eve - were both naked
and they were not ashamed.

So God, who has the right to say how his creation should behave and how it is meant to work,
said it is meant to be one man with one woman in marriage till death do us part, to leave the
family, to cleave husband to wife and wife to husband. Thats the old testament ideal. Now is it
endorsed anywhere, underlined again anywhere in the New Testament? Yes, it is. In fact Jesus
himself endorses this creation model.

Alright, now thats important. Again, if you faded in your attention, get this. Jesus himself
endorses the model that God said should operate in his creation: one man with one woman til
death do us part in marriage. Because pro-homosexual theologians will say, Jesus never talked
about homosexuality. K, and were going to deal with that red herring argument in just a
moment. But you can say, But Jesus did say that its supposed to be one man and one woman
for life.

In Mark 10, Mark 10 verse 6, well, lets start in verse 5 so you can see its clearly Jesus
speaking: And Jesus answered and said unto them, From the hardness of your heart, he -
speaking of Moses - wrote you this precept, but from the beginning of creation God made them
male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife,
and they twain shall be one esh. So then they are no more twain but one esh.

So Jesus says the model not just established in the Old Testament - it wasnt just the Old
Testament model - this is for all New Testament believers and all of us who have come after
Christ, one man with one woman till death do us part. He endorsed the Old Testament model.
And in fact he offers only two options, alright? There are only two options.

If you would please turn over to Matthew 19. Jesus offers only two options on the matter of
sexual relationships. Matthew 19 and well start at verse 9. Jesus is speaking. He says, I say
unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife except it be for fornication and shall marry another
committeth adultery. And whoso marrieth her which is put away that commit adultery. His
disciples said unto him, if the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry. And he
said unto them, all men cannot not receive this saying save they to whom it is given. For there
are some eunuchs which were so born from their mothers womb, and there are some eunuchs
which were made eunuchs of men, and there be eunuchs which have made themselves
eunuchs for the kingdom of heavens sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

Alright, so hes talking about marriage at the start, that that is the proper place for expression of
sexual desire of a husband for a wife, wife for husband. But then he says there are others who
are eunuchs, and that can refer to a physical inability to have sexual relations, but also it refers
to a choice - can refer to a choice not to have sexual relations. Those who are made so for the
kingdom of heaven or are chosen to be so for the kingdom of heaven. Let me give you an
illustration of this. K, theres a heterosexual man or woman but called to singleness. The only
option for either one of them is just abstinence. Because of Gods calling on them to be
restrained sexually, abstinence - and its either for a man or for a woman, for a heterosexual or
for someone with same sex attractions - the only option for marriage is one man and one
woman for life. The only other option is abstinence, but its with a purpose. Its for the kingdoms
sake. There is a way you can turn it to be something positive, God-pleasing, and even
ministering to others.

So thats the Old Testament ideal, which is underlined again by Jesus in the New Testament.
One man with one woman for life. And the only other option is abstinence. So the Bible is clear
in its presentation of Gods ideal. Its also clear in its prohibition of homsexuality. Now let me
read in Genesis 19 [] verses from this account of Sodom and Gomorrah. If you want to write
down the references, its Genesis 19 starting at verse 4. Lot has invited these angelic visitors
into his house. But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom
compassed the house round, both old and the young, all the people from every corner. And they
called unto Lot and said unto him, Where are the men which came in unto thee this night. Bring
them out that we may know them - and that means know them sexually. And Lot went out of the
door unto them and shut the door after him. And said, I pray you brethren, do not so wickedly.
Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man. Let me, I pray you, bring them
out to you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes, only unto these men do nothing for
therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.

Again, one of the distortions that pro-homosexual theologians will [pick]? on this passage is just
saying that when Lot by taking these people privately into his own house and not introducing
them to the city, he had violated the customs of hospitality, and that thats why they come to his
door. But in context, does that make a bit of sense. Ok, I didnt introduce these two these men to
you, but here let me re-introduce my daughters that you already know who live in the city. Is that
clearly thats not whats going on. But at the same time, I want to be clear because
[indiscernible] argument that will be made (which is true) is that Sodom and Gomorrah were not
destroyed just for homosexuality. People will say that. It wasnt destroyed just for homosexuality.
And your answer will be: true, it wasnt just for homosexuality. Right now were in Ezekial 16:49
where it says this, Behold this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom. Pride, fullness of bread and
abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters. Neither did she strengthen the hand of
the poor and the needy.

So she had abundance and she was lazy, and she didnt minister, the city didnt minister to the
poor and the needy. But Jude 7, again, mentions that along with those social ills there were
moral ills that led to the destruction of the city. Jude 7: Even Sodom and Gomorrah and the
cities about them in like manner giving themselves over to fornication and going after strange
esh are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal re.

Alright, so scripture is clear prohibiting homosexuality. It is also clearly called an abomination
and the children of Israel were told not to take part. In Leviticus 18 verse 20: Moreover thou
shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbors wife to dele thyself with her, and thou shalt not let any
of thy seed - talking of their children - pass through the re to Molech. Neither shalt thou profane
the name of thy God, for I am the Lord. Thou shalt not lie with mankind as with womankind. It is
an abomination. Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to dele thyself therewith. Neither shalt any
woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto. It is confusion.

Christ was talking about pretty heinous sins here. He calls them abominations. And over in
Leviticus 20 verse 3, let me read that verse to you as well. I mean verse 13. If a man also lie
with mankind as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They
shall surely be put to death, and their blood shall be upon them.

Ok, this is Old Testament law. The act of homosexuality and beastiality and giving your children
in worship to a false god, those things were abominations, are abominations. Now pro-
homosexual theologians will say, again, its talking just about pagan ritual. Ok, its talking about
your children passing through the re for Molech. Clearly thats a pagan ritual. So when it talks
about those other things, the beastiality or the homosexuality, thats just saying you cant do that
as part of your pagan worship.

Oh, we have to deal with the word abomination. The word abomination is one of the strongest
words used of the way God feels. And it is used about a number of things in addition to the
things that we read about. It is used - and Ill talk about this more tomorrow - it is used about
lying. Alright, so dont feel prideful sitting there, Well I dont have a same-sex attraction, so Im
doing ok. If you lie, if youre a liar, God says you are an, you are abominable. Your sin is
abominable. Its in the same category. The same thing with dishonest business practices. Those
who are dishonest in business, it is an abomination. God uses the same word to describe it. In
fact he says everything the wicked do - their thoughts, their walk, their sacrice, their prayer - its
all an abomination.

Alright? So lets go back to that pro-homosexual theologian says homosexuality if its part of
a pagan ritual, its wrong. But if its not a part of a pagan ritual, its all right. And you got to back
to the word abomination. What are the other sins? Lying. Pride. Shedding innocent blood.
Murder. K, to use the same argument, youd have to say, well, you know what, God would say
you cant commit murder, you cant lie as part of a worship practice to a pagan god, but if its not
part of worship to a pagan god, lying and murder are ok. Does that make a bit of sense? Ok, no.
Its a false argument.

Clearly, the Old Testament prohibits homosexuality. And clearly the New Testament prohibits
homosexualty. Again I shared with you that pro-homosexual theology makes much of the fact
that Jesus never mentions homosexuality, so it must be ok. But rst remember that he does say
that its meant to be one man and one woman till death do us part. So hes given us his opinion
on the matter. Beside the fact that we know from John 21 that there are many things that Jesus
did and said that arent included in scripture. So there, its the argument from the negative on
their part. Do you know what else he didnt address? He didnt address slavery. He didnt
address spousal abuse. He didnt address inscest or sexual abuse. So by that argument, those
things must be ok because he didnt directly address those in the scripture that we have? What
do you think? Incest must be ok because Jesus didnt say anything about it recorded in
scripture. Or abusing your wife? Clearly not. Clearly not. Jesus did tell us that the ideal is one
man and one woman for life, and there are many other things that he said and did that are not
included, so its a fallacious argument. Because he said heres the ideal. Besides the fact he
could have addressed it and those other things in places where its not recorded.

But also in Romans 1. Turn there in closing, please. Romans 1. Alright, verse 19. Because that
which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God showed it unto them. For the invisible
things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that
are made, even his eternal power and godhead; so that they are without excuse: because that,
when they knew God, they gloried him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in
their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they
became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to
corruptible man, and to birds and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also
gave them up to uncleanness, through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own
bodies between themselves: who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and
served the creature more than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this cause God
gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change their natural use to that
which is against nature: and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman,
burned in their lust one with another, men with men working that which is unseemly, and
receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.

The point Im making is that the Old Testament is clear that homosexuality, whether its done in
practice in worship to a pagan god or anywhere else, is wrong. And also from these verses and
from Christs statement of the ideal, clearly the New Testament says the same thing - that its
wrong. So where does that leave us? It leads us to the rst part. We know Gods opinion. His
ideal is clear, and his opinion about homosexual activity is also clear. Tomorrow were going to
look at the fact that the Bible is also clear that there is hope for those who are doing battle with
same sex attractions. Alright without packing up, lets just close in prayer.

Heavenly Father, we pray that you would give us the soberness . . .
1hank you Lo all of you who helped wlLh Lhe Plgh School lesLlval lasL week. Some of you were [udges,
all of you probably, lf you were ln Lhe resldence halls had roommaLes who were wlLh Lhe Plgh School
lesLlval. 8uL Lhank you for everyLhlng LhaL you dld. 1hank you for your ex. for exLendlng yourself on
behalf of some of Lhe hlgh schoolers who were here. CoL very good, and very encouraglng feedback
from numerous ones of Lhem, ah, who sald Lhere were roommaLes who had gone ouL of Lhelr way: who
puL up slgns, one had, Lhe room had glven her a glfL. um, [usL all sorLs of Lhlngs. l've goL, ln facL, a page
full of commenLs, buL Llme won'L permlL me Lo go down all of Lhem. So Lhank you for Lrylng Lo LreaL
your vlslLors llke you would wanL Lo be LreaLed lf you were a vlslLor on a college campus. lor several, lL
was formaLlve, and several sald LhaL Lhey belleve LhaL as a resulL of whaL Lhey experlenced and saw and
Lhe people LhaL Lhey meL whlle Lhey were here, Lhey belleve Lhe Lord ls leadlng Lhem Lo come here for
Lhelr college experlence. So graLeful for Lhe mlnlsLry LhaL you have ln all of Lhe hearLs of young people
and sponsors allke.

l also wanL Lo correcL myself: l falled Lo menLlon - well, one was an error, Lhe men's reglonal soccer
compeLlLlon ls nexL week, Lhe daLe was moved, noL Lhls week, and Lhe cross-counLry men's and
women's Leams are golng Lo naLlonals Lhls week up aL Cedarvllle. And so we wanL Lo pray for Lhem as
well as Lhe Lady 8rulns golng Lo naLlonals down ln llorlda Lhls week. So, ah, we've goL a loL golng on.
1hank you all for Lhe exerLlons LhaL you have made and Lhe dlsclpllne LhaL you have exerclsed all of Lhls
season, and Lhank you for belng a LesLlmony ln dolng lL, we'll be praylng LhaL Lhe Lord wlll be helplng
you malnLaln LhaL LesLlmony as you go and parLlclpaLe ln Lhe varlous compeLlLlons Lhls week and nexL.

now golng back Lo our Loplc of chapel, leL's [usL revlew Lhe flrsL Lwo polnLs from yesLerday: 1he 8lble
clearly presenLs Lhe ldeal LhaL Cod has for sexual relaLlonshlps. Cne man, one woman, Llll deaLh do us
parL. 1he second polnL was Lhe 8lble clearly prohlblLs homosexual relaLlonshlps. And on boLh of Lhose
polnLs we looked aL boLh Lhe Cld 1esLamenL daLa and Lhe new 1esLamenL daLa and on boLh of Lhose
polnLs Cld 1esLamenL and new 1esLamenL say exacLly Lhe same Lhlngs. So Lhey are unlvocal, Lhey are,
uh, unequlvocal ln whaL Lhey say. lL ls clear ln ScrlpLure.

So where does LhaL leave us?

uoes LhaL leave us wlLhouL hope personally, lf we sLruggle wlLh slngle-sex aLLracLlon? uoes LhaL leave us
wlLhouL a lovlng message Lo glve Lo Lhose who do? Well some allege LhaL calllng homosexuallLy a sln ls
unlovlng. lL's acLually Lhe mosL lovlng Lhlng posslble. ?ou know as long as we call someLhlng geneLlcs"
or envlronmenL" - and boLh of whlch l belleve can have a parL ln uh, dlsposlLlon, predlsposlLlon for
same-sex aLLracLlon. 8uL as long as we say lL's [usL geneLlcs or lL's [usL background LhaL conLrlbuLe Lo
homosexual leanlngs, Lhere's noLhlng LhaL can be done. 8ecause none of us can change our genes.
[unlnLelllglble, some sorL of play on Lhe word gene/[eans?] (laughLer). none of us - wanLed Lo make sure
you're sLlll wlLh me (as laughLer conLlnues) - none of us can go back and and change our upbrlnglng, or
supplemenL our upbrlnglng wlLh love LhaL perhaps we dldn'L feel from a moLher or a faLher, a same sex
parenL. 1here's noLhlng we can do lf LhaL's all lL ls. 8uL, lL doesn'L really, when lL comes down Lo lL
maLLer whaL Lhe caLalysL Lo sln ls for any of us - and Lhere are varlous Lhlngs ln each of our backgrounds
LhaL make us more llkely Lo sLruggle wlLh dlfferenL slns. 8uL lL doesn'L really maLLer whaL Lhe cause or
BJU Homosexuality Sermon #2, Stephen Jones, 11/12/13
Lhe caLalysL ls. 8ecause lf we call lL sln", whaLever lL ls, Lhere's an answer: !esus ChrlsL. 1he Cospel ls
Lhe answer for your sln, and your sln, and my sln. lL ls found only ln !esus ChrlsL. And LhaL glves hope.
8ecause Lhere !" a refuge. And Lhere !" a place Lo go, boLh for Lhe cleanslng of Lhe gullL we feel, and for
Lhe hope we need Lo flghL and be falLhful Lo deaLh. So Lhe Lhlrd polnL, and Lhe flnal polnL LhaL we wlll
look aL Loday ls Lhls: LhaL Lhe 8lble clearly provldes hope.

llrsL, under LhaL polnL, salvaLlon ls avallable. Why? lor Cod so loved Lhe world, LhaL Pe gave hls only
begoLLen Son, LhaL whosever" - whosoever - wlLh whaLever baggage and sln predlsposlLlons -
whosoever calleLh on hlm, wlll be saved." Cod has provlded an answer. SalvaLlon ls avallable. Sln ls
forglvable. We are all broken lmage-bearers, aren'L we. AL Lhe lall lL was broken. 1hlngs are ouL of
[olnL unLll ChrlsL comes and resLores Lhlngs. 8uL we are all broken - broken ln dlfferenL ways, buL we
share ln Lhe facL LhaL we are broken, and slnners, LhaL all have slnned and come shorL of Lhe glory of
Cod, buL LhaL whlle we were yeL slnners". And LhaL's our hope. noL LhaL we were good enough LhaL
ChrlsL pald, buL LhaL whlle we were aL our worsL, ChrlsL dled for us. Look Lhrough Lhe 8lbllcal examples.
1hlnk of Abraham. romlsed a son from hls wlfe Sarah, buL 23 years elapsed beLween Lhe promlse and
Lhe Llme when Cod would Cod would fulflll Lhe promlse. And he doubLed and Look her handmalden,
and had sexual relaLlons wlLh her, and a son Lhrough her. And yeL Abraham ls revered and looked up Lo
ln ScrlpLure noL as a perfecL man, buL as a man who was a frlend of Cod.

1hlnk of Moses, how Cod used hlm. 8uL whaL was hls sLarL? l mean when he comes ouL publlcally, whaL
was hls debuLanLe ball? A murder. noL Lhe way you wanL Lo sLarL. And Lhrough oLher slns: doubLlng,
fearlng whaL people were saylng, dlsobedlence, and yeL Cod chose Lo use hlm.

8ahab: a prosLlLuLe. And yeL, because of her falLh, she ls ln Lhe llne of ChrlsL. Pe ls one of her
descendenLs. Cod can Lake slnners, and Cod changes slnners, and LhaL's whaL glves hope Lo slnners,
whlch ls all of us.

So Lhe 8lble ls clear LhaL salvaLlon ls avallable. And Lhe blbllcal Leachlng ls LhaL no sln ls excluded: Lurn lf
you would Lo l !ohn. l !ohn, alrlghL, ChrlsL sald Lhere was one sln LhaL would noL be forglven, whlch ls
blasphemy agalnsL Lhe Poly SplrlL. 8uL shorL of LhaL, blasphemy agalnsL Lhe Poly SplrlL (whlch ls calllng
someLhlng LhaL Lhe Poly SplrlL has done someLhlng LhaL - noL Lhe Poly SplrlL buL SaLan - dld), LhaL's
blasphemy agalnsL Lhe Poly SplrlL. All slns are lncluded and forglvable. Look aL flrsL !ohn chapLer 1 verse
7: 8uL lf we walk ln Lhe llghL, as Pe ls ln Lhe llghL, we have fellowshlp one wlLh anoLher, and Lhe blood
of !esus ChrlsL hls son cleanseLh us from" - nexL word - (quleL audlence reply all") - say lL one more
Llme - (sLronger audlence reply all") - (speaker) all" - and say lL Lo yourself ofLen. 8ecause l do.
8ecause we all know how close Lo Lhe surface our ugllness, our slnfulness, our darkness ls. 8uL Lhe
8lood of !esus ChrlsL, Cod's son, cleanses us from ALL sln. And LhaL's where our hope lles. And Lhen
over aL verse 9 over ln l !ohn 1: lf we confess our slns, Pe ls falLhful and [usL Lo forglve us our slns, and
Lo cleanse us from" (pause) (quleL audlence reply, all") ALL unrlghLeousness." uoes LhaL encourage
you? lL encourages me! 8ecause *l* need LhaL forglveness. And Lhe blood of !esus ChrlsL Pls son
cleanses us from ALL sln. 1here ls noL sln ouLslde Lhe bounds of forglveness as we come Lo Plm ln
repenLance. no sln ls excluded.

And by Lhe same Loken, Lhere ls no separaLe caLegory of sln. l mean Lhe caLegory of sln LhaL we're
deallng wlLh, Lhe Lype of sln we're deallng wlLh Lhls week: same sex aLLracLlons, we Lend Lo puL Lhose ln
a caLegory of now Lhose are really bad slns." And lf you don'L sLruggle wlLh Lhem, you Lhlnk 8oy, l sure
am glad l don'L sLruggle wlLh Lhose. 8ecause LhaL's preLLy wlcked." 8uL leL me go gosslp Lo my
roommaLe. Cr leL me show my anger." 8uL Lhere ls no separaLe caLegory of sln. ln facL, accepLable slns
are llsLed rlghL alongslde homosexuallLy. LeL me go back - l used Lhe Lwo passages from LevlLlcus
yesLerday, calllng homosexuallLy an abomlnaLlon", buL llsLen Lo Lhese oLher slns LhaL are called
abomlnaLlon" and Lhlnk abouL Lhem. uo Lhese show up ln your llfe aL all? ln roverbs 6, sLarLlng verse
16: 1hese slx Lhlngs doLh Lhe Lord haLe, yea, seven are an abomlnaLlon - Lhere's Lhe same word- unLo
hlm." A proud look. 1haL's someone who ls so proud Lhey are Lrylng Lo llve wlLhouL reference Lo Cod. l
don'L need Pls lnLervenLlon." l daresay LhaL's some of you. A proud look. A lylng Longue. And hands
LhaL shed lnnocenL blood. An hearL LhaL devlseLh wlcked lmaglnaLlons, feeL LhaL be swlfL ln runnlng Lo
evll," - or Lo mlschlef - a false wlLness LhaL speakeLh lles, he LhaL soweLh dlscord among breLhren."
Pave you ever gone and planLed seeds of dlscord? Maybe wlLh a group of frlends? Maybe ooh, don'L
Lalk Lo her, do you know whaL she dld?" And guys can do lL Loo. lanLlng dlscord? Cod uses Lhe same
word, LhaL's abomlnaLlon" Lo Cod. lL Lurns hls sLomach. ln Lhe same sense LhaL homosexuallLy does.
CLher references Lo abomlnaLlon" ln Lhe old LesLamenL: Lhose who are dlshonesL ln buslness, ln
roverbs 20:20 where lL Lalks abouL uslng dlvers" or dlfferenL welghLs and dlfferenL measures. So llke lf
you're selllng you would use one Lype of welghL, and lf you're buylng, you use a dlfferenL welghL,
because you wanL as much as you can geL, and you wanL Lo buy as cheaply as you can geL. So belng
unrlghLeous ln buslness, lylng ln buslness ls an abomlnaLlon Lo Cod. 1he one accordlng Lo roverbs 24:9,
who ls an arroganL mocker of sacred Lhlngs - ls LhaL #$%? uo you geL ouL of church, or chapel, and go
and arroganLly mock whaL was sald? 1haL's an abomlnaLlon before Cod. So geL rld of Lhe ldea LhaL
Lhere are separaLe caLegorles, and Lhe people who deal wlLh Lhese same-sex aLLracLlons - Lhey're really
wlcked, buL, y'know l'm dolng ok by comparlson. 8ecause we're noL. 1here are noL separaLe caLegorles,
and Lhere !" no room for arrogance. And ln facL, Lhere are oLher slns ln scrlpLure LhaL wlll be [udged
more severely - Are you aware of LhaL? Look wlLh me please, ln MaLLhew 11. MaLLhew 11, verses 23
and 24. MaLLhew 11:23-24: and Lhou Caperneum, whlch arL exalLed unLo heaven" - ok so Lhls ls a clLy
whlch was proud of lLself, and lL had everyLhlng Lo be proud of aL Lhe Llme ChrlsL spoke Lhere -
Caperneum, whlch arL exalLed unLo heaven shall be broughL down Lo hell, for lf Lhe mlghLy works whlch
have been done had been done ln Lhee, had been done ln Sodom, lL would have remalned unLll Lhls day.
8uL l say unLo you, LhaL lL shall be more Lolerable for Lhe land of Sodom ln Lhe day of [udgmenL Lhan for
Lhee." now Cod, !esus ChrlsL ls Lalklng, and he's Lalklng Lo a Lown ln lsrael. Cne of Lhe Lwo Lowns ln
whlch he had done Lhe ma[orlLy of hls mlracles. And yeL havlng seen mlracle afLer mlracle afLer mlracle
Lhere, ln Caperneum, Lhey re[ecLed lL. 1hey re[ecLed ChrlsL. And he says Lo Lhem - a &'(!") Lown - ln
Lhe [udgmenL, because you have had so much more opporLunlLy, ln Lhe [udgmenL, lL wlll be worse for
you Lhan for Lhe slnners who were desLroyed ln Sodom. now LhaL's a soberlng LhoughL. lor everyone
who has heard of ChrlsL and who has sald no. l wanL no parL of lL." 1here are oLher slns LhaL wlll be
[udged even more harshly Lhan homosexuallLy, as l sald yesLerday from Lzeklel 16 - Lhere ls also
lazlness, and an unwllllngness Lo help Lhe poor, all of Lhose were Lhe slns of Sodom and Comorrah, more
Lhan [usL homosexuallLy. 8uL Lhere are slns LhaL wlll be [udged even more serlously ln Lhe day Lo come.
And common sLruggles, sLruggles LhaL are common for us, appear ln Lhe llsLs wlLh homosexuallLy, so
agaln, whaL am l saylng, LhaL [usL we - none of us has a rlghL Lo be proud. lnsLead we should all have
compasslon. 8ecause when we look aL someone deallng wlLh same-sex aLLracLlons, Lhey're [usL slnners.
!usL llke us.
l 1lmoLhy 1:9 and 10 glves a llsL of a number of slns, l 1lmoLhy 1:9 and 10 - leL me [usL read Lo you. lor lL
says, knowlng Lhls, LhaL Lhe law ls noL made for a rlghLous man, buL for Lhe lawless and dlsobedlenL. lor
Lhe ungodly and for slnners, for unholy and profane, for murderers, murderers of faLhers and murderers
of moLhers, for manslayers, for whoremongers, for Lhem LhaL deflle Lhemselves wlLh manklnd, for
mensLealers, for llars, for per[ured persons, and lf Lhere be anyLhlng -oLhe, oLher Lhlng - LhaL ls conLrary
Lo sound docLrlne accordlng Lo Lhe glorlous gospel of Lhe blessed Cod LhaL was commlLLed Lo my LrusL."
Saylng LhaL all Lhose slns, lylng lncluded, rlghL up Lhere, wlLh homosexuallLy. And lf you look aL Lhe lasL
verses of 8omans 1 whlch we read parL of yesLerday, you'll flnd a whole bunch of slns, lncludlng
dlsobedlence Lo parenLs, whlch ls llsLed rlghL alongslde wlLh Lhe wlckedness of men pursulng men, and
women pursulng women. So Lhere's noL room for prlde, for any of us. And lf we do have dlsgusL over
same-sex aLLracLlons, ln all falrness, LhaL dlsgusL should also look us ln Lhe mlrror for our own slnfulness.
8ecause ChrlsL had Lo dle for our slns, Loo, LhaL's how evll we are. And as l sald, er, numbers of passages
LhaL puL very common slns rlghL slde by slde wlLh homosexuallLy - look wlLh me aL l CorlnLhlans 6.
8lghL? llrsL 1lmoLhy 6. l mean l CorlnLhlans 6. l CorlnLhlans 6, sLarLlng ln verse 9, l CorlnLhlans 6:9 -
know ye noL LhaL Lhe unrlghLeous shall noL lnherlL Lhe klngdom of Cod?" 1hls means people who llved
hablLually unrlghLeously. 8e noL decelved, nelLher fornlcaLors, nor ldolaLors, nor adulLerers, nor
effemlnaLe, nor abusers of Lhemselves wlLh manklnd, nor Lhleves, nor coveLeous, nor drunkards, nor
revllers, nor exLorLloners, shall lnherlL Lhe klngdom of Cod." 1here's a long llsL of slns, and among Lhem
slns LhaL some of you probably sLruggle wlLh. lL says lf you llve LhaL way, lf you llve your llfe LhaL way,
Lhen know for sure - don'L be decelved - LhaL somebody who llves a llfe characLerlzed by any of Lhose
slns, ls noL parL of Lhe klngdom of Cod. 8uL you know whaL Lhe blesslng ls? 1he blesslng ls LhaL Lhe
Cospel can change us.

LeL me read a quoLaLlon from a book by eLer Pubbard, Lalklng, sharlng, Lhe LhoughLs of a young man
who sLruggles wlLh homosexuallLy, wlLh same-sex aLLracLlons. Pe sald, someLlmes l feel LhaL no maLLer
whaL l do l am dlspleaslng Lo Cod. Lven afLer a good day of baLLllng for purlLy of body and mlnd, Lhere ls
sLlll Lhe feellng when l puL my head down on Lhe plllow aL nlghL LhaL someLhlng ls serlously wrong wlLh
me. 1haL someLhlng ls skewed. l feel ln Lhose momenLs LhaL my homosexual orlenLaLlon makes Cod
dlsappolnLed or unhappy or even, or even falnLly upseL wlLh me. Wlll l ever really please hlm? When
you go Lo bed, have you ever had LhoughLs llke LhaL? lor a good day of sLruggllng wlLh your
accepLable" slns? SomeLhlng ls skewed? 8uL, see Lhe good news ls LhaL Lhe Cospel changes Lhlngs.
Ck, we're sLlll aL l CorlnLhlans 6 we've [usL read verses 9 and 10, we're Lalklng abouL people who are noL
parL of Lhe klngdom of Cod, buL Lhen look aL verse 11. And you may wanL Lo clrcle Lhls, you may wanL Lo
hlghllghL lL, you may wanL Lo do someLhlng so LhaL you can flnd Lhls passage agaln. 1alklng abouL all LhaL
llsL of slns ln verses 9-10: and such" - whaL's Lhe nexL word? were". Say lL agaln. (weak crowd
were") WL8L. lsn'L LhaL someLhlng Lo be Lhankful for? And such ('*' some of #$%. aul knew Lhose
who were ln CorlnLh, who had been adulLerers and fornlcaLors, and abusers of Lhemselves wlLh
manklnd, and Lhleves, Lhey had been. 8uL LhaL was ln Lhe pasL, and Lhe burden of LhaL was borne on Lhe
cross, and Lhe [udgmenL of LhaL has been exhausLed by ChrlsL, and now we can Lruly say such were
some of you. 8uL ye are (+")',, buL ye are sancLlfled, buL ye are [usLlfled ln Lhe name of Lhe Lord !esus
and by Lhe SplrlL of our Cod." Such ('*' some of #$%. And Lhls ls hope for everyone, buL hope LhaL l
oughL glve speclflcally Loday Lo Lhose who sLruggle wlLh same-sex aLLracLlons. 1hen lL -+. be ln Lhe pasL.
And you can be frulLful for ChrlsL ln Lhe klngdom. 8ecause when you came Lo ChrlsL, agaln polnLlng
from eLer Pubbard because of Lhe way he sald lL sLarLled me: 1he Cospel of !esus ChrlsL ls noL a
lnvlLaLlon Lo do beLLer or Lry harder, Lhe Cospel of !esus ChrlsL ls a deaLh cerLlflcaLe. ueaLh Lo Lhe old
self LhaL unfolds lnLo a new blrLh cerLlflcaLe, provldlng us wlLh a renewed ldenLlLy, so LhaL now Lhe mosL
lmporLanL Lhlng abouL me ls noL l'm gay", l'm lesblan", l'm alcohollc". 1he mosL lmporLanL Lhlng from
now on for Lhose who come Lo ChrlsL ls l am a chlld of Cod." l am a rlghLeous one. l am one of Cod's
chlldren." 8lghLeous - noL because of my own work buL rlghLeous because of ChrlsL's. Such ('*'
some of you, buL ye are washed, ye are sancLlfled."

now, Lo Lhose of you who sLruggle - you may have had Lhose deslres for as long as you can remember.
Many of Lhe people l've Lalked Lo, Lhey can'L remember a Llme Lhey had deslres for Lhe opposlLe sex.
And brlnglng Lhem Lo ChrlsL and accepLlng whaL Lhe ScrlpLures say abouL lL - lL may noL mean a
dellverance from Lhose deslres. ?ou may sLruggle wlLh Lhose deslres Lhe resL of your llfe. 8uL Lhey don'L
deflne you. WhaL are you? l'm a chlld of Cod. l'm a rlghLeous one. And when you Lhlnk abouL lL - don'L
Lhlnk abouL lL, Ch, LhaL's so unfalr somehow" - Lhlnk abouL Lhe heLerosexual, sexual person, alrlghL?
1hey have lusL, Lhey have deslres, and even afLer marrlage, Lhey wlll probably always sLruggle Lo keep
Lhose deslres ln check. 8ecause we wlll wresLle wlLh our sln naLure as long as we llve, whaLever our slns.
AlrlghL, so don'L Lhlnk of lL as somehow unfalr, lL's Lrue of all of us. 8uL aL Lhe same Llme, l don'L wanL Lo
palnL a plcLure LhaL Lhere's [usL Lhls sudden dellverance. lor some yes, for Lhe ma[orlLy, no. lL's
someLhlng LhaL Lhey flghL every day. 8uL remember as you flghL, as !ames 1:12 - and l'll close wlLh Lhls,
!ames 1:12 - 8lessed ls Lhe man LhaL endureLh LempLaLlon", or remalns sLeadfasL under LempLaLlon.
noL an absence of LempLaLlon, buL blessed ls Lhe man who remalns sLeadfasL under LempLaLlon. lor
when he ls Lrled, he shall recelve Lhe crown of llfe whlch Lhe Lord haLh promlsed Lo Lhem LhaL love Plm."
vlcLory ln Lhe end, and belng rewarded by our Cod, ls noL an absence of LempLaLlon, buL lL ls a cholce aL
Lhe polnL of LempLaLlon, wlLh Cod's help, and Lhe Cospel armor, l choose ouL of love and Lhe facL LhaL l
am now one of Cod's beloved Lo please Cod by .$/ slnnlng, Lhough my flesh ls always wlLh me.
8lessed ls Lhe man who endureLh LempLaLlon, for when he ls Lrled, he shall recelve Lhe crown of llfe
whlch Lhe Lord haLh reserved, he haLh promlsed, Lo Lhem LhaL love hlm."
So Lhe Clds. 1esLamenL, new 1esLamenL - Lhey're clear abouL whaL Cod's ldeal are. Cod's ldeal ls. ln
Lhe Cld 1esLamenL and new 1esLamenL Lhey're clear ln Lhe facL LhaL homosexuallLy ls .$/ parL of Cod's
plan. lL ls agalnsL Cod's plan. 8uL l LrusL you're golng ouL encouraged, whaLever your sLruggle ls, Lhe
answer ls !esus ChrlsL. And Lhe blood of !esus ChrlsL Pls Son cleanseLh us from all sln."
laLher we Lhank for your blood - Lhe blood of your Son. We Lhank you for Lhe Cospel. We Lhank you
LhaL lL has Louched us. And we pray LhaL lL would conLlnue Lo change us. And l pray especlally for Lhose
who do sLruggle ln Lhese areas of same-sex aLLracLlon LhaL you would glve Lhem hope, LhaL Lhey would
seek ouL help, and LhaL Lhey - as well as all of us - would sLruggle wlLh whaLever our LempLaLlon ls, and
would choose ouL of love for ?ou Lo please you raLher Lhan please our flesh. lor we ask lL ln !esus'
name, Amen.
Homosexuality Sermon 3, 11/13/13, Jon Daulton

Take your Bibles with me this morning and go to II Corinthians chapter 3. I appreciate our
president and his willingness to devote chapel to a difcult and yet very pertinent subject this
week. Ive heard, uh, good feedback from you, uh, on his messages so far. Dr. Ormiston and I
really hope to be [indiscernible] helpful if we can in helping you work through issues related to
same sex attraction. Undoubtedly, of course, we wont answer every question that you have, uh
perhaps, on your mind. We trust you will take advantage of texting in questions that you have to
q@bju.edu. Dont be discouraged or disappointed if a question is not addressed in the message
because hopefully in our Worldview Forum on Friday well be able to try to get to as many of
those other questions that were not able to do in, uh, address in these messages, uh, this
week.

Lets read verse 18 of 2 Corinthians chapter 3: But we all - Paul says - with open face -
unveiled face - beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image
from glory to glory even as by the spirit of the Lord.

This is our text. We will not develop this text specically. Well be moving around today a good
bit. But our text where well begin is certainly a wonderful text describing the potential change
that the gospel brings into our lives. With unveiled face, we like the Corinthians, can behold the
glory of God of Jesus Christ and as a result be transformed into the very same image by the
spirit of God.

Are you looking for transformation this morning? I trust all of us are looking for transformation
and development into Christ-likeness in every area of our lives. And because of the gospel of
Christ, we can experience that transformation.

The purpose of this message today is probably two fold. First I would like it, I would pray that it
will be a means of grace and hope to those who are struggling with same sex attraction. And I
realize that Dr. Jones has really already set the stage for us yesterday, uh, in chapel, uh, with
discussing the prospect of hope. And so today there may be more hope. Imagine that. I hope
thats a good thing. Were looking forward to that.

But secondly, I would like to use whatever time we have left, and I know Dr. Ormiston is
planning to even expand on this tomorrow, but to help those of us not currently struggling with
this, how we can help our brothers and sisters who may be and learn how to dwell together as a
family, a family of God.

Now Im going to take a couple of things for granted with this message. First of all, Im going to
take for granted that you are a child of God and that you are in Christ. Dr. Jones mentioned
yesterday in his rst point when he started speaking of hope is that salvation is available, and so
anyone here who has not to this point repented of sin and placed their faith in Christ, I hope you
understand that that really is the beginning, thats the beginning to your journey in overcoming
any kind of sexual attraction or practice. But secondly Im also going to assume that perhaps
youre struggling. This is a struggle area for you. What does it mean to struggle?
I would contend that struggling includes failing. Ok? So this is something that maybe is a
struggle for you and you are experiencing perhaps failure. You, you are experiencing what
Galations 5:17 talks about: the esh lusting against the spirit, the spirit lusting against the esh,
and these two being contrary to the other, so that you cant do the things that you would. You
understand a little bit of that eternal battle. If you know what thats like - and I trust that any of us
in Christ do know what thats like - then this message is for you.

I want to divide our time into three different considerations. First of all some initial
considerations. [Indiscernible] thats pretty general, yeah thats intended to be general.
Secondly, some hope-lled considerations. And then lastly, some neighborly considerations.

I want us, rst of all, as we have some initial considerations at the start as we think about same
sex attractions, we try to understand it, as we look at our own experience, I want to look at some
contributing factors. And I want to take some time to, uh, discuss what those who have studied
this or who have experienced it themselves have said about this, and I think its good for us to
hear from others who have, uh, experience in dealing with this issue personally or clinically or in
a counseling situation.

And I want to mention three contributing factors that will contribute to a same sex attraction
could eventually [birth?] itself in a homosexual lifestyle. They are not the only contributing
factors. So Im not trying to be exhaustive here. They are just three. The last is the most
important. But lets start with the two before that.

Number 1. The rst contributing factor in the cultivation of a same-sex attraction is a break down
in the same sex family relationship. And this is not in the bible. This is just something that is true
as experts have worked with folks like this who struggle. Do you understand this? And this
would include anything like distance between the same-sex parent, um, absence - theres a
parent thats not there - or even an abusive situation. Theres some type of break down in that
same-sex parent relationship in the family.

One man whos worked with homosexuals much said this, But whatever the multiple factors
seem to be, in working with them like this, one element in the pattern always seems to be
present. There was an unsatisfactory relationship with the father thats had critical
consequences. He said, Less than 1 in 10 of the men with whom I have worked have said that
they had a good, active relationship with their father. Now does this mean that if I dont have a
good father that I am predisposed to be a homosexual? Not at all. Gods word says that he will
be a father to the fatherless, doesnt it?

But maybe you can identify with this story. A lady who lived a lesbian lifestyle for many years
was saved and now has written and traveled extensively trying to help ladies deal with
lesbianism. She said, she talks about it in one of her books, A Girl Named Chris, she shares her
story. Maybe you can identify with this. She said, Chris didnt grow up in a Christian home. Her
parents married young and didnt get along very well. Their constant ghting often turned into a
barrage of angry words, leaving damaged hearts. Chriss mom always seemed to end up losing
or maybe rather just giving up. Women, her dad would often say in frustration as he stormed
out of the house in a furious whirlwind. Chriss mom would then be left in a puddle of tears with
three small children to care for. Chris, though only in Kindergarten, was the oldest, and although
she hurt for her mother, her little heart was quickly making judgments about all sorts of
important things. She remembers deciding after one of the arguments when she was about four,
Daddy is mean to mommy. I dont want to be weak and get hurt like Mommy. So she separated
herself from her mom and began following her dad around. Chris started helping in the garage,
happy to be doing anything with him that had nothing to do with her weak mom. And sometimes
she even imagined herself to be a little boy.

Now does that mean then that Chris, if you were like Chris that somehow you dont have a good
relationship, ladies, with your mom that you are predisposed to be this way? Not at all, not at all.
But this can be a contributing factor in someone cultivating same sex attraction.

Secondly, another contributing factor, and this is again just from experience, from practice with
those who have worked closely with people who struggle with this, theres a longing to be loved
or valued or accepted. There is this constant awareness that I have not been appreciated like I
should be, like I want to be, like I deserve to be. And as a result of that gnawing desire for
acceptance and love and value, theres a tendency to wander into a community that is very
quick to express all kinds of love and value.

One Christian psychologist said it this way, From my kind of experience, theres a particular
kind of client, who although he is deeply dissatised with gay life and does succeed in
developing good heterosexual functioning, will over time struggle to muster the self-discipline
and maturity to put in a hard days work, to come home to wife and family, to help the children
with the homework, to have dinner and to settle down to a good conversation with his wife and
then go to bed. Such a life of day-to-day investment in ones loved ones seems too conning.
Its boring. Its lusterless. Its unexciting. Its just not enough. And underneath that boredom and
restlessness remains this deep chronic dissatisfaction. Its not just about needing to nd a
partner of a different gender. Its about me getting attention, being made to feel special,
distracting myself from what my chronic dissatisfaction with life through parties and through
other high animation activities, such as the gay community offers on its well-known drug-
saturated party circuits.

What do we recommend to that kind of soul who is struggling with longing for love and
acceptance and value? We offer Christ. Oh, Christ! He is the fountain, the deep, deep well of
life. The famous hymn says, The streams of earth I have tasted, but more drink, more deeply I
will drink them above.

To you that are under the sound of my voice today who are longing to be loved, let me say to
you that there is one who loves you today with everlasting love. Ephesians 2 says, And you
hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins. Wherein in times past you and I both
walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit that now works in the children of disobedience; among whom also we all had our
conversation in times past in the lusts of our esh, and we were fullling the desires of the esh
and of the mind, and we were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God who is
rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in sins, has
quickened us together with Christ and has raised us up together and has made us sit together in
heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches
of his grace and his kindness to us through Christ Jesus.

And friend, let me say to you today that there is no one on the earth that can love you even
remotely close to God! God loves you. And because of the work of his son, he accepts you, and
he can be to you and ll for you the longing that you have to be loved.

So the contributing factor could be the longing, desire to be loved or accepted, but lastly, the
most signicant contributing factor to the cultivation of same-sex attraction is - and we cant get
away from this - but its our own sinful hearts.

A biblical view of homosexuality acknowledges that there may be psychological or even
biological contributors or inuences in the development of that kind of lifestyle. Weve just talked
about just two. But the scripture [indiscernible - and people?] is adamant that not what
inuences, its not what inuences us from outside that makes us unclean. Instead it is from
within, Mark 7:21-23 says, its from within the heart of man that proceed evil thoughts and
adulteries and fornications, and Christ lists several other things as well. All of these evil things
come from within, and these are what dele the man. My greatest problems, as we know, are
not outside of me. My greatest problems are inside of me. Because I receive the sin of my father
passed down to me. I was born in sin; in sin my mother conceived me. Therefore its from that
sin that all these things are generated. Say, boy, thats not very hopeful.

Id like to leave you with Romans 5:20: Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.
#
And the fact is that even hearing something like that, that boy, my heart is intrinsically capable of
all of these abominations in all of their various creative forms - and you and I both know what
thats like, dont we? - we are very painfully aware of all of the stuff. Lets broaden out the
application here this morning. Lets not limit it to the topic at hand, but all of the stuff that comes
out of my heart - its wicked; its evil. Knowing that all that, knowing that I am capable of all of
that just makes me a better appreciater of Christ because Christ overwhelms sin, [indiscernible]
it abounds much more deeply.

When you come to the place that you understand that my greatest problems are not outside -
theyre inside - you are just about ready to put your foot, put yourself in the place where you can
experience the wonderful grace of Jesus.

Id like to secondly, this morning, work through some misconceptions, and I dont know how
much time were going have here. Were going to try to move through these as quickly as we
can, and not because theyre not important, but I think they are talking points that are often
made to present this kind of a lifestyle - same-sex attraction which can develop into
homosexuality - uh, as normal.

And some of the misconceptions go this way.

Number 1, God made me this way.

And this is the way the reasoning goes: From the earliest I can remember, Ive had a desire for
same-sex relationships. Therefore that must be the way I was created.

And there have been attempts to generate medical studies to prove a genetic source, ah to to to
nd a homosexual gene that will, uh, predispose someone to that, and and and the bottom line
is, young people, even if we were able to nd one, it wouldnt change Mark 7:21-23: that out of
our hearts come the issues of life.

Another misconception: Well, God would not deny me my natural desires. This is the way I am.
These are my natural desires. It would be horrible for God to deny me those desires. Could we
pause and just reect on James 4 for just a minute. There James says that my desires actually
are my greatest problem. Whence the wars and ghtings come from among you? Do they not
come as a result of the warring, the desires in your own members?

Do you lust and you covet and all these things, and and James is making it very clear that
actually the desires are what are generating the friction and the arrogance and everything else.
God would actually call all of us to deny our natural desires because he says if youre going to
follow me, Mark 8, youre going to have to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me.

Third misconception says that while past experiences or even current attractions make me to be
homosexual. If this is how I feel, then this is the way I must be. Again, weve got the cart
[indiscernible]
before the horse there. If I am in Christ, then I am a Christian rst. I am a Christian rst. I may
be a Christian who struggles with homosexuality. I may very well be that kind of Christian. I am
not dened, though, by my sin. I am not a homosexual rst. I am a Christian rst who is
struggling with this. But lets be sure we keep things in the proper order and dont put a label on
ourselves or let other people label us with a label that doesnt have our primary identity notied
rst.

Those are some initial considerations. Id like us to now move on to some hope lled
considerations. How do I actually handle this struggle myself. I am in the midst of this. Im
dealing with this. I dont understand why it is that as a man I am attracted to other men. Theres
something about a mans body that infatuates me and draws me. Theres something about just
male afrmation that I feel Ive got to constantly have. It may not be a sexual thing at all. Its just
this, this, um, gnawing for friendship. Ladies - similar - theres this, theres this, you can tell, you
can sense this unnatural attraction. What do I do?

Let me just list rst ve things that I hope will be helpful. Theyre broad categories, and yet I
think they are crucial in helping us understand this.

Number one - If youre really wanting to work through this, the rst step is you have to submit to
your Creator.

The most difcult time for, the most difcult thing for any of us to wrestle with is when our
personal experience does not seem to match up with Gods truth. And we have this tension.
Were saying I feel this way - I like, I want, I desire, and my past has been this way. Gods truth
is over here, and they dont seem to overlap. I hear these things that Gods word says Gods
divine plan for marriage is one woman, one man for life, and his plan for those who are
unmarried is to live celibate for the purpose of advancing Christs kingdom. Dr. Jones
referenced that in his rst challenge.

Boy, I dont think I t into either one of those categories. For the last two days weve been
confronted with the truths of Gods word. And and and [indiscernible] theres no, theres no hope
for a change. Theres no relief from the tension. Theres no satisfaction of those heart longings
unless we - like Hebrews 11 says - we come to God, and we believe that he is God. Thats
where this begins. And that he acknowledges those who diligently seek after him.

The damning characteristic of Romans chapter 1 which describes this culture spiraling
downward to moral decadence, the characteristic that denes that type of a culture is unbelief.
And as you know we will not glorify you as god. We will exchange the glory of God for the
worship of an image. We will exchange the truth of God for a lie. We will worship and serve the
creature more than the creator. We do not like to retain God in our thinking. We have to beware
the dangers of suppressing and resisting Gods truth found in his word. Believe. Submit to the
fact that God made you perfectly in his image to live out your created gender according to his,
for his glory. Accept your uniqueness and look for the grace that is promised to you in Christ.

Number Two - Confess your unbelief. If unbelief has been a problem, after youve been resisting
and suppressing the truth - I dont like it; it doesnt match my experience - well then come to that
place where you confess, and you agree with God, First John 1:9, and nd that God would be
unjust if he did not forgive your sin. Hes faithful and hes just to forgive your sin and cleanse you
from all unrighteousness.

Number three. Embrace Gods plan to change you. This comes back to our text we read at the
start.

It certainly would be neat if youd just sprinkle some pixie dust on top of me and just make all
these desires vanish. Wouldnt that be neat. Well, guys, wouldnt it be neat if God just took away
all your heterosexual desire for illicit relationships before or after marriage? Sure, that would be
wonderful, but does God do that? Absolutely not, he does not do that. He does not do that with
anybody. He doesnt give anybody some kind of a sin-tranquilizer, you know, that that just
numbs you to any kind of passion or desire of sin. And so he certainly isnt going to do
[indiscernible] with unnatural desire either. We have to be willing to realize that Gods plan to
change me is a process. Sanctication is a process whereby the Holy Spirit of God takes the
word of God and makes me like the son of God all in the providence of God. Thats whats
happening. Its a process. Its not a one-time instantaneous action like our salvation is. Are you
willing to cooperate with Gods plan to change your life?

A student asked the president of his school whether he could take a shorter course than the one
prescribed. The president said, Sure, but then it depends on what you want to be. When God
wants to make an oak, he takes a hundred years. When he wants to make a squash, he takes
six months.

Theres a certain sense in which the longevity of your struggle is going to bear about in your life
a beautiful and tasteful fruit to the glory of God.

Number Four - much more could be said. Each one of these, Im sure, is enough for a sermon.

Number Four - Understand your position in Christ. Ok? If any man be in Christ - Paul says this
in II Corinthians 5 - hes a new creation. All things are passed away, behold all things are
become new. Old things are passed away; all things are become new. And do you have, you
and I have experienced according to Romans 6, rst of all, the position of death. We have been
buried by baptism into death that like as Christ was raised up from the, by the anointed father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life, knowing that our old man is crucied with Christ
that the body of sin should be destroyed that we dont have to any longer henceforth serve sin.
Sin is no longer your master. Instead, Paul says, you are a slave to righteousness. This is a
reality of your union with Christ. Do you realize that? Do you believe that? That is, you dont
have to feel anything about that. That is a reality.

[Indiscernible] a position of death [indiscernible] a position of grace later on in the chapter - sin
doesnt have dominion over you for you are under grace. Youve got a position of freedom.
Romans 6, But God be thanked - says verse 17 and 18 - God be thanked that you were the
servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered to
you, being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness.

A tremendous truth that I would encourage every one of you, and I want [indiscernible] a guy
who one summer I worked with. He was struggling - it was many years ago, dealing with the sin
of self-gratication - and boy, he had just been in a lifelong battle. And he got serious about
dealing with it. We memorized Romans chapter 6 verses 1 through 13. He said, John, it
changed my life. It revolutionized my life, my whole approach to this besetting sin was
understanding that Im in Christ and that sin has no power over me and that I am free, and that I
am able to serve righteousness. Praise God! Grasp that truth. Theres, its central.

Lastly, and this is more of a practical thing, but you need to be aware of the opposition. You
need to understand that there is a well-funded, extremely outspoken minority that has an
agenda that it is unapologetically clear in its attempt to push a different view of reality. In 1987
Marshall Kirk and Hunter Mansen wrote an article entitled The Overhauling of Straight America
in Guy Magazine, in which they outlined the six objectives of the homosexual agenda. In 1989,
just two years later, Kirk and Mansen then expanded on those six objectives in the seminal work
entitled After the Ball: How America Will Conquer its Fear and Hatred of Gays in the 90s. And
young people, thirty years later, those men could have been prophets.

And there is an outspoken agenda out to soil your soul and to desensitize, as a believer, your
understanding of scripture. And this is not certainly the most important source to help you in
dealing with same-sex attraction, necessarily, but I think its extremely helpful to be aware of and
be warned about the danger of becoming a part of that.

Finally, some neighborly considerations in closing. [Indiscernible] can I just leave you with four
or ve things that are helpful for those of us who are trying honestly before God to help those
who are struggling with same-sex attraction.

Someones come to you, and you know coming to you has been a very difcult thing, and
admitting that, thats been a hard thing for them to do that. Its not easy. And so here you have
this sacred trust of their condential, personal, transparent feelings, and you you dont want to
tell anybody, ah, eh, but you dont know what to do.

Let me make some suggestions.

Number One - Approach the subject with humility. There is no cookie cutter approach in dealing
with the topic of same-sex attraction. There are many factors involved, and so dont enter the
issue thinking you have all the answers.

Number Two - Therefore, learn to ask questions. Learn to ask simple questions about when did
this begin, and and what has shaped these desires in your life, and have there been any any
events that youd be ready to put your nger on that contributed to this. Learn to ask good
questions.

Number Three - Refuse to take this lightly. Joking about same-sex attraction - and this happens
in the residence halls, doesnt it? - joking about something like this is tantamount to joking about
people being burned, trapped in a burning building. For some folks, this is a struggle thats as
serious as the struggle between life and death, and we glibly and carelessly throw around
terminology and make sarcastic remarks and imitate people. And what do we do by that? What
we do is we actually take people who really want help and we push them away from help. Oh,
we dare not allow ourselves to become desensitized and careless in our thoughts [indiscernible]
by taking this lightly. This is something that some people really feel strongly about and want help
with. And even if they didnt want help, it wouldnt make us right, it wouldnt make it right for us
to mock it. Refuse to take it lightly.

Ephesians 5 talks about - hey were not going to have coarse jesting and inappropriate speech
going on and things like that that arent even to be named among saints. Refuse to take it lightly.

Number Four - Exhibit modesty. Modesty at its core is humility, and its specically humility in
consideration of others. Through our own tendencies to prole or stereotype, we may think, we
may think, we may think we know who actually struggles with this. Actually, you may not have a
clue. And I say that to myself, too. Actually I may not have a clue. And in an age where self-
expression is king - I wear what I want. I show affection however I want. And I joke however I
want - weve got to as believers learn to regulate our expressions with sensitive concern for
other people. Avoid being an unnecessary stumbling block to a brother or a sister by your
careless or thoughtless behavior.

Number FIve - And theres just one more after this, and then were done.

Number Five - Practice what you preach. We sometimes demand much more from those
struggling with same-sex attraction than we do ourselves. While we tell them that they should
turn off their unnatural sexual urges, we allow ourselves to be ruled by our natural sexual urges.
And as a result, the church doesnt seem to be nearly as offended by heterosexual promiscuity
as it is by homosexual promiscuity, and this is nothing other than hypocrisy. Paul reminds us in
the letter to the Ephesians that every one of us, every single one of us should know how to
control our bodies in sanctication and honor. And he wasnt just speaking of homosexual
desire.

Dont be a hypocrite. You and I both need to take the same attitude toward sin that we expect
those struggling with this [indiscernible].

And Finally - Demonstrate unconditional love. One man said this - The need for male love lures
most men into homosexuality, and only the unconditional love of Gods people will help lead
them out of that desperate loneliness.

Dont avoid people. Reach out. Demonstrate biblical love, sacricial love. Take interest in them.
And by doing so you may very well being help, being a help to rescue them from something that
could destroy them.

Shall we pray.

Father, so much here to say, and we pray that if we forget everything else at the end of this day,
we will at least remember that your word, that we can with open face behold as in a glass the
glory of the Lord and be changed - we can be changed - into your very likeness by the spirit of
God. May the be so for us, each individually today.

Its in your name we pray. Amen.
PomosexuallLy Sermon #4, 11/14/13, !ason CrmlsLon
Cood mornlng. l really reflecL on Lhls song Lord l need ?ou," l come Lo you wlLh a Loplc LhaL ls noL one
LhaL any one preacher would choose, buL l'm wllllng Lo preach on.[3 mlnuLe gap ln Lhe recordlng]."for
many walk as l have Lold you ofLen and Lell you even weeplng LhaL Lhey are enemles of Lhe cross of
ChrlsL." l don'L wanL you Lo mlss Lhls. 1here ls a group of Lhose LhaL belleve and submlL Lo ChrlsL and
Lhere are Lhose who don'L submlL Lo ChrlsL. ?ou cannoL be ln beLween. ?ou elLher love Cod or you love
Lhe World. ?ou are on LhaL belleves wholehearLedly LhaL Lhls ls whaL lL's all abouL, lL's !esus ChrlsL, hls
deaLh, burlal and resurrecLlon, and Lhere are Lhose LhaL don'L belleve LhaL and Lhey are Lermed as
enemles of Lhe cross of ChrlsL. now, lL doesn'L glve us here Lhe rlghL Lo vlew Lhem as an enemy and LreaL
Lhem as an enemy. noLlce aul's compasslon: he says for many of whom l have Lold you ofLen, and Lell
you weeplng." Lhere's some compasslon Lhere. 8uL Lhen Lhere's Lhls recognlLlon LhaL Lhey're enemles
of Lhe cross of ChrlsL. Look aL verse 19: whose end ls desLrucLlon, whose Cod ls Lhelr belly," Lhls ls golng
back Lo Lhose passlons LhaL drlve people Lo parLlcular acLlons. 1helr belly ls Lhelr Cod, Lhelr Cod ls Lhelr
Cod. lf l wanL someLhlng, l go afLer lL. Whose glory ls ln Lhelr shame." 1hey love Lo brlng oLhers lnLo Lhe
process along wlLh Lhem ln Lhelr LhoughL process. Who mlnd earLhly Lhlngs." 1hls ls an example Lo
avold. l Lhlnk whaL we're Lalklng abouL Loday, Lhe llfesLyle of Lhose LhaL embrace homosexuallLy ls anLl-
blbllcal. lL ls percelved as someLhlng LhaL ls supposed Lo be accepLed by all of us. 8uL Lhe 8lble says LhaL
Lhose who go afLer Lhelr own god, Lhelr own deslres, are enemles of Lhe cross.
l don'L wanL you Lo mlss Lhls as we geL sLarLed because l'm noL aL all Lrylng Lo sofLen our approach, buL l
wanL you Lo undersLand Lhe compasslon aul has here. And Lhen we see Lhls hope ln verses 20-21, for
our conversaLlon ls ln heaven, from whence also we look for Lhe Savlor !esus ChrlsL who shall change our
vlle body, LhaL lL may be fashloned llke unLo hls glorlous body, accordlng Lo Lhe worklng whereby he ls
able even Lo subdue all Lhlngs unLo hlmself." 1here ls hope. 1he hope ls LhaL we can llve for ChrlsL, we
are clLlzens of Lhe klng whlch means we submlL Lo Lhe klng. Pe offers hope, one day all Lhese deslres
LhaL are raglng wlLhln us wlll be seL sLralghL. When we're ln heaven we have a resurrecLed body. So l lay
LhaL as a backdrop ln our undersLandlng of whaL we're golng Lo Lalk abouL LogeLher Lhls mornlng. 8uL l
also wanL Lo acknowledge LhaL l am Lhe lasL of Lwo speakers wlLh ur. SLephen !ones havlng preached
Lwlce and Lhen Mr. uaulLon once so leL me remlnd you of whaL we've looked aL LogeLher Lhls week.
We've seen a reference Lo Lhe blbllcal response Lo homosexuallLy from ur. SLephen !ones. Pe
encouraged us Lo reflecL on Lhe facL LhaL Lhere ls someLhlng LhaL could be relaLed Lo Lhls ldea of Cod's
dlvlne purpose. And he has a plan ln Lhe process of how Lo go forward. Pls plan ls such LhaL he deslres us
Lo undersLand Lhe ldeal from Lhe Cld and new 1esLamenLs Lhe connecLlon LhaL lL's marrlage beLween
one man and one woman for a llfeLlme. 1here's Cod's prohlblLlon. 1hls prohlblLlon ls LhaL he menLlons
Lhe ldea of abomlnaLlon," he was clear Lo communlcaLe Lo us LhaL god vlews homosexuallLy as an
abomlnaLlon buL he also vlews oLher slns as well as an abomlnaLlon. And Lhen we have Lhe hope LhaL he
offers, Lhe provlslon. 1hls was menLloned ln Lhe facL LhaL we can relaLe Lhe Cospel glves us undenlable
hope. 1 CorlnLhlans 6:11, such were some of you." l re[olced ln how he approached Lhls Loplc buL you
know whaL my Lake away was? you beLLer noL wrlLe noLes LhaL harass people around here." When he
Lalked abouL LhaL and sald you have 24 hours", l loved LhaL sLaLemenL. 8ecause LhaL ls how we should
be known. We should be a group of bellevers who care for oLhers and we are noL looklng Lo harass
oLhers around us because Lhey don'L geL lL." We need Lo be humble ln Lhls approach of Lrylng Lo help
people Lake LhaL nexL sLep, noL slngllng people ouL. Mr. uaulLon, he helped us wlLh Lhls concepL LhaL ls
connecLed Lo some slmple, whaL he called lnlLlal conslderaLlons. And he encouraged us ln Lhese lnlLlal
conslderaLlons Lo noLe Lhe common causes. We Lhlnk LhaL Lhe reason we are Lhls way ls because we've
been born Lhls way, buL he was clear Lo say LhaL Lhere are some oLher poLenLlal causes such as a lack of
connecLlon wlLh your parenLs or someLhlng LhaL happened ln an abuslve slLuaLlon. 1hen he lefL Lhe door
open Lo say LhaL we don'L always know, buL he helped us undersLand Lhe hope-fllled conslderaLlons LhaL
lL's really a hearL lssue. lL's noL wllllng Lo submlL Lo our klng-and he ls Lhe klng. And so he dlrecLed us ln
hope Lowards progresslve sancLlflcaLlon ln our ldenLlLy whlch ls ln !C. And flnally he gave us some
nelghborly conslderaLlons, whlch klnd of flL down Lhe llne of whaL uS! lefL us wlLh: be humble, don'L [oke
abouL lL. l mean l Lhlnk LhaL mlghL be Lhe blggesL Lakeaway rlghL now, ln our conLexL. We have Lhls
looseness abouL lL, we [oke abouL lL, whlch reveals whaL's golng on ln our hearLs LhaL we don'L have any
deslre Lo reach ouL and help and pracLlce whaL you preach.
l wanL Lo call you Loday Lo conslder our relaLlonshlp Lo Lhose who sLruggle. Pow can a born agaln
bellever relaLe Lo Lhose who sLruggle wlLh homosexuallLy? l wanL Lo look aL Lhree caLegorles, and l wanL
Lo encourage you lf you have a pen and paper Lo wrlLe down some noLes because l'm golng Lo Lake us Lo
dlfferenL passages LhaL could be used by you Lo go back and flnd Lremendous encouragemenL ln how
you relaLe. LeL's sLarL wlLh Lhe flrsL one, Lhe pracLlclng homosexual who does noL belleve and embrace
Lhe Cospel. Pow are we supposed Lo respond Lo Lhls Lype of person? l'm gonna call you wlLh Lhe
slmpllclLy of reflecLlng on Lhe Cospel. 1 CorlnLhlans 6:11 says such were some of you." ?ou need Lo
remember LhaL Lhe Cospel can Lransform anyone. 8ased on Lhe facL LhaL Lhe messages we've already
heard have seL Lhe sLage for us on whaL Lhe 8lble says abouL homosexuallLy we reflecL on Lhe Cospel
and we reallze LhaL buL by Cod's grace, l could be lnvolved ln LhaL very Lhlng. We wanL Lo learn Lo guard
our own hearL. When we Lalk abouL guardlng our hearL we're Lalklng abouL roverbs 4:23, guard your
heard for ouL of lL are Lhe lssues of llfe." ln CalaLlans 6:1 lL's a Lremendous passage. lL says Lhose who
are splrlLual should resLore suc ha hone ln a splrlL of meekness, conslderlng Lhyself lesL Lhou also be
LempLed." So l'm golng Lhrough Lhls process lf l am engaglng wlLh someone who ls a pracLlclng
homosexual who does noL belleve or embrace Lhe Cospel, l'm golng lnLo lL reflecLlng on Lhe gospel, Lhe
gospel can change hlm, can change her. l'm relaLlng on Lhe facL LhaL l musL guard my own hearL, lesL l
Loo fall. lL's so easy Lo plck ouL Lhe fallures ln oLhers when lL's Lhe very Lhlngs LhaL we sLruggle wlLh Lhe
mosL. We should pray, 2 1lmoLhy 4:1-3 whlch calls us Lo pray for unbellevers and call Lhem Lo Lord
would you work ln Lhelr llves so LhaL Lhey would geL saved." And Lhen we Lurn Lo someLhlng LhaL l would
really love Lo Lake your 8lble over Lo 1 CorlnLhlans 3:11-12. uld l [usL say befrlend"? ?eah, l dld. See you
sLarL, you purpose Lhe rlghL way. ?ou're reflecLlng on Lhe gospel you're guardlng your hearL, you're
praylng for Lhem. 1hen you need Lo demonsLraLe Lhls klnd of connecLlon Lo anoLher lmage bearer of
Cod. Look ln verse 9 Lo geL sLarLed, l know l have verses 11-12 referenced buL look aL verse 9. lL says l
wroLe unLo you ln an eplsLle noL Lo company wlLh fornlcaLors: 10?eL noL alLogeLher wlLh Lhe fornlcaLors
of Lhls world, or wlLh Lhe coveLous, or exLorLloners, or wlLh ldolaLers, for Lhen musL ye needs go ouL of
Lhe world. 8uL now l have wrlLLen unLo you noL Lo keep company, lf any man LhaL ls called a broLher be a
fornlcaLor, or coveLous, or an ldolaLer, or a raller, or a drunkard, or an exLorLloner, wlLh such an one no
noL Lo eaL. lor whaL have l Lo do Lo [udge Lhem also LhaL are wlLhouL? do noL ye [udge Lhem LhaL are
wlLhln? 8uL Lhem LhaL are wlLhouL Cod [udgeLh. 1herefore puL away from among yourselves LhaL wlcked
person."
l wanL you Lo noLlce ln Lhls passage Lhe call ls noL Lo separaLe from Lhe unbellever, lL's Lo separaLe from
Lhe bellever who clalms Lo be a born agaln ChrlsLlan buL ls pracLlclng any of Lhese slns llsLed. !C was
accused many Llmes for belng a frlend of slnners, eaLlng wlLh publlcans and Lax collecLors. Could
someone make LhaL accusaLlon Lowards you? now l wanL you Lo undersLand l'm noL Lalklng abouL a
looseness, because lf you are really reflecLlng on Lhese flrsL couple polnLs-lf you're reflecLlng on Lhe
gospel lf you're guardlng your hearL you're noL [usL hanglng ouL wlLh whomever whenever, buL Lhls ls
more of a dellberaLe efforL, a sLraLeglcally spendlng Llme wlLh hlm. Looklng for opporLunlLles Lo spend
Llme LogeLher, looklng for common lnLeresL polnLs. 1hey may have a dlfference ln Lhelr preference
sexually, buL LhaL doesn'L mean you can'L flnd some oLher polnL of lnLeresL where you can spend Llme.
And Lhen l wanL Lo encourage you Lo Lalk wlLh Lhem openly abouL Lhe gospel. 8omans 1:16 lor l am noL
ashamed of Lhe gospel of ChrlsL: for lL ls Lhe power of Cod unLo salvaLlon Lo ever y one LhaL belleveLh, Lo
Lhe !ew flrsL, and also Lo Lhe Creek." lL's noL enough Lo bulld redempLlve brldges lf we're noL wllllng Lo
cross Lhe brldge and communlcaLe Lhe gospel. So we need Lo be wllllng Lo share Lhe gospel and
compasslonaLely do so, and Lalk abouL lL. Pe should know you by your love, he should know you by whaL
you belleve and show Lhe love of ChrlsL. 8y Lhls shall all men know LhaL we are hls dlsclples, when we
show love one for anoLher. !ohn 13:33. Pow many of you are pracLlclng Lhls rlghL now? ?ou know
someone who ls ln Lhe Lhroes of havlng glven up Lowards homosexuallLy. 1hey don'L clalm Lo be a
bellever. uo you have any frlends llke LhaL? Are you Lrylng Lo bulld relaLlonshlps LhaL would produce
gospel wlLness? An Amerlcan fasL food chaln, whlch l'm guesslng you can probably plck ouL Chlck-fll-A,
was Lhe focus of conLroversy followlng a serles of publlc commenLs made ln !une 2012 made by CCC
uan CaLhy opposlng same-sex marrlage. 1here was a reporL LhaL followed LhaL referred Lo Chlck-fll-A's
charlLable conLrlbuLlons, now Lhey wenL agalnsL Lhe LC81's poslLlons and rlghLs. Well as l was
conslderlng Lhls sLance and even here ln Creenvllle Lhere was a Chlck-fll-A uay, and all Lhe Chlck-fll-A's ln
Lhls area were [usL packed as Lhere was an opporLunlLy Lo demonsLraLe supporL for Lhe poslLlon uan
CaLhy promoLed. Are you famlllar wlLh Lhe nexL chapLer of whaL happened? Are you famlllar wlLh a guy
named Shane Wlndmeyer? Pe ls Lhe naLlonally recognlzed LC81 leader ln hlgher educaLlon, besL-selllng
auLhor, execuLlve dlrecLor of Campus rlde. And ln Lhe PufflngLon osL, he wroLe an arLlcle called uan
and Me: My Comlng CuL as a lrlend of uan CaLhy and Chlck-fll-A." 1hls ls whaL he sald:
l spenL new ?ear's Lve aL Lhe red-blooded, all-Amerlcan eplcenLer of college fooLball: aL Lhe Chlck-fll-A
8owl, nexL Lo uan CaLhy, as hls personal guesL. lL was among Lhe mosL unexpecLed momenLs of my llfe.
?es, afLer monLhs of personal phone calls, LexL messages and ln-person meeLlngs, l am comlng ouL ln a
new way, as a frlend of Chlck-fll-A's presldenL and CCC, uan CaLhy, and l am nervous abouL lL. l have
come Lo know hlm and Chlck-fll-A ln ways LhaL l would noL have LhoughL posslble when l flrsL sLarLed
hearlng from LC81 sLudenLs abouL Lhelr concerns over Lhe chlcken chaln's glvlng pracLlces.

lor many Lhls news of frlendshlp mlghL be shocklng. AfLer all, l am an ouL, 40-year-old gay man and a
llfelong acLlvlsL for equallLy. l am also Lhe founder and execuLlve dlrecLor of Campus rlde, Lhe leadlng
naLlonal organlzaLlon for lesblan, gay, blsexual, Lransgender (LC81) and ally college sLudenLs. Why was l
now sLandlng nexL Lo hlm aL one of Lhe mosL popular fooLball showdowns? Pow could l dare Lhlnk Lo
have a relaLlonshlp wlLh a man and a company LhaL have advocaLed agalnsL who l am, who would Lake
aparL my famlly ln Lhe name of "LradlLlonal marrlage", whose volce and vlews represenLed exacLly Lhe
opposlLe of Lhose of Lhe sLudenLs for whom l advocaLe every day? uan ls Lhe problem, and Chlck-fll-A ls
Lhe enemy, rlghL?"
Pe goes on Lhe Lalk abouL Lhe process LhaL developed wlLh uan CaLhy reachlng ouL Lo hlm,
communlcaLlng wlLh hlm, explalnlng hls poslLlon, befrlendlng hlm, buL noL changlng who he ls and whaL
he belleves. And here we have Shane Wlndmeyer who ls saylng, aL Lhe end of Lhls, my oplnlon ls
changlng. l'll [usL read Lhe lasL parL:
ln Lhe end, lL ls noL abouL eaLlng (or eaLlng a cerLaln chlcken sandwlch). lL ls abouL slLLlng down aL a
Lable LogeLher and sharlng our vlews as human belngs, engaged ln real, respecLful, clvll dlalogue. uan
would probably call Lhls acL Lhe blbllcal deflnlLlon of hosplLallLy. l would call lL human decency. So long
as we are all aL Lhe same Lable and Lalklng, does lL maLLer whaL we call lL or whaL we eaL?"
now you mlghL be slLLlng Lhere Lhlnklng ok, develop frlendshlps wlLh acLlve homosexuals, and so now
we're frlends and we go Lo fooLball games LogeLher, ls LhaL lL?" no, l wanL Lo remlnd you of someLhlng.
We have Lhe gospel, whlch ls Lhe power of Cod unLo salvaLlon. uo you belleve LhaL? 1hen you can llve
LhaL ouL, you don'L have Lo glve ln, buL you can promoLe ChrlsL. We llve ln a bubble. l llke Lo refer Lo 8ob
!ones as Lhe greenhouse," noL Lhe bubble. We need Lo geL ouL, and we need Lo care.
8uL how abouL Lhls nexL level. Pow abouL a pracLlclng homosexual who clalms Lo belleve and embrace
Lhe gospel? Pow abouL LhaL noe? l would suggesL LhaL Lhe flrsL Lhree LhaL l've already glven Lo you work
for Lhls one. l do sLaLe speclflcally clalms Lo belleve" because l do noL Lhlnk you can be one who acLlvely
pracLlces homosexuallLy over and exLended perlod of Llme and slL Lhere and be absoluLely confldenL LhaL
you're a born agaln belleve. Cnly god knows Lhe hearL, buL l sLarL wlLh Lhe same Lhree: reflecL on Lhe
gospel, guard your heard, pray, buL Lhen l encourage you Lo compasslonaLely confronL. MaLLhew 18:13-
18 lL glves us Lhe process. lL ls one on ond, noL ln fronL of oLher people buL prlvaLely, compasslonaLely
golng ouL because l say compasslonaLely because ln MaLLhew 18 lL Lakes abouL Lhe purpose, lL's
resLoraLlon. We're Lalklng abouL someone who ls ln Lhe conLexL of your church, who flnally comes ouL
and says l'm gay." Pow do l reacL? llrsL confronL. uo lL compasslonaLely. l refer you back Lo CalaLlans
6:1-2, ln a splrlL of meekness lesL you also be LempLed, bearlng one anoLher's burdens and so fulflll Lhe
law of ChrlsL." And by Lhe way Lhls does relaLe Lo Lhls lssue of Lhose who are caughL up ln a sln and are
looklng for help. And Lhen 2 Lhessolonlans 3:14 says separaLe. And l need you Lo look aL Lhls because l
know LhaL's a llLLle arresLlng Lo some of us, rughL? lease Lurn over Lo 2 Lhessalonlans 3:14. We see a
reference here Lo Lhose who are noL walklng accordlng Lo whaL Lhe blble Lells us. As l've broughL up Lo
you hlllppalns 3, Lhey're noL vlewlng !esus as Lhelr klng. verse 14: And lf any man obey noL our word
by Lhls eplsLle, noLe LhaL man, and have no company wlLh hlm, LhaL he may be ashamed."
?ou say, LhaL doesn'L sound very lovlng. lL's blbllcal. lf you don'L llke whaL l'm saylng, whaL Lhe blble ls
saylng, l'm noL geLLlng you Lo Lry Lo llke whaL l'm saylng. 1he blble says, lf you have someone who's
golng conLrary Lo ChrlsL, and you have confronLed, and Lhey conLlnue ln Lhelr sln, you have Lo choose Lo
say l'm golng Lo separaLe." now LhaL sounds preLLy [lncoherenL]. 8uL whaL lf lL's a famlly member?
WhaL do you do Lhere? Well l wanL Lo remlnd you as you look aL Lhls lasL one, you check ln wlLh Lhem. lf
you have separaLed, you say you're golng a dlfferenL dlrecLlon Lhan l'm golng, and l need you Lo know
LhaL, l vlew Lhlngs dlfferenLly. 1hls ls whaL Lhe blble has Lo say and l wanL you Lo come back Lo ChrlsL."
Look aL verse 13, ?eL counL hlm noL as an enemy, buL admonlsh hlm as a broLher." So you're comlng
back, you're checklng ln. !ave you changed your mlnd? l wanL Lo know, whaL's your perspecLlve?" 8uL lL
doesn'L answer Lhls Lhlng abouL a famlly member. Well l was flylng back Lhls pasL weekened from a
conference ln Chlo and l'm sLandlng ln Lhe phllldelphla alrporL agalnsL Lhe wall walLlng for my fllghL
connecLlon. And l'm LexL messaglng and l see Lhls shorL man walklng ln fronL of me and l'm Lhlnklng, he
looks llke-lL !" ur. Cllnger. Cool!" So l come up beslde hlm and l make some commenL abouL hls
compuLer bag and he doesn'L respond Lo me buL l do noLlce LhaL he klnd of goes afLer hls compuLer bag,
holdlng lL a llLLle LlghLer. And l say, ur. C, lL's me!" and he says Ch !ason, whaL are you dolng here?" l
say, whaL are you dolng here?" who cares, do you wanL Lo geL dlnner? ?eah!" 1he Lhlng LhaL was so
beauLlful ls LhaL l'm slLLlng here abouL whaL l'm dolng rlghL now here wlLh you. Pow do l communlcaLe
Lhe love of ChrlsL and Lhe auLhorlLy of scrlupLure wlLhouL sofLenlng Lhe LruLh, wlLhouL brlngnl back
anyLhlng LhaL we need Lo undersLand LhaL we need Lo be compasslonaLe ln our approach. We say down
and aLe, and of course he had an amazlng sLory whlch l won'L sLeal from hlm abouL flndlng.someLhlng.
Pe always has a sLory, lL's greaL. And l Lalked Lo hlm abouL whaL was on my hearL regardlng Lhls
message, and he sald you know !ason l Lhlnk lL's also always lmporLanL Lo remember Lhe conLexL of
Cod-ordalned lnsLlLlons." So Lhlnk of lL Lhls way: someone who ls a pracLlclng homosexual who clalmes
Lo be a bellever lf Lhe church ls dolng Lhe rlghL Lhlng Lhey wlll go Lhrough Lhe process of dlsclpllnlng LhaL
person. 8uL he also ordalned Lhe famlly. So LhaL ls LhaL person ls klcked ouL of Lhe church so LhaL he
woulbd be resLored, LhaL doesn'L mean Lhe famlly should no longer Lalk wlLh hlm. lL doesn'L mean LhaL
you're dead Lo me now. lL's Lhe famlly sLrucLure. So as a famlly member who ls sLruggllng you're sLlll
Lrylng Lo reach ouL. 8uL you're dolng lL clearly, communlcaLlng whaL Lhe blble has Lo say.
1here have been examples of Lhls, a very popular evangellcal preacher had Lo dlsclpllne hls own son
from hls church. Pe was lnLervlewed ln ChrlsLlanlLy 1oday, and he made Lhls sLaLemenL: My son knew
whaL was comlng, he sald, 'LhaL's whaL l expecLed you Lo do,'" because Lhls pasLor called hls son durlng
Lhe evenlng afLer Lhe church dlsclpllne Look place and Lhe son admlLLed LhaL's exacLly he expecLed hlm
Lo do and he respecLed hlm for lL, and he conLlnued Lo reach ouL Lo hls son. 1hls young man ended up
comlng back Lo ChrlsL. Pe was resLored by Cod's grace, and he wroLe an arLlcleand he gave some
suggesLlon as yo how you should LreaL Lhose who are ln Lhe process of sLruggllng wlLh clalmlng Lo be a
bellever buL clearly now llvlng LhaL way. Pe says polnL Lhem Lo ChrlsL, pray for Lhem, acknowledge LhaL
someLhlng ls wrong, don'L expecL Lhem Lo be llke ChrlsL, and welcome Lhem home." noLlce how he says
Lhls, l Lhlnk lL ls raLher arresLlng buL accuraLe: he says because your deepesL concern ls your son's hearL,
noL hls acLlons, don'L creaLe Loo may requlremenLs for hlm Lo come home. lf he has an lnkllng Lo be wlLh
you, don'L make lL hard for hlm. Cod may use your love Lo call hlm back Lo ChrlsL. Cbvlously Lhere are
lnsLances where parenLs musL glve ulLlmaLums llke 'don'L come Lo Lhls house lf you are.' buL Lhese wlll
be rare. uon'L lessen Lhe llkellhood of an opporLunlLy Lo be wlLh your chlld by pushlng Lhem away wlLh
rules. lf your daughLer sLlnks llke weed or an ashLray, change Lhe sheeLs when she leaves buL keL her
come home. lf you flnd ouL she's pregnanL, Lhen Lake her Lo a 20-week ulLrasound, proLecL her from Lhe
lanned arenLhood buL by all means, leL her come home. ll your son's broke because he spenL all Lhe
money you lenL hlm on loose women and rlLzy llquor, Lhen forglve hls debLs as you've been forglven.
uon'L glve hlm any more money, buL leL hlm come home. lf he hasn'L been around for a week and a half
because he's been sLaylng aL hls glrlfrlend's or boyfrlend's aparLmenL, urge hlm noL Lo come back and leL
hlm come home."
CeL lL? We have Lo be ones who belleve Lhls message can change llves, and lL does. And whaL we do
someLlmes ls we separaLe and we push people off and we're no longer able Lo communlcaLe Lhe love of
ChrlsL. ln Lhe same way we need Lo be able Lo sLand up Lo Lhe LruLh and say, LhaL ls noL rlghL, l am noL
golng Lo conLlnue hanglng ouL wlLh you as long as you belleve Lhls way." And l know whaL l'm saylng
may sound llke Lwo dlfferenL Lhlngs, so leL me Lry Lo be clear. l'm Lalklng abouL Lhls: lf your relaLlonshlp
ls resLrlcLed Lo church, Lhen you need Lo clearly separaLe. And every Llme see Lhem you're
communlcaLlng, come back Lo ChrlsL, come back Lo ChrlsL. lf you also happen Lo have LhaL same person
ln your home, your broLher or your slsLer and you sLlll have LhaL Cod-ordalned lnsLlLuLlon of Lhe famlly,
conLlnue Lo reach ouL Lo Lhem by maklng clear Lhe LruLh of Lhe gospel and encouraglng Lhem Lo Lurn
back Lo ChrlsL.
And Lhen flnally, Lhe professlng bellever who sLruggles wlLh same-sex aLLracLlon. l wanL Lo encourage
you Lo LreaL Lhem wlLh dlgnlLy. l remlnd you of whaL we've already heard from !on uaulLon, whaL we've
already heard from ur. SLephen !ones saylng, sLop maklng and laughlng aL [okes abouL same-sex
aLLracLlon." Colosslans 3:8 forblds Lhls. uevelop a frlendshlp wlLh Lhem and LreaL Lhem wlLh dlgnlLy as an
lmage-bearer of Cod. l wanL Lo encourage you Lo prlvaLely Lalk wlLh hlm abouL your concerns, MaLLhew
18. lf you noLe someLhlng LhaL seems noL rlghL, Lhen whaL you need Lo do ls you need Lo have a
relaLlonshlp LhaL [usLlfles Lhe connecLlon Lo communlcaLe your care. rlvaLely say, l'm noLlclng
someLhlng, can you help me undersLand why?" 8uL lL's lnLeresLlng LhaL CalaLlans 6 says LhaL lf anyone
ls overLaken ln a faulL." SomeLlmes you need Lo walL unLll Lhey reallze Lhey have a problem and Lhey're
looklng for a soluLlon. So be very careful here. Lncourage blbllcal sancLlflcaLlon. 8omans 6, know,
reckon, yleld. know you're saved and conLlnue Lo remlnd yourself LhaL and yleld your body parLs Lo Cod
as lnsLrumenLs of rlghLeousness.
And Lhen l wanL Lo encourage you Lo polnL Lhem Lowards approprlaLe resources, l'm [usL golng Lo glve
you Lwo. SeLLlngCapLlveslree.com. 1hose of you who've had me for Cld 1esLamenL Messages, you know
l refer Lo Lhls frequenLly. 1here's a lesson on Lhere called uoor of Pope," lL's very encouraglng, lL can
help someone who's sLruggllng Lo flnd vlcLory Lhrough Lhe gospel. And we've already heard a reference
Lo Love and Lo LlghL" by eLer Pubbard, lL's ln Lhe booksLore here on campus and l wanL Lo encourage
you Lo geL LhaL book and Lo read Lhrough lL Lo be equlpped ln how Lo help Lhose who are sLruggllng wlLh
same-sex aLLracLlon. LeL's pray.
laLher we need your help. We recognlze LhaL some Lhlngs are hard Lo recelve. 8uL laLher go before us
and be our gulde. Pelp us Lo llve ouL Lhe gospel by befrlendlng Lhose who don'L know you. 8y havlng Lhe
courage Lo separaLe, and yeL leave Lhe door open for people Lo reLurn by LreaLlng people as lmage
bearers of you and polnLlng Lhem Lo Lhe Lransformlng power of Lhe gospel. Lord we need you, l call ouL
Lo you Lo Lransform our hearLs and llves, renew our mlnds, make us more llke you. ln !esus name,
amen."

[The Q&A Panel is comprised of Eric Newton, BJU Dean of Students, Jon Daulton, BJU Dean of
Men, Jason Ormiston, BJU Bible Professor, and BJU Science Professor Marc Chetta.]

[Newton]

We forgot something, we forgot to invite some women panelists. And I think thats a fair thing to
wonder, so I just want to speak to that at the outset. Ya know, speak to it and move on. Uh, we
didnt forget, in fact were disappointed that we dont have any ladies up here. We were hoping
to have some and asked several, but for a variety of reasons they had to decline due to
scheduling conicts. There are many ladies around here to help you and well mention that
along the way but we wanted to mention why theyre not up here this morning. And nally,
before we pray, our purpose is to continue to look at this issue of homosexuality and same-sex
attraction through a biblical lens. We were texted I think about 45 questions and we are going to
try to get up to 15 of those answered this morning. Tall task, but were dedicated to moving
through here, so we picked the ones, not the easiest ones, in fact they didnt see a nal list of
questions until this morning. So uh, this is not staged, and we really tried to pick the ones that
are most pertinent for you, to the audience thats in the building this morning. This whole week
has been for your help, thats our burden behind this and I hope you can sense that. So let me
pray and we can get started.

Our Father in heaven we thank you that you are a God of truth and love. We are grateful that
you have spoken to us, youve revealed yourself and that youve no only told us what we should
do but you came yourself, your son came to rescue us from our sin. and we pray that you would
continue to do your work that youve begun in us even this morning. We pray for wisdom for
those of us who are on this stage, we pray for open hearts for all of us as we consider this that
we might do so in humility before you and we ask that ultimately youd receive the glory. We are
grateful that we can even pray to you and we do so in Jesus name. Amen.

Okay, were going to go through four categories here. The rst category really relates to biology,
and some of the messagesI would summarize them this way: because of Jesus Christ we can
experience transformation. All of us can, regardless of our sinful struggles. So we try to
understand some of the contributing factors, some of the misconceptions, grasp Gods hope for
those who believe and then treat them in a Christian, neighborly way. There was a consistent
thread through many of the questions that had to do with biology, and a couple of the speakers
addressed this but we thought we should take a little more time to do so.

Question #1: Romans 1 it says homosexuality results from ignoring Gods truth. [Newton:This is
verbatim from the question.] What about people who struggle from birth?

Can we speak a little bit more, panelists to this idea that some people are born this way.

[Chetta]

Well this seems like a biological question so Ill dive in. First of all this is a very complex issue.
And to this point in time, experts would agree that there is no homosexual gene thats been
found. However thats not to say that there are not any epigeneticthats a new eld that
actually delas with regulative proteins that can turn on or turn off genesthats not to say that
there are not hormonal issues. We know that there are young men, for example, who are very
effeminate. And we know that there are young ladies who are very masculine. So there can be
BJU Q&A Session on Homosexuality, 11/15/13
hormonal issues, even sensitivity or insensitivity to different hormones. And then nally, and I
think that this is a big player, there is environment. So its a combination of as Peter Hubbard
said, of chemistry and culture or nature and nurture. So were in agreement that its complex and
SSA [same-sex attraction] folks and homosexuals would say that I cant remember a time when
I wasnt this way, or when I didnt feel this way. And thats a big bone of contention between
straights and gays, is that straights would say, heterosexuals would say well, you chose this
lifestyle. Thats offensive to homosexuals. Homosexuals would say I did not choose this
lifestyle, I was born this way. Its natural to me. In the same that a heterosexual would say well,
Ive always felt like I was a heterosexual. So its very complex. And I would not stand up here
and say that they absolutely chose to be SSA or homosexual. Now, theres some studies that
have been out there on the internet. One was a study in 1991, it was reported in the Archives of
General Psychology, that there was a higher instance of homosexuality among brothers. And
that the more older bothers a young man had the more likely he was to be homosexual. And the
problem with both of these studies is that it does not address causality. In other words, we know
that the brothers are subjected to the same environmental inuences. So for if you have an
abusive father or an absent father or an overbearing or dominant mother or a sexually molesting
uncle, then all the brothers would be exposed to the same sexual pressures. So it does not
prove causality and in fact in Peter Hubbards book, Love Into Light, he quotes a study from
Sweden which is probably I think one of the best studies. It was done in 2010 where they
studied monozygotic twins. And monozygotic twins are important because thats as close to a
clone as you can get. And in this study of 71 twins where one was a homosexual, the incidence
of both being homosexual was 9.8% and that falls below genetic prediction. So, all that to say
this: I dont think we can denitely say that its pure genetics. On the other hand I dont think we
can say that theres no genetics involved. So, my contention is that someone who is SSA or
homosexual from birth, its a combination of inuences. Theres some epigenetic inuences,
theres hormonal inuences. And I think the biggest player is environmental inuences, and I
think the research would substantiate that.

[Ormiston]

And if I could jump in on that, Id say rst of all, good morning and thanks for coming even
though I know you dont really have a choice. Were up here trying to help and if we give you
answers that dont totally make sense or its over your heard or its really detailed and you want
more, were all very open to having you talk with us so we can clarify, if we can do that. I think of
this question, and its very complicated, as we just heard. The issue, and Jon, you mentioned
this in your sermon, that its a heart issue. Its not an issue of whether or not youre born gay.
Its, what does the Bible say about His plan, His purpose? I started my sermon out with
Phillipains 3 on purpose, because it talks about the problemour gut because our god. The
belly is our god. And those are enemies of the cross. And this is not taking away from the
struggles that are unbelievably intense, but we have to make a decision. Is the bible the
absolute authority, or isnt it? And thus we have a worldview forum. And were coming from the
perspective that the Bible is the absolute authority, and answering accordingly. Not to beat
someone up, but to lovingly direct them to true happiness, true joy, true contentment.

[Daulton]

And obviously the beauty of it is that you can do something about your attractions. Thats the
beauty of the gospel. And whether you feel pre-disposed or naturally inclined or driven by
feeling, Gods word has sufcient means to deal with those things. And its not easy, but its not
as if we have been without hope, pre-disposed to have to live according to those affections.

[Chetta]

And you know, what makes this discussion really germane is that if the person with SSA feels
that these are determinativethe hormones, the genes, the environmentdeterminative
meaning I cant change, then he has no hope. Hes seeing this as purely naturalistic, purely
mechanistic, devoid of the spiritual aspect. He feel that this is determinative, I cant change,
therefore give in. On there other hand, if you feel like these inuences are merely formative,
then there is hope. And thats what 1 Corinthians 6:11 talks about. And so were some of you.

[Newton]

Thats great. So, lets keep up with this theme a little bit. Another question:

Question #2: Whats the denition of same-sex attraction? Is it limited to actual sexual desire or
does it also include intellectual curiousty?

Maybe Dr. Ormiston or Mr. Daulton, when you used same-sex attractionwhen you used that
phrase in your messages this week, what did mean? Could you give us a sense of where it
starts and where it stops?

[Daulton]

Well, its a very broad term. Some people dont like the term because it seems to soften the
offensiveness of homosexuality. Personally, I think tit actually broadens the application of that
conversation because it includes everything from someone who is perhaps practicing to
someone who is just nding themselves inclined toward the same sex. There are, as Dr. Newton
said, many points in between on that continuum, and when does is it a sin, when is it not a sin?
You know, a little boy growing up just nding out that he kind of likes to be around boys, can we
say thats a sin? Well, not necessarily. Can we say once he reaches puberty and his sexual
desires become eroticized and he becomes aware of his sexual capacities, could we? Well,
perhaps. But I think here, the question: I dont think because someone has just this intellectual
curiosity about how same-sex genders think, is that sinful? Not necessarily. But when I know
that I am being compelled, or drawn, to something that is unnatural according to scripture, and
unnatural for me[slight cut in audio, about 10 seconds]

[Ormiston]

which means heal-grabber, which also means deceiver, and his whole life is characterized by
deception. And in the end God woos him to himself and he has victory over that and hes given
a new name, Isreal, or Jabez in 1 c 4:9-10, hes called born in pain and his prayer is, Lord
help me to not live up to my name. And so we may have temptations or even propensities a
certain way from birth but we dont have to give in to those things. Gods word puries.

[Newton]

Good. Lets move to the next category. There were a few questions that really relate to biblical
interpretation. We dont wanna get bogged down in that but I think there are two or three of
these that we should consider. Because if were saying The Word is sufcient, and were
encouraging you, trying to model for you how to think through tough issues biblically then it does
matter how we interpret the bible, it does matter how we depend on its sufciency, its authority.
So, two or three of these. The question came in:

Question #3: Can you explain the command in the Pentateuch to execute witches, adulterers
and homosexuals?

Dr. Ormiston, maybe the theologian should take this?

[Ormiston]

OK, were all theologians, I told Dr. Chetta that. I would say that the rst thing we need to do is
not run from the fact that this is a perfect picture of the holiness of God,that God is holy, he is
above all others, that he is unique, set apart, and he desires his people to be holy. And so in the
Mosaic covenant, as he is giving instructions to the children of Israel he desired their purity and
gave them instructions on how to nd that purity so he takes this very, very seriously. And we
nd in Psalm 5:5 and Psalm 11:5 referenced that God hates bothe the sin and sinner. Because
its not just the sin thats thrown into hell, but the sinner thats thrown into hell. Now, how does
that work when it comes to this question about execution? Should we do that today? Absolutely
not. The reason is Jesus Christ. When he died on the cross he took Gods righteous wrath on
himself. The veil of the temple was rent in two, and we rcan rejoice in the gospel that changes
everything. And understanding it in the context of where it ts in Gods redemptive plan for a
theocracy. No longer are we under a theocracy, those specic commands in the Pent refer to
that group at that time. But again I point you to Christ, in the fact that he has taken all the wrath.
We can rejoice in that and be set free by that. So, we should love the world as God loved the
world, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, so we should have that
same kind of passion, and zeal to see them come to know Jesus.

[Newton]

Let me skip over a slide here, if I can get this working, and go to this question:

Question #4: whats the correct biblical response to the this incorrect popular assertion, that
God hates gays?

You touched on this, but does God hate gays?

[Ormiston]

John 3:16. God loves everyone, that includes liars, theives, those that are self-centered, pride,
lustfulwhether homosexual or heterosexualGod loves us and he has demonstrated that. So
he doesnt hate gays, but he has a righteous wrath that we cant run from either, thats what Im
trying to bring out. We dont need to make him into this big brother just wants to give you a hug.
There eis consequence and Jesus paid for that on the cross.


[Newton]

Lets move on, we have two more categories. There was some questions either, and I dont
know who texted these in, either from your personal struggle or those you know, that related to,
what do I do? I want to ght this, I want help, I want to share with others the victory that the
Lords given me, how do I do that? So this question:

Question #5: Ive noticed that Ive always preferred to be with girls, never been attracted to
guys. Im starting to wonder if I may be a homosexual. I know its wrong but Im afraid to just
ignore my feelings. What should I do?

Can we speak to just a coupe of initial steps for somebody who sounds like a try believer who
wants help with this?

[Ormiston]

Ive talked enough, so you guys, its your turn.

[Daulton]

Well, this is a party line in the homosexual community, ok? You cannot ignore your own feelings
without being false to yourself. The ultimate goal is to be true to yourself. So, if you're trying to
ignore something that to you is natural, then youre being a hypocrite. And so when you, as we
say, come out of the closet, what youre doing is being true to yourself and you are saying, I will
no longer ignore these feelings. Could I just suggest that isnt much of our lives comprised of
ignoring our feelings? Is that all you and I are, just a collection of feelings? Or are we image-
bearers, are we made in the image of God, created with a divine purpose? David is one of our
favorite men to reect on in Scripture, and he emoted strongly about a lot of different things. I
remember one of the verses thats always stuck out to me, Psalm 94:19, the multitudes of my
thoughts within me, or in the midst of all my anxious cares and concerns, and maybe we
could put feelings in there, they comforts delight my soul. those unchanging truths about who
God is and what hes done. And evey day Ive got to choose to regulate my feelings by truth.
That sounds clinical, it sounds almost harsh, but it actually is the way[small cut in audio]
third, were going to try to speak the truth to you, and fourth, were going to try to do everything
we can to try to help you cultivate and develop healthy same-sex relationships. Dont let that be
confusing, that isnt intended to be misleading. But since homosexuality is a relational problem,
one of the best ways to help people who are struggling with same-sex attraction is to help them
cultivate healthy, spiritually healthy relationships. And many of you in this student body can be a
part of that, in working with same-sex friendships and building each other up. And I think weve
got a wonderful context in which to do that. So, if youre struggling, wed love to help you. And
this isnt something that just goes away in a day. One fella I met with for four years, on a regular
basis. Another one I remember meeting with for a year. Every week, 52 weeks. And hes a
married man with children today. And thats not so much that I have all the knowledge, its nt
that, but Gods truth is sufcient, and a healthy male relationship or a female relationship can
also be very helpful.




[Newton]

Dr. Ormiston, you have students come to you, Dr. Chetta as well, on a variety of counseling
issues. How do you speak to these questions?

[Ormiston]

Well, when people come and talk to me, I love to just pray with you, and talk through what
youre struggling about, point you to Scripture. I dont want you to feel the threat that if you say
something to me its going to go viral, or its gonna kick me outta school or something. Were
hear to help you grow in Christ-likeness. Thats the mission of this school. And if its a girl
coming thats expressing concern, theres a lot of very godly counselors that would love to
partner with you in nding victory, nding hope. So this is one of those touchy things where I
cant speak on behalf of Bob Jones University, I like to think of what Im doing in the role of a
professor and a pastor, and I like to think in context of a parent and I want to help you take that
next step spiritually. And sometimes its just getting it out, that Im struggling, will you pray with
me? And there may not be an answer right there, it may just be lets start working towards
victory. And I want to add that victory does not mean that you start dating someone
heterosexual dating. Victory may be that you come to the conclusion that, Im not attracted, the
last question, Im not attracted to other guys, what am I supposed to do? Well, youre supposed
to live in purity before God. And that may mean that youre not called toward marriage, maybe
youre called to singleness, and thats ok. That honors God. You have to understand, the goal is
not marriage. Thats great when that happens, but thats not the goal.

[Chetta]

One thing thats helped me, is all my life Ive had this abhorrence, this recoil from anyone who is
involved with SSA or homosexuality. I found it abhorrent because it was unnatural to me. But
then as I realized that God recoils from my sin in the same way. Every sin I commit is abhorrent
to God and he recoils from me. And I was smitten with the idea, who do I think I am? Im no
better. And that opened my heart to realize that we all need help, that were, as somebody said,
one blind begged helping another blind beggar to nd some bread. And I think thats the attitude
that most of the faculty have here.

[Newton]


One more question this category:

Question #6: How can someone whos having greater victory over this type of sin testify to what
Gods doing in their life? How can we talk about it?

Its encouraging to me that someone texts this in because it bears evidence that there are
people whom God is really doing a good work in their lives in this area. Any, and weve gotta
keep moving quickly here, any quick thoughts about testifying to Gods grace with something
like this?



[Daulton]

I would just say, be sure that the reason youre sharing it is really to help someone else.
Sometimes when we prize transparency so much, we can almost share our struggles because it
has a form of therapy for usI was open, I was honest, I feel better. OK, is my sharing this story
really going to help this other person? And I think we ought to be careful too that we do have at
least a measure of sustained obedience that were practicing in our own lives. This isnt
something that we last night really caved in to. Weve got some sustained obedienceits not
perfectionbut weve got some sustained obedience that we can share that with the other
persons interests primarily in mind.

[Newton]

Weve got a few more questions, we wont get to all of them. These relate to ministry, and Dr.
Ormiston I know you specically preached about this in chapel yesterday so some follow-up
things, maybe some wrap-up answers if we can.

Question #7: Is it ok toe hang out with homosexuals or can you only witness to them?

[Ormiston]

I dont think you can effectively witness to them if youre not making some kind of connection. I
dont know how youre dening hang out, but you have to balance it with Psalm 1, that talks
about the man whos blessed is not walking, standing or sitting with the ungodly. IF you are
strategic and deliberate about treating other people as image bearers of God youre going to
nd out about their common points of interest. Youre going to try to build redemptive
relationships. This is a little redundant because I said it yesterday, but the reason for making
that statement to build those bridges is that we have to cross those bridge. So you have to cross
the bridge and build those relationships[slight cut in audio]the Bible says lovingly, they need
to look at the Word and not you. And thats what I would say.

[Newton]

I think in the background here is a community of believers, if youre part of a vibrant local
church, thats really going to help with that support, youre going to be able to reach out and not
feel like youre all alone. Lets answer this:

Question #8: If you have a friend, you want to help them that you may feel a sense that theyre
attracted to you, and also is it unwise to counsel someone in a one-on-one setting?

[Daulton]

I think that question probably relies on a little bit of misunderstanding or homosexual, of the
average person whos struggling with SSA, theyre not always looking a date, theyre not always
looking for sex, theyre not always looking for that kind of thing. I think sometimes weve got to
be careful, keep that in mind. They will want to talk in private, they will not want to talk in public.
So theyre going to want to have a one-on-one conversation and thats where their real heart,
their real emotions will come out. So I think in general those one-on-one conversations are not
something to be afraid of. Because frankly if theyve searched you out, if theyve called you out
to have a conversation they really do have some genuine questions, theyre not going to attack
you or anything like that, they may really be looking for some answers.

[Newton]

One more question:

Question #8: How should you relate to someone in authority over you whos a practicing
homosexual like an employer?

You may be in this situation right now or you may be in the summer, or many of us probably in
the future are headed this way. What do you do? What principle can you point to?

[Daulton]

Id say Romans 13:1, there are no powers except powers that are ordained of God, so if Gods
put a person in a position of authority, theyre in authority whatever their sexuality is. So you
may not respect their lifestyle, but they have a position that you certainly have to respect.

[Newton]

If we can go to the last slide, I just want to mention a couple of resources here. Youve heard us
mention the book in the middle here, Love Into Light by Peter Hubabrd. That is in our
bookstore. I think all of us have read either part or all of that book. A couple of other resources,
Denny Burke, What is the Meaning of Sex? The reason Im putting that up there is because
this issue that weve been dealing with this week is part of a much larger issue. Obviously were
talking about how to glorify God, whos made us in His image as male and female. So
understanding that the glory of God is at the center of this and how that should feed into healthy
human relationships whether its single, whether its couples, whether its family planning, the
issue of homosexuality is dealt with in this book. And then on the far right, Finally Free, all
three of these books have come out in the last couple months. And this deal directly with
pornogrpahy, nding Gods grace to free us from that. the reason we bring that up is because I
think its obvious o you but its worth stating that one of the avenues in which same-sex
attraction can be cultivated or started to be acted upon is pornography. Its facing right in your
face and we are aware of that and we feel that as well and we need to help one another think
biblically on that and draw on Gods grace.