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Rarely, if ever, is there the acknowledgment that "ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Instead of dealing humbly with the fallen nature we each wrestle with in its various manifestations, we single out those whose personal challenges are easiest to ostracize.
It is true that sometimes this topic is cherry-picked to be discussed regarding what is sinful, when, in all fairness, Christians should be equally vocal about any other sexual sin. A Christian’s stance really should be that any sex outside marriage is sin. There’s no reason to pick out any one in particular. And non-Christians see the hypocrisy when premarital sex and/or extramarital sex are practiced or winked at by Christians in comparison. This is certainly not pleasing to God (1 Corinthians 5) and has likely caused more and more sexual behavior (including everything from immodesty, pornography, unwed pregnancy, and abortion) to become more acceptable in society and, sadly, even within the Church.
Regarding the questions presented in this feedback, this article will answer them more generally than directly. Sexuality is a decision to engage in activities that humans do have a healthy, natural predisposition for, but God has put on a limit due to the sinful perversion of these originally perfect “inclinations” after the Fall. Simply put, God has indicated in His prescription for a healthy and rewarding life that we abstain from sex outside of a God-defined marriage (Leviticus 18; Deuteronomy 22; Ephesians 5; 1 Corinthians 7). Period.
The Church, whatever else it does to engage the larger political culture, needs to stop turning the Bible into political talking points and start applying it, in full, to our own lives. Only then is there a chance to see the difference it makes.
1 comment:
Amen, Jemison. We frequently lose the point that the Father identified sins so that his children would live better lives -- not so that they could point out each others' weaknesses. He's a loving God, who seeks to spare us from the consequences of living outside his structure -- though we all must deal with Adam's fall and the consequence of death.
Sins are sins...but rather than use them to further break each other down (the sin's consequence will do enough of that), IDing them in each other should be reserved for accountability and redemption -- not fraudulently claiming to be better than each other on a relative scale. Falling short is falling short -- whether you're 50 feet from the edge of the chasm or 3 inches, it's a long fall.
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