I have a friend I work with who is a Christian. Yesterday he and I were discussing the recent Supreme Court decision to allow same-sex marriage in all 50 states. We were having a private discussion about our opposition to the ruling and how it's going to be bad for the country. Another coworker interrupted and said, "why do you Christians care so much what other people do. Why can't you just let people live their own lives?" I have to be honest, I failed to give him a satisfactory answer immediately. It was only later, after thinking about it, that I went back to him with my answer.
Ezekiel 33:6 says, "But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand." In other words, God has given the Christian the responsibility of warning others. This passage is often used to speak of winning the lost as it should be. It doesn't just mean that though. It says "see the sword come". This means that if we see danger coming we are to warn others. Christian people are not to live our lives silently while the world burns. We are commanded to be watchmen warning others of impending danger. If we fail to do so then God says that their blood will be on our hands. This doesn't mean we are to be arrogant and hateful towards people, but that we should be wanting to help them.
Homosexuals are people just like you and I. They're trapped in their sin. They're deceived by Satan and this world into thinking that what they are doing is Ok and even right! They need loving Christians like us to come along beside them and show what the Bible teaches about salvation. If they aren't saved then you'll never convince them they're wrong. They don't have the Holy Spirit to convict of sin. They, like my coworker, can't understand why we won't just leave them alone. Screaming that homosexuality is sin from the rooftops will only make them angry and harden their hearts toward God.
When I explained to my coworker that the Bible teaches that destruction is the end result of sin and that I have an obligation to warn others, he understood why I was opposed. He didn't agree with me, but he understood why I stood where I stood. He's one step closer to understanding the truth now then he was yesterday morning. He probably won't ask why I'm vocal about my beliefs anymore, because he knows I believe it's my duty to warn others. Not everyone will be as understanding as he was, but we aren't responsible for the reactions of others. We are responsible for warning people.
Unfortunately, there is a sect of Christianity that isn't loving when they speak to or about homosexuals or their supporters. Those Christians are one of the reasons that we are so often called "bigots" and our opposition is called "religious bigotry". Eph. 4:15 says that we are to speak the truth in love. It's a delicate balance. Think of a parent telling a child not the play in the road. The parent can yell and scream at the child, or the parent can explain to the child why they shouldn't play in the road. If the parent just screams not to do it, then the child may grow resentful and do it anyways. If the parent explains the danger of playing in the road in a loving way, then the child is more likely to obey. It's high time we quit complaining about the evils of the world and start being the watchmen God commands us to be. Speaking the truth in love for all within our sphere of influence. If we don't, America's blood will be on our hands.
Prayerfully trying to be a watchman,
Simeon Brazzell
I Tim 1:12
Unfortunately, there is a sect of Christianity that isn't loving when they speak to or about homosexuals or their supporters. Those Christians are one of the reasons that we are so often called "bigots" and our opposition is called "religious bigotry". Eph. 4:15 says that we are to speak the truth in love. It's a delicate balance. Think of a parent telling a child not the play in the road. The parent can yell and scream at the child, or the parent can explain to the child why they shouldn't play in the road. If the parent just screams not to do it, then the child may grow resentful and do it anyways. If the parent explains the danger of playing in the road in a loving way, then the child is more likely to obey. It's high time we quit complaining about the evils of the world and start being the watchmen God commands us to be. Speaking the truth in love for all within our sphere of influence. If we don't, America's blood will be on our hands.
Prayerfully trying to be a watchman,
Simeon Brazzell
I Tim 1:12
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