"…….BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the General Assembly calls upon the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to affirm the faith, baptism and spiritual gifts of all Christians regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, and that neither is grounds for exclusion from fellowship or service within the church, but we celebrate that all are part of God’s good creation; and……"--- statement in proposed Resolution GA 1327 to be considered by the General Assembly during July 2013 gathering in Orlando FL
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) General Assembly will be meeting in Orlando FL July 13 through July 17. At that time an extremely critical resolution is to be considered.
At first glance a read through the opening “whereas” statements would lead one to conclude that this is an excellent declaration.
But hold on a minute before reaching a conclusion on the merits of the opening statements. As you proceed, you come to the affirming part – it is here that things get interesting as the can opener peels off the lid on that can of worms and the slimy things seek to get out of the can!
Look very carefully at the following words: “….BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the General Assembly calls upon the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to affirm the faith, baptism and spiritual gifts of all Christians regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, and that neither is grounds for exclusion from fellowship or service within the church, but we celebrate that all are part of God’s good creation; and….”
It is obvious that the statement is saying no matter what your sexual orientation (and by implication, your sexual practices) may be, it is morally acceptable to us within the church! Sodomy and lesbianism are OK and we have no right to object to such practices on the part of those who are so “oriented.” Further, that those who practice same-sex intimacy should not be excluded from serving in various positions within the church, including that of being a pastor.
Watch out – here is where the worms start pouring out of the can.
Suppose a person is “sexually oriented” to molest small children – it brings him a real thrill each time he does it. The statement is clear – this guy must be affirmed since we do that “regardless of their sexual orientation!”
Suppose a family is “sexually oriented” wherein the parents are sexually intimate with their children and the siblings within the family are sexually intimate with each other. What to do? Simply affirm their faith “regardless of their sexual orientation!”
Suppose a young man in his 20’s is “sexually oriented” to rape young girls – that is his greatest pleasure in life, therefore who are we to object as to how his genes are programed? In order to be consistent, we must affirm his “faith” also if he chooses to be active within our fellowship and we must welcome him, must we not?
Let’s not forget Penelope – her “sexual orientation” involves her German Shepherd, Spike! She enjoys sexual escapades with him on a regular basis. She readily admits that she is a bit different but on basis of a church resolution, insists that she should be able to serve on the board of the church and on the Social Committee – particularly the subcommittee on Socializing with Animals!
Hang on – we’re not done yet – suppose there are those married couples who are “sexually oriented” to play musical beds with members of the opposite sex! You know, this thing of having an “open marriage.” Their dominating philosophy is “variety is the spice of life.” No choice here – we must affirm them without objection. Perhaps, if given the chance, they can serve as teachers and show the ladies Bible class how to really live in this world!
Yes, yes I already know - some of the activities previously mentioned are considered illegal -- criminal acts in which you can be charged, brought to trial and maybe do some prison time. Well, it's time to petition state legislatures to change the laws on such matters - a person can't help it if they are "sexually oriented" to do things that may be considered against the law. So, in addition to a resolution that urges our church people to full acceptance of all persons no matter what their "sexual orientation" may be, we may have to bring about changes in our justice system as well!
Let’s keep this thing in proper balance and cover all the bases when it comes to affirming the faith of all regardless of sexual orientation. How can we object? If we try to appeal to the Bible by saying that some aforementioned sexual activity is sinful, then we have to also include sodomy and lesbianism as being not merely sinful, but an abomination in the sight of God. After all, that’s how He identifies such activity in His Word.
Actually there is not one single statement in the entire revelation given to us by God in which the practices of sodomy and lesbianism or others as mentioned above have His approval and blessing.
Further, God established the institution of marriage with specific boundaries, involving one male and one female within the holy covenant of marriage. It is only within this covenant relationship that sexual intimacy is expressed and experienced with God’s approval – any kind of sexual activity outside the marriage covenant is totally condemned. In all of Scripture there is not one place that indicates God has altered His standard as to what marriage is and who the persons are whom He joins together to be one flesh!
Is it not strange that the subject of repentance from sin is never mentioned in the proposed resolution? Oooops! I forgot – the word repent is a word that is intentionally banished from the vocabulary of most churches these days.
The trends taking place in the denominations being what they are, we can expect the worms to begin crawling soon after the General Assembly bash and acceptance of GA 1327 in Orlando FL in July 2013!
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! --- Isaiah 5:20 (ASV)
