We had an interesting discussion in Human Sexuality recently. After taking a previous class period to review the complex interactions of biological, psychological, social/cultural, and spiritual factors that cause homosexuality, we then turned our attention in yesterday’s class to how we (as Christians) ought to respond to the issue.At one point and in an attempt to be practical, I offered this question: How much conviction should a homosexual person experience or demonstrate before we accept him/her in church?
Suppose a person came to you and explained that although he struggles significantly with homosexual thoughts and feelings, he does not want to engage in homosexual behavior. He sees homosexuality as a sin, he wants to be true to Scripture, follow Jesus, and allow the Holy Spirit to work in his life. He doesn’t yet know if he should just commit to a life of abstinence or if he should work toward changing his orientation. But he wants to be a part of your church. For the sake of our discussion, let’s describe this person as experiencing/demonstrating 100% conviction. This person you would very likely welcome into your church. You would want to minister to him and walk his journey with him.
Suppose another person came to you and explained that he has been active in a homosexual lifestyle for many years. He described himself as a dedicated Christian and he loves attending church, but be does not believe homosexuality sinful. In fact, he openly advocates for Christians to accept homosexuality as a normal and natural part of God’s plan for some people. He has no plans to change his behaviors or lifestyle, but he wants to be a part of your church. For the sake of our discussion, let’s describe this person as experience/demonstrating 0% conviction. This person you would likely not welcome into your church. You would (hopefully) maintain a good personal relationship with him, but membership in your local community of believers is probably not acceptable.
At least that was the consensus among my students at a conservative Christian college.
But most people (including ourselves) don’t live at 100% or 0% conviction. People live somewhere in between. We have a great ambivalence about most of our issues. There is a part of us that wants to change – there is a part of us that does not. And this is likely true of many people struggling with homosexuality. So I offered this more specific question to my students: What percentage of conviction should a person experience/demonstrate before we accept him into membership at our church?
Granted, these are unfair questions and some students rightfully objected to them. We are not in a place to judge someone else’s conviction, right? But we do judge – all the time – and in order to exaggerate and examine our response to homosexuals, I forced each student to give me a number. What percentage of conviction should a homosexual have before we bring them into our community of faith?
It was a lively discussion with answers that ranged from 1% to 100%.
What is your percentage and why?
Posts
2 comments:
Wow, that's a tough one. My feeling is that you'd have to take a close look at the way Jesus did things. He took people...damaged, hard-hearted, murdering people...and offered them love, compassion, and forgiveness. But, they had to make the choice. Do they follow him or do they continue on in sin. He gave them the choice to come to him and, for those who did, he used many of them in mighty ways.
I think I'd have to say that the person would have to acknowledge that his lifestyle is sinful and have a 100% desire to change. Otherwise, if you allow him to join your church, you are, by your acceptance of his membership, condoning his lifestyle and giving him and everyone else the impression that it is acceptable, when it is not.
Now, that's not to say that he can't attend your church. He just wouldn't be able to join the body of believers. Basically, he'd be able to show up every Sunday to sing, listen to the sermon, and interact with the other people...which is what a lot of people do every week. They all sin and a lot of them don't intend to change. We all know that every person sitting in the pews of every church in every city each and every week have sin just like the homosexual. It may not be the sin of homosexuality, but it is still sin. And, isn't all sin abhorant in God's eyes...no matter which specific sin it may be?
We can't really judge his level of conviction but, for membership in a Christian church, I believe that EVERY person should have a 100% desire to follow Jesus and pursue righteousness. We must make the decision to follow him and do his will...even though we'll fail miserably every day trying to live it out. Salvation and eternity with God are too important to accept anything less.
I agree with Curtis. I beleive we must hold a standard for our membership. But we must also to love those that aren't repentant. Even though I believe this would exclude them from membership, we shouldn't exclude them from participation, the Gospel or from our accepting them as a person.
-The Zeb
Post a Comment