The
two main groups of people caught in all this are Christians and
homosexuals. I am in the Christian group
and want to say two things to my neighbors and fellow citizens who are
homosexuals. First, as a follower of
Jesus, I want to apologize on behalf of other believers who may have rejected
and cursed you or talked to you with an attitude of self-righteousness. They were wrong. No excuses.
I hope you can forgive them for their foolishness. Second, I want to say with deep sincerity,
God loves you. He loves every lesbian,
gay, bi-sexual, transgender and questioning person.
Though
less than 5% of our nation is practicing homosexuals, a super-majority are
talking about this issue and many with deep-seated convictions. This puts the LGBTQ community under the
microscope, whether they want to be or not.
No doubt, with the positive coverage this movement has received over the
last year, their numbers are likely growing.
Yet, with this affirming culture fostering a sense of freedom to explore
one’s sexuality, there can be a downside. It can produce a sense of inner
confusion and doubt.
Our
Creator made us in His image, which means we were born with a natural instinct
to seek and know Him. However, we also
were born with an inclination to live our lives our own way rather than God’s
way. This attitude, in effect, leads to
inner guilt and shame producing a lack of peace, spiritual restlessness and
inner turmoil. It is the predictable
effect of going against what we were made for.
Homosexuality
is a lifestyle that has been around for over 5,000 years of human history. It also goes against God’s design. For countless millennia God has been calling
men and women out of this practice and giving them transformed lives. He sent His Son Jesus to suffer, die and rise
again to give them a new identity. Not
an identity based on gender or sexual practice, but one based on the person of
Jesus Christ. The Scripture says, “. . .
if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.
The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God” (2 Corinthians
5:17-18). When a person surrenders their
life wholly to Jesus, in turn they receive the purity, beauty and perfection of
the Son of God poured into them. Today,
you have a choice. Change your
identity. Turn to Jesus and let Him give
you a new heart, new mind and a new future.
