Church Touts Homosexuality as a Gift, Not a Sin

Christian Post ^ | 4/27/11 | Eryn Sun

[fwdude]

Kind of twisted reasoning, but then again, there never was any success in talking morals and ethical behavior to your average lay Catholic.

Agreed. But sadly, much of modern evangelicalism can be characterized this way.

[Notwithstanding]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2711746/posts?page=74#74

You wrote that to even think about disordered sex is the heart lust Jesus condemns.

You equated “lust” and “a temptation to lust.”

Christ has condemned your pharisaical stance.

[Mrs. Don-o]

The thing to remember is that the word "gay" is ambiguous: it doesn't differentiate between at least three different cases:

• a person who experiences homosexual temptations;
• a person who deliberately accommodates homosexual fantasies and/or identifies with "gay" as a personal identity tag; and
• a person who intentionally engages in homosexual behavior.

The first person is blameless if he resists those temptations; the second is culpable because of his failure to oppose perverse tendencies (an intentional thought is, as Jesus taught, an inward act); the third is culpable because of morally objectionable acts.

The Catholic Church teaches, and has always taught,that a person can be innocent, and yet suffer temptation (as Our Lord did) as long as, with the grace of God, he resists this evil. The Catholic Church also teaches that temptation must not be accommodated in any way: in your thoughts or in your words, in what you do or what you fail to do.

This is quite different from a church like the one this article describes, which teaches that homosexuality is "a gift, not a sin."

[RnMomof7]

If temptation = sin (as you say), then God is not merciful.
But in fact Jesus is divine and perfect mercy.

lets look and see what Jesus Himself says

Mat 5:22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

Matt 5 ;27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery : 28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

[John O]

John O->BTW, "gay Christian" is an oxymoron. You can be either gay or Christian. You cannot be both.

AP->I don’t think you understand Salvation. Salvation is not dependent on what WE do but what God does. It is a free gift from God that we receive without merit.

I know plenty of Christians who struggle with sin.

Thank You AP! Now I get to expand on it.

Salvation is entirely a gift from God.

However in order to be saved we MUST repent of our sins. "Repent" means to turn away from. So we have to turn away from our sins, and turn towards God in order to be saved.

If someone identifies themselves as "gay" they are stating that their sexual choices are part of who they are and are not sinful (even though God calls those actions abomination). They are refusing to repent.

A person who does not repent cannot be saved

I know many people who struggle with various sinful desires. In fact, I am not sure I know any who do not. But these Christians do not identify themselves as their sin.

The Christian who struggles with gluttony does not support "glutton pride" and claim that his overeating is exactly the way God made him and is the right thing for him to do. He knows he is sinning but struggles against it. Sometimes successfully, sometimes not.

I can say the same for those who struggle with anger, porn, any other sexual addiction, jealousy, lying etc.

SO, someone who does not repent can not be a Christian, and someone who labels themselves "gay" has not repented.

[Mrs. Don-o]

We should pray for sinners.

[RnMomof7]

The catholic church, like many cults , are very big on appearances ... but God isnt at interested with a cup that is clean on the outside .... On that day those that tried so hard to please God will only find that the works they did were sin before a Holy God, that is only pleased with His work in us...

[John O]

How about Christians who don't struggle with their sins, and who, rather, call their sins not sin?

There are no such people. If they call their sins "not sin" then they haven't repented. (So these people you refer to are not Christians.)

[RoadGumby]

Do not mean to offend, BUT, if your church has this type of doctrine, you need to move and change churches. Why would you expose yourself (and spouse and children?) to this doctrine?

[RnMomof7]

Where did I say that? Provide the links.....

You did not say that ...but they think that those entertaining thoughts they have are "just temptations"

[RnMomof7]

Where did I say that? Provide the links.....

You did not say that ...but they think that those entertaining thoughts they have are "just temptations"

[RnMomof7]

We should pray for sinners.

We are all sinners ...

[Notwithstanding]

Yes, exactly: Jesus does not condemn being tempted to look at a woman so that one can lust after her. He condemns the actual failure to overcome that temptation, which is to say that He condemns the actual act of looking at a woman for the purpose of lusting after her.

[RnMomof7]

He condemns the actual failure to overcome that temptation,

Scripture please???

Actually if you look at a woman and have a lustful thought ..that is adultery... One does not have to INTEND to have that thought.or go looking for a woman to lust after .

[Eepsy]

In that situation, the lust was there first. The person “looked” solely for the purpose of lusting.

It’s the difference between scrolling through a Maureen Dowd thread on Freerepublic and closing it when the inevitable Catherine Zeta-Jones pictures become distracting, and actually going to Google and typing in “Catherine Zeta Jones Naughty”.

One is a temptation and no sin when refused- the other is adultery, just as Jesus said.

[Mrs. Don-o]

"We are all sinners ..."

That's indeed the sad truth: speaking here of myself before all else.

[Notwithstanding]

Your insane anti-biblical offensive-to-God sect does not understand that

overcoming the internal and real temptation to leer at a woman lustfully is NOT condemned by Jesus,

whereas actually leering at a woman lustfully IS condemned by Jesus.

This illustrates the pitiful and dangerous nature of your sect’s perversions.

[AppyPappy]

“Salvation is entirely a gift from God.”

If by “entirely” you mean “not entirely”.

“However in order to be saved we MUST repent of our sins.”

So in other words, Salvation is dependent on us, not God. We must Save ourselves. God is like a spectator in the Salvation process.

“A person who does not repent cannot be saved”

For example, babies? Right? A baby cannot repent so even God can’t help them. God is helpless to Save someone unless that person performs X number of tasks.

Sarcasm aside, I don’t think you understand the concept of Grace. You have works-based, man-centered view of Salvation although you seem to have grasped the Methodist view that we can fall from Grace. Your view seems to be somewhat like the world’s opinion that you can be “good enough” to get into Heaven.
The Biblical view is that repentance is a fruit of Salvation but there is no quid pro quo. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and make a liar out of God”.

[AppyPappy]

“How about Christians who don’t struggle with their sins, and who, rather, call their sins not sin? “

The church is full of people who justify their sin. They may call greed and lust for money “success” or “blessings” or “God’s harvest”. I’m sure Joyce Meyer can justify her wealth and extravagance just as easily as a gay person can justify their adultery.

The question is : Which one is struggling with sin and which one celebrates it?

[Notwithstanding]

Matthew 5:28

“But I say to you, that whosoever [anyone who] shall look on a woman [focuses his eyes on a woman] to lust after her [in order to lust after that woman] hath already committed adultery with her in his heart [is guilty of adultery].”

In very plain langauge, it is “looking in order to lust” that is the sin.

Jesus condemns the deliberate act of looking at a woman with the purpuse and intent to facilitate sexual daydreams.

Overcoming a truly felt desire to commit such a deliberate act is a victory for Christ.

(Your sect’s perverted views notwithstanding.)