Homosexuality and the Bible
(Notes from a sermon preached at Grace
Fellowship Church, Toronto, on November 7, 2004.)
Introduction
Every generation faces its own assault against
the Truth. For Martin Luther, it was the
blatant "works righteousness" of Roman Catholicism. For Jonathon Edwards, the application of
Truth to practice, in the Lord's Supper controversy in Northampton. For Charles Spurgeon, the "Down-grade
controversy." For Dr. Lloyd-Jones,
doctrine-less ecumenicalism. For our immediate
forefathers, this assault came in what is broadly described as Modernism. And I would suggest to you today, that the spearhead
of our enemy's attack on the Truth is found in what we shall label, the
"homosexual movement."
I must be honest and say this is a message I
have both wanted to preach and dreaded preaching! I dread it, since I loathe conflict by
nature. There is nothing of the fighter
in me - searching for a scrap. On the
other hand, I have desired to preach this message since I love the Truth - the
Word of God - our Bibles.
As the homosexual movement continues to advance
their agenda of gaining approval for their "lifestyle," the church has become
one of the few lone voices of opposition.
Thus, it is no surprise that churches that crumble to the "movement"
receive massive media attention... and general societal approval. With these cavings-in, the "other side"
continues to notch up the battle - demanding that homosexuals be permitted to
church membership, then church clergy and the inevitable church marriage. This is nothing less than a full-scale
assault against Truth - and as people of the Truth we must stand our ground and
with humble tenacity hold to what is True.
There is no denying (except by the most
inventive of scholars) that homosexuality is a condemned activity in the Bible
and, in fact, the proof of God's wrath against sin. Homosexual sin is the result of a darkened
mind that God has given over to its own sinful desires. The terms of Romans 1 are explicit and
undeniable and we must either accept them as Truth or become exegetical
contortionists to the amazement of all.
My purpose today, is to continue our ongoing
study of Romans by slowing down on chapter one verses 26-27, and using this
patent condemnation of homosexual activity as a launching pad to the rest of
the Bible to see what it says. But
before we launch, let's remind ourselves of what Romans 1:18ff says.
In this passage, Paul describes the cycle of
sin as follows:
- Men
exchange their knowledge of God for idolatry...
- God
gives men what they truly desire.
- Men
revel in the sin that further enables them to deny their knowledge of God
("to suppress the Truth in unrighteousness."
Thus, the cycle begins again in earnest - ever downward
and further away from the Truth revealed to all people in what God has
made. Although feelings of guilt,
depression, meaninglessness, etc may accompany all this, the fact is man is
doing what feels most natural... his actions (whether homosexual acts, gossip,
sexual immorality, etc) are wilful
and he is culpable, but he wills it
because to him it appears to be the way to happiness.
In this description, Paul identifies three
realms of typical (the things he lists are examples.. but not exhaustive!) sinful
expression.
1:26-27 - sexual sin with a person of the same GENDER:
homosexuality
1:28-31 - relational sin
There is no mistaking that whether it is Oprah
or Dr. Phil or the latest best seller, people can at least perceive their two
biggest problems are in the realms of sex
and relationships. Money is often in
that list, too, but money is a relational problem in most cases.
Paul stresses that all these actions are merely
the overflow of the heart...
1:24 - lusts of their heart
1:26 - dishonourable passions
1:28 - a debased mind (understanding "mind" is
not merely cognitive function, but refers to the whole inner person, especially
in the realm of thoughts and will)
Sin has taken root in the heart of every man -
that is why the New Covenant is a glorious covenant as it promises a "new heart"
to everyone who believes on the LJC.
Jesus Himself said - Mark 7: 14ffAnd he called
the people to him again and said to them, "Hear me, all of you,
and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile
him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him." And
when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him
about the parable. And he said to them, "Then are you also
without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from
outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart
but his stomach, and is expelled?" (Thus he declared all foods clean.)
And he said, "What comes out of a person is what defiles him.
For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts,
sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting,
wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
We are in need of RADICAL change! For, here is a crucial point:
- Our
sin is not an environmental issue.
- Nor
is it a genetic issue.
- It
is a heart issue.
That means two things:
- We
are responsible for our actions (1:20)
- We
can be changed in our actions if that change takes place in the heart.
I mention this in particular for any of you who
struggle with the sin of homosexuality.
This is not a lost battle. Not
only can the outward behaviour stop, but your whole set of desires and values
can (indeed, must!) be altered. More on
this later, but I add it now, because we need to be very direct and say some
things that might cause serious distress if this particular sin is something
you or someone you love is in the middle of.
As serious as it is, there is hope! And we will get there - so don't
despair, or give up or let Satan steal your mind away...
May I add, for those of you who find this
particular sin reprehensible - something that causes revulsion in you: Be
careful! Read Romans 2:1-4!!! You have your own revolting sins, don't
you! You must guard your heart closely
to ensure you do not begin to think Pharisee-thoughts: that you are somehow inherently
better in the judgment of God because you have not had homosexual thoughts not
committed homosexual actions. You stand
equally condemned by your sin - whatever it
is.
I. Homosexuality in the Context of All of
Scripture
A. Before the Law: The Case of Sodom
Sodom Introduced and
Described
Genesis 13:8ff Then
Abram said to Lot, "Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your
herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. Is not the whole land before you?
Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the
right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left." And Lot
lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere
like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the
direction of Zoar. (This was before the Lord
destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley,
and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other. Abram settled in
the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved
his tent as far as Sodom. Now the men of
Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.
Note: We
are not told yet what made them "great sinners," but this is a unique and
intriguing description.
The War of the Kings
After the war of the Kings, Lot was taken
captive with the people of Sodom. Being
a righteous man and a faithful uncle, Abram comes to the rescue of Lot and
through a divine deliverance liberates all of the Sodomites with only 318 men!
Genesis 14:16ff Then he brought back all the
possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and
the women and the people. After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the
kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley
of Shaveh (that is, the King's Valley). And Melchizedek king of
Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he
blessed him and said,
"Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
Possessor of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into
your hand!"
And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. And
the king of Sodom said to Abram, "Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself."
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have lifted my hand to the Lord, God
Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a
sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, 'I have made Abram
rich.' I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of
the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share."
Abram interceded for Sodom even though the city
was full of "great sinners." Besides
this, Abram openly worshipped YHWH before the King of Sodom - a testimony to
God's Grace (OT evangelization!) and a call for the King and his people to
repent and follow the ways of YHWH.
There is no indication anything of the kind happened.
The Visit from God and
the Angels
In a Christophany, the Lord Jesus came to Abram
to promise him a descendant. Once this
promise was made, God would teach Abram the necessity of a clean life before
Him by His total destruction of Sodom and the cities of the plain.
Genesis 18
18:1ff And the Lord appeared to him by the
oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He
lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of
him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself
to the earth and said, "O Lord, if I have found favour in your sight, do not
pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and
rest yourselves under the tree, while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may
refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on--since you have come to your
servant." So they said, "Do as you have said."
Then the men set out from there, and they
looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way.
The Lord said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that
Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of
the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command
his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing
righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has
promised him." Then the Lord said,
"Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very
grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the
outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know."
Of course God knew
their sins. His going to Sodom was not
to gain a firsthand knowledge, but to make a final offer of grace. The actions of the Sodomites, however, would
only confirm their guilt.
So the men turned from there and went toward
Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and
said, "Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there
are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not
spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you
to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the
righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all
the earth do what is just?" And the Lord said, "If I find at Sodom fifty
righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake."
Abraham answered and said, "Behold, I have
undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of
the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of
five?" And he said, "I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there." Again
he spoke to him and said, "Suppose forty are found there." He answered, "For
the sake of forty I will not do it." Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be
angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there." He answered, "I will
not do it, if I find thirty there." He said, "Behold, I have undertaken to
speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there." He answered, "For the sake
of twenty I will not destroy it." Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry,
and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there." He
answered, "For the sake of ten I will not destroy it." And the Lord went his
way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his
place.
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening,
and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet
them and bowed himself with his face to the earth and said, "My lords, please
turn aside to your servant's house and spend the night and wash your feet. Then
you may rise up early and go on your way." They said, "No; we will spend the
night in the town square." But he pressed them strongly; so they turned aside
to him and entered his house. And he made them a feast and baked unleavened
bread, and they ate.
But before they lay down, the men of the city,
the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man,
surrounded the house. And they called to Lot, "Where are the men who came to
you tonight? Bring them out to us, that we may know them." Lot went out to the
men at the entrance, shut the door after him, and said, "I beg you, my
brothers, do not act so wickedly. Behold, I have two daughters who have not
known any man. Let me bring them out to you, and do to them as you please. Only
do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof."
Please note, this was an awful and sinful thing
for Lot to do. Without the NT
confirmation that Lot "was a righteous man," we would be left wondering! Answering sin with sin is never a good
choice! Thankfully, God in His grace
protected these daughters.
But they said, "Stand back!" And they said, "This
fellow came to sojourn, and he has become the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them." Then they pressed hard
against the man Lot, and drew near to break the door down. But the men reached
out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them and shut the door. And
they struck with blindness the men who were at the entrance of the house, both
small and great, so that they wore themselves out groping for the door.
Then the men said to Lot, "Have you anyone else
here? Sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone you have in the city, bring them
out of the place. For we are about to destroy this place, because the outcry
against its people has become great before the Lord, and the Lord has sent us
to destroy it." So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry
his daughters, "Up! Get out of this place, for the Lord is about to destroy the
city." But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.
As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot,
saying, "Up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be
swept away in the punishment of the city." But he lingered. So the men seized
him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful
to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. And as they
brought them out, one said, "Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop
anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away." And Lot
said to them, "Oh, no, my lords. Behold, your servant has found favor in your
sight, and you have shown me great kindness in saving my life. But I cannot
escape to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me and I die. Behold, this city
is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there--is it
not a little one?--and my life will be saved!" He said to him, "Behold, I grant
you this favor also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have
spoken. Escape there quickly, for I can do nothing till you arrive there."
Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to
Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and
Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven. And he
overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the
cities, and what grew on the ground. But Lot's wife, behind him, looked back,
and she became a pillar of salt.
And Abraham went early in the morning to the
place where he had stood before the Lord. And he looked down toward Sodom and
Gomorrah and toward all the land of the valley, and he looked and, behold, the
smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.
So it was that, when God destroyed the
cities of the valley, God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst
of the overthrow when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.
The great sin of Sodom was not a lack of hospitality (as some claim) but
that the entire male population was committed
to homosexuality. As a result, they
were judged by God.
In the history of redemption, Sodom became a
term of judgment!
Examples:
Deut 29:23 the whole land burned out
with brimstone and salt, nothing sown and nothing growing, where no plant can
sprout, an overthrow like that of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, which
the Lord overthrew in his anger and wrath
Hosea 11:8 How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, O Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?
B. The
Law: Moses and the Sin of Homosexuality
When Moses rescued the people out of Egypt and
gave them God's Law, homosexuality was one of 35 or so crimes which were to be
punished by death.
In fact, in the Law homosexuality is given the unique
label "abomination."
Taking both a mother and her daughter as your
wives à "depravity"
Adultery, or committing sexual acts with
animals à "perversion"
Homosexuality à strongest denunciation "abomination"
Leviticus 18:22 You shall not lie with a male
as with a woman; it is an abomination.
Leviticus 20:13 If a man lies with a male as
with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be
put to death; their blood is upon them.
Deuteronomy 23:17-18 "None of the daughters of
Israel shall be a cult prostitute, and none of the sons of Israel shall be a
cult prostitute. You shall not bring the fee of a prostitute or the wages of a
dog into the house of the Lord your God in
payment for any vow, for both of these are an abomination to the Lord your God.
However, many times we are told - this was the
Old Testament and therefore these verses do not apply to today. We are in the age of grace, where God is a
god of love and not condemnation.
To which I have two replies...
1. The NT very clearly turns to the judgment against
homosexuality in Sodom as an example to us today that such behaviour is an
abomination to God.
Jude 5ff Now I want to remind you, although you
once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt,
afterward destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not stay
within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has
kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great
day--just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise
indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an
example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.
2 Peter 2:4ff For if God did not spare angels
when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of
gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient
world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when
he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; if by turning the cities of
Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an
example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued
righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked (for as
that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his
righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); then the Lord
knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under
punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the
lust of defiling passion and despise authority...
Both of these texts take the historical events
of Sodom and teach that they were ordained by God in order to teach us that God
does not approve of homosexual activity.
These are New Testament texts and therefore apply directly to our day
and age.
2. The NT clearly identifies homosexuality
as a sin - not just another lifestyle...
1 Timothy 1:8ff Now
we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that
the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient,
for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike
their fathers and mothers, for murderers, the sexually immoral, men who
practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is
contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the glorious gospel of the
blessed God with which I have been entrusted.
1 Cor 6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous
will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually
immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, [Paul
use the LXX terms for homosexual behaviour] nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor
drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
Without reference to the past, God makes clear in
these texts (as well Romans 1) that homosexual activity is sin. Paul uses specific language to describe both
partners in a homosexual act.
Homosexuality is a sinful activity condemned by God.
II. Why?
Why is this sin an abomination to God before the Law, in the Law, after the
Law? The answer lies in the nature of
the sin.
Genesis 2:18ff Then the Lord God
said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper
fit for him." So out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field
and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would
call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its
name. The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and
to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for
him. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he
slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that
the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the
man. Then the man said,
"This at last is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called Woman,
because she was taken out of Man."
Therefore a man shall leave his father and his
mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man
and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.
It is not meant to be funny. God created Adam
and Eve - not Adam and Steve. "Male
and Female He created them."
This is the real root of the issue and I am
convinced this is why Paul uses such specific Greek words in Romans. Our English Bibles would do us a favour if
they translated more literally from the Greek, for what Paul says here is
"male" and "female," not "man" and "woman."
Romans 1:26 For
this reason God gave them up to dishonourable passions. For their women exchanged
natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were
consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men
and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
"contrary to nature" - means "in contradiction of
the Creator's intention"
"men committing shameless acts with men" - means
this activity of homosexuality is obviously perverse.
I believe this sin is singled out as
abomination, because at its root is a denial of God's sovereign design. It is the mountaintop of God-denial, refusing
to accept His ordering of the universe and reversing the gender roles we have
been assigned. The real offence of
homosexuality is not the activity, but the Truth-rejection!
May I add, this is why I am in total opposition
to the oxymoron "same-sex marriage?" Marriage
is, by definition, the coming together of one man and one woman until separated
by death.
Mark 10:6ff But from the
beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female.' 'Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to
his wife, and they shall become one flesh.' So they are
no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has
joined together, let not man separate."
Marriage is an ordinance established in Eden to
portray to mankind the intimacy of Christ to His Church (the whole point of
Ephesians 5!). It is not a mere cultural
invention subject to the whims and desires of the populace. It is sacred!
Two men cannot be one flesh. Two women cannot be one flesh. They may experience some form of
self-oriented sexual release, but they cannot be one flesh. Men go with women - women go with men and
this is an incontrovertible Truth decreed by God and obvious to a child who can
distinguish anatomical distinctions between the sexes.
May I add, that much of our problem begins much
further back, with the blurring of gender distinctives. Every church that has
succumbed to the error of ordaining homosexuals, began much earlier with ordaining
women to the male-alone office of pastor/elder.
The real problem in churches is a failure to rejoice in the
gender-distinctiveness that we were created with and to promote maleness in
men, and femaleness in women. Fuzzying
the lines between men and women only opens the door to the sexual confusion
that is so prevalent.
Conclusion
What I have endeavoured to show you is that the
whole of the Scripture, from Genesis forward, condemns homosexual activity as a
sin / abomination. It is not an
alternate lifestyle, it is sexual immorality - like sex outside of marriage,
adultery, rape, incest, bestiality, or polygamy. [Which is another reason
redefining marriage to include same-sex couples must be opposed. It is not a red-herring to suggest that
opening the door to same-sex marriage will lead to the eventual acceptance of
polygamy and one must think, even pedophilia!]
In fact, homosexuality, according to Paul in
Romans, IS God's wrath against sin. Sin
in the heart. It is the result of God giving a person over
to their own evil desires.
That makes the Annual Gay Pride Parade and the thousands of non-Gay spectators a fulfillment of Romans 1:32 "Though they know
God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only
do them but give approval to those who practice them."
Just as deserving to die as I am because of MY
sin. The difference between the death of
Romans 1 and the death of Leviticus 18 is that the former refers to our
deserved eternal rejection by God and its resultant eternity of death in hell.
Nature itself teaches us the plain truth that
homosexuality is aberrant, deviant, and non-life producing. But we are awash in a culture that has a very
specific agenda: to make us accept and approve of this deviancy / sin. I don't
need to remind you of all the TV, advertising, movies, and the like that
portray a homosexual lifestyle as "normal" or "alternative" or "mainstream." I
am all for fighting against these things and keeping what small amount of
decency we have left in our society, but we all know that the only solution to
this epidemic is Jesus Christ.
Do you recall, 1 Corinthians 6...? "Do you not
know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be
deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men
who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."
Ah, but don't stop at verse 10 - get to verse
11! "And such were some of you.
But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus
Christ and by the Spirit of our God."
Although homosexuality is an abomination to God
- a homosexual can still get saved! Too often we have confused this matter and
written off the homosexual to a reprobate and conversion-proof state - what
hypocrisy! What anathema! God can save homosexuals! Wondrously and gloriously save them!
Better, God can alter a homosexual person's
desires. Remember, the problem is with
desire / the inner person longing for what is reprehensible. God can change that. This is the beauty of His new creation! [See
agencies like Exodus International http://exodus.to/default.asp
for proof!]
The whole point of Romans is that there is this
gospel - this Good News - for people who are homosexual, or gossips, or
inventors of evil! There is a plan in
place for God to save you!
In a church our size, I would be surprised if
there were not some who have struggled with homosexual thoughts or actions. Perhaps even as a Christian they still do.
I have the same message for you - God can
change that... over time. You may never
rid yourself of all the memories, temptations, etc. But God is able to change you and your
actions...
We stand firmly against homosexuality, not
homosexuals.
Why? Not because we are homophobic. Not because we are outdated prigs. Not
because we are out of step with our culture. Not because we deny genetic
dispositions. No, we call homosexuality
sin and stand against it because the Bible calls homosexuality sin and stands
against it. We stand with the Bible and for the Truth.
We do not hate men and women who commit
homosexual acts - on the contrary, we love them... enough to tell them the Truth.
We don't want a fight on social issues and
agendas, but we will preach to the grave the Truth of God's Word, because "the
Truth will set men free!"