On July 16, Dan Cathy (the President and COO for Chik-fil-a) stated in an interview with Baptist Press that his company supports a biblical view of marriage. This one simple statement has caused quite a stir both in the news and on social media outlets.
The gay and lesbian community and their supporters have reacted in two ways. First, Jim Henson’s company (the Muppets) severed ties with Chik-fil-a. Second, the mayor of Boston spoke out stating that Chik-fil-a was not welcome in Boston and should end their attempts to open a franchise there. But beyond this the public outcry has been diverse.
Some from the gay and lesbian community are calling for an all out boycott of the restaurant, saying that it is no different than racial discrimination and no moral person would set foot in a business that did not allow African Americans inside. Others, also in support of the gay and lesbian community, have stood up to say that many Christians are gay and these “gay Christians” must lead the charge in loving those who hate and persecute them.
This frenzy leaves the church with one ultimate question to ask: can a Christian be gay? The gay and lesbian community would answer yes, stating that your sexual orientation is part of your genetic makeup. You cannot change the way you were born. But this argument does not hold up for long. The alcoholic would make the same argument, citing a history of disposition and inclination toward addiction.
But biblically speaking, humans are responsible for their actions, despite any genetic inclination toward certain feelings or habits. We alone are responsible for what we do. The much larger question must be: Has God set a standard for living, and one which includes all issues? And we as Christian must affirm with the Bible that the answer is yes.
We are all born with sinful inclinations and desires. And none is more righteous than the other. But we must crucify these sinful inclinations when we come to faith in Christ (1 Corinthians 6:9–11). That is, as the Apostle Paul states in this passage, "such were some of you." Christians are a community of ex-liars, ex-drunkards, ex-adulterers, ex-idolaters, and so on and so forth, including ex-homosexuals. Christians are engaged in a battle against our own flesh. True, we may lose the battle at points. But we are in a battle nevertheless. It is one thing to deem our desires and inclinations as sinful and battle them the entirety of our lives. It is another thing all together to concede that there is no battle to fight.
Having said this, how should Christians respond? The answer is complex, but here is a start. First, refuse to compromise the truth, or to let it be called ‘hate speech.’ There is a large chasm between speaking what you believe to be truth and hate speech. Second, love the ones who slander and persecute you, even when they are doing it in the name of Jesus. Refuse to lower yourself to name calling, refuse to isolate homosexuals from your life, refuse to treat them as sub-human. After all, they are in every way just like us ... sinners in need of grace.
Being a Christian will only get harder in America as our culture distances itself from biblical beliefs. The difficulty of being a Christian will also be compounded by those who have departed from a biblical definition of the term. Now is no time to recant. We must learn to suffer for our faith.
Love in Christ,
Pastor Mitch
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