Friday, March 13, 2015

Another Church, This Time A Reformed Church Reverses Itself On Sodomy

And so goes another "church". This one is in San Francisco, modeled after Tim Keller's "church". They outright state that demanding "celibacy" for sodomites is unfair and harmful and that it is wrong counsel.

 As a church within the Reformed Tradition we go directly to Scripture to find counsel and to reengage the verses that talk about same sex activity. 
For so long this has been a “case closed” kind of issue for evangelicals. But in recent years, multiple respected evangelical scholars and theologians have begun to wrestle with this and a healthy debate is underway. Asking questions about what the Scriptures say on this issue must always be coupled with asking why the Scriptures say what they do and what kind of same-sex activity is being addressed. Scholars and leaders who have previously been united in their interpretations are coming to different conclusions. This does not mean that your view must change, but it does counsel humility with how we each hold our views. Given the status and variety of these opinions, what has become clear to us is that there is no longer clear consensus on this issue within the evangelical community.


They are deliberately arguing against Scripture, rejecting it and instead listening to some pro-sodomite book that tries to turn the issue of sodomy into a question. In Scripture there is no question; it dogmatically damns sodomy.

Jas 1:19  Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20  for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 

1Co 6:9  Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10  nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.


1Ti 1:10  the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers,and
whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, 


Jude 1:7  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.
Rom 1:23  and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.Rom 1:24  Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,25  because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. 

They admit what I said liberals do: take biblical doctrine and put into the Romans 14 category and say its personal preference and therefore cannot be judged as wrong.

"
Our challenge is to hold our views with humility and do as Paul says inRomans 14 when speaking to Christians who could not come to consensus in their interpretation of the 1stand 4th commandments.  This was no small disagreement as it concerned Mosaic legislation. In the face of this major disagreement, Paul exhorted them to stay united saying, “Let us therefore no longer pass judgment on one another” and “Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we all stand before the judgment seat of God.” "


Rom 14:1  As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 

Romans 1-13 are doctrinal truths and commands that must be accepted. Romans 14 is regarding matters of opinion that are NOT addressed as doctrinal truths or commands. Matters of days observed or food eaten is a matter of opinion in the New Covenant, not sexual immorality like the heinous sin of sodomy! Romans 1, the BEGINNING of that book, shows sodomy IS SIN.

I will note:

"One sad piece of news: two of our Elders, Tyler Dann and Bruce Gregory, resigned from the board. We received these resignations with sadness and understanding. These are fine members of our church who love Jesus deeply."  

At least these two men did not continue in the blasphemy.

1 comment:

Darrel said...

"But it does counsel humility with how we each hold our views."

Translation: compromise and capitulate to the demands of the lgbt crowd or be cast aside as homophobic or worse.

I'm glad to see the uproar in the "church", maybe now we will know of a certainty who is a real brother in Christ and who is the fake, fraud, imposter, charlatan.