Homosexual "Marriage", Creation, and the Bible
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As most people expected, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) voted to legalize same-sex "marriage". This has serious implications for Bible-believing Christians, not only in the US, but everywhere. But it's not like the US was the first country to do this, just the latest to date.
Let me point out right now that some professing Christians are expressing rage over the ruling. Frustration and righteous anger are understandable (especially when faced with the ridicule and gloating of "gay rights" supporters), but there is no justification for acting in a sinful manner toward homosexuals!
Those who demand "tolerance" are often exceptionally intolerant of those of us who believe the clear teachings of the Bible. Indeed, look at how many people are "offended", a leftist tactic which in cases like this essentially means, "I can't be bothered to think and respond rationally, and I can't control my emotions, so I want to stifle your free speech because you say things I don't like".
Society
People tend to "think" with their emotions, and "gay rights" proponents utilize that fact quite effectively. The word gay has been co-opted from its original meaning to indicate people with a homosexual preference. When Bible-believing Christians say that homosexuality is unnatural and violates God's prescribed manner of marriage, we are called homophobes, which is a meaningless emotion-laden word used for labeling, ridicule, and provoking emotional reactions. As I've often said, I don't phobe any homos, and I don't know anyone who is afraid of them. Another appeal to emotion is when people say that "everyone has a right to love". Can homosexuals love? Yes. Sexual activity is not to be equated with love.
Homosexual "marriage" has been made into a civil rights issue, which is ironic, because fewer homosexuals want to be "married" than people have been led to believe. "Gay" is not the "new black", and there are black people who are offended by the comparison. Sexual preference and ethnic origins are a horribly fallacious comparison, but people are emotionally manipulated into accepting that comparison anyway. Homosexuals are not victims, despite the rhetoric — well, they're victims in places like Iran, but not in the United States. Did you know about that? It's difficult to get accurate information when the news has a leftist slant.
Did the SCOTUS redefine marriage? Yes and no. Those tinhorns who voted in favor of it were waving their bony middle fingers in the face of God, and rejecting thousands of years of societal norms. Dissenting Judge Antonin Scalia had some strong remarks about what the Supreme Court has become. Yes, they redefined marriage on paper, and essentially made it meaningless. (See what Matt Walsh says in "Gay Marriage Still Doesn’t Exist, No Matter What the Supreme Court Says".) I can redefine our Basement Cat as a salamander, but that does not change reality — she's still a black cat, not a green or brown reptile.
The Gaystapo insists that homosexuals have been denied a right to marriage, but where do they get that right? Evolution? Not a chance. By simply asserting it? Because they're "born that way"? Let's work with this for a moment. People have urges that they have to restrain. I can think of several women that I would like to have sex with (or even marry as a group). Do I have the right to give in to my urge? No, and never mind that God and my wife would strongly disapprove of my actions! Or this: I am a white heterosexual male who believes that the Bible is the Word of God, that that everything was created recently, and salvation is to be found in Jesus alone (John 14:6, Acts 4:12). To use evolutionary logic, we're just bundles of chemicals following electrochemical impulses, and there is no right and wrong. I was born that way, you have no right to complain or object, so accept and celebrate my choices! Makes perfect sense.
I received a letter from a homosexual friend. Each of us knows that the other is not like the stereotype. This section was interesting:
"Marriage" has a meaning, it's had that meaning (and in all the other languages that have words that mean the same thing) for thousands of years. Why couldn't these activists settle on a different word, have their own different institution if they really needed one, and I'm sure they could have been gladly given the same legal rights. That's not good enough for one reason: the purpose is to destroy something, not to build something new. John Nolte at Breitbart got onto this before the marriage decision, when the [Confederate] flag issue was still raging. Can't have the rebel flag flying on government property? Fine, then the same should go for the symbol of anti-Christian hatred that has tormented bakers and photographers and pizza makers and flower shop owners (and Mozilla CEOs - I quit using Firefox by the way) — the "rainbow pride flag" — which has flown from plenty of government buildings including US embassies. There is nothing to be proud of in that flag of bigotry, but last night the freaking White House was all done up in its colours to celebrate its "win." [Click here for the White House colors.]Those who are demanding "tolerance" of homosexuals are extremely bigoted and inconsistent themselves. They force Christians to go against their convictions. How about when they are seeking out a Christian bakery and suing the owner who refuses on religious grounds, railing against Chik-Fil-A, persecuting a pizza parlor, and so on? Meanwhile, those hypocrites have no problem with Mohammedan bakers who refuse to bake a cake for a "gay wedding". How about the UK couple who is threatened to sue a church in 2014 to force it to perform their "wedding"? Some of us have enough civility and common sense that, if someone refuses to serve me because it would violate their religion, we'd just saddle up and go elsewhere, problem solved.
For that matter, I don't reckon it's any of my concern about the sexual preferences of the waitress in the diner, the bus driver, the mail carrier, my co-workers, my neighbors, my doctor, or anyone else. Just do your job.
It's almost laughable that when homosexuals "come out of the closet" and declare their sexual preference, people applaud them as "brave". A lot of people respond with, "Big deal. I didn't want to know that about you anyway". Nowadays, the culture is pro-homosexual, and people who believe what Scripture teaches are not tolerated — those of us who stick to our principles are the ones who are really brave!
Creation
Where do rights come from, anyway? Demanding and asserting that you have a right does not make it so. Sure, some rights are made through legislation, and the US Constitution has guaranteed some rights for Americans, such as free speech (but those are eroding for Christians very quickly). God is the final authority for rights. He has established the institution of marriage (Genesis 1:27, Genesis 2:24, Mark 10:6-9). We were not created with a "gay gene", which would be a mutation, and my remarks about restraining our urges apply even if we did have one.
By the way, if someone decides that he or she is the wrong sex (except in the rare, difficult area of hermaphroditism), guess what? Mutilation and hormones won't change your XY chromosomes — you're born that way (male or female), and how you feel does not change biological reality. People get "gender reassignment" surgery and have had regrets; their suicide rate is very high.
Some people have argued that since homosexuality exists to a small extent in nature, then it must be all right for humans, too. Yes, this generalization passes as "logic" for some people.
The Bible
There are occasional complaints that Christians are hypocritical for focusing on homosexuality as the primary sin and ignoring their own heterosexual sins. To some extent, this is valid — God hates all sin, and we cannot justify our own adultery and fornication; we must confess and repent of them. Adultery and homosexuality were both capital offenses under Old Testament Law. However, homosexuality is specifically referred to as an abomination, ïŠֹ×¢ֵבָ×” (Lev. 18:22). It is a sinful choice that can be changed (1 Cor. 6:9-11 NASB, Rom. 1:24-27 NASB). No, the Bible makes it clear that homosexuality is a sin. God is the one who instituted marriage and the family unit, and he is the one who makes the rules. People demanding "gay rights" have a lousy epistemology. Unfortunately, many people do not bother to consider that Christianity is logical, as are our reasons for objecting to homosexual "marriage".
Many homosexuals are atheists, but there are also some homosexuals who call themselves Christians, choosing to rewrite and twist Scripture to suit their own feelings. Dr. James White extensively refuted the disingenuous efforts of "apologist" Matthew Vines. Those "tolerant" gay rights supporters put pressure on Christians, such as trying to force us to go against our convictions. We have to decide if we should attend a "gay wedding" or not, for example, but "gay marriage" is the result of compromise on Genesis. Did you notice that people who tend to accept homosexuality have also compromised on the literal truth of Genesis?
Whether atheist, liberal Christian, or something else, acceptance of homosexual marriage is a rebellion against the authority of God's Word. While the Supreme Court legalized and redefined "gay marriage" on paper, they cannot change reality. Before you hail these mortal, sinful men and women as "wise" because of this decision, remember that in 1857, the Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision said black people are not citizens, and upheld slavery. Wrong then, wrong now. This homosexual "marriage" decision will be used against Christians, and persecution will increase; some of us will continue to speak the truth while we still can. We have a great deal to learn, and a great deal to do. Those of us who believe the Bible must remain faithful and remember to keep our faith in God and our eyes on him (Heb. 12:2).
Addendum: Four podcasts that are worth your attention. First, Chris Rosebrough at "Fighting for the Faith" discusses the ruling, persecution, and what he calls "coercive legislation". The segment begins at the 7-1/2 mark, click on "Decide to Make Today a Landmark Day?". Two full podcasts from "Stand Up for the Truth": "Same sex marriage: where do Christians go from here?" and "Losing relationships over biblical truth".