With the emphasis on relativism and situational ethics in popular culture, one might wonder if there truly are any absolutes to guide us as Christians. Perhaps we can excuse any or all behavior or lifestyle on the basis of “that’s just the way God made me—besides, Jesus paid the price for my sin so everything’s cool!”
To the contrary, if we closely examine Jesus’ teaching and demands for discipleship, we will find that Jesus did teach that there are indeed absolutes and that a genuine encounter with Jesus demanded and produced a change in one’s behavior. As an observant Jew, the Ten Commandments formed the core of Jesus’ belief system which he summarized succinctly as “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might—and you shall loved your neighbor as yourself.” If one truly followed those two commands, then the entire Ten Commandments and all the teaching of scripture would automatically be fulfilled.
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Comments 7
Stanley, to I think expand ‘zerman2’ point, adultery is also punishable by death according to TORAH.
If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city, and lie with her; / Then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city, and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city. (Deut. 22:23-24).
Was Jesus tempted with any sexual temptation man or woman? It seems you’re putting Jesus in a little plastic box. If he wasn’t tempted as we were, then how can this be said of him:
Heb 4:15 ‘For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet he did not sin.
In your conclusion, I believe you confuse your view of temptation with actual transgression. Jesus very well could have heard about some incident involving both homosexuality and/or pedophilia and would have had to think about what that actually meant. At that point in his heart he would have dismissed both of these things as against TORAH and put them out of his mind without dwelling on them and allowing them to conceive sin.
James 1:15: Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
Perhaps you should reassess your view of plastic box Jesus who didn’t come in contact with sin and yet, sinned not.
I think to the original comment, I believe his point is valid in that there are those born men and women across the spectrum masculinity for men and femininity for women who perhaps have more of less testosterone or estrogen then they ought to causing a desire which is against TORAH.
A normal married man still has an internal desire to spread his seed with every desirable woman he sees, yet he has a choice to put that desire down or to allow it to become sin.
TORAH is clear and makes a distinction between right and wrong, what we need to do as followers of Jesus is realize that males and females aren’t born perfect, they have many maladies in their bodies, some people are born with, some people cause for themselves, some were forced on them. The point is, is to take every case individually and base your relationship with that person on what you know about them. To do that, you have actually have a relationship with them.
In any case, your primary mission is to show, demonstrate, and tell them about Jesus and what he did for you and what he will do for them. Let the Holy Spirit take care of convicting them of their sin.
With אהבה, Joshua
I heard a homosexual man comment on talk radio the other day. The subject was marriage. This man said that God is love, therefore his lifestyle was consistent with God’s heart. He criticized those (Christian) haters who condemn him. The host brought up some passages in scripture forbidding homosexuality, without being condemning. The man’s response was that Christians pick and choose what portions of the Bible they should obey, and cited several that are commonly disregarded. He also said he was very honest and knew several dishonest Christians. He had some valid points, but also some wrong thinking.
Yes, we’re forgiven and set free. We’re also priests of the Living God and our lives are to be a testimony to people such as the man who called in to that show. It’s human nature to grasp onto any justification to live the way we want, and I’m sure that man could have found something else to justify his behavior. Nevertheless, we have an obligation to put God on display.
Besides, obedience brings a blessing.
Being homosexual is not a sin; it does not violate any laws or commandments. Practicing a homosexual lifestyle, however, is different.
Of course it does. Have you read the Bible??? What kind of ridiculous statement is that? Give me a break.
Is it a sin to have a desire, heterosexual or homosexual and resist the temptation?. I am heterosexual and have had many occasions, over the years, where I have been tempted to give into my heterosexual desires.
I have never been tempted to perform any homosexual acts and, therefore, deserve no credit for not practicing homosexuality.
We are told in the scriptures that even Christ was tempted. It is, obviously, not a sin to be tempted, The sin is in giving in to temptation.
If I harbor murder in my heart then I am a murderer. If a person identifies himself as a murderer, there is something very wrong in his walk with HaShem. Homosexuality is a sin unlike many others and it warrants strong language in the Torah. It is called an “abomination”! It is also a sin that illicits a more severe punishment then many other sins. The punishment is death. If a person identifies himself as a pedophile he also is not in a right relationship with G-d and I would keep my son away from him. Not so with someone who is tempted with say… gambling. I can also assure you that Yeshua was never tempted with homosexuality or pedophilia etc. If you think He was then you need to reassess your faith IMHO.
Zearman:
“We are told in the scriptures that even Christ was tempted. It is, obviously, not a sin to be tempted, The sin is in giving in to temptation.”
Yes He was tempted and it clearly indicates without sin. So what does it mean to be tempted and without sin? I believe Jesus answered that question Himself when he addressed the issue of not just doing in the flesh but by the formulation of it within the mind.
When President Jimmy Carter was asked if he had committed adultery he said something along the line of, “no but in my mind I do.” President Carter understood what Jesus meant.
So for me to see a woman and not sin means I think absolutely nothing about her, a very difficult task and something Job protected his eyes from as a defense.
A man or woman struggling with homosexuality is struggling with sin, whether it be internal or in fact. The same can be said for a man or woman struggling with any sort of sexual sin, hetro or homo.