Human Sexuality Is A Powerful Force
One can see many examples from human history of the driving force of sex. Consider, for example Judah and Tamar, King David (a man after God’s own heart) and Bathsheba, Antony and Cleopatra, Romeo and Juliet, there are many, many examples of how human sexuality has had major impact on human lives.
There Is Pain Experienced By Those Who Are Same-Sex Attracted
Many who advocate for same-sex marriages refer to the pain they’ve seen same-sex attracted people experience. This is true of Dr. James Brownson, Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff, Dr. Mark Achtemeier as well as a number of people featured in the videos produced by All One Body.
Given the fact that human sexuality is a powerful force, it is not surprising that it would be an area where, not only joy is experienced, but the possibility of pain and suffering.
Much pain is also experienced by people who deal with alcoholism, drug abuse and a number of other issues. If same-sex erotic acts are sinful, we must take note of the fact that we would never consider offering a drunk person more alcohol. So, unless it can be shown that same-sex marriage is acceptable to God, we should not be accepting, participating in, or condoning same-sex marriages.
The Love of God Is Often Used As An Argument
Those advocating acceptance of same-sex marriage focus a lot on the breadth and depth of the love of God, the need for compassion and the need for unity in the church. Interestingly, Dr. James Brownson, who has written the most extensive treatment of same-sex marriage in the RCA and CRC, rejects the thought that the love of God is a viable argument in support of same-sex marriage. The producers of the videos for All One Body need to first show that Dr. Brownson was wrong in taking his position. This has not happened.
Well-Respected Theologians Support Same-Sex Marriage
Those advocating same-sex marriage often refer to the fact that some well-respected theologians support same-sex marriage.
Before committing to a course of action that would cost the lives of over 600,000 people, President Lincoln did not sit down in 1860 and consider, well, George Washington had slaves, and he was a well-respected person. He is the father of this country. Therefore, it must be acceptable to own slaves. Slavery was evil. A decision had to be made that acknowledged that.
Either same-sex marriage is moral, acceptable to God, or it is not. It can’t be both ways. It is necessary for the church to determine which is right. The CRC, or any other church, cannot both accept it and deny it. It has to be one way or the other.
The Bible calls us, not to find a group of respected theologians who hold to a particular teaching. Rather, it calls us to test the spirits as in I John 4:1, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God . . .” The Grand Rapids East Overture of 2016 quite consistently positions itself as if the existence of several well-respected theologians who subscribe to a given teaching is sufficient for people who want to, to subscribe to it as well.
Moral Living Is Not Being Addressed
Those advocating acceptance of same-sex marriage that I have heard from do not address the need for moral living.
They rarely even attempt to deal with passages like I Cor. 6:9-10, “Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral . . . nor men who practice homosexuality . . . will inherit the kingdom of God.”
How Can Those Who Experience Same-Sex Attraction Best Be Benefited?
If those who engage in same-sex erotic acts will, in fact, not inherit the Kingdom of God, wouldn’t the best way we could assist them be in the area of helping them to understand that fact? As difficult and terrible as the shame and pain experienced by people who are same-sex attracted is, isn’t that still secondary to the matter of experiencing eternal pain and suffering?
Yet, those who advocate for same-sex marriage have already proceeded beyond that question, they don’t really address that.
The Conclusion of The Human Sexuality Report Is Key In This Discussion
In speaking of confessional status, the Human Sexuality Report states that this sin threatens one’s salvation:
As a committee, we conclude, therefore, that the church’s teaching on premarital sex, extramarital sex, adultery, polyamory, pornography, and homosexual sex already has confessional status. As such, there is no need for a new declaration. We also conclude that this status is warranted because these sins threaten a person’s salvation. The Scriptures call the church to warn people to flee sexual immorality for the sake of their souls and to encourage them with God’s presence and power to equip them for holy living. A church that fails to call people to repentance and offer them the hope of God’s loving deliverance is acting like a false church.
In coming to this conclusion, we observe that we stand with the majority church worldwide, including the Roman Catholic Church, all branches of Orthodoxy, the non-Western global church, and a majority of active Protestants in North America and Europe. Indeed, the global church finds the Western church’s challenges to biblical teaching on human sexuality incomprehensible and offensive. To refuse to uphold Christian teaching on sexual immorality would signal that the Christian Reformed Church in North America is deviating not only from Scripture but from the shared confession of the historic and worldwide church. (Page 148.)
For those who want the CRC to accept same-sex marriage, they need to put the focus on whether the Bible does or does not teach that same-sex erotic acts are sinful. Isn’t that the heart of the matter? Or are they turning to things like the love of God, the need for compassion, the importance of unity in the church etc. because it cannot be shown that the Bible considers same-sex marriage acceptable to God, that it is not a sin?