Hmmm.... Something to Ponder

Recently my husband Mark had a conversation at church that set my thoughts in motion. A guy from his company who is gay opened up to Mark and started asking why so many "Christians" use such hate speech when talking to or about homosexuals. He mentioned Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and the Godhatesfags people. He was really shaken and told Mark that he was born that way-he would never choose homosexuality.
Mark, of course, jumped on the chance to talk to this guy. He obviously was careful about choosing words to make sure he did not come across in a judgemental, God-hates-you-and-your-kind of way, but not sugar-coating or or twisting God's word. So he told that we are ALL born with a sinful nature. We ALL have bad desires, bad thoughts, etc. What we choose to do with those desires is what separates the Christians from the non-Christians.
He also went on to explain that in Christianity, like with almost anything, there are people who will go too far to one extreme or another on an issue. If all we talk about is one attribute of God, we can really the miss the BIG picture. If we only talk about His wrath and hate of sin, we can really only see a hate filled, scary God, one who we afraid of displeasing. Many people who only see this type of God give up on the thought of even trying to please Him, so they do their own thing, never wanting any part of Christianity. Others only focus on His holiness. They take the verse" Be holy, just as I am holy" to the extreme. They think that following certain rules about how they dress, how many times a week they go to a church service, or pray makes them better than others. Still other people see that and want no part of it. So there are more being pushed away. Then there are those who focus only on God's love. OK, granted, we all like to hear about how God made us special and He loves us very much. But if all we is how much He loves and that love was so extreme that Christ died for us, we can kind of forget that we are all depraved. Sometimes it is almost like we forget that our sinfulness is what He died for. We are all sinful. Even you. Even me, the preacher's wife. Even my wonderful preacher husband.
So anyway, I said all of that really to make this point: homosexuality is a sin. The Bible says in multiple places that it is a sin. Sin is punishable by death. Before you think I am spreading hate, please keep reading. The Bible also says in multiple places, might I add, that disrespect to parents is a sin. (gee... should we all go out and stone our kids when they sass us? Would there be any people who live beyond the teenage years?) Want to hear more things that are not listed just once or twice? Idolaters, murderers, adulterers, blasphemers, sorcerers, thieves, liars, lazy people, effeminate men, and last, but certainly not least: GOSSIPERS. Gossip is talked about soo many times in the Bible, but do you know where I hear the most(and the meanest) gossip, well, other middle and high school? CHURCH. Not just any one particular church I have attended. Every. Single. One. Of. Them.
What if pastors really started pushing any sin the way some do homosexuality? Don't get me wrong, I am not saying "hey let's ignore this sin" All I am trying to say is that maybe if we had our priorities straight, we would try to deal with sin of all rather than pick one certain group and beat them over the head until they do not want to attend church. All sin is serious. Anything we hold on to and do not repent of is something that gets in the way of our relationship with God. Maybe, just maybe, if we pray about our own sins as much as we condemn others, we would grow closer to God and be more effective at bring Him glory.