I have a confession. I was asked
to help with a cause that looked after endangered children.
Obviously I jumped at the opportunity – it is what I do. BUT – the brakes were
quickly put on when I realised that the custodians of the cause were a married
couple – they were two women. Everything in me said no this is not right, this
is sinful, and this is so far removed from the will of God. I even asked
counsel from trusted spiritual friends and all but one told me about unequal
yoking, take care not to get involved, etc. One of my very wise friends Hayley invited
me to coffee and she allowed me to discuss my feelings and together we realised
how wrong I was.
Yes homosexuality is sin – but so
is lying, deceit, adultery, murder, rape, abuse, not paying taxes.
Who am I to judge these two women
– this is an opportunity for me to confess my immediate judgment of them and to
ask them to forgive me. Am I any better than them? Am I perfect in my walk with
Jesus? Absolutely not. I fall every day. I struggle with stuff. But my stuff is
more than often hidden from the world it is secret stuff…the outward me looks
all put together – but you don’t know my struggles – I hide them well. If you truly
knew me and my struggles would you also say “Oh no, I cannot be with her, she
is a sinner?”
We are all sinners – I do not believe
that there are levels of sin. I believe that we have opportunity to minister to
anyone no matter what their confession is. I know we are instructed in the
Bible by Paul -
Anything
that is in conflict with the nature of God and His will is sinful. His nature
and will are revealed plainly in the Bible, and as such those things that are
contrary to Him are plain as well. There is an objective standard. We can know
the difference between right and wrong. And after determining the
difference, we ought to be careful to avoid all sin. Paul's question in 2
Corinthians 6:14, is a rhetorical one. He states, "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what
fellowship has righteousness
with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?"
Matthew
28:18-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I
am with you always, to the very end of the age."
This is the foundation for evangelism and cross-cultural missions work in Christian
theology. Because the Lord's instructions were to go to all nations and that He would be with us until
the very end of the age, Christians of all generations have embraced this command.
As many have said, it's not "The Great Suggestion." No, the Lord has
commanded us to put our faith in
action.
I will value your comments. I am going
to meet with these ladies, confess to them my judgment, ask their forgiveness
and then show them the work of Jesus that was done for ALL of us.
Hi Noeline - I think this is very brave of you and when you meet with them go in prayer and plant that seed for Christ. I believe they will be blown away by your honesty and directness and desire to do what is right in Christ.
ReplyDeleteGod bless precious friend
Tracy
You are so encouraging thank you for all your wisdom and love.
DeleteNoeline,
ReplyDeleteWhat a humble and serving heart you have, and although it is hard to not be judgmental, you are obviously being led by God to serve in His name! :) What an act of courage and leadership, and with your honesty and integrity, you will not only succeed in following His direction, but hopefully make a difference to these women by sharing His word!
Blessings and His grace,
Denise
Thank you Denise....the blog was not an action looking for any accolade - but to encourage others who may be struggling with the same issues. I feel guilty and the issue has been eating me up for over a week already - so about time I listened to our Saviour and stopped trying to do life in my own strength. Thank you for your words.
DeleteYou are so right, we are all sinners. I love your perspective on this and how honest you are! I ditto what Tracy commented. Let your light shine. All for the glory of God!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your words - been too long worrying about it have to just listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
DeleteHi Noeline - I have awarded you with the versatile blogger's award. You can find it here: http://mydailywalkinhisgrace.blogspot.com/2012/06/introducing-lovely-blogger-and.html
ReplyDeleteGod bless my friend
Tracy
YOu are so very right. I feel this way about things as well. I found you from Tracy's site- and I'm glad I did. I'm a new follower and eager to read what you have to write.
ReplyDelete~Kelly @ Encourage 365
Thank you Kelly and I am excited that I have another follower - always seems strange writing so deeply from the heart and normally to only a few people....Bless you.
ReplyDelete