Firestarter

I just finished preaching a series entitled Untouchables: You've Thought About It, We're Talking About It. The series went well overall. I preached on prejudice, sex, and homosexuality. The last, as you can expect, was a little flammable.

Some qualifiers here.

1. I believe that the Bible is the divine word of God.
2. I am not a fundamentalist. You won't find me carrying signs about who should go to hell because of their sin...or you won't find me (insert fundamentalist activity here.)
3. I believe that, as Christians, we need to be able to discuss topics that affect our lives and our world. Homosexuality is one of those topics.

Here is the sermon in a nutshell:
1. The Bible says homosexuality is a sin (Romans 1:18-32, and others)
2. Homosexual Orientation is not a sin...homosexual lifestyle is (the same-sex physical relationship) Even a heterosexual is tempted to have inappropriate sexual relations.
Then I focused on God's view of sin...and how the church should respond...
1. There is no heirarchy to sin...all sin leaves us short of God's standard.
2. Our response as Christians is to:
a. Not to be judging (how can we point out a speck in someone else's eye when there is a plank in our own?)
b. To Love...actions speak louder than words. We need to show love to homosexuals and all those different than us.
c. Create a Church that is a Sanctuary for Sinners. Jesus said that the it is not the healthy that need a doctor, but the sick. As a church, we need to create community where the sinner (all sinners) can come and be known, experience fellowship, and experience God's grace and forgiveness through community.

Well, as one would imagine, people heard all sorts of stuff that wasn't in my sermon. The most frustrating thing of all is those who say homosexuality is not a sin. I read, and read, and read, and can't come up with any other conclusion. What is next? Saying the stealing isn't a sin? Or cheating on your wife?

It will be interesting over the course of the next couple of weeks to see the ramifications of the sermon. There were several homosexuals in attendance, and they were a little upset. But I hope some good discusion can come from this. We need not shy away from it.

Until next time,

Steve

Morning Devotions

It's been a long time since I've added to my running thoughts. Well over a month. Hopefully, I can get back in the habit.

This morning, I went to do my devotions before work. Honestly, I was conflicted because there was a movie I started to watch last night and didn't get to see the ending to (although I've seen it before). The movie was on again this morning and it would end at just the right time for me to come into the office. Devotions vs. Movie...what did I do?

I watched the movie. It was Contact starring Jodie Foster. A movie, based on a Carl Sagon book, that probes the possibility of E.T. life in our universe. As I watched the movie, it became clear that this story was more than just aliens and space. It is about faith.

Jodie Foster's character meets Matthew Maconnahey's character and they have an instant connection (I can't remember character names to save my life!) M.M.'s character used to study for the priesthood, but couldn't handle celibacy...but he is still in touch with Faith, with God, and seeking the truth. J.F.'s character cannot believe how M.M. believes in God because, as she sees, there is no empiracal evidence.

The twist comes when J.F. enters the craft that the aliens have sent instructions to build. What happens is that she is transported through wormholes to a galaxy 26 light years away. She encounters an alien, who appears in the form of her father, who lets her know that this is just the first contact...and that this is how it has been done for billions of years.

When J.F. returns to earth, no one believes her b/c no one saw the craft leave. Her recording equipment malfunctioned so there is no evidence of what happened. Yet in irony, J.F. speaks of faith, speaks of being apart of something bigger, that we're not alone, and that her experience without any evidence was enough to convince her.

What evidence do we have of God? Certainly, we can look at the sunsets, the ocean, even the galaxy and see God's fingerprints everywhere. Even still, it is a matter of faith, faith in the unseen. Faith in a God who is here with us, moving in our lives.

While I didn't read my Bible this morning, or pray, God really opened my eyes through the movie about faith.

Father God, give me faith to trust you when you are unseen, when things get tough and my heart is full of doubt. Help me to have faith that your love is the only cure for what ails our world. Amen.