Fear can be a restrictive, negative emotion. The fear I experienced on my first – and only! – roller coaster ride meant that I’ve never risked another one. Fear limits us and can stop us from doing certain things or enjoying certain experiences. And yet, we are continually urged in the Scriptures to fear God.
An article that looks in particular at understanding biblical teaching
God is love (1 John 4:8). This truth about God is used by some people to argue that, therefore, God must approve of any relationship that our culture defines as loving. But there are two key flaws to this argument, and we discover both of them as we more fully understand what God is like.
The Bible allows for disagreements on minor issues. There are, however, other truths which are non-negotiable - these are sometimes called 'gospel issues', i.e. significant matters upon which Christians can't simply agree to disagree because they impact our understanding of the gospel and, therefore, our salvation. The question is, into which category does same-sex practice fall?
The Bible defines marriage in Genesis 2:24 as a union between one man and one woman. Jesus Christ upholds this definition of marriage in Matthew 19:5, as does the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 5:31. Any and all sexual activity which takes place outside of this context is treated as sinful, what Jesus calls ‘sexual immorality’ in Mark 7:21.
It is tempting to see a loving, committed same-sex partnership as a godly relationship. However, the Bible is clear that a marriage is only the union of one man and one woman. The Bible lists no exceptions to this model regardless of the depth of the love, the quality of the relationship or the level of commitment.
Do you like God? The most important commandment, says Jesus, is to ‘love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength’ (Mark 12:30). Surely, I just have to get on with the business of loving him, don’t I?