I appreciate your comments. I agree that people are being “desensitized” into accepting homosexuality as an acceptable lifestyle, but I think it’s the general population, not Christians, that this is happening to. The Christians I was referring to are not Christians who merely accept homosexuality. These are ones that actually are practicing homosexuals, that sincerely believe Scripiture does not speak against it, and equate conservative Christians to Southern slave-owners that the Bible to justify slavery, or to the Pharisees. I also believe that Christians can (and do) error it their doctrine. I just don’t believe that an error in doctrine sends a Christian to hell.

I’ve been thinking about your question, “To what extent do we inact laws which honor God without becoming like the Taliban?” I would say this: Why do we think it’s our mission as Christians to get God’s law enacted as the law of this land?

Both the Taliban and the Jewish nation were religious monarchies, and in both instances, people were put to death for disobeying religious laws. So why is it that we can look at a woman being stoned for adultery in the O.T. as justifed and a woman being stoned today under Muslim law as barbaric? Aren’t both of them being stoned for the same immorality? Shouldn’t we applaud the Taliban for upholding morality?

Of course we shouldn’t. The reason we object to regimes like the Taliban should be the same reason we refuse to enact O.T. law in our society today — because God intentionally did away with this form of government. The Kingdom of God is now within us and the Law is written on our hearts. Let me put it this way: if everyone in this country were a Christian, would we even need a law outlawing abortion?

So what should our response be when the laws of the land are clearly immoral and out-of-sync with God’s laws, but the majority of the population wants it legal anyway? Do we wage war to get it outlawed? That certainlly hasn’t worked with abortion. And if it did, the other side would immediately fight to overturn it. I think we dishonor God by attempting by attempting to fight the battle in the legal arena. What if we could get all of the immoralities of our land outlawed, and somehow all of the adulterers, homosexuals, pro-choicers obeyed them? We’d be a nation of “moral” people all going to hell. How does that honor God?

I would say that even Christians could be in error with their doctrine. There are instances where Peter was wrong and Paul had to rebuke him. So we can be subject to error. However, we are also held accountable to that which we teach. Shall the blind lead the blind?

As for the homosexual question, I believe that there are so many Christians who have been desensitized to the issue that they are confused. In my estimate, you know what caused all 11 ballot initiatives to pass banning gay marriage? The lack of time. Period. The issue was thrown in everyones face all at once. Had the Mayor of San Francisco not gone out and thumbed his nose at society and married all the gays in his city; a time period down the road it would have had a chance to be accepted. Sadly, with Christians it the same way. It seems that if we allow the culture to gradually expose us to its ways, we slowly begin to accept it. In the case of homosexuality, I believe that there is a clear line between what God accepts and doesn’t accept.

(And I do think that abortion should be illegal. It is the ROLE of government to protect those who can not protect themselves. The unborn fall under that definitely)

An action that is forced — either at the point of gun or by government action — is not virtuous.

Virtuous choices are those made of one’s own freewill. If you are Forced to do it, it is not a choice. You’re doing the right thing, sure, but… Right reasons matter too.

This is the reason that even though I DO think it is a Christian’s responsibility to care for the poor and widows in their congregation — it should not be a law that the government does it. Because the virtue of doing it comes from the doing it because God says so, or because you want to. Not because you HAVE to.

Marriage laws affect our children (more innocents. People that are not able to make the actual choices involved first)

Dissolving marriages, for this reason, should NOT be easy. That’s a “law” we have made that has worked negatively. Both in families and, thus, in our culture.

But adultery? I’m not so sure about. It should be discouraged, sure. (Because it tends to break up families, as well as end up with innocents hurt when children are conceived, etc) But it is also more complicated — I’d go to changing people’s attitudes about adultery such that people will CHOOSE not to sleep around on their partners. Because that the choice of virtue. To do what is hard out of one’s own choice.

Just discovered your blog today. In the wake of the election results, I was curious about what people were saying on all of the political blogs I keep hearing about.

I appreciate with the distinction you made about being a Christian vs. making an un-Christian choice. I must take issue with Dave, who posted “True Christians ‘choose’ to follow Jesus Christ. Thus, one cannot accept the right of ‘pro-choice’ and also be a Christian.”

If I read my Bible correctly (and I think I do), then the only requirement to being a Christian is to have a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Having that faith doesn’t make us immune to making un-Christian choices. Our reaction to others’ un-Christian choices say much about our faith as the others’.

For example, most of us in conservative Christian circles believe that the vast majority of Christians believe that homosexuality is a sin. After visiting a Christian message board, I was shocked and dismayed to find that many people who confess a sincere belief in Jesus as their savior believe it is not. In their mind, it is not a question of being rebellious, but believing that the “conservative” interpretation of the various passages are wrong.

Now, as I conservative Christian who believes that they are wrong, what do I do with that? I can claim that they are “not really Christians,” in spite of the fact that they profess Him; I can accuse them of being “in rebellion” and that God will deal with them; or I can realize that God’s saving grace extends even to those with whom I adamantly disagree. Whichever I choose speaks volumes about what I believe about my faith and my God.

Sorry if I got off topic. Keep up the good work.

I am not a Christian & was not raised Christian. However, when I lived in Japan just how much my Judeo-Christian heritage shaped my beliefs became very evident to me. Despite my lack of faith, I would find it difficult if not impossible to lie after placing my hand on a Bible (heck, I find it difficult to lie anyways). I may not have been raised Christian or Jewish, but somehow I’ve absorbed those ethics.

There are other examples — but I don’t want to take up too much more space here.

Other societies have their own glue. One bit of America’s glue is faith. I find it despicable that people would remove religious objects from public places…it is America’s heritage…not just the heritage of Christians, Jews, Muslims or Hindus. Removing religion from our politics, our public places, our public discourse is denying reality, and it is removing our history and heritage!

The question is WHO’S MORALITY WILL BE LEGISLATED ?

Stay on the Biblical worldview Lashawn

Lord knows we need to hear it.