TWO WRONGS HAVE THE RIGHT

But, the two wrongs do not make one right. The reason being, the wrongs are not right, singularly or collectively. Now permit me to explain what I mean by all this jargon. On Sunday, October 17, 2004, the Montgomery Advertiser carried an article pertaining to a protest led by an extremist group from the state of Kansas that occurred in Montgomery, Alabama on Saturday, October 16, 2004. The group was comprised of some of the members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. Their basic message in sermon and in songs was that God hates the homosexuals. They also “Thank God for Ivan”, believing that it was punishment sent from God for the immorality that exists in our country. Also that “God hates America.” A daughter of the preacher of this church explained that the signs and slogans are “about the United States’ enabling of the homosexual lifestyle.” Some of the songs and comments expressed the belief of this group that “the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were God’s wrath on homosexuals.” The beliefs of this radical group are not representative of the religious community in our nation. In fact, such extremism is injurious to an understanding of the nature of God and an acceptance of the Bible as being divinely inspired of God. Such ignorance and misguided zeal give fuel to the secular society to ridicule believers in Jesus Christ as being the only Savior of mankind and God the Father being the Creator of heaven and earth. But, these zealots have the right in this country to express their religious beliefs and teachings. For this we are indeed thankful. The truth of the matter is, God loves the homosexual but He hates the sin. In the great Roman treatise concerning the infinite grace of God, it is easy to understand how much God detest the sin of homosexuality. In chapter 1: 18 - 32, we learn that the “wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.” The heathen populace did not “glorify God” and became steeped in idolatry. Because of their willfulness in rejecting God, He “gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves.” “God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use of what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use to the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality…” One can plainly understand from a casual reading of this passage that God condemns the sins of sexual perversion, including homosexuality. However, the Holy Spirit guided the apostle Paul to write in the same book of Romans, chapter 5, verses 6 – 10, “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” The “ungodly” in verse 6, the “sinners” in verse 8 and the “enemies” mentioned in verse 10 would involve all of mankind, including the homosexuals. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). It was by the grace of God that Jesus died “for everyone” (Hebrews 2:9). No greater truth can be found in the Holy Scriptures than this, that God loved/loves the human family, including those who were/are guilty of sexual sins. On the other hand, the second group present on the occasion previously mentioned, was comprised of those who believe that the homosexual way of life is right and should be accepted by society even to the point of making it legal for persons of the same sex to be married. Under the picture of two women hugging one another on page 4c of the Montgomery Advertiser, it reads that one woman “embraces her wife”. Yes, you read that correctly, a woman who “embraces her wife” (Emphasis mine, RE). There are many passages in the Bible, including Romans 1:18-34; I Corinthians 6:19–20, that prove beyond a shadow of doubt the homoerotic lifestyle is sinful in the mind of God. Also, when the design of marriage and the relationship of man and woman are considered in view of the infinite wisdom of God, one has to conclude that same sex marriages and the homoerotic lifestyle are expressly forbidden in the Holy Scriptures. In Genesis 1:26-28, we read the following, “Then God said, “Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…” “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply: fill the earth and subdue it…” One can plainly see that God made man (generic term) male and female. God did not make one entity with dual personalities but two entities, male and female. It is also understood that the male and female should have children in order to “fill the earth”. Two people of the same sex cannot accomplish what God intended for the male and female (in marriage) to do. In chapter two of the book of Genesis we find more details concerning the making of man and woman by Almighty God. Notice in verses 20 – 25, “So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; She shall be call woman, because she was taken out of man.” “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.” After God made man, there was not to be found among the animal kingdom a help-meet (companion) suitable for Adam. God caused the man to fall into a sleep and God took a part of man and made the woman. For all time to come, the truth was stated that the man should leave his parents and cleave to his wife. It is easy to understand that the institution of marriage by God consisted of a man marrying a woman. That is God’s design for mankind. Any arrangement contrary to this is a perversion of God’s plan originating from His infinite wisdom and love. The eternal Word (God the Son) was involved in the making of the man and woman in the Garden of Eden. John declared this so in John 1:3, “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” The apostle Paul expressed it in this manner, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him” (Colossians 1:16, 17). Jesus gave credence to the story of creation and in particular to the making of man and woman as recorded in Matthew 19:4 – 6, “And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ “and said ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? “So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” It is clear that God (including God the Son) made male and female and that the man (male) should be joined to his wife (female) thus becoming one flesh. And since God joins them (male and female) in marriage, man has no right to separate the two of them. It takes professional (?) help for a person to misunderstand God’s design in marriage, that is, one man for one woman. Individuals who believe in God and have respect for His Word have no alternative but to accept God’s design and plan for marriage that involves a man and a woman. We must also conclude that Jesus did have much to say about homosexuality when it is understood that man and woman were made by Him in the very beginning and that they were the only suitable candidates for the marriage relationship. Yes, the two groups that confronted one another during the protest on October 16, 2004 had the right to express themselves; but, the truth of the matter is that neither group was right because each stood in violation of what the Holy Scriptures teach regarding God’s love for all of mankind and His design for the male and female in the holy estate of matrimony.