Because I know that I am being tested...
Romans 1: 16-17 "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith.""
Anybody still out there?
1 year ago
10 comments:
My sweet girl! I'm so sorry its been so rough.
Keep your chin up. Look forward to Friday. ;) You're one of my favorite friends. You make things fun! Like rainbow kinda fun... BAH HA! Love you!
I just wanted to tell you that I love you so much. I'm not sorry about anything that I said, but I am sorry if my big mouth has caused you any pain. My intention was to turn the obvious anger into a constructive debate, but it obviously didn't work out and people were pretty nasty to you. Hang in there and this too shall pass.
Thanks, all of you! I have grown so much out of this. I know that I am a stronger Christian now, and the bigger person. I will never forget the words that hurt and those that brought comfort. God works in mysterious ways. :)
p.s. : Emily, never appologize for your "big mouth". I am grateful every second for a big sister like you. You are aloud to say whatever you want!
Um, I just have to say that I think its time that Emily wrote something on my blog... I'm getting a little bit jealous.
Don't worry Stori, lol. This little saga is the first time I've ever written on a blog!
Nicole Lamarche, Miss California 2003 and now an ordained ministerat Cotuit Federated Church in Cotuit, Mass, is speaking out.
She says: "As a pastor and a former Miss California, I am often asked to interpret what the Word of God has to say on a particular subject. I am quite confident that God prefers that we human beings stick to speaking for ourselves. And yet there are occasions when God’s Word is used as a weapon, and I feel compelled to speak.
In the past few days, much has been made of the words of Miss California USA, Carrie Prejean. She stated that marriage is between a man and a woman. I write not in response to her opinion, but rather about her comments that followed: that the Bible condones her words. She said, 'It's not about being politically correct, it's about being biblically correct.' While this sentiment is shared by many who seek to condemn gay people and gay marriage, citing pieces of the Bible to further one’s own prejudice fails to meet the Bible on its own terms.
Most people seeking to condemn gay people point to the Book of Leviticus, where we read that men lying with men is an abomination. However, we rarely hear of other verses found in the book of Leviticus that are equally challenging. For example, Leviticus also tells us that eating shrimp and lobster is an abomination. And that a person should not wear material woven of two kinds of material—an impossible mandate for a pageant contestant!
In Paul’s letter to the community in Corinth we read, ‘For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church….’ And yet these words have not prevented Christian denominations from ordaining women, such as myself. Sadly, the Bible has been used to further prejudice throughout history. We have used it to permit ourselves to enslave people; to conquer and kill; and to denigrate the earth.
The truth is that it is difficult to know for sure the intentions of the biblical authors, but we do know something about God. Those of us who know God through Jesus of Nazareth know that he went to great lengths to express God’s love to people who were labeled as outcasts. He spent time with children, prostitutes, and lepers, all of whom were labeled as outside of the grasp of the Holy. As we continue to seek God’s vision for us as a nation grounded in a love for justice, I pray that we might move closer to the cause of grace.”
Dear Anonymous person,
I would sincerely like to thank you for your post. Even though these are not your words you are the first person with a dissenting opinion, other than Lydia, to post something that is an argument for your beliefs and not words of anger, hate, and frustration. This was my intention from the beginning. There is no reason for us to be angry with each other for having different opinions. If you want to challenge someone, be prepared to do just that!
There are a few things I would like to counter in this post.
”I am quite confident that God prefers that we human beings stick to speaking for ourselves.”
I am speaking for myself here, but as a sinful human being I know that nothing divine or holy will ever come from my lips. Therefore I choose to base all my beliefs solely on what the Bible says. I could never base my beliefs on anything that comes from my sinful mind or this corrupt world.
“And yet there are occasions when God’s Word is used as a weapon.”
I know that there are many things in the Bible that I struggle with. God is far bigger than our human minds can ever comprehend and there is no way that we can understand everything in the Bible. That is where faith comes in. We may read things and think they are mean or unfair, but that doesn’t mean we can change the rules to what we want them to be. When people use Bible verses to support their views and people interpret that as a weapon, it only means that they don’t understand what they are hearing or it doesn’t conform to their lifestyle.
“While this sentiment is shared by many who seek to condemn gay people and gay marriage, citing pieces of the Bible to further one’s own prejudice fails to meet the Bible on its own terms.”
No one here posted anything to condemn gay people, only to recognize homosexuality as a sin. Erica, pay attention! I have the right to judge no one. God will do that on judgment day. However, we do have to acknowledge the difference between right and wrong in order to strive to live for Christ and be repentant of our sins. If I decide that murder is ok, God is not going to say “ok, you don’t need forgiveness for that since you have justified it in your own mind.” I’ll be the first to admit that I deserve to burn in hell for my sins. However, “chief of sinners though I be, Jesus shed his blood for me.”
“However, we rarely hear of other verses found in the book of Leviticus that are equally challenging. For example, Leviticus also tells us that eating shrimp and lobster is an abomination. And that a person should not wear material woven of two kinds of material”
To me this is a ridiculous analogy. In the Old Testament people were required to abide by many traditions of the church such as eating certain foods and making animal sacrifices for their sins. In the New Testament Christ did away with the required traditions of the church, but he did not change the laws of morality as stated in the Old Testament. Homosexuality is a sin against the body and a sin against the Holy Spirit as is stated in Romans. Also, check out Romans 3:27-31. Verse 31 says, “Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.” Christ’s gift of salvation is not a free ticket to live however you want. We still have to recognize sinful behavior and be repentant of our sins. If we think we do not need Christ’s forgiveness we are rejecting Him.
“The truth is that it is difficult to know for sure the intentions of the biblical authors, but we do know something about God.”
Obviously, this pastor does not recognize the Bible as the divinely inspired Word of God. God is the author of the Bible. He used humans as instruments to put His word on paper for future generations. 2 Timothy 3:16 - "All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness."
“Those of us who know God through Jesus of Nazareth know that he went to great lengths to express God’s love to people who were labeled as outcasts. He spent time with children, prostitutes, and lepers, all of whom were labeled as outside of the grasp of the Holy.”
She is absolutely right. God did spend time with sinners but it was not because he tolerated their actions, it was because he wanted to share the Good News with them so they would follow him and change their ways. He told them, “go and sin no more!” Do you think Mary Magdalene continued to be a prostitute after she chose to follow Christ? Do you think the apostle Matthew (the former tax collector) continued to steal from people after he started to follow Christ? Christ comes to sinners calling them to follow him and change their sinful ways. There is no way we can be perfect (which is why we need Christ) but we can have the desire to follow Christ’s commands and be repentant when we fall short.
“As we continue to seek God’s vision for us as a nation grounded in a love for justice, I pray that we might move closer to the cause of grace.”
We will never find God’s vision looking in ourselves at in this world. The only way to find God’s vision is in the Bible. Remember that our God is a very very loving God, but that does not translate to a tolerant God. He gave us a free gift of salvation, but he does not tolerate the rejection of His Word. God tells us in his word that we will endure persecution if we are living for God. But keep the faith! The greatest reward will be ours in the end!
Again, I would like to thank the people that were able to keep their heads and have an adult conversation, lol. We don’t agree and we probably never will, but that doesn’t mean we have to be angry with each other. There is so much more I could say, but I think I’ve made my point. Thanks again for the comment!
First I would like to say that even though I respect Ms. Lamarche as a pastor, she is only human and can be disagreed with just as much as the next person.
I would like to add a bit to Emily's argument because it was so great! She hit most of the main points, so I will only add a few more...
"I am quite confident that God prefers that we human beings stick to speaking for ourselves."
I would like to see a reference for this statement where the God of the Bible states we are more wise than he is.
"She said, 'It's not about being politically correct, it's about being Biblically correct.'While this sentiment is shared by many who seek to condemn gay people and gay marriage..."
Again, I would like to see a reference where it says that homosexuality is OK. I believe that everywhere it is ever referred to, the words, "wicked", "abomination", "shameful", etc are used. Not sure where any form of justification comes in.
Like we have said, countless times, we DO NOT condemn the sinER, we condemn the SIN!! I think this is the source of the problem and debate here.
"In Paul’s letter to the community in Corinth we read, ‘For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church….’ And yet these words have not prevented Christian denominations from ordaining women, such as myself."
In the Lutheran Church, and still some other denominations out there, women are still not ordained as pastors. This is not a "prejudice" as you see it.
This is a perfect lead in to how God planned for family to be structured!
Ephesians 5:23 "For the husbands is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body of which he is the Savior."
He did not say "husband is the head of the husband" or "wife is the head of the wife". God Structured the church to be like the formation of the family. Keep in mind, this does not mean that women are not important. As women, we are there to be supportive of our husbands, teach the children, etc. I take this as a huge role in a functional church and family and am happy to be supportive and help in any way possible.
"Most people seeking to condemn gay people point to the Book of Leviticus, where we read that men lying with men is an abomination. However, we rarely hear of other verses found in the book of Leviticus that are equally challenging."
Read Matthew 15. This whole section discusses why some of the old traditions are not followed while the sins spoke about in Leviticus are still considered sinful. He states in verse 10 "Listen and understand. What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean.'" and then in verse 18-20 "But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean'. For out of the hear come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean'"
I think that pretty much explains it better than I ever could; since I can not "speak for myself".
I think Emily covered most of the rest of the topics so there's no need to repeat.
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