Reason #1 to Oppose Gay Marriage

Who would have ever thought that "Gay Marriage" would become such a huge issue throughout America?

If you are old enough to read this blog, homosexuality was illegal in many states during your lifetime.
Before 1973, it was considered a mental illness to be treated by psychiatrists.
And within the last ten years, gay activists have seriously debated whether trying to legalize gay marriage was a poor strategy as it would create a backlash by trying to do too much too fast (a prediction that is proving to be accurate).

Today, ground zero in the battle for our culture is no longer abortion or even whether or not homosexuality is moral, but whether or not homosexuals should be allowed to marry. My how the dialogue has changed in such a short time. The mere fact that we have moved from discussing the morality of homosexuality to whether they can marry indicates that we are losing the battle for a decent, moral, God-honoring society.

That being said, I plan to begin a 10-part series of blogs on why we should oppose "gay marriage." I hope these messages will strengthen your convictions (or, perhaps challenge your convictions) and equip you to discuss this with others. Comments are welcome and I do expect to receive a fair amount of hateful comments regarding this subject. If you agree with what I write, you can balance the hate stuff by passing on these messages to others. This issue is not going to go away any time soon and those of us who love God better figure out where we stand on this issue and not simply wait for political campaigns to do the thinking for us. That being said...

The #1 reason to oppose "gay marriage"...
GOD defines marriage as a union between a MAN and his WIFE.
God leaves no room for a "marriage" between people of the same sex.

Contrary to the claims of atheists and secularists, God created marriage. Marriage is not the creation of man nor the creation of "society." As such, God is the One who is to define it and who sets the rules concerning marriage.

Thus, the number one question we should be asking in this regard is "What does GOD think about 'gay marriage'?" Have you ever asked yourself that question?

Scripture speaks of the very first marriage between Adam and Eve and then defines marriage this way:

"For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." (Genesis 2:24)

This is not simply a relationship between two lovers, but between a "man" and his "wife."

In the New Testament, Jesus was asked when it is permissible to divorce. He answered by clearly defining what a marriage is:

 Some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and asking, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?"
And He answered and said, "Have you not read that He who created them from 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 they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate."  (Matthew 19:3-6. Caps indicate Jesus was quoting directly from the Old Testament.)

Here, Jesus refers back to Genesis in order to define marriage, but goes one step further in referring to marriage in terms of "male and female."

Male / female, man / wife. This is the only standard set for marriage in the Bible. There is no example of a "marriage" between two males or two females in the mind of God.

Of course, secularists will argue that, in America, we separate church and state and, therefore, God should not be the One to define marriage in our country. However, just because someone says this does not mean we need to fall for it. Nothing in our Constitution or in our history tells us we are not allow our understanding of God and His truth to inform and guide us in how we view the world or the laws that will govern us. Citizens of America are free to allow any number of influences to guide their voting decisions (education, media, discussions with friends, past experiences, etc). All of these influence us believers as well, but the greatest influence in how we see the world and discern what is right and wrong should be our faith and allegiance to God and His word -- a faith our Founding Fathers had and one we should never be ashamed of.

Comments

[Jim Fedako]

Tom,

Does government define marriage? Or does God?

I ask this since we, God's Church, have abdicated our role in marriage. The Church now defines marriage based on every jot and tittle of state law. So if the state says a couple is married, the Church agrees. And if the state says a couple is divorced, the Church also agrees -- without consideration to what the bible teaches. The Church never says that marriage is defined by God, regardless of the state.

The Church readily accepts couples as being married who paid their fee to a civil judge but never expressed any commitment to God. Why? Because, to God's Church, a couple is married if and only if the state say so. The Church no longer stakes its rightful claim in this area.

Yet, if a couple lives together without a state marriage license, the Church does not recognize that union. Biblically speaking, that couple is married, regardless of the state.

Interestingly, George Washington never possessed a state marriage license, yet we all consider him married.

The Church created this issue when it decided to partner with the state on civil marriages. Now that very same partnership is being up ended. But that is always the result between parties that are unequally yoked before God.

So the issue we face is being forced by the state to accept as married any parties with a civil marriage license.

What is the proposed solution? To many the solution is to exert influence on the ungodly civil state in order to stem the tide for a few more years.

Why not instead upend the current situation by having the Church agree that the state has no place in our lives, and that we have no place using the state for our means?

Tom, Being yoked to state has always lead to a stronger state and a weaker Church. God does not care a jot or tittle for man's law. Instead of acknowledging God in all matter, we turn from him to our new gods, the state and democracy.

Until the Church takes back its role, things will only get worse. Praying for the state to solve the Churches problems is striving after the wind.