There has been a video shot in Greensburg that has gone viral. In the video, filmed at a Christian Church, a little boy no more than 5 or 6 years old paraphrases Romans 1:27 saying “ain’t no homo gonna make it to heaven.”
I felt compelled to respond to the video and the comments it has been receiving. First, no one can get to heaven by his action, inaction, faith or lack of faith. Only by the grace of God can one get to heaven. Second, homosexual activity is immoral but so is heterosexual activity outside of marriage. A sin is a sin, sin being something that severs our bond with God. Even if we were to rank sin by severity, both homosexual acts and heterosexual acts outside of marriage would fall under the same category of sexual sins. Third, Romans 1 paints a grim image for any sinner not just homosexuals and as humans we are all sinners, all undeserving of heaven, God’s love, grace and forgiveness. It is because He loves us that we live. If we had to depend on our limited human understanding of love for life, we would all be doomed.
Starting at verse 18 (quoting from the New American Bible translation), “The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven against every impiety and wickedness of those who suppress the truth by their wickedness. For what can be known about God is evident to them, because God made it evident to them. Ever since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and perceived in what he has made. As a result, they have no excuse; for although they knew God they did not accord him glory as God or give him thanks. Instead, they became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless minds were darkened. While claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for the likeness of an image of mortal man or of birds or of four-legged animals or of snakes. Therefore, God handed them over to impurity through the lusts of their hearts for the mutual degradation of their bodies. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
“Therefore, God handed them over to degrading passions. Their females exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the males likewise gave up natural relations with females and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their own persons the due penalty for their perversity. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God handed them over to their undiscerning mind to do what is improper. They are filled with every form of wickedness, evil, greed, and malice; full of envy, murder, rivalry, treachery, and spite. They are gossips and scandalmongers and they hate God. They are insolent, haughty, boastful, ingenious in their wickedness, and rebellious toward their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know the just decree of God that all who practice such things deserve death, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.”
I think it is this very last verse of Romans 1 that we should pay extra attention to. “They not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” There is a lot of debate about homosexuality. Is it something learned? Is it genetic? Can you unlearn it? Could you truly be happy suppressing it? And on and on and on it goes. Homosexuality is immoral. That is a simple fact. You can dislike that it is immoral because, as quoted above, you are “vain in (your) reasoning” but it will still be immoral. It is also immoral to condone homosexual behavior. It is a distinction to be made that loving your neighbor does not equal approving everything he does. Hate the sin but love the sinner.
As Christians and believers in the word of God, we have to sacrifice a lot to walk in the light. We give up pleasure of the flesh for the permanent pleasure of heaven. We give up acquiring large quantities of stuff here on earth so that we may be filled with God’s grace and radiant light in heaven. Our lives here on earth are not meant to be enjoyed. They are supposed to be full of hardship. If life were easy, we would easily slip away from God, seeing no reason to pursue the tough life that a true Christian leads. I hope and pray that you can all be filled with the grace of God and be given strength, fortitude and persistence to live this tough life with humility.
God Bless!
Hannah
The Farmer’s Wife
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