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my best friend turned out to be gay(well bi to be exact) and he kinda came out to a few people. he told out main group of friends and one of his best friends since like middle school totally turned her back on him and she is just being a total hypocrite. I really dont get her at all!!! Im not alright with his orientation but...hes still a friend of mine. His friend then went and told everyone including the youth pastor(cuz were all 11th and 12th grade) and he took our group of friends and told us that he has decided to turn his back on god and so the bible says that we are not to accept that lifestyle so we need to turn our back on him, not ignore him, but theres no way that we can be best friends with him. Thats wrong right?? i say its his life and he will have to deal with god. we arent to turn our backs!!! his stupid EX friends are being snobby and i just can not believe it!!! they think they are being christians??? they are pitiful excuses of one!! god died for ALL of us!! he loves ALL of us. he accepts ALL of us. Im against being gay, in the sense that i see it as going against exactly what the bible says, but....they are still people that deserve gods and our love.
RustyFairmount disagrees: Luke 15:1-7 says otherwise.
Yes, Jesus receives sinners who are repentant. We are called to separate from those who choose to stay in their sin.
1 Corinthians 6:15
Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not!
Note in the parable, Jesus did not say that the shepherd should simply sit and wait for the lost sheep to find its way back. We are called to actively seek out the sinners. We are to put ourselves among them.
There is no such call to separate as you suggest. That is blasphemy. Separation is punishment. Punishment comes after judgement. And only God shall sit in judgement of us.
Seems we disagree on what Jesus said. I believe He is the Shepherd. I believe God calls sodomy a sin. I believe we are not to hang with those who choose to live in their sin. Not gonna argue if you choose to believe differently.
Agreed. Your faith is strong, and that is a wonderful thing!
If hanging with sinners makes one more likely to sin themselves, then staying away is the best bet. But I choose to take God's word to the sinners, and pray that they will repent even if it is on their last day.
Good luck with all you do! And thanks for a great dialog.
I don't agree with turning our backs on people who are gay. I do not think there is a problem continuing friendship with someone who chooses to be gay. We all sin and will continue to until our dying day. Our friend's sin of homosexuality is no different than any of the sins we commit, even if he continues in his sin. Many of us continue in one particular sin/s until we have the strength, willingness and help from God to turn away from it. There is no difference! Turn our backs? No way! We should instead stick with him, talk to him about his continuous sin. There is absolutely nothing wrong with hanging out with the gay friend...having dinner, watching movies, recreation, conversation, etc. You go wrong when you condone his choice, when you chose to be with him when he seeks dates, etc. Because then you are partaking in his sin, in a sense, and that is wrong. But as long as you keep yourself seperated from his acts of sin then there is no reason why you shouldn't be around him when he is simply being a friend. Same goes for any other sin. We are supposed to seperate ourselves from any sins that are being committed. This doesn't mean we are supposed to turn away from the sinner. If that was the case all we would be looking at is people's backs, and we would all be hypocrites.
So, campem2, you continue your friendship with him. Do not turn your back on him. Talk to him, explain and show him Biblically why his choice is the wrong one and why he should turn away from his sin. Don't condone his choice and don't have any part in it. You can continue that friendship without having anything to do with it or him when he goes on dates and hangs out with his boyfriend. Just as you wouldn't hang out with your drug addict friend when they are searching for drugs, buying drugs and taking drugs, or even when they are high. Doesn't mean you can't be around them when they aren't. Matter of fact that's the best time because you can then talk to them, be an example for them. How can your friend ever know the truth about his choice when all of those who know better turn away from him.
I don't agree with turning our backs on people who are gay. I do not think there is a problem continuing friendship with someone who chooses to be gay. We all sin and will continue to until our dying day. Our friend's sin of homosexuality is no different than any of the sins we commit, even if he continues in his sin. Many of us continue in one particular sin/s until we have the strength, willingness and help from God to turn away from it. There is no difference! Turn our backs? No way! We should instead stick with him, talk to him about his continuous sin. There is absolutely nothing wrong with hanging out with the gay friend...having dinner, watching movies, recreation, conversation, etc. You go wrong when you condone his choice, when you chose to be with him when he seeks dates, etc. Because then you are partaking in his sin, in a sense, and that is wrong. But as long as you keep yourself seperated from his acts of sin then there is no reason why you shouldn't be around him when he is simply being a friend. Same goes for any other sin. We are supposed to seperate ourselves from any sins that are being committed. This doesn't mean we are supposed to turn away from the sinner. If that was the case all we would be looking at is people's backs, and we would all be hypocrites.
So, campem2, you continue your friendship with him. Do not turn your back on him. Talk to him, explain and show him Biblically why his choice is the wrong one and why he should turn away from his sin. Don't condone his choice and don't have any part in it. You can continue that friendship without having anything to do with it or him when he goes on dates and hangs out with his boyfriend. Just as you wouldn't hang out with your drug addict friend when they are searching for drugs, buying drugs and taking drugs, or even when they are high. Doesn't mean you can't be around them when they aren't. Matter of fact that's the best time because you can then talk to them, be an example for them. How can your friend ever know the truth about his choice when all of those who know better turn away from him.
WOW! thats the best advice ive gotten from anyone yet. Ive read all the posts up to this point and i must say that it all seems very sad, some seem to be against christians and others seem to be against "the world". Homosexuality is just like any other sin in gods eyes. And you cant take the bible out of context, to write off the whole bible just because it is old? that doesnt make sense. There is more factual evidence to support what is in the bible then any other writings. and saying to bible condones slavery? again, dont take it out of context. do you know who wrote that book of the bible? i understand, dont condone my friends choice of homosexuality. i understand what your saying, and i dont. He knows how i feel about it and i let him know how i feel when he brings it up. This is a heated topic. I just think that alot of people are wrong. ok, so someone might say that there is living in sin(homosexuality) and a sinful act(stealing). though that makes sense...our whole lives are living in sin! just explain to me please how jesus witnessed to everyone, didnt turn his back on anyone and yes he even witnessed to gay people im sure, how can a christian strive to be like him yet say "oh, gay people are an exception to the rule"??? I just dont really get it. and by the way, just because its not directly in the ten commandments doesnt mean that its not a sin.
so anyways....thank you so much for your advice Moonlitwaves....it seemed very wise and helpful. and also thanks to everyone for posting.
I don't agree with turning our backs on people who are gay. I do not think there is a problem continuing friendship with someone who chooses to be gay. We all sin and will continue to until our dying day. How can your friend ever know the truth about his choice when all of those who know better turn away from him.
On the surface that could sound like good advice, but consider it from God's view and Jesus' view (which actually is a perfect reflection of God's). While on earth, Jesus preached to all, including those involved in gross sins and what did he preach to them about (besides God's kingdom)? He spoke of REPENTANCE. Someone who desired to have God's approval on them would have to repent of their sinful ways. A person living and practicing sin would not be able to gain an approved standing in God's sight. This means that there would most definitely be a problem between an individual who chooses to practice sin and God, as that individual would not be repentant of the wrong they've committed and continue to commit by living that lifestyle. It makes no difference what kind of sin the person is in the practice of committing, the big deal is that it is still a PRACTICE of sin, a willful choice to continue to sin. Make no mistake, the Bible is very clear that homosexuality is sinful in God's sight. But, people who abandon such a course, recognizing that it is wrong and sinful, and have a true desire to be pleasing to God, are certainly welcome to approach him and rely upon him for the help that is needed in fighting such unclean urges and desires.
So when Moonlitwaves says "I do not think there is a problem continuing friendship with someone who chooses to be gay." - Such a statement is the viewpoint of an imperfect human. That viewpoint is not shared by our Creator. He wants those who are repentant and truly striving to serve him obediently. When someone "chooses to be gay", they're choosing to live a sinful life, with no thought of needing to be repentant of anything.
The Christian congregation was encouraged to remove people from their midst who willfully practiced gross sins, with no thought or desire to repent and turn around from their ways. This was for the spiritual protection of the entire congregation as a whole, as they would have no association with this one; all-the-while hoping that the individual would come to recognize the error of his ways and eventually repent so as to be welcomed back to the congregation and to a healthy relationship with God.
Certainly you can share with him God's viewpoint of homosexuality and then allow him to decide what he wants to do. The Bible states in 1 Corinthians 15:33 that "bad association spoils useful habits", which means that our associating with people who willfully choose to practice sin without any desire to change their ways, would be bad association, and such bad association could be detrimental to us and to our own relationship with God. There would DEFINITELY be something wrong with continuing to enjoy social association with this one who has made their choice to live a sinful life. By continuing to associate with this person, no matter how long you've been friends, you're giving them the idea that no matter whether they choose to repent of their clearly wrong lifestyle or not, you will excuse it for the sake of the friendship. God's standards are higher than that, so should ours be.
There are many people who have difficulty with turning away from one particular sin. Be it, drugs, alcohol, smoking, lustful thoughts, gambling addiction, sex addiction, habitual sins, etc. We do not have to and should not be around these people when they are actively sinning, but this doesn't mean we should dissassociate ourselves from them completely. It is easy to say we would turn away from a gay friend, but what if it was a family member who is having difficulty with one particular sin. Wouldn't you talk to them, try to show them the correct way, help them turn away from their sin, etc. More than likely, yes you would. Why should a friend be any different than your loved one. No matter the sin.
God has nothing to do with our sins, but He doesn't dissassociate Himself completely from us when we do. And even if He ever did, who are we to say when He reaches His limit.
How many times did the Spirit work with you before you dropped to your knees and asked for salvation? For some people it could take nearly a lifetime. God didn't turn away from them. He kept trying and trying to get the person/people to see and know truth.
There are many people who have difficulty with turning away from one particular sin. Be it, drugs, alcohol, smoking, lustful thoughts, gambling addiction, sex addiction, habitual sins, etc. We do not have to and should not be around these people when they are actively sinning, but this doesn't mean we should dissassociate ourselves from them completely. It is easy to say we would turn away from a gay friend, but what if it was a family member who is having difficulty with one particular sin. Wouldn't you talk to them, try to show them the correct way, help them turn away from their sin, etc. More than likely, yes you would. Why should a friend be any different than your loved one. No matter the sin.
God has nothing to do with our sins, but He doesn't dissassociate Himself completely from us when we do. And even if He ever did, who are we to say when He reaches His limit.
How many times did the Spirit work with you before you dropped to your knees and asked for salvation? For some people it could take nearly a lifetime. God didn't turn away from them. He kept trying and trying to get the person/people to see and know truth.
It also doesn't mean that you would continue the same amount of association with these individuals (or increase it) that you have had previously. If you put your friendship with this individual (whether a relative or not) above your obedience to God and your desire to maintain an approved relationship with God, then that would be an easy choice on your part and you'd say "well I'm not going to stop hanging around them if they continue this way", but if you put your relationship with God ahead of that friendship, then you'd be more apt to examine this friendship and see what harm it could cause you in the long run and how it may give the friend the idea that you really are condoning their choice. All sins are NOT the same.....nowhere in the Bible is that idea ever given. That idea was started by people who want to try and minimize their wrongdoing by making it seem less serious than it actually is.
Again, the idea behind God's acceptance is our heartfelt repentance and striving to be obedient to Him and his laws & principles. Those who willfully practice sin, even after being shown that what they're doing is sinful, do not have God's blessing and/or backing upon them. It's that simple. And if we continue to extend close friendship to these ones who have made their choice, it only leads to a detrimental effect upon us. "Draw close to God and he will draw close to you, " said the Apostle James. Drawing close to God means making the choice to live according to his ways and his laws (as best as we imperfect beings can) and not willfully practicing sin or being around those who do....family or not.
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