We live in the time known both historically and culturally as the age of “Postmodernism”.
This era was preceded by; you guessed it, the period called “Modernism”. Most historians, philosophers, sociologists and theologians, place the birth of modernism in the year 1789 (or at the beginning of the decade of ‘The French revolution’ [1789-1799]), with its demise coming approximately at the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. This means we have lived in this pivotal age in history for almost two decades. What are the key characteristics that mark this time?
Most obvious, is its wholesale rejection of objective truth, hence, its repudiation of moral absolutes. This explains why we are presently and increasingly reading about and observing the Judeo-Christian Worldview under all-out attack. Of course, this means God’s existence and especially Biblical authority are no longer viewed as having any practical value for living in the ‘real’ world. In fact, for those who want to retain the concept of God in their lives, they will only do so if his Word is, in their estimation; allowed to be modernized, revised, or massaged into meeting their ‘relevant’ demands upon it. Nowhere has this black art been more on display than in the recent issue of Newsweek magazine (December 15, 2008) in its cover article, “Our Mutual Joy: Opponent’s of gay marriage often cite Scripture. But what the Bible teaches about love argues for the other side” by Lisa Miller. This article is a very sad display of selective reporting. She totally ignores the Bible’s clear instruction about homosexuality and then makes bold opinionated assertions for homosexual marriage which amount to baseless postmodern rants against unmistakable words inspired by the living God (Romans 1:18-20, 26-27; 2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Through her careless words, she demonstrates that she neither knows what the Bible teaches about homosexuality, nor what God describes as being the only proper conjugal relationship.
In addition, her understanding of what the Bible teaches about love, is more from Hollywood, than from the mouth of the living God! The following are just a few of the examples of Ms. Miller’s ‘objective’ writing: “ Social conservatives point to…”, “But the Bible authors could never have imagined the brave new world of…”, “Paul is not talking about what we call homosexuality at all…”, “…gay-marriage opponents, who use Scripture as the foundation for their objections”, “Biblical literalists will disagree, but the Bible is a living document...”, A mature view of scriptural authority requires us,… to move beyond literalism”, “…our modern understanding of the world has surpassed its (the Bible’s) prescriptions”, “What happens in the bedroom, really, has nothing to do with any of this”, “We cannot look to the Bible as a marriage manual, but we can read it for universal truths…” (huh?).
That’s enough… Please read the following passage from Scripture that Ms. Miller conveniently left out: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).
Well, can God’s Word be any clearer? Is not the real problem here, a problem with God? If words have meaning, then the Bible says that homosexuality is an unrighteous lifestyle that will send you to Hell! A lifestyle, like the others listed in this passage, which needs spiritual cleansing, sanctification, and Justfication (i.e. The new birth [John 3:3-7]). In other words, there’s hope for the homosexual. He can be forgiven by God, cleansed by God, set-apart for God, and declared righteous by God, if he would own his sin and then turn from his idolatrous lifestyle to God for full pardoning mercy (1 Thessalonians 1:9-10; 1 Timothy 1:9-11). Ms. Miller’s article was nothing more that calling evil good and good evil…
Jerry Marcellino is pastor of Audubon Drive Bible Church in Laurel. He can be reached by e-mail at pastorjerry@audubonchurch.org.
For more information on Audubon Drive Bible Church, or to see Pastor Marcellino’s sermons online, visit: http://www.youtube.com/adbcvideoministry.
