In 1997 our denomination
amended the Book of Order by adding section G-6.0106b which
specifies “fidelity within the covenant of marriage between
a man and a woman or chastity in singleness” as requirements
for all persons to be ordained or installed as church officers. The
specific wording in this amendment did not represent a change in the
church’s understanding or practice, but instead had become necessary
to ensure that an activist General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission
would not overturn our denomination’s biblical and confessional
standards related to ordained office and sexual behavior.
After the addition
of that section to the Book of Order, numerous attempts have
been made to have that wording and those ordination requirements removed.
A current challenge to those standards proposes that even though the
wording would remain in the Book of Order, ordaining bodies
would be able to decide whether to abide by those standards or to
consider them “non-essential” and ignore them.
Failing to enforce
those standards would cause very serious harm to our denomination
because the basis for those standards—that marriage between
a man and a woman is the only setting in which sexual expression is
moral—is clearly taught in Scripture and summarized in the Confessions.
I. Biblical
teaching
Although our culture assumes people are free to set their
own moral standards, as Presbyterians, our focus is on knowing and
following God’s will. Presbyterians look to Scripture as our
sole authority to learn God’s will, confident that those who
seek to be obedient to God will find sufficient guidance. Referring
to the nature and adequacy of Scripture as our guide, our Book
of Confessions states:
The whole
counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for his own glory,
man’s salvation, faith, and life, is either expressly set
down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced
from Scripture . . . (6.006)
The Book of
Confessions further explains that the message of Scripture is
consistent:
The infallible
rule of interpretation of Scripture, is the Scripture itself; and
therefore, when there is a question about the true and full sense
of any scripture (which is not manifold, but one), it may be searched
and known by other places that speak more clearly. (6.009)
The Book of
Confessions also specifies that Scripture is to direct our consciences:
God alone
is Lord of the conscience, and hath left it free from the doctrines
and commandments of men which are in anything contrary to his Word,
or beside it matters of faith or worship . . . (6.109)
For Presbyterians,
it is Scripture—not human opinions, feelings, scholarship, or
reason—that is our authority for distinguishing right from wrong
and for living in a way that honors God.
Scripture reveals
that marriage is instituted and defined by God as a spiritual and
physical union of a man and a woman (Gen 2:24, Eph 5:22-33).
Scripture plainly
teaches that sexual immorality is not to be found among the people
of God (Ex 20:14, Jude 3-8, Rom 13:12-14, I Cor 6:9-11, I Cor 6:18-20,
I Cor 5:1-13, Gal 5:16-24, Eph 5:1-10, Col 3:1-10, I Thes 4:1-8, Heb
12:14-29, Heb 13:4, Mat 15:17-20, Mark 7:18-23, Rev 21:1-8, Rev 22:10-20).
Scripture includes homosexual practice among the forms of sexual immorality
(Lev 18:22, Lev 20:13, I Cor 6:9-11, Rom 1:26-27, Jude 7).
II. Confessional
understanding
The Book of Confessions contains the confessional
statements which are standards in our denomination. The Book of
Order defines the role of the Confessions in this way:
. . . While
confessional standards are subordinate to the Scriptures, they are,
nonetheless, standards. They are not lightly drawn up or subscribed
to, nor may they be ignored or dismissed. The church is prepared
to counsel with or even to discipline one ordained who seriously
rejects the faith expressed in the confessions....(G-2.0200)
Our constitutional
Confessions plainly teach that Christians are always bound by God’s
moral law and that the object of Christian liberty is to serve God
in holiness:
The moral
law doth forever bind all, as well justified persons as others,
to the obedience thereof; and that not only in regard of the matter
contained in it, but also in respect of the authority of God the
Creator who gave it. Neither doth Christ in the gospel any way dissolve,
but much strengthen, this obligation. (6.105)
They who,
upon pretense of Christian liberty, do practice any sin, or cherish
any lust, do thereby destroy the end of Christian liberty; which
is, that, being delivered out of the hands of our enemies, we might
serve the Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before
him, all the days of our life. (6.110)
The Confessions
specifically include “homosexual perversion” (4.087) and
“adultery, fornication, . . . [and] sodomy” (7.249) as
being forbidden by God. The Confessions further teach the requirement
of sexual purity among the people of God, define marriage as being
between a man and a woman, and state that “the Church is concerned
with the establishment of marriage in the Lord as Scripture sets it
forth.” (7.248-7.249, 4.108-4.109, 5.245-5.247, 5.251, 6.131-6.139,
7.130, 9.47).
Christian
marriage is an institution ordained of God, blessed by our Lord
Jesus Christ, established and sanctified for the happiness and welfare
of mankind, into which spiritual and physical union one man and
one woman enter, cherishing a mutual esteem and love, bearing with
each other’s infirmities and weaknesses, comforting each other
in trouble, providing in honesty and industry for each other and
for their household, praying for each other, and living together
the length of their days as heirs of the grace of life. Because
the corruption of man is apt unduly to put asunder those whom God
hath joined together in marriage, and because the Church is concerned
with the establishment of marriage in the Lord as Scripture sets
it forth,. . . (6.131 - 6.132)
The Confessions
also emphasize the necessity of repentance:
Repentance
unto life is an evangelical grace, the doctrine whereof is to be
preached by every minister of the gospel, as well as that of faith
in Christ. By it a sinner, out of the sight and sense, not only
of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his
sins, as contrary to the holy nature and righteous law of God, and
upon the apprehension of his mercy in Christ to such as are penitent,
so grieves for, and hates his sins, as to turn from them all unto
God, purposing and endeavoring to walk with him in all the ways
of his commandments. Although repentance be not to be rested in
as any satisfaction for sin, or any cause of the pardon thereof,
which is the act of God’s free grace in Christ; yet is it
of such necessity to all sinners, that none may expect pardon without
it. As there is no sin so small but it deserves damnation; so there
is no sin so great that it can bring damnation upon those who truly
repent. Men ought not to content themselves with a general repentance,
but it is every man’s duty to endeavor to repent of his particular
sins, particularly. (6.081 - 6.085)
III. Book
of Order requirements for officers
The Book of Order includes these requirements for
church officers:
. . . In
addition to possessing the necessary gifts and abilities, natural
and acquired, those who undertake particular ministries should be
persons of strong faith, dedicated discipleship, and love of Jesus
Christ as Savior and Lord. Their manner of life should be a demonstration
of the Christian gospel in the church and in the world . . .
Those who
are called to office in the church are to lead a life in obedience
to Scripture and in conformity to the historic confessional standards
of the church. Among these standards is the requirement to live
either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man
and a woman (W-4.9001), or chastity in singleness. Persons refusing
to repent of any selfacknowledged practice which the confessions
call sin shall not be ordained and/or installed as deacons, elders,
or ministers of the Word and Sacrament. (G-6.0106 a,b)
The Book of
Order also specifies that for officers, there are limits to freedom
of conscience:
It is necessary
to the integrity and health of the church that the persons who serve
in it as officers shall adhere to the essentials of the Reformed
faith and polity as expressed in the Book of Confessions and the
Form of Government. So far as may be possible without serious departure
from these standards, without infringing on the rights and views
of others, and without obstructing the constitutional governance
of the church, freedom of conscience with respect to the interpretation
of Scripture is to be maintained.
It is to
be recognized, however, that in becoming a candidate or officer
of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) one chooses to exercise freedom
of conscience within certain bounds. His or her conscience is captive
to the Word of God as interpreted in the standards of the church
so long as he or she continues to seek or hold office in that body.
The decision as to whether a person has departed from essentials
of Reformed faith and polity is made initially by the individual
concerned but ultimately becomes the responsibility of the governing
body in which he or she serves.... (G-6.0108 a,b)
The Book of
Order’s constitutional questions for all officers reinforce
the understanding that officers must accept the essential tenets of
the Reformed faith as expressed in the Confessions: “Will you
fulfill your office in obedience to Jesus Christ, under the authority
of Scripture, and be continually guided by our confessions?,”
and
Do you sincerely
receive and adopt the essential tenets of the Reformed faith as
expressed in the confessions of our church as authentic and reliable
expositions of what Scripture leads us to believe and do, and will
you be instructed and led by those confessions as you lead the people
of God? [G-14.0207d,c, G-14.0405b(4),(3)].
IV. Application
of those understandings to our denomination’s situation
The recommendations from the Peace, Unity & Purity (PUP)
Task Force propose that each ordaining body would determine whether
each candidate for ordination and/or installation conforms to the
“essentials” of Reformed faith and polity.
The problem with
the recommendation is that it gives ordaining bodies unlimited freedom
to define as “essential” whatever the ordaining body considers
indispensable for ordained service. This would enable some ordaining
bodies to consider the “fidelity/chastity” requirement
to be “essential” while other ordaining bodies could consider
the “fidelity/chastity” requirement to be “non-essential.”
The recommendation
would allow ordaining bodies to “interpret” wording in
the Book of Order in a way that contradicts the plain meaning
of the words approved by the General Assembly and the majority of
presbyteries. For the General Assembly to use “authoritative
interpretation” to reverse the plain meaning of the words in
the Book of Order would be an egregious abuse of the General
Assembly’s powers of “authoritative interpretation”
and would have the effect of amending significant provisions of the
Book of Order without the approval of the majority of the
presbyteries.
In addition, the
PUP Task Force recommends that the General Assembly include in its
“authoritative interpretation” the concept that as long
as the ordaining/installing body conducted its examination “reasonably,
responsibly, prayerfully, and deliberately,” the whole church
should accept the ordaining/installing body’s decision regarding
the adherence of a candidate for ordination or installation to the
essentials of Reformed faith and polity. This is another example of
the recommendations asking the General Assembly to give an “authoritative
interpretation” that is in direct contradiction to the powers
and responsibilities the Book of Order assigns to higher governing
bodies to ensure adherence to constitutional standards.
The “authoritative
interpretation” recommended by the PUP Task Force—which
includes allowing ordaining/installing bodies to make “interpretations”
of ordination requirements that contradict the clear meaning of the
words in the Book of Order and instructing the other governing
bodies in the denomination to accept those interpretations—is
in direct opposition to the pastoral care and oversight functions
the Book of Order assigns to higher governing bodies.
It is necessary
for the integrity of the denomination that all governing bodies be
subject to the denomination’s constitution (Part I, the Book
of Confessions and Part II, the Book of Order). The
Book of Order provides that “judicial process is the
means by which church discipline is implemented within the context
of pastoral care and oversight . . .” (D-2.0100).
A “remedial
case” is the form of judicial process in which an irregularity
(“erroneous decision or action”) or a delinquency (“omission
or failure to act”) of a lower governing body may be corrected
by a higher governing body (D-2.0200). Appropriate use of judicial
process for oversight and correction is critical to the peace, unity,
and purity of the church:
Church discipline
is the church’s exercise of authority given by Christ, both
in the direction of guidance, control, and nurture of its members
and in the direction of constructive criticism of offenders. Thus,
the purpose of discipline is to honor God by making clear the significance
of membership in the body of Christ; to preserve the purity of the
church by nourishing the individual within the life of the believing
community; to correct or restrain wrongdoing in order to bring members
to repentance and restoration; to restore the unity of the church
by removing the causes of discord and division; and to secure the
just, speedy, and economical determination of proceeding....
The power that
Jesus Christ has vested in his Church, a power manifested in the exercise
of church discipline is one for building up the body of Christ, not
for destroying it, for redeeming, not for punishing. It should be
exercised as a dispensation of mercy and not of wrath so that the
great ends of the Church may be achieved, that all children of God
may be presented faultless in the day of Christ. (D-1.0101 - D-1.0102)
The Book of
Order does not allow “serious departure” of our officers
from our denomination’s standards (G-6.0108a) The “fidelity/chastity”
standard is not an obscure point of theology, but rather is a practical
aspect of daily life addressed unambiguously by the teaching of Scripture,
specifically discussed in our Confessions, and is a requirement which
our presbyteries have carefully examined and reaffirmed time after
time in recent years in voting on proposed amendments to the Book
of Order. The Book of Order clearly states that officers
may exercise their freedom of conscience only within the constitutional
limits.
For a General
Assembly to approve an “authoritative interpretation”
that has the effect of reversing the meaning of the Book of Order
would be an unconscionable abuse of power. Violation of provisions
explicitly contained in the Book of Order cannot be tolerated.
Over the past
30 years as our culture’s sexual mores have radically changed,
challenges to our denomination’s understanding of marriage and
sexuality have been unrelenting.
When presented
with each effort to redefine marriage and redefine what is moral sexual
expression, our presbyteries have consistently refused such changes
and have reaffirmed the biblical and confessional understanding.
Endnotes:
Scripture on the relationship between doctrine and sexual practice
1.
Gen. 2:24: “For this reason a man will leave his father
and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.”
Exod. 20:14: “You shall not commit adultery.”
Jude 3-8: “Dear friends, although I was very eager to write
to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge
you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the
saints. For certain men whose condemnation was written about long
ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who
change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny
Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. Though you already know
all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people
out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. And the
angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned
their own home—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting
chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and
Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality
and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment
of eternal fire. In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their
own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings.”
Hebr. 13:4: “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage
bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually
immoral.”
Rom. 13:12-14: “The night is nearly over; the day is almost
here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor
of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies
and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension
and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ,
and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.”
1Cor. 6:9-11: “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit
the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral
nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders
nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers
will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were.
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.”
1Cor.
6:18-20: “Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man
commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against
his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy
Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not
your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your
body.”
1Cor.
5:1-13: “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality
among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A
man has his father’s wife. And you are proud! Shouldn’t
you rather have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship
the man who did this? Even though I am not physically present, I am
with you in spirit. And I have already passed judgment on the one
who did this, just as if I were present. When you are assembled in
the name of our Lord Jesus and I am with you in spirit, and the power
of our Lord Jesus is present, hand this man over to Satan, so that
the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day
of the Lord. Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that
a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of
the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast—as you
really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore
let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice
and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity
and truth. I have written you in my letter not to associate with sexually
immoral people— not at all meaning the people of this world
who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that
case you would have to leave this world. But now I am writing you
that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother
but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard
or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat. What business is it
of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those
inside? God will judge those outside. Expel the wicked man from among
you.”
Gal.
5:16-24: “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify
the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what
is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the
sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do
not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not
under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality,
impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord,
jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and
envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before,
that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such
things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified
the sinful nature with its passions and desires.”
Eph.
5:1-10: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children
and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself
up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But among you
there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind
of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s
holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse
joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this
you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person —such a
man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ
and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of
such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.
Therefore do not be partners with them. For you were once darkness,
but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for
the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and
truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.”
Eph.
5:22-33: “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For
the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church,
his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to
Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave
himself up for her, to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing
with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant
church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and
blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as
their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all,
no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just
as Christ does the church—for we are members of his body. ‘For
this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to
his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound
mystery—I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each
one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife
must respect her husband.”
Col.
3:1-10: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set
your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand
of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For
you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ,
who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:
sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is
idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to
walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid
yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,
and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since
you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on
the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of
its Creator.”
1Thes.
4:1-8: “Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in
order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and
urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. For you know
what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should
avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control
his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate
lust like the heathen, who do not know God; and that in this matter
no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord
will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and
warned you. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy
life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man
but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.”
Hebr.
12:14-29: “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and
to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that
no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to
cause trouble and defile many. See that no one is sexually immoral,
or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance
rights as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to
inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change
of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears. You have not come
to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to
darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking
words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken
to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: “If
even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.” The
sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with
fear.” But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem,
the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands
of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose
names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all
men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator
of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better
word than the blood of Abel. See to it that you do not refuse him
who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned
them on earth, how much less will we, if we turnaway from him who
warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but
now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth
but also the heavens.” The words “once more” indicate
the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so
that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving
a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship
God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming
fire.”
Matt.
15:17-20:“Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth
goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that
come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
For out of the heart 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.’”
Mark
7:18-23: “‘Are you so dull?’ he asked. ‘Don’t
you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him
“unclean”? For it doesn’t go into his heart but
into his stomach, and then out of his body.’ (In saying this,
Jesus declared all foods “clean.”) He went on: ‘What
comes out of a man is what makes him “unclean.” For from
within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality,
theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander,
arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man
‘unclean.’”
Rev.
21:1-8: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first
heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer
any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of
heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling
of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people,
and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every
tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying
or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who
was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”
Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy
and true.” He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha
and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I
will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.
He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and
he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the
murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the
idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake
of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
Rev.
22:10-20: “Then he told me, ‘Do not seal up the words
of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who
does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be
vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who
is holy continue to be holy.’ ‘Behold, I am coming soon!
My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what
he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,
the Beginning and the End. Blessed are those who wash their robes,
that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through
the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice
magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and
everyone who loves and practices falsehood. I, Jesus, have sent my
angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and
the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star. The Spirit and
the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’
Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take
the free gift of the water of life. I warn everyone who hears the
words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them,
God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone
takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from
him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are
described in this book. He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes,
I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.”
2.
Lev. 18:22: “Do not lie with a man as one lies with
a woman; that is detestable.”
Lev.
20:13: “If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both
of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their
blood will be on their own heads.”
1Cor.
6:9-11: “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the
kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor
idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders
nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers
will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were.
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.
Rom.
1:26-27: “Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts.
Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In
the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and
were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts
with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their
perversion.”
Jude
7: “In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding
towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They
serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal
fire.”
Carol
Shanholtzer is an elder at Faith Presbyterian Church in Minnetonka,
MN
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