By Peter Larson
TE, Midwest Presbytery
During a recent meeting of Midwest Presbytery, a teaching elder stood up to speak against a proposed overture that would forbid the ordination of homosexuals who claim to be celibate. He argued that since many of us in the EPC are addicted to pornography, it would be wrong and hypocritical to deny ordination to those who struggle with same-sex attraction.
No one denied this statement. By our silence, we seemed to concede that it was true, or at least true enough to require no rebuttal. It was one of those moments when the words of Jesus (so often used in this debate), shame us into silence: “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone” (John 8:7).
No one is perfect. All of us are sinners. Who are we to judge? Why should we focus so narrowly on the sin of homosexuality while ignoring other sins? By condemning homosexuals, aren’t we being exactly like the man who saw the speck in his brother’s eye but not the log in his own?
By now, all of these arguments have become very familiar. Instead of dealing with the issue before us — the ordination of celibate homosexuals — they deflect blame back on their opponents, accusing them of being pharisees: harsh and hypocritical, eager to cast the first stone.
The real question, however, is whether we have given up on the gospel. If you have truly experienced the grace of God, it changes you. In Christ, we are no longer slaves of sin. In Christ, we are a new creation. In Christ, we have been washed clean and made new. In Christ, “God has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the Kingdom of the Son he loves” (Colossians 1:13).
At one time, we too were foolish, disobedient, and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior … (Titus 3:3-6)
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. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
These Scriptures speak of a new life, distinctly different from the old life. In fact, it is so different that Jesus spoke of dying to self and being reborn, what we call regeneration. If it is true that many of us in the EPC are hopelessly addicted to porn, it gives a lie to the gospel and denies the transforming power of Jesus Christ. If it is true that some people are born with homosexual desires and can never change, then the gospel is a hoax and a fraud; the best we can do is make peace with our sinful nature.
It is true that no one is perfect. In the words of Martin Luther, we are simul justis et pecator — at the same time justified and sinners. Our sanctification will only be complete when Christ returns to take us home. However, to argue that gross and heinous sin is normative and acceptable in the Christian life makes a lie of the gospel. The Christian story is the story of men and women who were violent, drunk, godless, wicked, sexually immoral, and demon-possessed — but they were transformed by the grace of God.
While it is true that we can expect too much sanctification in this life, the danger is we can expect too little. If we believe that change is impossible, and sin is inevitable, we are denying the power of Jesus Christ who cast out demons and made lepers clean. Do we truly believe in the amazing grace of God that changes sinners, or have we settled for something less than the gospel?
No one is perfect. When you surrender to this kind of logic, it becomes an excuse for unholiness and immorality. According to this logic, anyone who attempts to set a standard of holiness in the church is a hypocrite and a pharisee. It is a logic that normalizes sin and makes it permissible. This is not God’s standard at all but the standard of Satan.
Jesus died on the cross to save sinners. But the goal of our salvation is holiness: a life that is pure, God-honoring, and free from sin. The church is the bride of Christ and His purpose is, “… to make her holy, cleansing her by washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church without stain, wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless” (John 5:26-27).
When the church becomes lax, when we lower our moral standards and knowingly ordain men and women who are still enslaved by sinful lust and homosexual desire, the result is not surprising: you end up with a church that is ungodly, unholy, and impure. When we make allowances for sin, we are working against God’s purpose to create a radiant church without stain, wrinkle, or any other blemish.
Jesus said to the woman caught in the act of adultery, “Neither do I condemn you.” However, He also said to her, “Go and from now on sin no more.” Unfortunately, those who advocate the ordination of homosexuals have ignored this command. They quote Jesus’ word of grace while neglecting His clear command to live a changed and holy life.
As the church of Christ, we must speak both of these words: grace and truth, knowing that the gospel has the power to wash us clean and make us new. We must not, in the name of grace, allow sin and unholiness to creep into the church and its ordained leaders. As Jesus said to the Apostle Peter, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me” (John 13:8).
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