The souls of men and women are at stake. Certainly we must meet sinners with kindness and compassion. We must remember that we are saved sinners whose only hope is the mercy of a sovereign and gracious God. Thankfully I see a great deal of kindness in the church. But I do not understand how being silent or even unclear about a sin that the Bible holds forth as particularly damaging could be construed as kind or loving. 

 
Recently Pastor Scott Sauls of Christ Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Nashville posted an open letter of sorts to his fellow Christians. In it he expresses sorrow over a column by the New York Times’ Frank Bruni which predicts a coming collision between Christians and homosexuals. Of course, the collision is already taking place. It is Bruni’s conviction that the Bible’s prohibition against homosexual sex is bigotry and that Christians must be made to abandon what the Bible teaches about sexual ethics. In his article Bruni quotes Matthew Vines as a reliable source on Biblical exegesis, something Mr. Vines certainly is not. The point is that Frank Bruni is not out to discover the truth. He is committed to calling Christians to abandon whole portions of the Bible and identifying as bigots all those who do not. I do not think Mr. Bruni would blush at such a description.

I have never met Scott Sauls. But he is my brother in Christ and a fellow pastor in the PCA. I have no reason to doubt that he is anything but a decent man who loves Jesus. What is more, there are things in Scott’s post with which I’m sure all Christians can agree. But I am troubled by its vagaries and what I believe are a series of false choices. In this time when we are in the midst of massive social change regarding sexual ethics, marriage, and human identity we owe the world clarity about what the Scriptures teach. Additionally, those of us who are pastors owe the church something far more robust than vague or sentimental notions of what it means to love sinners.

The following are a few thoughts that came to mind as I read Scott’s post.

1. I see more love.  
Perhaps Pastor Sauls and I serve in very different places but he seems to see much more hate within the church than do I. As far as I know my heart I am not being unduly cheery. In fact, optimism is not something I am known for. But I am grateful for the fact that the church I serve welcomes all sinners (including me!). In fact I know men and women who struggle with same sex attraction who have been received graciously and called to holiness within our fellowship.

Scott admonishes Christians to cease calling down fire from heaven upon homosexuals. While I certainly do not deny that there are Christians who harbor hatred in their hearts toward sinners of various stripes I think the example of Christians pleading for the death of homosexuals is quite small. I grew up in a very conservative Southern Baptist church but never once heard the sorts of things that Scott seems to be attributing to those rascally “fundamentalists”.

Scott’s examples of such behavior are the hapless Pat Robertson and the strange little Baptist cult in Topeka, KS once led by the late Fred Phelps. This tiny group (made up mostly of Phelps family members) tends to make headlines for their grotesque and universally condemned behavior. For Scott to call Christians to apologize for the behavior of the Phelps cult seems akin to asking responsible surgeons to apologize for the behavior of a witch doctor. It simply does not mean anything.

2. It is our doctrine, not our style which is the problem. 
The real problem the activist core driving the homosexual agenda has with the church is not its style of communication but its doctrine. It won’t matter how many times we say, “We love you,” so long as we refuse to obliterate the Scripture’s prohibition against homosexual sex. We must continue to declare and demonstrate our love for all people including homosexuals. However, let us not be so naïve as to believe that by doing so we will quell the violence in the hearts of those who demand we celebrate their sin.

It is interesting that Scott begins his post by referencing Frank Bruni’s article wherein the New York Times columnist states that Christians must be made to abandon their belief that homosexuality is a sin. Mere tolerance is not and never has been the desire of unrepentant sinners. Only whole-hearted approval will satisfy. And that is the one thing Christians cannot accommodate. Our doctrine is the problem.

3. Let us not accept the world’s redefinition of human identity.
I could certainly be wrong but Pastor Sauls seems to accept “LGBT” as a category of personal identity. I am NOT saying he approves of homosexual behavior. The last thing I read from Pastor Sauls on the topic made it clear that he upholds the biblical prohibition on homosexual acts. That is a good thing. However, I am concerned that the church has ceded too much ground to the world in regard to personhood.

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