Court Decision

Last Friday, the Supreme Court overturned the states rights to determine same sex marriage laws. If you've followed along, I have a lot to say about and not what you'd really expect from a conservative Christian with a strong faith in the bible.

I feel like this decision is something I want to pick apart a little.

To start, I have a huge problem with this decision. Not the problems my Christian counterparts have, but should. By making this decision, the high court is unequivocally telling voters that their votes and opinions do no matter. They don't count. States have voted. Some have approved gay marriage and others have not. That's sets a dangerous standard for our states, government and people.

Beyond that, I'm ok with the law and here is why.

I've covered this before, but a reminder. I have friends and family who are gay. I love them. I want them to live their lives with the same protections and expectations of the law as I do. I believe when two people live a life together, they deserve to have protected assets and be able to have legal abilities to make decisions. They need to know that their lifelong commitments to each other are protected if something happens to the other.

Do I think being gay is ok? Well, I struggle with that biblically. The bible is fairly clear that sin is sin. If being gay is sinful, how is that any different than me telling my husband a lie or keeping the extra dollar the store clerk gives me? You might think that my sins are far less, but they aren't. In fact, my sins have much more weight.

I'm a Christian. My sin is weighted against God and has implications on my Christian walk. A person sinning who is not in a relationship with God, well it's sin but they have not expectation for repentance and forgiveness. They've not made a decision for Christ and their standard of life is different. I am held to a higher standard.

Gay marriage laws have no bearing on my marriage. The laws don't redefine my marriage and they don't change my marriage. My marriage is defined by the bible, not by a law.

Now let me touch on the responses of both sides.

Don't get me wrong, there have been loving responses from both sides.

I've seen hateful from both sides.

Gay people, you seem to want to cram this down every bodies throats. Some, not all, seem to think that raising hell is somehow going to make this transition easier. It's not. You're expressing hate to the same people you are pissed that hate you. Hate and hate isn't going to fix anything. As for the gay pride parades, enough! If you want to be recognized as everyday citizens with equality, then it's time to stop setting yourselves apart. Heterosexuals don't thrown big parades and you should seriously stop.

The most disappointing response have come from my fellow Christians. I have seen hate spewed. Hate! Jesus didn't spend his time on earth working a ministry of hate. He was here because God loves the world. This decision isn't comparable to a Christian hollacaust. Christians aren't and won't die because of gay marriage. If Christians disagree with the direction of government, then they need to band together even tighter to be heard. But even that's hard. Some of the most outspoken Christians are filled with hate and it's hard to get on board with that.

Ultimately, Christians need to stop being self righteous within the debate over gay marriage. It's a heart and sin issue. Their hearts have not been convicted that their love is wrong. We have to admit that even churches struggle from one to another over whether homosexuality is sin. I'm often not aware of my sin until the Holy Spirit convicts me. How can we expect their lives to work any differently and why would we ever think they would respond to hatred over their sin? We have to be careful that we don't forget that we are all ALL sinners. The only difference is that their lives and sin have been in the spotlight.

There is an appropriate response that we, Christians, are called to loud and clear in the bible. God sent his son for everyone. We are to speak truth in love to everyone, not hate. We are called to love one another, our enemies and those who oppose us. Judgement is not ours. Judgement day lies firmly in the hands of God. We need to be concerned with our own sin and our own thorn in the flesh. None of us is holy and righteous enough to take on another persons sin without invitation or love. We are commanded to share truth, but we cannot force Jesus on anyone. Lastly, we pray. God is in control, but we can ask for guidance and softened hearts toward those who oppose Christianity.

There's so much more than can be said. It's obvious that I still struggle with parts of this and can only approach with the heart God has given me.