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Jump Start # 1369

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

         Jump Start # 1369

1 Corinthians 14:37 “If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment.” 

  Years ago, some old sage stated that the preacher ought to have a Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other. The idea behind that advice was to look at current and relevant issues with a Biblical approach. That old advice is still good today. We need to look at the modern world through the lens of the Bible.

 

One of the things that many folks are saying today, much without looking and investigating for themselves, is that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality. Nothing. Silence. By affirming this, the homosexual community implies that not only does the Bible not condemn homosexuality, but in fact, Jesus’ silence on this topic means that He was ok with it. A divine nod or thumb’s up is what they want the world to see. If God doesn’t have a problem with it, then no one else should. There are even preachers and churches who are standing behind this thought. Jesus never said anything about homosexuality. That’s the common thought today.

 

Our Jump Start today is going to take a look at that claim. Did Jesus say anything about homosexuality?

 

First, there are many things Jesus didn’t speak about. It is assumed that there is a green light to all behavior unless someone can show a “Thou shalt not.” If there is no specific red light, then it allowable. Further, how dare anyone else point a finger when the Bible didn’t. This thinking is flawed. We don’t do that in our own lives. Imagine going to a quick oil change place and you tell them that you want an oil change. After a long, long wait they report that your bill is over $500. You’d flip. Five hundred dollars for an oil change?! Then they reveal that they replaced your wiper blades, your head lights, drained your radiator and your transmission fluid. You’d loudly say, “I didn’t tell you to do that.” The worker, smiling would reply, “You didn’t tell us not to.” We understand that principle in life. You won’t find the Bible saying much about a man becoming a woman, like Bruce Jenner did. You won’t find much about crack, meth or heroin. The absence of specifics does not mean that God does not have an opinion nor does it grant a green light. In the list of the works of the flesh, Galatians five, Paul ends that section with, “those who practice such things.” Such things. His list wasn’t everything. There were similar things. Like things. Those too are wrong. Silence is not a green light.

 

Second, righteous living is defined by God and not us. God wants us to be holy. God wants us to be like Jesus. Homosexuality is never put in the righteous column in the Bible. It’s condemned in the O.T. as well as in the N.T. Places like Romans 1, calls it unnatural.

 

Third, Jesus actually DID say something about homosexuality. This surprises most folks. It is commonly thought that Jesus was quiet about this. He wasn’t.

 

In Matthew 19, in answering a question intended to trap Him about divorce, Jesus quotes Genesis and defines what a marriage is. “He who created them from the beginning made them male and female and said, ‘For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh.” There Jesus tells us what it was at the beginning. It was male and female. It was male and female that God joined in a marriage. When God saw Adam’s loneliness, He did not send him a buddy, a pet or another guy. He sent Eve. It was always Adam and Eve, and never Adam and Steve. Man and woman compliment each other physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. They are fit for one another.

 

In showing what a marriage is, we see what it is not. It’s not between two of the same sex.

 

Further, in 1 Corinthians 6, Paul lists several things are considered “unrighteous” and will not inherit the kingdom of God. Included in that list are sexual sins of: fornication (that includes homosexuality), adultery, homosexuality.

 

Some from the homosexual community will scream, “that ‘s Paul writing that, not Jesus. Jesus didn’t say it was wrong.” He didn’t? Look at our verse from the top of the page (1 Cor 14:37). What Paul wrote was the Lord’s commandments. The Lord did speak about this sin. The Lord was clear, plain and certain. Those words are the Lord’s words. Get it? God doesn’t approve of homosexuality.

 

This Corinthian passage also showed that the homosexual, as well as the drunk, the cheat, the trouble maker can and did change. Such were some of the Corinthians. They came to Christ and gave up those unrighteous things to follow the holy God of Heaven. Is it possible to change? Absolutely. Will it be hard? Probably. Can a person stay homosexual and please God? No. Nor can he stay a drunk, a cheat, or a trouble maker. He must put aside the old stuff and become Christ like in all things.

 

Instead of standing with God, the modern church has turned it’s back to God and has endorsed homosexuality by ordaining practicing homosexuals in the ministry. What a sham. What a disgrace. What a dishonor. And what happens is that those who stand with the Lord are accused of judging, bigotry and hatred.  This is so upside down and inside out. Things are so messed up today. Man is trying to re-write the Bible.

 

There is never a place and never a time to hate anyone. That includes the homosexual. The hope of the homosexual community, the same as those who leap from relationship to relationship, ignoring what God says about marriage, the same as for the addict, the same as for the gossip, the same as it is for all of us, is Jesus. He is the hope. He is the answer. Don’t change Jesus. Change yourself.

 

Jesus did speak about homosexuality? YES. He did not approve of it.

 

Roger

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Jump Start # 114

Posted on June 13, 2010 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 114

1 Corinthians 14:37 “If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment.”

  Someone once said, “Opinions are like noses—everyone’s got one and they think theirs is the best!” There is a difference between what God says and what my opinion is on a subject. My opinion may be based upon my experiences without seeing the whole picture. My opinion, frankly, could be wrong. We get in trouble when we fail to recognize the difference between our opinions and what God says.

  The apostle Paul, as well as the rest of the apostles, wore several different hats. First, he was a Christian. He was a gospel preacher. He was also a chosen apostle. We have to understand which hat Paul is wearing when we use him as an example. There are certain things only the apostles could do and no one else. Even though he was a Christian and a preacher, he was also uniquely chosen and gifted as an apostle. Jesus instructed the apostles, “…whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in Heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in Heaven” (Mt 16:19). Christ gave the apostles authority. Their words carried weight. Their words were the law of Heaven. To “bind” is to restrict or tie up. To “loose” is to release or allow. The apostles had the authority and right to make law. It was not their opinion or their way, but the way of God.

  The verse today is a part of that. Paul was writing the Corinthians about spiritual gifts. He was giving them instructions and rules about how to use them. He reminded them in this verse that what he was writing was God’s commandments. It wasn’t just Paul. It wasn’t just his opinion. To disobey what he said was to break the commandment of God.

  Preachers today do not carry that authority, although some think they do. Church do not carry that authority. So the words of Christ are not just the “red letters” in the Gospels, but the writings of the inspired men of God. The rest of the N.T. is just as much from Christ as if He spoke it. And in many ways He did, through the Holy Spirit to the apostles. The message was a revelation (Gal. 1:11-12) from Heaven, and not thought of by men.

  Understanding this is important. It affects how I view the Bible. It shows that all the N.T. needs to be followed and obeyed. It also shows that churches voting on matters or deciding what their “law” or “creed” will be is not of the N.T. It has already been decided. It was chosen by God and revealed to the apostles. There is nothing left to be settled or voted upon. As society changes, and more become tolerant of things God has declared wrong, the people of God already know where God stands. They know where the church stands. God has spoken. God has declared.

  This is comforting to know. God is not scratching His head trying to make up His mind on things, He has declared. We are to stand with God. The world can’t make sense of this. They view Christianity as intolerant and judgmental and narrow. But consider the source. The world doesn’t believe in God. The world worships itself and puts itself before all things. It never will make sense of the righteous.

   What does God want of you? The N.T. tells you. What does God expect? The N.T. tells you. What’s a church supposed to do? The N.T. shows you. How is one saved? Look in the N.T. What is a church to do with it’s money? The N.T. has the answer. What about marriage? What about divorce? What about raising kids? Go to the N.T. That is our plea. That is our call. Lay down the opinions of man. Walk away from the creeds and by-laws of the church. Follow the book from Heaven and nothing else. Be a Christian—in name, practice and faith. The N.T. will make only one thing, and that is a N.T. Christian.

Roger