Finding a Way Forward: Cara Nicklas

[@Apriluser]

Thank you for this post. Unity is a “social construct”. Christ didn’t die for the UMC but for the Church. If unity were the ultimate goal, then ALL denominations should be unified. Even Paul and Barnabas went separate ways but the Church continued to flourish! Lord, have mercy.

[@danielgarza6561]

Thank you for posting this.

[@chrishull4199]

Whatever the Bible says should be our stance period!!!

[@mortonj91]

agreed, so, take off that sweatshirt made of multiple fibers! and stone the non virgins! and divorcees!

[@defan2105]

First question: What does the Bible say about marriage? What does it say about homosexuality? In all the talks, speeches, the Bible is hardly talked about, amazing. We are one in the blood of Jesus and the teachings and word of the Bible. That is what will keep us together, not supporting sin. I don't say it is sin, God does and I follow Him.

[@defan2105]

@@mortonj91 First homosexuality is referenced in both the old and new testament. We are not asking a "church" to eat pork, we are not telling them they have to eat pork or they are not "Inclusive" but same sex marriage is asking the whole church (more like telling them) they have to get on board and help commit a sin. If you believe the Bible, the study it and know that homosexuality is not God's plan for marriage. If you want to debate pork, seman, or slavery, then do your research but don't drop them all into this debate. They have been settled for 2,000+ years. Billy Graham, Greg Lauri, Robert Jeffress, and thousands of other Bible scholars can explain that better than a simple believer than I, but that debate is tired and old. If they want to have a civil union, that is their choice. If I want to belong to a church that believes in the Bible as God's inspired word and want to follow Him, that is mine. Don't confuse the two. I guess you believe a adult man should be able to join the girl scouts too? What if a person is born with the urge to rob a bank, is that ok? We are all guilty of desiring and sinning but it is the conscience choices we have to make after we are saved that are important. You can choose to not act on your "natural" desires. I do not think you can put people in a box and say "if you are not for homosexual marriage then you hate them", that is another tired argument. I have known many people in the gay community and I only have one rule, I won't try to make them straight if they don't try to make me gay. I also won't beat them over the head with the Bible but if they ask me my view on marriage, I will share it. Please watch this video. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnXJgayriJmfn7c . As for pork, here is one of thousands of talks on it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fqGnoqKGmqimaMU

[@defan2105]

@@mortonj91 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination. (Leviticus 18:22) If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. (Leviticus 20:13) It's not what I want for others, it is what God wants for us. It is sad when a person gets, lets say cancer, and they have to use chemotherapy. It goes against their nature to have body treated like that, but it can change you for the better if it works. What if they had a drug, made you go through a time of complete physical and/or mental heck, but it had a 100% cure rate if applied properly and the patient did every required at their end...would you be interested? That is what a person can experience with accepting God's way and repenting of their sin. We are all sinners but I just ask one thing, don't ask me or the church to go against the Bible and support one. God gave us free will and if you have an urge to lie, steal, commit adultery, a pedifile, so on, you are just as guilty as any of the sins. We, as a church, shouldn't tell a man's wife, that he was with us so he can get away with having an affair so why should it support homosexual marriage? Should we buy alcohol for the drinker? Let the pedifile teach the children's Bible study? There is a great book "Your God is too Small" and it explains that people think on human terms about God's awesome powers. Don't underestimate what He can do and if you follow His plan, yes the devil will mess with you, but don't leave because you can't drink at church, you can't cheat at church, and you can't get married at church...Listen to His words carefully in the context they were written and the time they were written. He has a plan for each of us, I believe He has a wonderful plan for you too. I trust in Him. Blessings. (thank you for being civil, you sound like a nice person to me)

[@defan2105]

@@mortonj91 In Romans 1:26-27, Paul said, “For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.” The Bible says homosexuality is against God’s natural law with severe consequences. You can be forgiven of homosexuality. You can be forgiven of any sin. But to be forgiven of a sin, you must admit you have sinned. The Bible prohibits homosexual behavior. The New Testament also prohibits homosexual marriage. Jesus talked about this in Matthew 19. The Pharisees said, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?” (v. 3). Jesus answered, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate” (vv. 4-6). Jesus was saying, “If you want to know the answer to the divorce question, then let’s look at God’s original plan for marriage. Genesis says marriage is one man with one woman for a lifetime.” By affirming God’s standard, Jesus was saying that any deviation from that standard-not just gay marriage but any deviation, such as adultery, premarital sex, or unbiblical divorce-is sin because it doesn’t measure up to the perfect standard of God. Jesus said marriage is one man with one woman for a lifetime.

[@chrispatterson8210]

@@mortonj91 Point 1: Jesus did define marriage in Matt 19:4-5. Point 2: In fact, if you believe in the Trinity and believe the Bible is the inspired word of God, then you must believe whatever is written in the Bible was inspired by Jesus. We aren't relegated to only the Gospels to under the mind of Christ. Point 3: Jesus said he came to fulfill the law, not abolish it.

[@chrispatterson8210]

@@mortonj91 - We can have any debate you like so long as you can rise above the name calling and typical rhetoric used when you realize you've run into a buzz saw. To call someone a bigot or a hater when you've never met them much less know anything about them is great indication of how that debate would go.

[@brendabaker8597]

Thank you. I am in agreement with you. Stick to what the Bible instructs.

[@mortonj91]

You're fed a shit ton of lies from the pulpet, i have no doubt.