Theological disagreement in the Body of Christ matters. It presents the perfect opportunity to actually live in the way of the resurrected Jesus. Unfortunately, that isn’t what usually happens.
There is a vein of Christianity in which monitoring fellow siblings in Christ for right belief seems to be given utmost priority. Ironically, it is not uncommon to encounter assumptions, rudeness, sarcasm, harsh language, and outright accusation towards those deemed to be in error. In today’s context of far-reaching social communication, such responses flood the public square, regardless of whether there is personal relationship between the one assumed to be in error or not. And surely, the public square is an appropriate place to consider ideas, to raise questions, offer counter arguments or insights, cite those with years of experience, training, and wisdom, and articulate the significance of pursuing the truest understanding of God’s heart. It is, however, the erasure of boundary between robust examination of ideas and positions and the interpersonal sparring and wounding that I wish to address.
In my arena of ministry, I will not see uniformity of theological perspective in my lifetime. I could be wrong – but I feel fairly confident in making this assertion. For the rest of my natural life, there will be followers of Jesus seeking to honour the Scriptures who either believe sexual intimacy within the covenant of same-sex marriage to be sinful or not sinful. Given this reality, I have focused my energies in my work with the Body of Christ on this question, “How now shall we live together with this difference?” And while I inevitably have come to my own sense of conviction on the matter after many prayerful years of listening, study, and reflection, I think it is more important to encourage the church to learn ways of navigating these differences in a manner that respects the other than it is to try to convince people to see, think, belief and act in the manner that I have come to believe is most consistent with God’s heart. As an aside, it seems to be VERY hard for some people to grasp this idea. The unity of the church, which Jesus ties directly to our public witness, is more important to me than everyone believing just like I do. Why? Well, I don’t have a perfect pipeline to God – and even though I believe I have been diligent and submitted to the Spirit in my process of discernment – I know that, despite my best efforts, I could be wrong. The Body of Christ doesn’t need me telling them what they should believe – the Body of Christ will be best served by being encouraged to mature in the fruits of the Spirit in their interactions with one another across difference.
This is not to say that there ought not be any teachers or instructors in the Body to help us understand the text and grow in the capacity to discern rightly. But there is a reason that the Scriptures remind us to not to presume to be teachers, because teachers will be judged more strictly. (James 3:1)
So rather than telling people what they should believe, I have tried to focus on cultivating environments in which people can grow in their relationship with Christ, grow in their capacity for spiritual discernment, and grow in loving others in mature and self-emptying ways. If the church focused more on these things, and less on having the clear, certain, and perfect answer to every complex reality in the human experience, it is my contention that we would experience deeper partnership with God in seeing shalom burst out in the dark and broken places of our world.
I believe we are free to have this focus because of absolute faith in the victory Christ has won through living, dying, and rising. The power of sin, evil, and death has been broken!
In my increasing Anabaptist, pacifist leanings, I’m somewhat loathe to use a war metaphor, but here goes. The cross of Christ means the war is over. Post-war, one can spend their time meticulously going through the war zone to make sure the enemy is dead, shooting every suspected one until there is absolutely no breath left, and monitoring everyone to ensure that no one ever considers the enemy position again. Or, one can be immersed in the clean-up and the re-building. Planting trees and flowers. Beating weapons into farming tools. Supporting families finding new homes. Removing the barriers that prevent flourishing. As for me, I want to plant tulips. (and no, not the acronym kind)
I have to wonder, if in the intense passionate hunt for anyone who might remotely be an enemy, inadvertently some shalom-cultivating, but perceived to be too progressive, souls get shot down and even killed. And what is so tragic about this to me, is that it feels like some forget that the war is already over! The enemy cannot ultimately win. And in this strange time between the victory and the full consummation, we have this radical teaching from Jesus of Nazareth that we are to love our enemies – and so many of us seem to simply refuse to actually do it! Jesus went out of his way, on several occasions, to honour Samaritans. These were the heterodox folks of his day, the ones in theological error, the ones who if given an inch would infect the pure with heresy. Yet Jesus lifted them up as merciful neigbours, as evangelists, as the ones who showed gratitude and reverence. It’s no wonder that Jesus pissed off the religious teachers of his day!!
Sin matters. It matters because it gets in the way – it prevents us from fully knowing that we are reconciled to God through Christ and the Beloved called to participate with God in cultivating the shalom that has always and completely been God’s heart for the whole creation. Sin CANNOT undo the reconciliation that has already been secured through Christ. To suggest otherwise is to say that our sin is stronger than Christ’s resurrection.
Theological error matters. It matters because it gets in the way – bad theology can prevent people from knowing who they truly are in Christ. Bad theology can distract, cause people to focus on the wrong things. Bad theology can profoundly wound people. But bad theology is not stronger than Christ’s resurrection.
So what I know for sure, is that if I can encourage people to live like they are people of the resurrection, then together we will be closer to the mysterious truth of being the Beloved, made right with God through Christ. People of the resurrection believe and live like dead things can come to life. Errors can be made right. Sin is forgiven. Enemies can be loved. And evil and death will NOT have the last word.
So please, for Jesus’ sake, relinquish your pious certainty – and humbly cling to the resurrection. Give up your sarcastic dismissal of the other – and treat one another like the precious ones for whom Jesus died. Wish for others all the blessings and joys that you long for yourself and your loved ones. See one another through God’s eyes of love first and foremost, it will help us remember to expect the best, not the worst, of each other.
And if you believe you must, as called by God, address someone else’s problematic theology, for the love of God do so with humility, with love for the other, and infused with the vision of shalom. The way you speak of a sibling in Christ just might make the difference between an observer considering if people of the resurrection actually embody good news or not.
One of your best posts ever. Thank you Wendy for leading us in a new (old) way.
Dear Wendy,
A Muslim thinks that God has no Son; I know He does. In the spirit of shalom, should I minimize our differences?
I suspect you would say no. And I suspect the reason you would say no is because you recognize that this theological difference has serious ramifications. If we don’t recognize Jesus as Lord, then how can we have forgiveness of our sins by his sacrifice?
In your article you note there are two sides in the debate about sexuality, but you don’t understand where the real division lies. You portray it as two sides who happen to differ on whether same-sex marriage is sinful, and you pitch as a third alternative the idea that ultimately it doesn’t really matter.
But the two sides in this debate are actually between those who do think it matters, and those who don’t. The debate is between those like you, who think this just a minor disagreement, and on the other side those who think that homosexual acts are sinful and, like any sin, are a path that takes us from God and, unchecked, to Hell.
That’s the real debate: Is this consequential? If it isn’t, then of course we should all be accommodating to one another. We should not make big things out of little things.
But you are asking the other side – those who know that indulging in homosexuality is rebellion against God – to just stay silent about what we know.
Does that sound right to you? Or does that sound like crying peace where there is no peace (Jer. 6:14)? We can have peace with our Muslim neighbors, too, by minimizing our theological differences. But if we love them, can we really stay silent?
You note that Jesus treated the Samaritans with grace. He did indeed. But he also called his followers to repentance (Matt. 4:17; Mark 1:15; Luke 13:3; John 8:11,34-37). Jesus wasn’t just full of grace, but also truth (John 1:14), so those who know homosexuality to be a sin, and know that indulging in sin matters, can not stay silent about this truth in an effort to be full of grace. Those two must never be divorced from one another.
What we can do is try to deliver this truth inclusively, acknowledging that we are in every bit the same need of God’s forgiveness as the sinning homosexual. That is how grace can be paired with truth. But simply staying silent about what we know isn’t something we should be encouraging Christians to do.
Yours, in His service,
Jon
Hello Jon,
You’ll notice at the beginning of my post that I am referring to theological disagreement within the Body of Christ. Therefore, the question of acknowledging Jesus as the Son of God is part of the shared foundation between the two who are disagreeing (in the context of my post).
If I am hearing you correctly, you believe that same-sex sexual acts are sinful and “like any sin, are a path that takes us from God and, unchecked, to Hell.” Your interpretation of my perspective is that I view this as a “minor disagreement – that ultimately doesn’t matter.” You indicate that you think this debate is consequential but I do not.
It seems to me that what differentiates us is not the degree to which sin, in this case your certainty that same-sex sexual acts are rebellious sin against God, is consequential but the cross and resurrection’s dealing with sin. You indicate that same-sex sexual activity is like any sin – and that sin takes us from God and, unchecked, to Hell. This is the crux of our difference. I don’t believe that it is our sin that takes us from God and, unchecked, to Hell. I believe that it is our receptivity or lack of receptivity to live in the reality that the cross and the resurrection has ALREADY reconciled us to God. In other words, belief or unbelief is the crux of the matter for me. At the cross, all sin – past, present, and future in our understanding of time – has been accounted for and forgiven. God does not need our confession to forgive us. We need confession to reconnect us to the reality of God’s forgiveness. The tragedy of sin is that it prevents us from living in the reality that is already true – we are joined with Christ, adopted heirs, made right with the Father, and called to participate in God’s kingdom right now as we join the work of setting things right. The tragedy of sin is that it can so blind us that we never acknowledge our need of a Saviour.
LGBTQ+ Christians who know and love Jesus Christ, who eagerly receive the free gift of atonement through the cross and resurrection, cannot be separated from the love of God that is theirs in Christ Jesus. If after prayerfully agonizing over the text and being still and submitted before the Spirit of God, they discern that the interpretive perspectives that would make room for God’s grace in their covenant of marriage with their same-sex partner are true and they go ahead with their marriage …… but is actually in error …. and that marrying their same-sex partner and consummating that sexually is sinful ….. that sin has been dealt with at the cross. This was not willful rebellion, it was not merely twisting Scripture to make it say what they wanted it to say – this was two same-sex orientated Christians seeking to work out their salvation with fear and trembling as they trusted that God would work within them to will and to act according to his good purpose. (Phil. 2:12-13) I even know of one same-sex couple who literally prayed the night before their wedding for God to kill them in their sleep if they had discerned wrongly – so committed were they to following God’s will and not wanting to sin against God. They determined that if they woke the next morning, they would make their covenant before God. (in Scripture, God honors the request for a sign)
Scripture reminds us that if our conscience tells us something is sin – and we do it anyway, we have sinned. But if our conscience is clear, then we should act in accordance with our conscience. Paul says, “I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.” (Rom. 14: 14)
You have indicated that you “know that indulging in homosexuality is rebellion against God.” If I were to ask how you know this, my guess would be that you would cite Romans 1 and perhaps the Levitical texts and the vice lists from Corinthians and Timothy as well. Based on your interpretation of Romans 1, it seems you have come to that clear conclusion. I can honour that and I would absolutely trust that your intentions are primarily to be faithful and obedient to God’s Word in Scripture. My point is that every single reading of Scripture is interpretive. Every single reader of Scripture sees through a glass dimly to some extent, no matter how many PhD’s might be behind their name. And in these matters, there are people who are deeply committed to Christ and to the Scriptures with multiple PhD’s in Biblical Studies behind their names who come to opposite conclusions on whether or not covenanted same-sex relationships are sinful. It would seem that some of those good folks, despite their best intentions to be faithful and obedient to the Scriptures are in error – and because of those errors there will be people who either discern that something that is sinful is NOT sinful – or that something that is not sinful IS sinful. Thanks be to God, all of this has already been addressed at the cross. When God looks at those who put their faith in Jesus Christ as the one who has made the way for them to be made right with God, God sees Christ. God doesn’t see our theological failings, our interpretive errors, our numb conscience, our selfish hearts…. and I could go on. What God sees is the righteousness of Christ – praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ! Does this seem too good to be true? Does it seem too easy? I think that is the biggest lie – and the pride of our own hearts – that prevents us from receiving this as the truth – despite it being spelled out for us in Scripture! (1 Cor. 1:30 as just one powerful example)
How dare we say something is not sinful when Scripture says it is sinful? Greed is sinful – scripture is pretty clear. But how do we discern what is greedy when we live in one of wealthiest nations in the world? Is having more than one pair of shoes greedy? Is purchasing a car that has better features even though it costs more greedy? What if we don’t discern what is greedy rightly? Will it take us away from God and unchecked, to Hell? (I could offer many different examples here).
My point is not to convince you to believe differently than you do. My point is to challenge your assumption that you and those who believe like you are the only ones who know the truth, the only ones who are discerning, the only ones who know how to interpret rightly, and the only ones who are safe from Hell. To be very honest, such certainty smacks of arrogance and pride to me (even if that isn’t your intention) and Scripture has a lot to say about the sin of pride. The difference between you and me is that it would seem that you believe that this sin of pride is a path that will take you away from God and if unchecked, to Hell. I believe that the sin of pride, including the inadvertent pride that pervades the human experience, has already been addressed, forgiven, and its power broken at the cross and through the resurrection.
“What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?” (Rom. 6:1) By no means! answers Paul. When we receive the outrageous news of grace, we die to sin. When we truly believe and live like people of the resurrection, those joined with Christ, those confident in being reconciled to God and knowing that absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God – we don’t run to sin – we rest in Christ. Jesus said, “But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matt. 9:13) and again, “If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.” (Matt. 12:17)
The LGBTQ+ Christians that I know who have entered the covenant of marriage with their same-sex partner have thrown themselves on the mercy of God. I believe, that even if they are in error, their lives are hid with Christ in God. You may not believe this – and I will not try to convince you otherwise. I will simply ask you to humble yourself enough to acknowledge that Christ may indeed make room for such in the Body of Christ. If you will not, that, I believe is consequential for a true representation of the gospel.