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The Gospel Observer
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the
nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you,
and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age"
(Matt. 28:19,20).
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June 19, 2016
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Contents:
1) Does Romans Call for the Death of Homosexuals? (Doy Moyer)
2) News & Notes
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-1-
Does Romans Call for the Death of Homosexuals?
Doy Moyer
Bad interpretations can have devastating consequences. This is
especially seen in the recent debates regarding the LGBT movement
and the push to get those who oppose the practices to bow to the
movement and, not just tolerate it, but affirm and condone it. A
good example of the "bad interpretation" problem is seen in an
article published on Roll Call. The headline says, "Homosexuals
'Worthy of Death' Bible Verse Read Before Key Note." Rep. George
Allen led a prayer by reading first from Romans 1:18-32. This, of
course, has been condemned as being "vile and dangerous remarks,"
and accuses Allen of spreading hate. The author writes, "Passages in
the verses refer to homosexuality and the penalty for homosexual
behavior." This was interpreted to mean that those present "heard a
Bible verse that calls for death for homosexuals."
This is not about the circumstances in which the prayer was made or
the political ramifications of what they were voting on, but rather
how a Bible verse interpreted so badly can do more damage in the
minds of the interpreters than can ever be warranted. The fault lies
not with Scripture, but with horrific interpretive lenses based on
political agendas rather than sound theology. We often make the
point that people can make the Bible say anything they want if they
are willing to twist things, and this is another case in point. Only
this time it is not to allow for a practice that is desirable, but
rather to try to show how a Bible passage spreads hatred by calling
for practicing homosexuals to die.
Interestingly (though not funny), the same people who now say that
this Bible reading calls for the death (i.e., execution) of
homosexuals would have also told Bible believers that the Bible
nowhere condemns homosexual behavior and should not be seen as a
barrier to the acceptance of the LGBT agenda. Which is it? The fact
that they react so strongly to Romans 1 shows that they know that
Scripture does not condone homosexual practice. Now they take this
another step by saying that the passage calls for their deaths. If
they can make this stick, then they will have sufficient political
warrant to ban Scripture altogether because it foments hatred and
violence against the LGBT community. Just watch.
Not so fast. A careful reading of the text, coupled with a careful
notation of the context of Romans, shows that the book does not in
any way "call for the death" of homosexuals. It does show that the
practice is sinful, so what does the whole "worthy of death" phrase
mean in verse 32?
First, whether this passage is referring to spiritual or physical
death is debated (I believe it is spiritual), but even if physical
death is under view, it is not a call for others to take such
action. That, in fact, goes against the whole message of Romans,
which prohibits any individual from taking personal vengeance or
harming anyone else (read chapters 12-13). It would simply be saying
that sinners are "worthy" of it without calling for violent action
against the practitioners. There is a difference, and the passage
cannot rightly be interpreted as some kind of overarching call to
kill anyone. In other words, it does not mean "kill those who do
this," and any interpretation that makes it say that is doing
extreme violence to the text. Let's pray that no believer would
actually take it that way. The point is that we all know that death
is a horrible consequence of sin.
Second, the point being made is not that certain people need to die.
Paul is setting up a bigger argument here, and the text cannot be
rightly interpreted in isolation. I wonder how many who are reading
this passage as a "call for death" have actually studied Romans as a
whole and seen the overarching context of Paul's argument. It is
unconscionable that anyone who has done this would ever come up with
the interpretive spin being put on this text for political purposes.
Third, please notice in the reading of Romans 1:18-32 that those who
engage in homosexual practices are not the only ones in the list:
"God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are
not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness,
greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are
gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful,
inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding,
untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful" (vv. 28-31).
If this is meant to be a "call for death" for homosexuals, then it
is also a "call for death" for everyone who has ever been
unrighteous, wicked, greedy, evil, envious, deceitful, malicious,
murderous, and full of strife. This includes gossips, slanderers,
the boastful, and the unmerciful. You get the point. Who among us is
not in that same list somewhere? If this is meant to say that
homosexuals ought to be executed, then it is meant to say that all
of us ought to be executed. And then, no one would be left. But the
truth stands: all of us are "worthy of death." Romans 1:32 uses the
legal term, "decree." If we are standing on trial, we know the
decree, and we know the penalty for violation. We are all guilty.
None are righteous (Rom. 3:10).
This brings us to the point that Paul is really making. Sin makes
everyone -- EVERYONE -- worthy of death. That includes me and you,
straight or gay, male or female, American or otherwise. "All have
sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23), and "the
wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23a). To crook our fingers only over
to homosexual behavior, then to act smugly like we don't fit into
that same passage, is to make the same grave mistake that many back
then made:
"Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment,
for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you
who judge practice the same things. And we know that the judgment of
God rightly falls upon those who practice such things. But do you
suppose this, O man, when you pass judgment on those who practice
such things and do the same yourself, that you will escape the
judgment of God?" (Rom. 2:1-3)
But if all of us are worthy of death, then why is Paul writing
Romans? Look, this is not a full exegesis of Romans, and I know all
too well that there are debates over the interpretation of the whole
book, but I hope we can all agree on this point. Paul wrote Romans
in order to show that, even though all of us are worthy of death
because of sin, God enacted another plan that changes the outcome of
this problem. Paul wasn't writing this in order to lay out the
penalty that all should have known (sin causes death), but was
writing in order to show the solution of grace. Legally, God can
condemn us, but that's not what He wants to do. Romans 1 is part of
the set up to show how everyone is guilty, but God wasn't willing to
leave it at that.
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being
justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in
Christ Jesus (Rom. 3:23-24).
"Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of
which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.
But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive
your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal
life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:21-23).
Paul speaks of death multiple times in Romans, but he does this in
order to demonstrate how God delivers sinners from death through His
grace. In other words, Romans is a textbook gospel message, and even
before he speaks of anyone being "worthy of death," he has already
proclaimed, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power
of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and
also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed
from faith to faith; as it is written, 'But the righteous man shall
live by faith'" (1:16-17).
In other words, we must not read any of the "worthy of death"
language without also seeing God's offer of grace, of which we are
not worthy. God is willing to exchange what we are worthy of (death)
for what we are not worthy of (grace, salvation). Thank the Lord for
this!
Yet none of that should be mistaken for thinking that we can
continue to do whatever we wish. The gospel is a message of
salvation, but it is also a message of repentance from that which
makes us all worthy of death. "Or do you think lightly of the riches
of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the
kindness of God leads you to repentance?" (Rom. 2:4)
If God's patience, kindness, and grace does not lead us to repent,
then we only have ourselves to blame for the outcome. We are all
guilty. We are all deserving of death. We are all sinners in need of
God's mercy. Paul's argument in Romans presents a beautiful picture
of the grace of God, into which, through faith, we may gain access.
"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained
our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we
exult in hope of the glory of God" (Rom. 5:1-2).
Please drop the horrible interpretations that foster only political
agendas and divisions. See the book for what it is: a mature
theology of God's grace for those who otherwise could only see death
because of sin. It's for all of us.
-- Via Doy Moyer's facebook site, June 18, 2016:
https://www.facebook.com/notes/doy-
moyer/does-romans-call-for-the-death-of-
homosexuals/10157042207435594
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-2-
News & Notes
Let us who are Christians be keeping the following in
prayer:
John A. Stockbridge, only 41, passed away June 11. We
extend our condolences to his wife Shawna, his sons John and
Jackson, and to all the relatives and friends. About a year
ago, he became a Christian and attended church faithfully in spite
of his illness that began a few years earlier. Let us be
remembering in prayer all his loved ones.
Brianna Mackey (Cheryl Corbitt's 11-day-old grandchild) has
been making some improvement from her meningitis: the bacterial
level is dropping; her lab-work looks great; her blood sugar level
is good; her eyes are wide open and observant; and her right side,
which was weak, is getting stronger. Things are looking much better
toward a complete recovery, and let us keep praying for
that.
Easton Cox was not able to have his chemo treatment on
Thursday, due to his ANC (blood count) being extremely low (232) and
at a high risk for infection. He will be returning to the
hospital Monday and will then receive chemo, if his ANC is at a good
level. He just has three more treatments to go, but they will
be stronger doses than what he has previously had, and stretched out
over the next eleven weeks. As also mentioned last week, he
continues to have pain from neuropathy, which causes him to be
restless at night and have trouble sleeping.
Kelli Fleeman was recently diagnosed with lymphoma
(cancer). She had major surgery to remove a growth and
returned home Thursday, but had to go to ER Friday night, due to two
bulging discs that were causing back pain and for which she was
readmitted and given an injection. (It was when she had first
gone to the ER previously on Memorial Day for that back pain that
her cancer was discovered -- so the pain was "a blessing in
disguise.") They are now waiting on the biopsy which will
determine the best treatment for her.
James "Buddy" Gornto was admitted to the hospital Friday
to remove fluid from around his heart, but will have to be
transferred today or Monday to a hospital in Atlanta, where he will
be receiving a valve replacement for his
heart.
Carole Drain has only one more chemo treatment to go, which
will be a couple weeks from now.
Marie Pennock has been having arthritis for at least 20
years; but it has become much worse these last couple weeks -- and
especially when walking on uneven ground, since the pain stems from
her knees.
Let us also keep in prayer for the Medlocks (James, Bennie, and
Penny), Shirley Davis (healing from foot
surgery), John Jordan (under the weather), James
Green (undergoing stressful difficulties), Mary
Vandevander (housebound, due to health), and Sue Wooten
(in the nursing home).
WordPress version of this week's bulletin:
https://thegospelobserver.wordpress.com/2016/06/20/the-gospel-observer-june-19-2016/
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The Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation
1) Hear the gospel, for that is how faith
comes (Rom. 10:17; John 20:30,31).
2) Believe in the deity of Christ (John
8:24; John 3:18).
3) Repent of sins (Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in Christ (Rom. 10:9,10;
Acts 8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water for the
remission of sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4;
Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet. 3:21).
6) Continue in the faith, living for the Lord;
for, if not, salvation can be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10;
2 Pet. 2:20-22).
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Tebeau Street
CHURCH OF CHRIST
1402 Tebeau Street, Waycross, GA 31501
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& 5 PM (worship)
Tuesday: 7 PM (Ladies' Bible class)
Wednesday: 7 PM (Bible class)
evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (912) 614-8593
Tom@ThomasTEdwards.com
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