Question:

I am a born-again Christian, having come to faith 10 years ago when I admitted to Christ I was a sinner, believed that Christ is God's Son and that He died for me and rose again, and choosing to live my life with Him as my Savior. I have a problem with your response to the homosexual question. You write that homosexuals do not go to heaven. If homosexuals do not go to heaven, then neither do boasters, adulterers, self-centered people, thieves, liars, or anyone for that matter.

You write that "So, you see, there is hope for anyone, homosexual, adulterer, drunkard, etc., to become one of God's family. But when a person does become a believer, the homosexuality ends." I'd like to examine the last of those two sentences...You say that when a person becomes a believer, the homosexuality ends. I would pose this question to you...When a prideful person becomes a believer, does his pride end? When a selfish person becomes a believer, does his selfishness end? When a liar becomes a believer do his lies end?

Answer:

Thanks for these thoughts. I do agree with you in one sense. However, I'm trying also to work with the biblical language. The Bible states that homosexuals do not go to heaven, in a variety of ways and passages. What that means is that a person who is a believer is really entirely different, including the way he thinks of himself. Many religious people have borrowed from the therapeutic view related to alcoholism that a person is merely a "recovering alcoholic" or in this case, a "recovering homosexual". This is not true for true Christians as far as the Bible is concerned. "Such were some of you" (1 Cor. 6:9-11), means that lifestyle is in the past and the old man has died. You are not a homosexual any more. You are a Christian. But you might be a Christian who still has some problem with remaining habits and sins. In fact, we all do. You are substantially different, as indicated by your behavior. The fact that the old you has died, however, is a necessary assertion, from Romans 6. And sin is an aberration and an infiltrator. You are not what you were, but your are new. And your behavior validates that if your salvation is real.

May God give you continued hope and help as you trust Him.

Jim