Much in Common

10/20/14                L.C. and Emilio                             both in their 20's

In a week where the Vatican wrestled with questions of how to show God’s love to people with same-sex attraction without compromising God’s Word or God’s holiness, two of the people I reached out to with Gospel conversations turned out to be men who said they were gay and blamed their churches for rejecting them.  I talked to “L.C.” and Emilio in separate conversations. Both were appreciative that I as a Christian was reaching out to them, and both were very open to talking about their spiritual beliefs.  L.C. has suffered from depression after a year in which he was diagnosed with AIDS, lost two close family members, and lost his job and apartment as a result.  Yet he doesn’t blame God and believes his ability to stay positive about God is being tested.  Emilio, on the other hand, believes in reincarnation and sees himself as a victim in this life, but claims he had been royalty in a former life.  The difficulty with sharing the gospel with these two men is that they are fixated on their sexual identity as the only obstacle between themselves and God.  It is not.  They share the same sinful nature we all do, so I asked both if we could put the issue of homosexuality on the back burner for the time being.  “Outside of your sexuality, would you say you are a good person in God’s eyes?”  They both thought God would say they were.  I then used the same moral laws I use for everyone else to help them see their sin and their need for the forgiveness found in Jesus.  We share a common humanity and a common problem – our sin, which puts us in rebellion against God.  In one sense none of us are victims.  And we share a common solution to our problem – a right relationship to God through repentance and faith in Jesus.