Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Sexual Ethics”
Our Bible verse for today: “Then justice will inhabit the wilderness, and righteousness will dwell in the orchard. The result of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quiet confidence forever.” Isaiah 32:16-17 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Knowing what you believe and why you believe it gives you a quiet sense of confidence.”
I love the scene described in Isaiah 32:16-17. The prophet was painting a picture of the Messianic Kingdom. He was explaining that at that time righteousness and noble values will reign, and that will produce in God’s people a quiet sense of confidence.
You may remember from earlier in this series when I explained how impressed I was with the tone that was set at the ERLC conference on sexual ethics. Even though the subject was serious and difficult, the tone was friendly and kind, compassionate and even upbeat. One reason it was that way was because the conference leaders and attendees had a quiet sense of confidence. They had taken the time to prayerfully think through the issues and they did their homework so that they were thoroughly familiar with both sides of the issues. That then gave them a quiet sense of confidence. Because they were sure of what they believed and why they believed it, they were able to calmly and rationally discuss the issues without getting upset or defensive.
That is why I am writing this devotional series on sexual ethics. Far too many Christians do not have enough accurate information to enable them to feel confident in explaining their beliefs or discussing the difficult issues. That lack of confidence often leads people to feel insecure and defensive. That then leads to the use of overheated language and silly clichés like “God created Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve.” (Pardon me while I groan).
Please don’t say things like that. It only makes you look simple-minded and silly and it reflects poorly on the rest of us as well. Also, please don’t come across as hard-hearted, mean-spirited, or insensitive. Doing so won’t win any arguments. It will only further inflame the situation and it will actually drive people further away rather than drawing them near.
My goal in this series is to provide all of us with enough accurate information so that we will feel confident discussing the issues with those who may disagree with us. The starting place should always be compassion, kindness and love. Then move-on to some basic Biblical truths. Then be ready to give good answers to some of the more difficult questions, such as those we have discussed so far and which we will continue to explore as we go forward in this series.
Tomorrow we will think some more about the very real struggle of same-sex attraction and what a person can do about it.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 