So says Jason Johnson, the 20-year-old who was recently kicked out of The University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Kentucky for declaring on his MySpace account that he was gay. The school policy stated that “any student who engages in or promotes sexual behavior not consistent with Christian principles (including sex outside marriage and homosexuality) may be suspended or asked to withdraw.” Jason, however, is furious at the lack of “Christian love” and is looking to file a lawsuit against the school.
Ironic, isn’t it, considering I Corinthians 6 states in clear terms that one Christian shouldn’t file a lawsuit against another Christian. But I digress.
The response in the blogosphere has been predictable:
I’m not sure why no one gets this.
Love does not equal unconditional acceptance. If someone is claiming to be a Christian and follow Biblical teaching, then clearly violates Biblical commands, we “speak the truth in love”. God’s own forgiveness is predicated on a repentance (or turning) from sin.
Far too many people think that telling someone they’re wrong is unloving. Yet any parent worth their weight in gold knows that the best thing you can do for a child is to lovingly correct them. So it is here; in the schools view, someone claiming to be a Christian has done something that God has termed an “abomination”.
Certainly, God loves Jason, just like God loves a pedophile and God loves you and I and wants to see us repent of our sins. But Psalms makes it clear: “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” We can sever our relationship by holding on to something that’s wrong.
I think Jason is wrong in the way someone who is cheating on their wife is wrong. They are both sins and as such are both just as wrong as a President who lies and a web designer who indulges in pride.
The HUGE difference in this case is that if I’m proud, I’m not asking anyone to accept my pride. I’m guilty, it’s wrong and I need to give up that pride. And a lying President needs to ‘fess up. If someone DOES confess a sin as wrong and acknowledges the fact that it’s a sin, that’s a whole different ballgame. But when a homosexual asks me to embrace them in their homosexuality, I can no more accept a theif’s burglary. I may love that person and want to see them give up that wrong, but I cannot call their wrong a right.
Now, you may not think that sodomy is wrong, but that’s a whole ‘nother discussion. Let’s just be reasonable and stop thinking Christians are idiots for taking a stand on something they believe in.
