We Are ALL Sinners

It was a news headline last night at AOL.com -- about the church that cancelled the memorial service. I didn't take the time when I first saw it to click on the link to find out what it was about. My husband, Peter, found it on MSN.com this morning and is now in his office in the basement making posts to the "let us know what you think" link. If you haven't seen the story, here it is:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20221295/

And if you would like to know more about the pastor or the church that did this, here is the link to their website that I found through dogpile.com:

www.churchunusual.com


I could write tons and tons about this. In fact, I am writing tons and tons about it. It touches close to me. Not because it involves the issue of homosexuality but because it touches the whole foundation of Christianity: God's Grace.

One day I will get all my thoughts on paper and get them into some semblance of reasonable order, then send it off and hopefully find a publisher. In the meantime, I'll post a little bit of it here.

I looked around the church's website and found a number of flags that would keep me from attending there if I lived in the Arlington area. And found a couple things that disturb me about this place.

1. They claim they have an "accepting atmosphere."
2. They want the congregation to tithe.
3. They focus on the "life-changing" message of the gospel.
4. And only through obedience do miracles occur.

But, that is not the topic of discussion here. I may return to some of those in future posts, though.

You see, the claim that the reason the memorial service was cancelled was that to do it would mean they condoned the deceased lifestyle, is saying "Uh, he was a sinner. We can't condone that."

Last time I checked, the unforgivable sin was not homosexuality, abortion, gambling, Internet pornography, divorce, or teen sex.

It is exchanging the free gift of grace for the burden of Law; exchanging the garments of grace for the rags of being a "good Christian."

This Sunday morning, how many pastors are in their pulpits supporting this pastor's decision to cancel the memorial service? How many are ignoring it? And how many are deploring it? Last, how many are just acknowledging the fact that we are all sinners?

Oh, homosexuality is so dangerous because there is this "homosexual agenda." Okay. What about the "gossip's agenda," the "envy agenda," the "greed agenda," etc.? Our culture and economy revolve around Greed and Envy. Madison Avenue relies on our sense of envy. Wall Street is fueled by greed. And TV news is more about celebrity gossip than real hard news facts.

Everyone is a sinner. No one is perfect.

I remember hearing that there are 365 "thou shalt not" laws in the Old Testament. I don't remember how many "thou shalt" ones there are. So, there is no way we could keep every Law and be "perfect" under that system! I mean, right now, I am guilty of at least one of the "thou shalt not" laws: you will not wear cloth that is woven of more than one type of fiber. I happen to be wearing a tank top that is a cotton-polyester blend. Oh no! And by doing so, I am now a "sinner" because I have broken a Law.

Therefore, the church that would deny a memorial service to someone who was a homosexual, better also deny it to anyone who is buried in clothing of mixed fibers; should deny such a service to anyone who ever envied his neighbor or coveted his neighbor's car or greener grass; should deny a service for anyone who worked on a Sunday or Saturday (depending on your definition of "Sabbath"); should deny a service to anyone who ever ate pork or shellfish or pizza with both cheese and a meat on it.

Get real!

I have broken one Law, so far today, and I am now guilty of the entire Law. I now face the penalty of breaking the Law: eternal separation from God. However, I am forgiven. I am under grace. And while grace is not a license to sin, it also does not require complete obedience to the Law. In fact, if I choose to "keep a Law," I am choosing to live under Law (Galations 3) -- and am cursed by the Law. If I choose to live in grace, then I am free of the curse of the Law.

We are all sinners. All. Even Pastor Gary Simons of High Point Church in Arlington, TX. Even April Simons, his wife. All.

"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." Let he who is without sin deny ministry to those who do sin. Otherwise, get over yourself.

Get your focus off your self and your righteousness and put your focus back where it belongs, on the God who loves you, the God who became a Man for you, the God who died for your sins, the God who forgives you and loves you even though you are flawed and sinful. Focus on Him so intently that you see yourself and others in His eyes alone, not through some filter of what you think a worthy person is or what a "good Christian" is or what you think anyone is or should be. See them the way God sees them.