Leave It or Clean It?

This post has been edited from its original version

Sorry I've been absent for a while, dear friends! I've been really busy with yardwork and trying to launch a new business venture, while still working full-time at my current job. More on that later....

We found out this week that someone in our family has announced that he's gay. It wasn't much of a surprise, but what was especially hard to take was the way that he did it. Since his birthday was in June, he made his birthday party a "coming out" party and even attended a "pride" parade. He was raised in a very religious home and most of the relatives are still very religious, so let's just say it didn't sit well with most of the family.

It is certainly sad to see anyone struggle with sin, but it's even sadder when one has surrendered to it and, in this case, convinced himself that homosexuality is a socially and morally acceptable "lifestyle". But what is even worse is promoting it and encouraging others to accept it and maybe even try it themselves. This is what really, REALLY irks me about the "gay rights movement". Not only do they seek acceptance, but they want to shove it down everyone's throats. (Some accuse evangelicals of the same thing, but that's a topic for another post.)

I've been thinking how we should act around him. He lives far away and we only see him once or twice a year, but the question is a valid one. He already knows where we stand, so beating him over the head with scripture and exhorting him to repent is probably out of the question. On the one hand, we are to show everyone love, so that we can be a positive influence on them. But on the other hand, we are to "put away from among yourselves that wicked person" (1 Cor. 5:13b), who has turned from the faith, so that he will not be a bad influence to those around us, especially our children and those weak in the faith.

In my daily reading this week, I came across a great quote from Jesus: "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold" (Mattew 24:12). This is a very poignant scripture, for the gay community and their allies push their agenda under the guise of love. They say that they want the right to express their love for each other, "marry" the one they love, and receive love from the rest of us who disagree with them. But sin is sin, no matter how many people refuse to accept that fact, and sin will drive love out of people and replace it with lust. I know this to be true, from my own experience.

I was watching a Christian speaker on video recently, and he made a great point. He said that if he were Satan, he would focus all his energy on undermining families. And that's exactly what this world is doing. Marriage has become meaningless and even to be avoided. Relationships have been trivialized. Sex had become the ultimate goal of dating. The entertainment and news industry bombards us with unwholesome material. Sin, in all its forms, is what ultimately destroys families. The question is, how should the family deal with sin among its members? And this extends to the broader question of how should the Church deal with sin among its members? These are certainly questions worth exploring in future posts.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read my rambles. I don't usually express my views so strongly, but I truly felt I needed to get this off my chest.