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| Tim Challies |
It comes to you from Tim Challies, who sends out regular mailings via Challies Dot Com Some of you may already be familiar with him. I received this post today and simply pass it on to you for your consideration.
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| Peter Hubbard |
Love Into Light
"It is becoming increasingly clear that homosexuality will be a
defining issue for the twenty-first century church, at least here in North
America. It seems inevitable that same-sex marriage will soon be legalized
across America; it has been the law in Canada for several years now. Meanwhile
the acceptance and celebration of homosexuality is becoming a cultural
shibboleth, a means of determining who has a voice worth hearing and who
does not.
In the middle of all this is the Christian church which, since time
immemorial, has held that the Bible forbids homosexuality. Is it time, as so
many insist, for Christians to take a second look at the Bible, to get with the
times, and to embrace homosexuality as a valid lifestyle, a valid expression of
love and sexuality?
Many Christians feel threatened, like their backs are against the wall,
and that this issue represents a major threat to their faith. But is it
possible that Christians have been thinking about the issue all wrong? In his
new book Love Into Light, Peter Hubbard asks, “What if homosexuality is not a
threat but an opportunity? Could God use one of the most controversial moral
issues in our nation to awaken His church rather than damage it?” Is it
possible that if we continue on our current trajectory, the church will soon be
defined by what we are against, whom we oppose, and all the while the gospel
will be lost in the fray?
Hubbard writes as a pastor, as a counselor and as a man deeply marked by
the gospel of divine grace extended toward human sin. He insists that the
gospel makes all the difference, for before the cross we are all the same, we
are all sinners, we are all in desperate need of grace. He says, “We need
Spirit-empowered love to move toward those struggling with [same sex
attraction] without despising or excusing their sin, because their sin is our
sin—our hearts are no different! … My sin always seems reasonable to me, and
your sin inexcusable. Left to myself, I can find a way to justify anything I
really want, and the choices I make can hurt the people I most love."
The gospel makes all the difference and the gospel is exactly what Fred
Phelps and so many others have thrown away in their misguided, hate-filled
attempts to address homosexuality. “If our attitude toward a gay or lesbian
person is disgust, we have forgotten the gospel. We need to remember the
goodness and loving kindness that God poured out on us. God should have looked
at us and been disgusted. Instead, without condoning our sin, He loved us and
saved us. And I want everyone to know that kind of love!”
“The gospel penetrates
to the root of the heterosexual and homosexual dilemma: Who am I? Whose am I?”
It assures us that we are all sinners who are utterly and wholly dependent upon
God’s grace if we are to be saved from the eternal consequences of our rebellion.
Rather than focusing so much attention on a particular category of sin, we
ought to concentrate on the joy of being undeserving, forgiven sinners, for “a
church characterized by a small experience of forgiveness will be characterized
by a small expression of love.”
The book has several notable strengths that make it a valuable and
important contribution to this discussion. One strength is in Hubbard’s
approach to homosexuality through a biblical lens. He attempts to diagnosis it
accurately using biblical categories and as he does so, he helps show what it
is and, perhaps especially helpfully, shows what it is not. He eschews easy
labels and easy solutions. Another strength is Hubbard’s pastoral tone and his
love for the people he writes for and writes to. It is always clear when a
writer knows and loves people who find themselves struggling with same sex
attraction and people who are unapologetically homosexual; it is equally clear
when a person is writing about a caricature, about people has never met and
never loved. A third strength is that the book is anchored in the gospel; from
beginning to end, the gospel pervades it all.
'Love Into Light' is a powerful, biblical, compassionate look at a moral
issue that represents a great opportunity for the church. This is a book that
will benefit anyone who chooses to read it. It is one leaders would do well to
read; it is one pastors will want to read, especially if they are counseling
someone who is struggling in this area, searching for identity, wondering what
the Bible says. It will shape the Christian’s thinking, it will apply the
gospel, it will be a blessing. It is kind, it is biblical, it is pastoral, and
it receives my highest recommendation."
With earnest wishes for a blessed summer for all, Pastor
Jeff
