Writer Lacking In Biblical Knowledge

This article is in response to the one written last Saturday by Beverly Vorpahl, a writer for the Spokesman-Review concerned about the stand Baptist have taken against homosexuality. In a much broader sense, this is an answer to her stance about Christianity. I am the pastor and Park Heights Baptist is the church of which she speaks and to which she used to belong.

I want to say up front that just as there was nothing personal in her letter there is none intended here. She is a very personable lady. I respect her opinions, but I find her biblical knowledge lacking and her belief in Christ wanting.

A Christian in the historical, traditional and biblical sense is one who believes Jesus Christ as God and Savior, and through that belief has a personal relationship with Him. According to her article she believes in neither. First century Christians were called “Followers of the Way” and thus it has been ever since. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life,” “No one comes to the Father except through Me,” “Unless you believe I am He you shall die in your sins,” “I and the Father are one.” No one can read the sixth, eighth and 10th chapters of the Gospel of John without coming to the conclusion that Jesus claims to be God.

Also, no one can read the New Testament without believing that Jesus is the Forgiver claiming, “unless you repent you will perish.” Repent of what? Sins. But if we don’t believe in sin - that we are righteous - that if the world follows “me” all of its problems would be solved, then there is nothing else to say. It’s either “Me” or Christ. Christians acknowledge they are sinners, need forgiveness from someone who has that authority. Jesus claims that authority and we believe Him and thankfully accept it.

There is no room in Evangelical Christianity to believe that forgiveness can come any other way. On this score we are very narrow minded. Since Ms. Vorpahl has no need for salvation and no need of Christ, her opinion of Christ and New Testament writings takes on a flavor all its own, entirely inconsistent with Scripture. Because of this, her stance on homosexuality is an obvious conclusion.

Do we, Christians and the Church, hate homosexuals? NO! We hate the activity which God condemns. Why does God condemn it? We are finding out the hard way, aren’t we. Whenever God speaks several times about something as recorded by the writers of the Bible (such as homosexuality) He is giving us fair warning. It would be far easier to say nothing - to go along with the culture of this generation. But we would not be true to our responsibilities in Christ if we did and we would not be showing a sense of the love of Christ if we did not speak of the consequences of unrepentant sin.

So here we stand, loving the sinner, hating the sin. And here we stand disliking ourselves at times of our own failures. And here we kneel before God thanking Him for His forgiveness and mercy in Christ as we grow more like Him.