The Gospel to Homosexuals Pt 3 How to preach the gospel pt 1 First let me encourage you to listen to Tim Keller's talk from the Desiring God conference- The Supremacy of Christ and the Gospel in a Postmodern World - Pastor Tim does an excellent job (the best in my opinion) of addressing how to live and preach the gospel in a PostModern culture. Let me just review quickly what we have said up to this point: 1) Evil is Forsaking Jesus Christ as the Only All Satifying Fountain of living Water to embrace something else. You can either embrace something God has given us permission to enjoy (in order to enjoy HIm more fully) like: A wife (if you are a man), husband (if you are a woman), a house, food, etc etc, or you can forsake Christ to embrace that which God has strictly forbidden in scritpures, like sex outside of marriage, drunkeness, murder, homosexuality etc etc. The Evil is namely rejecting Christ to embrace something else. A man married to a hot chick can reject Christ to enjoy her more than Christ and he is going to suffer hell in this life and the life/death to come just as any other sinner. 2) We should view Homosexuals as Humans who are created in the image of God and need desperately the gospel of Jesus Christ. We should not view Homosexuals as lepers that we should avoid them and shout "Jesus Loves you" with a hateful scowl on our faces. This is what we have discussed to this point. How do we preach the gospel to anyone? That is really the question. Should how we preach the gospel to a Murderer be any different than how we preach it to an innocent child? The answer is yes and no. Yes, in that Jesus Christ should be the theme. People need to see their need for Christ to cleanse them from their sin and the bondage they are in so that they can freely enjoy Jesus Christ as the ultimate prize in the universe. This is is a tough fete to preach to people these days. The Post-Modern says that there is no absolute truth. SO many post-ex-Christians say that God is a God of love and therefore is accepting of all people regardless of their religion, nationality, sexual preference, and so on. The Problem for those who follow Christ is that this smacks the Bible in the face. Scriptures are clear that God hates wickedness/sin. So we cannot make light of sin. Yet, at the same time we have to find a way to communicate the gospel in a way that demonstrates that is seen as loving and not condescending (from one human to another human). I think that the thing that will help a Christ follower in this is to remember John 3:16-18. Belief in Christ is what saves/justifies and unbelief is what condemns (not the specific of the manifestation of their sin). SO how do we preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ- the Gospel that includes sin, wrath, condemnation, hell, eternal death, eternal life, joy, bondage and so much more? How do we preach love through wrath? Our tenor and disposition has to be one of love, care, concern, patience, kindness (Romans 2:4 "Do you show contempt for the riches of God's kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you to repentance?"- YOU- meaning you and I, God was patient with us, so we need to demonstrate that patience). Here is the point for today: We need to lovingly show that the very means by which God showed HIs love was through Wrath- Romans 5:8 "God demonstrates His own love for us in this; while we were yet sinners Jesus Christ died for us" The very way that God demonstrates His love is in pouring out His wrath on Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ suffered wrath not only for us (for those who believe) but as us! WHAT LOVE! Without wrath hanging over us, we could never fully understand the love that God has for us. The very way that God chooses to prove His love for sinners is in sending His Son, to not only suffer wrath, but to suffer at the very hand of God the Father (Isa 53:10- "It please the Lord God to crush His Son and cause Him to suffer") We need to preach this first with our very life. 1 Thessalonians 2:8 Paul writes "We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel (in words) of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us". We need to depart to people our lives for the sake of the gospel. This is the "GREAT COMMISSION". Not leaving a tract on a table for your server after you have bitched about every little thing, but departing the gospel in and through and above our lives! Colossians 1:24 says "Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my body what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church". Paul was not suggesting that we add to the sufferings of Jesus' as if it lacked some power or efficacy. Paul believed it was his life to continue to preach Jesus Christ even if it meant suffering, and by suffering people will be pointed to the Cross of Jesus Christ. So to preach the gospel we must become friends to those in the world (friend of sinners was Jesus) and love them, and not just depart outlines to them, but rather live the gospel in front of them and with them preaching always of the Love of Jesus. Conclusion: If we are going to lead anyone to Christ, it is going to be through a relationship that exhibits the Love of Christ and joy that is found in Him. Not through bitter preaching from a distance. this means that people will have to come into our homes and see our lives and see what Jesus means to us. We can't just 'talk' about love, we have to demonstrate love! I'll wrap this up in one more blog on this subject- til then- grace, mercy, and peace to ya, s