The Top Ten Reasons The LGBT Community Should Be Welcome At Church

by David Burnie

10: Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged – Seriously, Jesus actually said that and as a Bible-Believing Christian I believe it. We do not have the right to judge the sins of others – so what gives us the idea that we have the right to exclude people based on the sins we shouldn’t have judged them for in the first place?

9: Double Standard – Ok so the Bible calls gays evil (no, actually it doesn’t and we’ll come to that in a minute) but it also calls liars, gossipers, gluttons, and a whole slew of others evil (and actually does!) But hey we let all them be part of the group.

8: Even If I’m Wrong, Where Else? – Ok, so I’m wrong (it does happen) and they actually do all need to turn straight or celibate to be acceptable to God, where else are they going to find the love and support they need to go through such a big life-change? While I would strongly preface this by saying that it’s the job of the Holy Spirit and not me or you to convict people of sin and righteousness, we are still in the business of helping people overcome aren’t we?

7: They Are Already Here – You just might not know it since they haven’t shared that deeply personal part of their life with you. But when we talk about “the gays” we’re not talking about a group total outsiders trying to break down our doors. We’re usually talking about our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, friends and neighbours. That should make us all think twice about the way we talk.

6: The Stereotypes Are Bullshit – Sorry for the strong language, but I don’t want anyone to mistake this point. “The gays” are not a bunch of sex crazed maniacs who want to recruit your children, have orgies in the pews and turn the recessional into a pride parade. The reality is that they live lives just as plain and boring as the rest of us.

5: Jesus Went Out Of His Way For The Other – Sure, society at large has come a long way in how we treat the LGBT community and other marginalized groups – but ask them and you will find that they still feel left out, sidelined and marginalized. That’s exactly the type of person Jesus ministered to, and exactly the type of person we should be here for.

4: The Bible Wasn’t Talking About These – Ok I know this is where I will lose a lot of people who haven’t left already but please try and follow me here. The Bible was written between 2000 and 4000 years ago, the concept we call homosexuality was developed 100 years ago. What Paul and likely Moses were condemning were twisted practices where married men left their wives at home to defile slave boys in the name of false gods – and I fully believe that is a practice we should still condemn.

3: Especially not Sodom – Repeat after me. Sodom wasn’t about gays. The judgement was pronounced before the angels went to the city and faced their attempted rape. Rape and homosexuality aren’t the same thing. Oh yeah, and the Bible itself says it wasn’t about the gays. “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.” Ez 16:49

2: I Am Thinking Of The Children – So often the debate boils down to this “won’t somebody think of the children?” I hear so much concern about what message we send our kids by accepting LGBT members into the church. Well I know exactly what message I am sending them – no matter who you grow up to be, God loves you, I love you and you will always have a place here. If you do turn out to be gay, your life is still worth living, you shouldn’t have to run away from your family, and you don’t have to hide from God.

1: There Are Some Truly Wonderful People In That Community – Seriously! I have some incredible friends who belong to the LGBT community and they would make an excellent addition to our churches. They are talented, smart, funny, caring people who enrich my life with their friendship and when given the opportunity would do great things for Jesus as part of our church!