September 2001 – Often in our society, people confuse the man-made institution with the Church. We use the term "church" when we mean the institution or a denomination. To use that definition as synonymous with the eternal Church of Jesus Christ is a mistake.
Take, for example, the battle going on in some denominations concerning the effort to ordain homosexuals, to place homosexuality on par with heterosexuality, to bless the marriage of homosexual partners. Several times in the last few months I have heard critics claim that those who believe the Scripture when it says that the homosexual act is a sin, will divide and destroy the Church.
Well, it just isn't so. You never preserve the Church by condoning sin. And you never destroy the Church by opposing sin. Yes, we should try to face our problems without injuring the institution or denomination if possible. But to save the institution at the expense of the Church is folly.
Is there a split coming in some denominations? That I don't know. There could very well be. But that is not the most important item on the agenda. It is far more important to preserve the integrity of the Church than to preserve the existence of the denomination in its present state.
For years several denominations have been dealing with demands by some homosexuals for full recognition without changing their lifestyles. Time and again, these denominations have said that the homosexual act is a sin and cannot be condoned by the Church. But, time and again, the homosexual activists have made progress by simply keeping the battle alive.
I have no problem with identifying the homosexual act as sin, no greater sin than adultery, stealing, lying, etc. Sin is sin, and no matter the sin it serves to separate us from God. We neither honor God nor His Church by making sin acceptable - regardless of what the sin is.
There are two dangers facing the institutional church on the issue of whether homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle. First is the danger that the institutional church will do exactly that - accept the sin as not being a sin. The other is that even those who believe the Scriptures will be willing to compromise until it is too late and the institution puts its blessings on the act.
Those who want to save the denomination or institution must exercise tough love, to stand firm and not go beyond accepting the sinner and rejecting the sin. That may very well mean taking actions which leaders in the denomination would classify as being "unfaithful" to the denomination. But it may be those very actions which save the denomination from self-destruction.
This one thing you can count on: The Church is of God and will be preserved.
The denomination? Well, that is another matter altogether.
