Believers have friends and family who are gay, of course. One of my closest friends 'came out' when we were in our early twenties, and I watched her enter a life of violent abuse, promiscuity, lewdness, and humiliation. Eventually she had enough, and settled down with one person (another woman) in a quiet life, and they lived together until she died back in 2004. I spoke at her funeral. I also have several other gay men friends, but we grew apart over the years due to marriage and distance...a phone call here and there is usually how we stay in touch. I rarely visit them, because their lifestyle has a party tone, usually sexually themed events, and I am not comfortable in that atmosphere...when it's more of a family function I see them occasionally. My aunt is gay and lives with another woman. My husband visited them weekly to do heavy work for them and care for their cars, and my children love them dearly. Since he died we just visit now. I also have family and friends that struggle with drugs and alcohol, that live together out of wedlock, that are guilty of adultery, materialism, deceit, etc. and I love them all. I love them enough to live my beliefs before them, pray for them, and be there when they need me.
Just because we are grieved over sin doesn't mean we are full of hatred for the people we love. People who are unwilling to admit to sin, and turn away from it, are not pleasing the Lord with repentant hearts. Believers are given over to God's will. I am not saying they are perfect, but they are not trying to justify their sin before a Holy God, but rather repenting and asking Him for help to overcome. Elders and Deacons have to meet a specific critera according to Scripture, and one is years of an orderly and spiritual life. The idea that we are more fair if we condone more sin in the church, and within our elderships, is not true. On the other hand, I do believe that we need to require elders to actually be qualified, which we haven't, and that's why we are in our present situation. It's complacency that has gotten us here, and the church's solution is to allow more sin in so that we can seem 'fair' and 'loving'. That's not the answer. We really just need to tear down the high places as Josiah did, and ask God what He desires and be led by His Word.
I find the op's information something to grieve, not justify, even if I have compassion for those who are caught up in a powerful sin of the flesh. We all deal with lusts of the flesh, and we all need to be careful that we do not love this world. I also think it's the fruit of a church that has tolerated sin of all kinds. The idea is that the church really needs to keep herself pure, and not be adulterous with this world, and so repentance and reform seems to be the best answer. We are not doing anyone any favors by condoning sin, and 'accepting' gay marriages is sinful, and worst of all we are being presumptuous before a Holy God who has shown us great love and mercy. All people need a beacon of truth and light before them so that they can see God in a dark world, and we are supposed to be providing that for the sake of Christ...living it in love. We can have compassion and love while holding to the Truth of God's Word and putting God first above compromise that is disquised as compassion and love. The answer is let's stop being complacent and seek to tear down the high places and get back to just being given over to pleasing the Lord.
Just some thoughts. The Lord bless all of you.
Me, being brought up in an Italian, RC family, never was the promiscuous type and was fortunate enough to never really concern myself with contracting any STD. My struggles were more with recreation drug use and softcore material, if you know what I mean.
