The Natural Consequences of Not Honoring God

God has burdened my heart to lead my family  through the issue of homosexuality.  There are two main reasons why I believe that this is so important and why God has laid it upon my heart.

1. Homosexual activity, including free and non-celibate sexual interactions and homosexual marriage, is in the rise.  It is being pushed harder and harder and those who stand opposed to it are being attacked.  It is vitally important that we understand what God has to say about it.
2. I am finding more and more that my children are laughing at, poking fun, and finding homosexuality funny; or at least their behavior.  For God, and for me, a person living in open rebellion to God is not funny.

So, I feel very burdened to address this issue with my family.  My thoughts on this matter and how I intend to approach it can be found here.  My prayer is that we would begin to think less like Americans and sinners and more like our Living Lord and Savior.

Romans 1:18-27 (New American Standard Bible)

Unbelief and Its Consequences

 18For ^(A)the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who ^(B)suppress the truth in unrighteousness,

 19because ^(C)that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

 20For ^(D)since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, ^(E)being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

 21For even though they knew God, they did not ^[a]honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became ^(F)futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

 22^(G)Professing to be wise, they became fools,

 23and ^(H)exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and ^[b]crawling creatures.

 24Therefore ^(I)God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be ^(J)dishonored among them.

 25For they exchanged the truth of God for a ^(K)lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, ^(L)who is blessed forever. Amen.

 26For this reason ^(M)God gave them over to ^(N)degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural,

 27and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, ^(O)men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.

• God made Himself known, plainly and clearly through creation.  The presence of a Creator is clear from what we see around us everyday.  It cannot be disputed.  Verse 18-20
• However, mankind chose NOT to honor God as God.  They rejected Him and chose to believe a lie over the truth of God.  Verse 21, 25.  They become foolish although unto themselves they thought themselves wise.  Verse 22.

Here is where we start.  The existence of God cannot be denied.  It cannot be disproved.  Man may try, they may blind themselves to the truth, but the reality cannot be erased:  GOD EXISTS.  

The PROBLEM is, man has tried to deny it.  They have tried to ignore it.  They have chosen a lie over the truth.  They have chosen sin over God.  They have chosen death over life.  Man has refused to HONOR God as God.  They have refused to acknowledge His place of authority and power over their lives.  They have not HONORED Him as the God He IS.

Thus, the rest that follows in chapter one is the natural consequence of refusing to HONOR God as God.

When we refuse to Honor God as God, we can expect the following to happen:

• God "gave them over" to their sin.  This means that God removed His hand of restraint and allowed them to freely partake in their sin and in doing so, reap the natural consequences of doing so.  Verse 24, 26.  God allowed them to have what they wanted.  He gave them their sin.  In doing so, He also allowed them to suffer whatever consequences their sin brought upon themselves.  It is actually for this reason that I do not believe man will ever find a cure for AIDS.  This is the natural consequence of mans promiscuity.  
• Having been given over, man rejected God's creation and ordination of proper sexual relations and were inflamed with lust for each other; women with women and man with men committing "indecent" acts with each other.  This is homosexuality.  

What does this say about homosexuality?  Several things:

1. It is unnatural.  This is not how God intended it to be.  It is perversion of all that God had created and intended for man to experience.
2. Having done this, they received in their own bodies the due penalty for such perversion and corruption.  I believe that AIDS is one such of these penalties.  
3. HOMOSEXUALITY IS A DIRECT RESULT OF REFUSING TO HONOR GOD AS GOD.  IT IS A RESULT OF MAN REJECTING GOD AND REFUSING TO HONOR HIM.
4. Read that again.

Why then, do we find the behavior and lifestyle of people living a homosexual lifestyle funny?   They represent mans refusal to Honor God as God.  They represent mans rejection of God.  They themselves, have rejected God and have refused to honor Him and are bound for an eternity of condemnation in Hell.  Why then is this funny?  I love God and I love them too much to find any humor in their behavior or their lifestyle.

Homosexuals are still people.  They are still people who God loves and died for.  They are still people who need forgiveness and love.  Why on earth would we find anything funny in the fact that they are living lives in complete and open rebellion to the one who can offer those very things to them?

God, forgive me in my youth for having been guilty of these very same things.  Forgive me for mocking, poking fun, making jokes, and finding the lives and behavior of homosexuals funny.  God you are grieved when you see the lives of these people.  You weep and find great sorrow in their rejection of you.  But you are also angered and outranged at their hard hearts and their refusal to honor You as God.  You find nothing remotely funny about their choice to reject You and live in sin.  May we not either.