Smoking, gambling and homosexuality

Everyone loves a controversial Blog title don’t
they?! 

I love the Church.  It’s what I live for, it’s what I’ve given my working life too and I believe 100% that it is the hope of the world.  The best laws, policy and governance will never be the solution to this world’s problem’s because they can never change the heart of a man...I believe only the Church can do this.

If the Church is functioning correctly Jesus should be at the very centre of it all, changing hearts, impacting lives and bringing freedom quite simply because that is what He does.

However, in my experience that’s not always the case.  Whether it is through my own personal experience of through shared experiences of others I have spoken to, the Church fails to do this on a regular basis.  Now this is not to criticise Churches, leaders or even members of Churches.  It’s simply to acknowledge the truth. 

The single biggest cause of atheism today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door and deny them with their lives (DC Talk).  I have many friends who like the idea of Jesus but are hung up on the judgemental nature of the Church.  I have friends who have been rejected by the church because of their lifestyle.  Friends who openly critiscise the Church for double standards.  Friends who think the Church is outdated and irrelevant.

Why is this the case?  I believe  it is because as Christians we're sometimes too quick to judge...too quick to see the sin and not the person.  Too quick to want to keep our Churches neat and tidy and without drama.

Something that has really bugged me in the last two years (since I started to work full time for the Church) is how the Church perceives those who aren’t in the church? 

I often think to myself on a Sunday morning, how would my friends feel in this place?  Friends who smoke, gamble and who are in gay relationships.  Friends who I care about, respect, honour and want to bless.

Now this isn’t a theological blog about what I think about these subjects…although I do think there is a lot to be said about these things from a Biblical perspective (especially on smoking and gambling!).  It is simply posing the question to church goers:  ARE OUR CHURCHES INCLUSIVE?

The one subject that has really got me thinking of late is homosexuality.  Now again, I’m not going to go into details of my beliefs on the subject (although I do love debating it), but it breaks my heart that the Church community and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community are so far apart in terms of accepting one another.

This is not what Jesus would want for His Church. 

Jesus is an all-inclusive Saviour and God.  This blog could be about any contentious issue.  It could be about alcoholics, covicted criminals or abortion. The Bible clearly states that He wants every single person to be accepted and welcomed into His family (1 Timothy 2:4) and as a Church we have a responsibility to serve with this mentality in mind.  That doesn't mean I agree with everything that all our guests believe, in fact there are many christians that I disagree with!  But it does mean that we should love everyone who comes through our doors...in the way we think about them, view them and engage with them.  Gay or straight.

So Church, think…would you dwell in an environment where you’re made to feel unwelcome and uncomfortable whether passively or actively?  I know I wouldn’t.

I would love to see Churches all over this nation that love and embrace everyone regardless of their background, faith or lifestyles.  Straight or gay.  Addicted or not.  I love the vision of the Church that Jesus painted for us in Revelation 21 and my prayer and hope is that we see this sooner rather than later.