Why Kevin Does Not Read The Bible!

Today, on the Plymouth Brethren Facebook group page, a gentleman named Jeff Reiman posted:

A young man named Kevin thought he had a good reason for not reading the Bible.  “Because if we read it then God will hold us accountable to follow it”  he said.   “See if that works in a human courtroom”  I told him.  “Tell the judge you didn’t know what the speed limit was.  He will still find you guilty!”

Kevin had to agree.  Our ignorance of the law really shows our disrespect for the law and the lawgiver Himself.  “Besides” I added, “you have a conscience. You know right from wrong in your heart.”   Kevin knew I was right.  His excuses were hollow.  So are ours when we disrespect God by failing to read His word.

This post brought a number of thoughts to mind.  First, in many years on forums and other venues, debating and refuting the arguments of atheists who tell us they do not believe that God, or any supernatural being, exists - I have always questioned them.  From their point of view, God is just a figment of our imagination, a crutch to lean on when we find life getting to be more than we can bear.

And, my response to them has been that a true believer will lean on God in good times - just as much as when times get hard.

I have always questioned if atheists have just built a God-wall which they can hide behind.   Much like this gentleman, Kevin, in Jeff's post - I suggest that the atheists deny God, and many have denied Him so long that they actually begin to believe their own fantasy - because once they acknowledge that God does indeed exist - they will be held accountable to him, even if they never become believers.

In our discussion before he was promoted to heaven, my brother, Bob, and I both agreed that neither of us can remember a time when we did not believe that God and Jesus Christ do exist.  I did not become a believer until I was fifty, but still I always knew that God was there.  My problem was that I spent fifty years running from Him.

Another flash-back from Jeff's note was the time, circa 1986, when my wife introduced me to a Filipino church in Santa Ana.  I went because I liked the people, but I was not yet a believer.  One day I sat at the pastor's dining room table with him and a Christian friend, Don Mrla, discussing the reason we attend church services.  In my mind, since I was born and grew up in Alabama, the Belt Buckle of the Bible Belt - and since I did, when it struck my fancy, attend the Baptist and Methodist churches in my home town - that made me a Christian.   But, as I told them, "I do not have to go to church to be a Christian!" 

That was the blind "not-yet-a-Christian" Bill Gray - leading the "yet-to-be-saved and seeing" Bill Gray.

One thing I have learned since becoming a believer in 1987 - is that, even on days when I do not feel like going to church - once I get dressed and get to church I am so happy I came.  The Christian fellowship, the joy of singing praise and glory to God (even in my frog voice), and sharing in the learning of God's Word in Sermon and Sunday School - make it a glorious day.  No God, don't have to go to church?  Really?  Get real - church and Christian fellowship is a blessing given to all who believe.

And, Jeff's comment,  “'See if that works in a human courtroom'  I told him.  'Tell the judge you didn’t know what the speed limit was.  He will still find you guilty!'”  - really brought a flash-back.   About 1980 my wife, Dory, got a speeding ticket in the city of Orange, California.  I will admit that, in those days, her foot on the gas pedal was more of a heavy brick than a sensitive foot.

But, this particular time she was innocent.  She was traveling west on Chapman Avenue and turned left onto Tustin Avenue - when the flashing lights came on and a police officer pulled her over.  He gave her a speeding ticket for going over the 35 mph limit.  She told him that she did not see a speed limit sign when she turned onto Tustin Avenue - but he gave her a ticket anyway.

When she told me what had happened I went to that intersection and sure enough, even though there was a speed limit sign there - there was no way she could have seen it - for it was fully covered by an untrimmed tree on the sidewalk.  I took a series of photos from that intersection showing her progression as she turned from Chapman onto Tustin - and clearly showing that the sign was always completely hidden by the untrimmed tree.

The judge acknowledged my point that the sign was hidden by the tree.  But, he told us, because we lived in that area, she should have known the speed limit there.  Case closed.  Guilty!  Pay the fine.

And, that is exactly Jeff's point in his post:   "Our ignorance of the law really shows our disrespect for the law and the lawgiver Himself."

For an atheist, or any non-believer, to deny God, or even question God - does not relieve him of his accountability to God for all He has given us in His Written Word, the Bible.  God's "speed limit signs" are all there in His Bible - even if they seem to be hidden from our view.  Primarily they are hidden from our view - because we refuse to open our eyes and see.

So, Jeff Reiman, thank you for your post on the Plymouth Brethren Facebook group today.  It is a good reminder that it is our responsibility to be in God's Word daily - and that being more mature in His Word will help us share His teachings with those who are still blind, or partially blind, to His love.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

What Happens At Death? ~ OR ~ Who Are The Saints?

It is always good for Christian believers, and even non-believers who are seeking to know more, to have discussions on Biblical issues.  That is how we all learn and grow more knowledgeable about what the Word of God, the Bible, teaches.  That is the reason I love discussion style Bible studies. 

And that is why I will participate in social media and internet group discussions.  I will not participate in a group discussion on social media which has deteriorated into a "spitting contest" - but I will jump into it occasionally when I feel that I can offer a post which can be productive.

In a group discussion named "Rapture Discussion: Pretribulation, Posttribulation, or Prewrath?" one member began a discussion on the Rapture, in the Bible or not?  And after many posts back and forth - a member, James, posted the comment below:          

The soul and spirit go to be with the Lord at death.  Graves are opened for one reason - for a body to get out.  And we which are alive shall be caught up, quickened, changed in the twinkling of an eye.

Other saints will come after us, and be gathered before Jesus comes.  Some that die between the last reaping and Armageddon - the gleanings, will be raised at his return.                

While I believe he is on the right track, I would like to take a moment and clarify what I believe he is suggesting.  Let's break his comment down and take a look:

He tells us, "The soul and spirit go to be with the Lord at death."

Yes, when a believer dies in this mortal body, the physical body goes into the grave - and the soul and spirit go to be with God.  While I will not be dogmatic about it, I believe God created us in His image(Genesis 1:26) as triune beings:  body, soul, spirit. 

The body, i.e., flesh, is obviously our physical body, our physical connection with this mortal earth. 

The soul is that inner part of us, the immaterial, which many would call our personality.  It is that immaterial part of us which, although we are all of the same flesh, causes us to respond differently to internal and external stimuli.  Some of us cry easily when we become emotional, while others just shrug it off.  I love trees, but I have a friend who hates trees and said that if she bought a house with a tree in the yard, she would cut down the tree.  In such matters we are expressing our individual thoughts, our individual personalities, our individual souls.    

The spirit is our connection with God.  You might envision it as our high speed direct connection with God, our Spiritual DSL.  That connection is available 24/7/365, no waiting, no dropped calls when we pray.   But, most importantly it is the indwelling Holy Spirit within each believer.   That moment we believe and receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior (John 1:12), the Holy Spirit takes up residence within us and will never leave us (Ephesians 1:13, 4:30).  The Holy Spirit will teach us, guide us, and convict us - because we are now children of God.  Our spirit which was dead because of the Adamic Sin Nature - is now and forevermore, alive again!

When Adam sinned through disobedience, sin and death entered into God's creation (Genesis 3:3, Romans 5:12).  The Sin curse, because all descendents of Adam inherit his sin curse, an innate sin nature, an innate desire to sin.  Death was a two part curse:  spiritual death was immediate, breaking man's personal connection with God - and physical death became a process of physical deterioration leading the body to finally stop functioning, to die physically.

"Graves are opened for one reason - for a body to get out."    

At the Rapture will the graves be opened - or is that a symbolism, a metaphor?

We are told in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first."

We read in John 11:43-44, "Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come forth!'   And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with grave clothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth.  Jesus said to them, 'Loose him, and let him go.'" 

And, we are told in Matthew 27:52-53, "And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many."

Once again, I will not be dogmatic, but I see these Scripture passages assuring us that, since God created us, He can raise us up again into eternal life.  Lazarus, the friend of Jesus Christ, physically rose from the dead after four days and lived, physically, again.  When Christ died on the cross, graves were opened (it is my belief that these were only believers, saints, which were raised) and those who had died physically once again lived.

Those people in John 11 and Matthew 27 were not resurrected into immortal bodies as will be those in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 - but were raised again in mortal bodies - and later they again died in their raised mortal bodies.

This now raises a key question:  Are only those who died and were physically buried with their mortal bodies intact - to be raised again at the Rapture?  Or will all believers who died in Christ be raised in their immortal bodies?

What about people who are cremated?  What about people who were eaten by animals, or sharks?  These latter people were not only killed, but their bodies were processed through animal or shark digestive systems - and passed as fecal matter.  Then that fecal waste was used by nature as fertilizer to help plants and sea life grow. 

Has that consumed human body which passed through animal digestive systems, became fertilizer, and eventually ended up being nourishment for plants and sea life - now lost forever?  Can God raise that body immortal?  You betcha!  Not one single molecule of your body - whether buried, cremated, or eaten - is lost to God. 

So, do graves have to be opened to allow God to resurrect our bodies into immortality?  No, our omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent God knows even the hairs on our heads and the molecules of our bodies - and He will raise all believers immortal at the Rapture.

"And we which are alive shall be caught up, quickened, changed in the twinkling of an eye."

Isn't that a wonderful promise - that when Christ comes for His bride, His church, in the twinkling of an eye we will all be with Him?  How fast is your twinkling?  Our brethren who died in Christ will be raised first - and in the twinkling of an eye, we will follow.

Personally, I hope He comes while I am still alive - for I would love to have that experience.  Just imagine - one moment you are going about your daily tasks, hopefully glorifying God - and the next moment, in the twinkling of an eye, you have left all earthly things behind and have flown up to meet our Lord who is waiting to greet each one of us personally.

All earthly things will be left behind ~ expensive or ragged clothing - fancy cars, junkers, or just worn out shoes - dentures, wigs, silicon implants, etc. - all will be left behind.  For at that moment we will be like Him, immortal (1 John 3:2).  We will not be deity - but we will be in our immortal bodies which will be like His glorified, immortal body when He resurrected and ascended into heaven.        

"Other saints will come after us, and be gathered before Jesus comes.  Some that die between the last reaping and Armageddon - the gleanings, will be raised at his return." 

Now here I am not really clear on what my Facebook group friend, James, is telling us.  So, let me share what I believe the Bible tells us about the saints.

The Old Testament saints were those who put their faith in their coming Messiah, even though He would not come for hundreds or thousands of years after they lived.  We read about many of them in Hebrews 11, often referred to as the Faith Hall Of Fame.  We view the death of John the Baptist as the last of the OT saints. 

The OT saints did not go to heaven upon death - for no one can enter heaven except through Jesus Christ (John 14:6).  Upon death those OT saints went into Hades/Paradise (Luke 16:19-31), also called the Bosom of Abraham.  They stayed there in joy and peace, knowing that one day their Messiah was going to come and lead them into heaven.

When Christ died He went into Hades.  I believe He went into Hades/Paradise for He told the thief on the cross, "Today you will be with me in Paradise" (Luke 23:43). 

Upon death, Jesus Christ went into Hades/Paradise to celebrate with the OT saints - and then (Hebrews 4:8) He effectively closed Hades/Paradise and led all those saints into heaven.  Today, when we believers die, we go into Heaven/Paradise to join those OT saints.

Since the Day of Pentecost 33 AD, all believers are said to be the church, i.e., the body of Christ, or body of believers worldwide.

1 Corinthians 12:12-14, 27, "For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.  For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free - and have all been made to drink into  one Spirit.  For in fact the body is not one member but many. .  .  . Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually."

The New Testament saints, i.e., the church, which is also called the body of Christ and the bride of Christ, are all who have become believers from the Day of Pentecost 33 AD until the Rapture occurs.  Those saints will be in heaven during the seven year Tribulation, will stand before Christ at the Believers' Judgment (Bema Seat), will receive our own righteousness (Revelation 19:8), will become His eternal Bride (Revelation 19:6-9), and will return with Him at His Second Coming (Revelation 19:14).

The Tribulation saints:  During the seven year Tribulation, a great multitude will become believers in Christ and many of them will be martyred for their faith.  Those who are martyred are the Tribulations saints (Revelation 7:9-14).

At His Second Coming after the Tribulation - "His armies which are in heaven" will accompany Him to earth to establish His 1000 year Millennial Kingdom.  Who makes up this heavenly army?  It will be the Old Testament saints, the bride of Christ (His church), the martyred Tribulation saints, and His legends of angels.  When He returns He will establish His Millennial Kingdom from the throne of David in the holy city Jerusalem.  And all we saints who return with Him will reside in His Millennial Kingdom in our immortal bodies.

Also, at His Second Coming, all the survivors of the horrible seven year Tribulation will stand before Him at the Sheep and Goat Judgment (Matthew 25:31-46).  The Goats, all surviving non-believers, will go into eternal punishment, the lake of fire. (verse 46) - and all Sheep, all surviving Tribulation believers, will go into His Millennial Kingdom in their mortal bodies (Matthew 25:34).  They will still have their innate sin nature inherited from Adam, but since Satan has been locked in the abyss for 1000 years and his Antichrist and False Prophet are already in the lake of fire - there will be no one to cause temptation.

For 1000 years those in their mortal bodies will be marrying and having children:

The believers who live through the Tribulation will be mortal.  They will live and repopulate the earth during the Millennial Kingdom.  Without the devastation of sin taking its toll, we can imagine the population increase during the Millennium will be enormous, almost incomprehensible.  All those who are born during the Millennium will enjoy the benefits and blessings of Christ's reign on the earth.  But they will still be born with a sin nature - and they will still have to freely repent and believe the Gospel, personally choosing Christ as Savior and Lord.   (https://www.gotquestions.org/release-Satan.html)

Unfortunately, because of apathy and lack of temptation during the 1000 year Millennial Kingdom, many born during that time will not bother to come to faith in Christ.  Satan is released after 1000 years for one purpose - to be the final test of those born during the Millennium. 

If they continue in their apathy, continue to ignore the Holy Spirit's ministry toward salvation - they will easily be recruited into Satan's army.  And their will be billions of apathetic non-believers by the end of the Millennium.  Satan and his army of non-believers will come against Jesus Christ and the holy city Jerusalem one last time - and God will destroy them - sending them into the lake of fire to be with Satan, his Antichrist and False Prophet, and all past non-believers, eternally (Revelation 20:7-10).

Then the non-believers in Hades/Torment (Luke 16:19-31) will be resurrected into their eternal bodies to stand before Christ at the Great White Throne Judgment, a judgment of punishment.  After their judgment hearing, they will be throne into the eternal lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15).

Finally, the New Heaven, New Earth, and New Jerusalem - our new home where we will live eternally in the Sonshine.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill 

Lori's Questions - OR - How Is Your Witness?

In the Facebook group page named "Rapture Discussion: Pretribulation, Posttribulation, or Prewrath?" - a Friend, Lori McCool, asked me several very good questions.  I will attempt to answer those questions from both the Bible and from personal experience.

Lori's questions are:

(1)  Does the Holy Spirit seal us at salvation - or when we are baptized with the Holy Spirit - and receive the Bible evidence of that baptism by speaking in tongues?

(2)  Is it possible for someone to say that they've accepted Jesus - but have not believed that God raised Him from the dead, i.e., they have confessed Him as Lord, but not believed (in His resurrection).

(3)  Or vice versa, is it possible for a person to believe that God raised Jesus from the dead - and still not confess that Jesus is Lord?

Let's look at the questions individually:

(1) "Does the Holy Spirit seal us at salvation - or when we are baptized with the Holy Spirit - and receive the Bible evidence of that baptism by speaking in tongues?"

a.  "Does the Holy Spirit seal us at salvation?"  ~  Yes, Ephesians 1:13 is clear that we are saved and sealed by the Holy Spirit the very moment we believe, "In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the Gospel of your salvation - having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise."  

b. "or when we are baptized with the Holy Spirit?"  ~  Being sealed by the Holy Spirit, i.e., indwelled by the Holy Spirit, is what some refer to as "Baptism of the Holy Spirit."   While we are, or should be, FILLED with the Holy Spirit daily, via being in the Word daily and being in prayer daily - a person can only be indwelled or sealed by the Holy Spirit once.

When the Holy Spirit has sealed or indwelled us, we have Him living within us.  And in Ephesians 4:30 we are told that He will be in us, i.e., we are sealed - until the Day of our Redemption.  That is the day our Redeemer Kinsman, Jesus Christ, (Leviticus 25:25, Ruth 4) comes to claim us for His kingdom.  In other words, the believer's Day of Redemption is the day he dies in this mortal body or is raptured from this mortal body - and taken into the presence, i.e., redeemed, of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

When we are indwelled, sealed, with the Holy Spirit - He takes up residence within us - and NO ONE can evict Him (John 10:27-29).

c. "and receive the Bible evidence of that baptism by speaking in tongues?"  ~  The most common passage used to suggest that "speaking in tongues" is valid is found in Acts 2:4-8,

"And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.  Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven.  And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language.  They were amazed and astonished, saying, ' Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans?  And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born?'"

 
Were the apostles speaking in unknown tongues or utterances?  No.  They were Galileans who were given the gift of speaking in the tongues, i.e., languages, of foreign travelers so that all might hear the Gospel and be saved.  Just as missionaries are trained to speak in the language of the people in foreign nations where they will travel to be His witnesses to all nations and peoples -  on that Day of Pentecost 33 AD, God gave the apostles an instant language lesson to enable them to share with all the foreign visitors.  And, more than 3000 came to saving faith that day - because of the ability for the Gospel to be heard and believed in their own native languages.

"So, Bill, if speaking in tongues is not proof of salvation - what is the proof?"   Glad you asked.   We are told in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

When I was in the world, I really LIVED in the world.  If there was a carnal sin - I did it!  For fifty years, I lived that life of carnal pleasures and worldly fun.  But, in 1987 when I placed my faith in Jesus Christ, when I turned from the carnal pleasures and worldly fun to follow Him - I became a new person in Christ.  From that time the fleshly pleasures, the partying and drinking all night, sharing crude and vulgar jokes and stories no longer gave pleasure - for I was a new creation in Christ.

Did I immediately stop all those things?  I will have to admit that I did not immediately lose all those desires - but I was given the strength to overcome them.  I recall vividly a day when I walked into a friend's office and saw something on his desk which immediately made me think of a crude joke.  My initial reaction was to tell him that joke - and I almost spoke.  But, something stopped me.  Do you know Who stopped me?  It was the Holy Spirit who is living within me.  When I started to tell the joke, He convicted me - and stopped me.

Is speaking in unknown tongues valid and Biblical?  Let's look at what the apostle Paul tells us:

1 Corinthians 14:9-11, "So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken?  For you will be speaking into the air.  There are, it may be, so many kinds of languages in the world, and none of them is without significance.  Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to him who speaks, and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me.

1 Corinthians 14:12-14, "Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.  Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret.  For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful.

1 Corinthians 14:15-16, "What is the conclusion then?  I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding.  I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.  Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say "Amen" at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say?"

"So, Bill, you do not believe in speaking in tongues?"   About fifteen years ago when I was an elder in the Fil-Am Church of Corona (now CICF), after our service, three senior members asked our pastor for special prayers.  Since there were three of them and three elders, our pastor asked us to each pray with one of them.  I prayed with a very devout and lovely eighty year old Polish lady, Maggie. 

After we all had prayed, pastor and I were talking and he asked, "Did you notice that while you were praying, Maggie was praying in tongues?"

I told him, "Yes, I noticed that she was speaking very softly and I assumed she was praying in tongues."

But it did not bother me, for as I told him, "If praying in tongues by herself makes her feel more spiritual and closer to God - then, by all means, I am all for it.  Any legitimate, Biblical means of being closer to God is good with me."

And, that is often the reason I am given when I ask why someone why they would pray in tongues - that it makes them feel closer to God.  We never want to discourage any Biblical means of being closer to Him.

In 1 Corinthians 14 the apostle Paul addresses the issue of speaking in tongues.  And we see that Paul does not condemn speaking in tongues - but he does say that if the whole congregation is speaking in tongues and a visitor comes in - he will think the whole group has gone crazy.  Paul suggests that if folks are to speak in tongues, let it be only two or three in the group - and make sure there is someone in the congregation who can, concurrently, interpret what they are saying.  Otherwise, it is just the clanging of noisy gongs.

One last thought on speaking in tongues - God created all languages and there is no language on earth which He does not speak fluently.  So, when folks are speaking in tongues which are not a valid language of some people group - is that not just rattling, making unintelligible noises?  We speak to God for specific reasons:  to praise Him, to thank Him, to glorify Him - and then to bring our needs and supplications to Him, for ourselves but mostly for others.  Since my language is English - isn't it better to speak to Him in English - and then He and I both will know what I am praying?

So, is speaking in tongues evidence of our salvation?  First let's separate evidence and cause.  Speaking in tongues is not the cause of our salvation (by grace through faith, alone - Ephesians 2:8-9) - but speaking in tongues can be a sign of a person's salvation if that person sincerely is edified and blessed spiritually by the action of speaking in tongues.  That said, a person should NEVER be told that if he/she does not speak in tongues - he is not saved.  That is not Biblical.

(2)  Is it possible for someone to say that they've accepted Jesus - but have not believed that God raised Him from the dead, i.e., they have confessed Him as Lord, but not believed (in His resurrection)?

I see your question as being, "Can a person be a Christian believer - yet believe that God is a liar?"   Why do I rephrase the question that way?  Because God, in His Written Word, the Bible, tells us clearly and absolutely that Jesus Christ died for our sins, resurrected to offer us resurrection into eternal life, and ascended into heaven where He is our only Mediator with God the Father.  

The apostle Paul tells us:

1 Corinthians 15:12-14, "Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?  But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen.   And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty."

1 Corinthians 15:15-17, "Yes, and we are found (to be) false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up - if in fact the dead do not rise.  For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen.   And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!"

So, to answer the question, "Can a person be a believer - and not believe that Christ resurrected?"   NO!   

(3)  Or vice versa, is it possible for a person to believe that God raised Jesus from the dead - and still not confess that Jesus is Lord?

My brother and I were born and raised in northwest Alabama, an area known as the Shoals.  The Shoals consists primarily of four small towns:  Tuscumbia, Sheffield, Muscle Shoals, Florence - but also includes many of the surrounding towns.  The way I describe Alabama is - it is the Belt Buckle of the Bible Belt!

The primary churches there when I was young were the Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Nazarene, and many various Churches of Christ.  In my time, the 1940/50s, the Roman Catholic church was there - but the area was still a Protestant haven.

My brother, Bob, and I were talking a few years ago and both agreed that, looking back on our lives, we could not remember a time in our young lives when we did not know that God was real and that Jesus Christ was the Savior.  In other words, I had intellectual knowledge of God - but I would not become a believer until I was fifty years old.

Why the disparity?  Well, when I was twelve years old, I had an experience which drove me away from God for most of my life.  In trying to explain it to my wife, I likened it to a woman who has been raped.  She may have been raped as a young girl - and she may have gone on with her life, making a good life.  But, that abused young girl who was raped is still inside her - and sometimes emotionally slips out.

Like the young girl who was raped, I likened my experience of being forced (yes, forced) by a traveling Revival Preacher, at age twelve, to go forward in a Pentecostal Revival Meeting and let them have "prayer and hallelujah" over me - as "spiritual rape!"  For that reason, from the age of twelve until I was fifty - even though I knew God intellectually - I ran from Him.

And, even today when I have been a believer for thirty years - there are still times when I will have to get up and walk out of the sanctuary for a while if the service gets too robust.  I could never survive in a TD Jakes style church.

So, yes Lori, it is very possible for people to know God intellectually, but not surrender their lives to Jesus Christ.  Our God-given task as believers is to help that non-believer be comfortable talking about God and eternal life.  We do that by first becoming his/her friend first - by having a normal conversation with the person - not a TD Jakes "I'm going to yell louder than you" kind of conversation.

I spent my entire adult working life in the computer industry - as a Field Engineer and in Sales and Marketing.  The most important lesson I learned early was that, given that the products are similar - a prospective client will always buy from a friend first.  With that in mind, when I wanted to sell to a particular prospect - my first effort was to become his friend.  When we would go to lunch, or dinner, I would not talk business.  I would talk with him, have a conversation, get to know him - and let him get to know me as a friend - not as a salesman who wanted his money. 

Often when I took a new prospect to lunch, he would feel obligated to talk business.  When he starts talking business, I would change the subject, "How is your son's team doing this year?" and such.  However, if he persisted in talking business, then I would accommodate him.  Most often when I took him back to his office, we were friends.  On another day we would discuss how my computer would best fit into his business plan.

One of my biggest thrills as a computer salesman happened about 1970.  The research arm of a New York based company, located in the San Fernando Valley, was developing a new Automotive Test System and I loaned the chief engineer a computer to evaluate for inclusion within his system.  He went on vacation for a week - and when he returned he was told that the corporate office in New York had decided to close their research group.   When I went to pick up my computer, he told me, "Bill, you have not made a sale.  But, you HAVE made a friend."   I can't remember any commission check I ever received which made me feel as good as his sincere statement that day.

Now, just imagine how you will feel one day, when walking the golden streets of glory, and a person comes to you and says, "Thank you for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with me.  If you had not approached me that day - I might not be here today."     Can you think of anything better?

To my Facebook Friend, Lori - thank you for your very insightful questions.   Having dialogues such as this help all of us grow in our knowledge of God's Word.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

How Should We View The Homosexual Lifestyle?

Over the past decade we have seen an unprecedented effort by the LGBTQ community and the Liberal activists to make the homosexual lifestyle the new "norm" in America and around the world.  No one, not even non-believers, can deny that the Bible, God's Word, clearly defines the homosexual lifestyle as being the antithesis of God's Word and His teaching.  Yet these groups want to put their desires and their beliefs above the moral and traditional family and sexual relationship established by God from the Creation. 

They want to adapt the Bible to fit their fleshly desires - instead of adapting their lives to fit God's design and teaching.

Below is a blog I posted on the TimesDaily Religion Forum, my Facebook Notes, and in my Friends Ministry eNewsletter in September 2013.  I have edited and updated it from the original, but have not changed the actual dialogue:

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How Should We View Homosexuals - As The Prehistoric People Did, Or With Realistic Knowledge?

September 22, 2013 at 3:29am

On the TimesDaily Religion Forum, a Forum Friend, Kate Colombo, began a new discussion by posting a link to an article titled "The Muxes of Mexico: Inside The Community Where Cross-dressing Has Been Accepted Since The Time Of The Aztecs.”   The article begins:

 

"Far from being marginalized or persecuted, the homosexuals of the 'pueblo oaxacaqueno de Juchitan' in southern Mexico, with their striking dress and intricate makeup, are revered and have been since the time of the Aztecs."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2426141/Nicola-kin-Frioli-Inside-Mexican-community-cross-dressing-accepted-time-Aztecs.html

My Forum Friend quotes from the article, "Each family has a Muxes.  Interesting that one says his family made him that way."

Having a homosexual, transgender, cross dresser, etc., in a family, in Mexico or in America, is not the norm - but, is, by far, the exception.  That is especially true in America where homosexuals are less that 2% of the 313.9 million (2012) population of America.

In the Fox News U.S. - Associated Press article published April 07, 2011, and titled "Demographer: Us Has 4M Adults Who Identify As Gay"  (http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/04/07/demographer-4m-adults-identify-gay.html) we read:
 

SAN FRANCISCO — How many gay men and lesbians are there in the United States?  Gary Gates has an idea but acknowledges pinpointing a solid figure remains an elusive task.

Gates is demographer-in-residence at the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation Law and Public Policy, a think tank based at the University of California, Los Angeles.  For the institute's 10th anniversary this week, he took a scholarly stab at answering the question that has been debated, avoided, parsed, and proven both insoluble and political since pioneering sex researcher Alfred Kinsey said in the 1940s that 10 percent of the men he surveyed were "predominantly homosexual."

Gates' best estimate, derived from five studies that have asked subjects about their sexual orientation, is that the nation has about 4 million adults who identify as being gay or lesbian, representing 1.7 percent of the 18-and-over population.

And, if we look at the total population of America: 313.9 million (2012) - that 4 million gays really represents only 1.27% of the American population - not 1.7% as stated in the article.

Why is that tiny minority able to change the laws of marriage for all Americans?  One reason is that we have a liberal president, Obama, who is pro-gay; and we have a liberal Senate which is pro-gay, and we have many pro-gay liberals in the House of Representatives, Congress.

Add to that the Liberal Theology churches that deny the Written Word of God, the Bible, which tells us that the homosexual lifestyle is an abomination.  These Liberal Theology churches declare the homosexual lifestyle to be the new societal norm.  In other words, they throw out God's Word - and replace it with Society's Word.

Now back to theDaily Mail UK article published: September 2013 titled "The Muxes of Mexico: Inside The Community Where Cross-dressing Has Been Accepted Since The Time Of The Aztecs” - that article does not go back far enough.

Actually, homosexuality goes back to early Old Testament days.  An example is Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 13ff), and that lifestyle was prevalent in New Testament days, especially in Rome.   Many historians attribute Rome's corrupt sexual lifestyle to being a contributing factor in the fall of Rome.

In prehistoric times, when the people we now call Indians (a misnomer attributed to Columbus) migrated from Siberia, across the Bering bridge, into North America (Alaska) - and then, over thousands of years, migrated down into all of North and South America - there were homosexuals and bisexuals.  Although all Native American nations, with their varying languages, had different words for the homosexual; a common name and one used by anthropologist is the word "berdache" which basically meant "two spirits."

Those people we now call Native Americans, even from the first of them to cross the Bering bridge in prehistoric days - did not understand the homosexual.  In their superstitions and pantheistic religions they believed this "two spirit" person to have special spiritual abilities.  Because of these superstitions and their misguided "the earth and all things in it are God" religion, i.e., pantheism - the homosexual often became medicine men/women, or some other set apart spiritual functionary.  All of this was basically because these early Americans knew these people were different - and, in their simple, superstitious religions - gave them special treatment.

In our society, culture, and Christian environment today we know it is not a "two spirit" problem.  Instead it is a psychological disorder brought on by family environments and societal pressures.

My Forum Friend tells us of the article, "Interesting that one says his family made him that way." 

And, that agrees with what I just wrote or alluded to above - that the LGBTQ person is not born that way - but is a product of a fallen society.  All people are born with the innate desire to sin (Adamic Sin Nature) - but at birth that child is like a clean whiteboard where no one has written on it yet.  That is the newborn baby, clean and pure - but with an innate predisposition toward sin.

But very soon the family environment, society, peer pressures, etc., begin to write on that clean whiteboard, that innocent life - and what is written there will mostly determine what that child becomes as an adult.  From a Christian point of view, that is why it is so important that young children be exposed to a Christian family and church fellowship environment.

In my personal experience, I have been blessed to watch young children, as young as three year old and older, faithfully exposed to Family Bible Studies - and watch them grow into productive Christian adults.  At this moment I am thinking of two beautiful young sisters, 3 and 5 years old, whose mother faithfully brought them to our Bible studies. 

Both are now young adults, both have graduated from Christian based colleges, and both are effective Christian witnesses.  They are a story I will share later.  But, they are a great examples that if we expose our children to the right environment - they will grow into the kind of adults we all want our children to be when they go into the world.

We are not to hate or dislike the homosexual.  We are not to ostracize the homosexual.  But, we are not to do as the early Indian tribes did in their pantheistic superstitions and religions - and make special provisions, special laws just for the homosexual and LGBTQ community.

That is reverse discrimination against the heterosexual and Christian majority of our nation who still live traditional lifestyles - in favor of those who have chosen an aberrant lifestyle - if we choose to make special laws just for them.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

There Is No Perfect Translation Of The Bible!

THERE IS NO PERFECT TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE  ~  The Bible is the Written Word of God, His full revelation to man concerning salvation into eternal life and to guide us in our daily Christian walk.  As such, it is the sole authority on salvation, i.e., eternal life - and the sole guide for our daily Christian walk.

Our goal as Christian believers should be to daily grow in our knowledge of His Bible - to grow toward maturity in applying His Bible in our daily lives - and to know His Bible so well that we are prepared to share its teachings with the unbelieving world in a manner which will help them believe His message and desire to seek Him more fervently.

That said, my go-to Bible translations are the NASB (New American Standard Bible) and the NKJV (New King James Version Bible).  Those are the primary Bibles which I use in my personal studies and the ones I most often use in my Christian writing ministry.   That said, there are time in my writings when I am trying to explain or share a particular Scriptural thought - that I find the KJV (King James Bible) or the NIV (New International Version Bible) better explains the issue under discussion.  At that time, I will use the Bible translation which best fits the issue I am explaining.

One year ago today, September 19, 2016, I shared a series of short videos titled "John Ankerberg Show (KJV vs New Translations) ~ Is The King James Version Of The Bible The Only Perfect Translation Today?"  I am not trying to say that everyone should use the same Bible translation.  What I want to suggest is that "YOU" should find the Bible translation which works best for you - the one which will encourage you to daily be in the Word of God, to daily be striving to grow more mature in your knowledge of His Word.  Why? 

For two reasons:  (1) For yourself, so that you will be so grounded, so strong in your faith from knowing His Word - that Satan's constant attacks will just fall off you because you have put on the Full Armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18).

1. The “Belt of Truth” (Ephesians 6:14) - our Bible which holds everything together.

2. The “Breastplate of Righteousness” (Ephesians 6:14) -  Positional Righteousness which comes from being a believer - and - Practical Righteousness which comes from daily walking in Christ.

3. The “Shoes of the Gospel” (Ephesians 6:15) - represents our readiness to take the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Gospel of Peace with God, out of our church and onto the streets to the non-believing world.

4. The “Shield of Faith” (Ephesians 6:16) - is our trust in the promises of Jesus Christ, never doubting His promise of eternal life found in His Word.

5. The “Helmet of Salvation” (Ephesians 6:17) - protects our thoughts, our minds, our hearts from the constant attacks of Satan's secular world.

6. The “Sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17) - The sword of the spirit is the Written Word of God, the Bible, and it is our main weapon against the attacks of the world - and it is our main weapon in our spiritual battles for the souls of the unsaved.

And (2) so that you will be a more effective witness to the non-believing world, so that when you go out to witness to the non-believing world - you will be prepared.                     

That said, this is the post which I shared one year ago:

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Bill Gray  September 19, 2016 at 2:53am

THIS IS AN INTERESTING SERIES OF VIDEOS from the John Ankerberg Show discussing Bible translations, what are the differences, and is there only one true translation?

He has assembled a good panel of Bible scholars from differing sides of these debates.  Personally, I use the NKJV and the NASB as my primary Bibles in my writings.  But, depending upon the point I am trying to explain, I may use Scripture verses or passages from the KJV or the NIV if those translations better convey the thought or thoughts I am presenting.

The supposed Bibles I avoid in seeking a Bible to use - are the paraphrases.  I am not saying the paraphrases are bad - just that they are often used for the wrong purposes.  In my opinion, the paraphrases are merely Bible commentaries, i.e., some man's, or men's, interpretation of what Scripture is telling us.  That is the definition of a commentary, not a Bible translation.

That said, I do believe what is said in several of these video discussion segments - that God not only inspired His Bible to be written - He also has preserved His Word throughout all the copying and translations over the millennia.  A God who can inspire the Bible can most certainly preserve it for His purposes.

So, regardless of which Bible translation you prefer to use - I believe you will find these video discussions profitable and informative.

John Ankerberg Show (KJV vs New Translations) ~ Is The King James Version Of The Bible The Only Perfect Translation Today?
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0EE0E14EA7B25055

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I pray you will find this information useful and edifying - and that it encourages you to dig deeper into God's Well of Knowledge, the Bible.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill 

Are "YOU" Familiar With The Nashville Statement On Human Sexuality?

ARE "YOU" FAMILIAR WITH THE NASHVILLE STATEMENT ON HUMAN SEXUALITY?  ~  If not, you should be.   For it is the first step in the Conservative Christian Movement to retake our American homeland from the extreme Liberal Left Pro-LGBTQ denigration of our Christian faith.

We know that much of this anti-Christian movement began with the initial Clinton administration under Bill Clinton, with the world spot-light shining on his "sex in the Oval Office antics" and with his "not-so-discrete hotel assignments" - followed by his exclamatory statement under oath, "It all depends upon what IS is" when questioned about his extramarital affairs. 

Then it continued with the aberrant sexual revolution's unabated growth throughout the eight years of the Obama administration as our Christian faith has consistently been under attack.  The Obama administration always sided with every possible unbiblical, aberrant sexual lifestyle - as he did his best to encourage, nurture, and force the homosexual lifestyle and abortion upon all Americans and American families.  Under Obama the morals of our American society have gone into a dark abyss ofaberrant lifestyles.

On Tuesday, August 29, 2017, a group of about 150 Christian leaders gathered in Nashville, concurrent withthe annual conference of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

And, as we should always expect, the Liberal Left Lunacy groups, along with the Liberal Media, have gone in full attack mode.

USA Today wrote, and most other Liberal media more or less parroted this same rhetoric:

What Is The Nashville Statement And Why Are People Talking About It?
USA Today Network, Holly Meyer, USA TODAY NETWORK 
Published 8:59 p.m. ET Aug. 30, 2017
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/30/what-nashville-statement-and-why-people-talking-it/619009001/

"On the anniversary of the Supreme Court's ruling to legalize same-sex marriage, Gallup polled how many LGBT couples are married today. The results: gay marriage is up 33% in the past year."

NASHVILLE — A coalition of conservative evangelical leaders laid out their beliefs on human sexuality, including opposition to same-sex marriage and fluid gender identity, in a new doctrinal statement.  It's called the Nashville Statement and the national coalition says it's their response to an increasingly post-Christian Western culture - that thinks it can change God's design for humans.

Since it was released Tuesday morning, the Nashville Statement has received both praise for its clarity - and has been denounced as harmful to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

In recent years, attitudes toward those who identify as LGBT have shifted dramatically in the U.S.  The Pew Research Center says the majority of Americans think society should accept homosexuality.  A 2013 survey reported that 92% of LGBT adults said society accepted them more in this decade than they had in the previous one.

Bill Gray Note:  This past decade is referring basically to the Obama years - when the LGBTQ agenda was forced down our throats.  Let me give you another thought for consideration:  If you go into a prison and poll the inmates - how many will say that we should accept their way of life and that they should not be punished for their crimes?  If you poll 1000 adulterers - how many will say that we should just accept their actions as normal?  I believe you get the point. 

In the mid-1980s, I was asked by Ferranti International, a large English company, to do a nationwide survey of computer graphics users in America - to determine what features the newly proposed Ferranti computer graphics product should emphasize.  Did I visit non-computer graphic users to get their opinions for this new product?  Of course not, I went to the engineering leaders of companies I knew would be using computer graphics.

So, would not the same approach be used by pollsters wanting to know America's opinion on the LGBTQ issue?  How many Conservative Christian churches and church members did the Pew Research Center visit for their poll?  Enough said.

Here's what we know about the Nashville Statement: 

What does it say?

The Nashville Statement lists 14 beliefs, which are referred to as articles.  Each of the articles includes a statement of affirmation as well as a denial.  They're not new.  But they cover a range of topics from a prohibition on sex outside of marriage - to the connection between biological sex and gender identity.

Here's what article 10 says:

"WE AFFIRM that it is sinful to approve of homosexual immorality or transgenderism - and that such approval constitutes an essential departure from Christian faithfulness and witness.

"WE DENY that the approval of homosexual immorality or transgenderism is a matter of moral indifference about which, otherwise faithful Christians, should agree to disagree."

Who put it together?

The Nashville Statement is the work of the The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.  The Louisville, KY - based group was formed in 1987.

The council's web site says it has helped several religious groups, including the Nashville-based Southern Baptist Convention, promote "gospel-driven gender roles." 

How did the Nashville Statement get its name?

"It's named after Nashville because a coalition of scholars, pastors, and other leaders finalized a draft of the statement in Nashville," said Denny Burk, president of The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, in an e-mail.

The group met last week at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center during the annual conference for the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.  The public policy arm of the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S. hosted the coalition during their conference, which focused on parenting.

"There is a long Christian tradition of naming doctrinal statements after the places where they were drawn up: Council of Nicaea (325), Council of Constantinople (381), Council of Chalcedon (451), etc.," Burk said.

There's more recent examples too, including The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood's founding document.

Who signed the statement?

More than 150 conservative evangelicals from across the country are listed as initial signatories.

Among the signers who have been involved in national politics: James Dobson, founder of the Colorado Springs, CO, based Focus on the Family, and Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council in the District of Columbia.

Dobson and four others - Senior Pastor Ronnie Floyd of Cross Church, which has four campuses in northwest Arkansas and southwest Missouri - Pastor Jack Graham of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas - President Richard Land of the Southern Evangelical Seminary in Charlotte, N.C. - televangelist James Robison, founder of Fort Worth-based Life Outreach International - also are members of President Trump's evangelical advisory board.

Leaders in the Southern Baptist Convention signed on, too:  Russell Moore, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and Steve Gaines, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention and pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis.

Who doesn't like it?

The mayor of Nashville for one.  Mayor Megan Barry (Liberal Democrat), who as a Metro councilwoman officiated some of the city's first same-sex marriages when they became legal in Tennessee, took issue with the statement's moniker.  She called it "poorly named" in a Tuesday morning Tweet and said it "does not represent the inclusive values of the city (and) people of Nashville."  

Several other Nashvillians echoed the mayor's thoughts.  It's received opposition from across the country, including from Christian and religious leaders.  What do the signers have to say in response?

Prominent conservative author David French took issue with Barry's statement in his Wednesday column for the National Review.

French, who lives in Maury County and signed the Nashville Statement, argued that Barry's comments are a "declaration of the state against the church" - not merely an argument for the "separation of church and state."  He also points out that Barry is speaking against what some of the people in her city believe.

"Megan Barry is expected to have a position on civil rights and civil liberties.  But that’s a far cry from stating that Biblical orthodoxy is incompatible with the 'inclusive values' of a city that’s located in the heart of the Bible Belt," French writes.

So, now that we have read the Liberal Left and the Liberal Media take on the Nashville Statement, let's look at the actual document and the people who have initially signed it to take a stand for Traditional Moral Values in America:

“Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us,

and not we ourselves…” -Psalm 100:3

Preamble:

Evangelical Christians at the dawn of the twenty-first century find themselves living in a period of historic transition.  As Western culture has become increasingly post-Christian, it has embarked upon a massive revision of what it means to be a human being.  By and large the spirit of our age no longer discerns or delights in the beauty of God’s design for human life. 

Many deny that God created human beings for His glory, and that His good purposes for us include our personal and physical design as male and female.  It is common to think that human identity as male and female is not part of God’s beautiful plan, but is, rather, an expression of an individual’s autonomous preferences.  The pathway to full and lasting joy through God’s good design for His creatures is thus replaced by the path of shortsighted alternatives that, sooner or later, ruin human life and dishonor God.

This secular spirit of our age presents a great challenge to the Christian church.  Will the church of the Lord Jesus Christ lose her biblical conviction, clarity, and courage, and blend into the spirit of the age?  Or will she hold fast to the word of life, draw courage from Jesus, and unashamedly proclaim His way as the way of life?  Will she maintain her clear, counter-cultural witness to a world that seems bent on ruin?

We are persuaded that faithfulness in our generation means declaring once again the true story of the world and of our place in it - particularly as male and female. Christian Scripture teaches that there is but one God who alone is Creator and Lord of all.  To Him alone, every person owes glad-hearted thanksgiving, heart-felt praise, and total allegiance.  This is the path not only of glorifying God, but of knowing ourselves. 

To forget our Creator is to forget who we are, for He made us for Himself.  And we cannot know ourselves truly without truly knowing Him who made us.  We did not make ourselves.  We are not our own.  Our true identity, as male and female persons, is given by God.  It is not only foolish, but hopeless, to try to make ourselves what God did not create us to be.

We believe that God’s design for His creation and His way of salvation serve to bring Him the greatest glory and bring us the greatest good.  God’s good plan provides us with the greatest freedom.  Jesus said He came that we might have life and have it in overflowing measure.  He is for us and not against us.  Therefore, in the hope of serving Christ’s church and witnessing publicly to the good purposes of God for human sexuality revealed in Christian Scripture, we offer the following affirmations and denials.

Article 1:

WE AFFIRM that God has designed marriage to be a covenantal, sexual, procreative, lifelong union of one man and one woman, as husband and wife, and is meant to signify the covenant love between Christ and His bride, the church.

WE DENY that God has designed marriage to be a homosexual, polygamous, or polyamorous relationship.  We also deny that marriage is a mere human contract rather than a covenant made before God.

Article 2:

WE AFFIRM that God’s revealed will for all people is chastity outside of marriage - and fidelity within marriage.

WE DENY that any affections, desires, or commitments ever justify sexual intercourse before or outside marriage; nor do they justify any form of sexual immorality.

Article 3:

WE AFFIRM that God created Adam and Eve, the first human beings, in His own image, equal before God as persons, and distinct as male and female.

WE DENY that the divinely ordained differences between male and female render them unequal in dignity or worth.

Article 4:

WE AFFIRM that divinely ordained differences between male and female reflect God’s original creation design and are meant for human good and human flourishing.

WE DENY that such differences are a result of the Fall - or are a tragedy to be overcome.

Article 5:

WE AFFIRM that the differences between male and female reproductive structures are integral to God’s design for self-conception (self-identity)  as male or female.

WE DENY that physical anomalies or psychological conditions nullify the God-appointed link between biological sex and self-conception(self-identity) as male or female.

Article 6:

WE AFFIRM that those born with a physical disorder of sex development are created in the image of God and have dignity and worth equal to all other image-bearers.  They are acknowledged by our Lord Jesus in his words about “eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb.”  With all others, they are welcome as faithful followers of Jesus Christ - and should embrace their biological sex insofar as it may be known.

WE DENY that ambiguities related to a person’s biological sex render one incapable of living a fruitful life in joyful obedience to Christ.

Article 7:

WE AFFIRM that self-conception(self-identity) as male or female should be defined by God’s holy purposes in creation and redemption as revealed in Scripture.

WE DENY that adopting a homosexual or transgender self-conception(self-identity) is consistent with God’s holy purposes in creation and redemption.

Article 8:

WE AFFIRM that people who experience sexual attraction for the same sex may live a rich and fruitful life pleasing to God through faith in Jesus Christ, as they, like all Christians, walk in purity of life.

WE DENY that sexual attraction for the same sex is part of the natural goodness of God’s original creation - or that it puts a person outside the hope of the Gospel.

Article 9:

WE AFFIRM that sin distorts sexual desires by directing them away from the marriage covenant and toward sexual immorality - a distortion that includes both heterosexual and homosexual immorality.

WE DENY that an enduring pattern of desire for sexual immorality - justifies sexually immoral behavior.

Article 10:

WE AFFIRM that it is sinful to approve of homosexual immorality or transgenderism - and that such approval constitutes an essential departure from Christian faithfulness and witness.

WE DENY that the approval of homosexual immorality or transgenderism is a matter of moral indifference about which, otherwise faithful Christians, should agree to disagree.

Article 11:

WE AFFIRM our duty to speak the truth in love at all times, including when we speak to or about one another as male or female.

WE DENY any obligation to speak in such ways that dishonor God’s design of His image-bearers as male and female.

Article 12:

WE AFFIRM that the grace of God in Christ gives both merciful pardon and transforming power, and that this pardon and power enables a follower of Jesus to put to death sinful desires and to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

WE DENY that the grace of God in Christ is insufficient to forgive all sexual sins and to give power for holiness to every believer who feels drawn into sexual sin.

Article 13:

WE AFFIRM that the grace of God in Christ enables sinners to forsake transgender self-conceptions(self-identity) and by divine forbearance to accept the God-ordained link between one’s biological sex and one’s self-conception (self-identity) as male or female.

WE DENY that the grace of God in Christ sanctions self-conceptions(self-identity) that are at odds with God’s revealed will.

Article 14:

WE AFFIRM that Christ Jesus has come into the world to save sinners and that through Christ’s death and resurrection forgiveness of sins and eternal life are available to every person who repents of sin and trusts in Christ alone as Savior, Lord, and Supreme Treasure.

WE DENY that the Lord’s arm is too short to save or that any sinner is beyond his reach.

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INITIAL SIGNATORIES:   Institutional affiliation for identification purposes only

Denny Burk, President, Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
John Piper, Founder & Teacher, Desiring God Chancellor, Bethlehem Seminary and College
James Dobson, Founder, Focus on the Family
Russell Moore, President, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
J. I. Packer, Professor of Theology, Regent College
Wayne Grudem, Research Professor of Theology and Biblical Studies, Phoenix Seminary
R. Albert Mohler, Jr., President, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Tony Perkins, President, Family Research Council
D. A. Carson, Research Professor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
John MacArthur, Pastor, Grace Community Church President, The Master’s Seminary and College
Sam Allberry, Speaker & Apologist, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries
R. C. Sproul, Founder & Chairman, Ligonier Ministries
Rosaria Butterfield, Author of "The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert"
Francis Chan, Author & Pastor, We Are Church
Marvin Olasky, Editor in Chief, World Magazine
Ligon Duncan, Chancellor & CEO, Reformed Theological Seminary
Steve Gaines, President, The Southern Baptist Convention, Pastor Bellevue Baptist Church
Andrew T. Walker, Director of Policy Studies, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
H. B. Charles, Jr., Pastor, Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church
Christopher Yuan, Speaker & Author, Moody Bible Institute
Dennis Rainey, Founder & Former President, FamilyLife
Frank Page, President & CEO, Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, Former SBC President
Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, Author & Speaker, Revive Our Hearts
Daniel L. Akin, President, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Kevin DeYoung, Senior Pastor, Christ Covenant Church
Alistair Begg, Reverend, Parkside Church
Heath Lambert, Executive Director, Association of Certified Biblical Counselors
Jerry A. Johnson, President & CEO, National Religious Broadcasters
Mark Dever, Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church
Randy Alcorn, Director, Eternal Perspectives Ministries
Karen Swallow, Prior Professor of English, Liberty University
Matt Chandler, Pastor, The Village Church
Fred Luter, Senior Pastor, Franklin Avenue Baptist Church, Former SBC President
James MacDonald, Founder and Senior Pastor, Harvest Bible Chapel, Former SBC President
James Merritt, Pastor, Cross Pointe Church
Jack Graham, Pastor, Prestonwood Baptist Church
J. D. Greear, Pastor, The Summit Church
Darryl Delhousaye, President, Phoenix Seminary
Thomas White, President, Cedarville University
Bryant Wright, Senior Pastor, Johnson Ferry Baptist Church, Former SBC President
Don Sweeting, President, Colorado Christian University
Jeff Purswell, Director of Theology, Sovereign Grace Churches
Johnny Hunt, Pastor, FBC Woodstock Former, SBC President
Jason K. Allen, President, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Erick-Woods Erickson, Editor in Chief, The Resurgent
Mark L. Bailey, President & Senior Professor of Bible Exposition, Dallas Theological Seminary
K. Erik Thoennes, Professor and Chair of Theology, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University
Vaughan Roberts, Rector of St. Ebbe’s Church (UK)
David French, Senior Writer, National Review
Paige Patterson, President, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
R. Kent Hughes, Visiting Professor of Practical Theology, Evangelism and Culture, Westminster Theological Seminary
Jeff Iorg, President, Gateway Seminary
Sam Storms, Lead Pastor for Preaching and Vision, Bridgeway Church
Richard Land, President, Southern Evangelical Seminary
Robert A. J. Gagnon, Scholar and Author of The Bible and Homosexual Practice
Samuel W. "Dub" Oliver, President, Union University
Ronnie Floyd, Senior Pastor, Cross Church Former President, Southern Baptist Convention
C. J. Mahaney, Senior Pastor, Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville
Jason G. Duesing, Provost, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary & College
Matt Carter, Pastor of Preaching and Vision, The Austin Stone Church
Chuck Kelley, President, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Burk Parsons, Co-pastor, St. Andrew’s Chapel
Eric Teetsel, President, Family Policy Alliance of Kansas
Alastair Roberts, Scholar & Author of "Heirs Together: A Theology of the Sexes"
Kevin Ezell, President, North American Mission Board
Ray Ortlund, Pastor, Immanuel Church
O. S. Hawkins, President, GuideStone SBC
Thom S. Rainer, President & CEO, LifeWay Christian Resources
Michael Reeves, President and Professor of Theology, Union School of Theology (UK)
Todd Wagner, Pastor, Watermark Community Church
John M. Frame, Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology and Philosophy, Reformed Theological Seminary
Randy Stinson, Senior VP for Academic Administration and Provost, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Thomas Schreiner, Professor of New Testament Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
H. Wayne House, Academic Dean and Distinguished Research Professor, Faith International University
J. P. Moreland, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University
Bruce Ware, Professor of Christian Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Michael Goeke, Associate Pastor, FBC San Francisco
Joel Belz, Founder, World Magazine, World News Group
Afshin Ziafat, Lead Pastor, Providence Church
Stephen Strang, Founder & CEO, Charisma Media
Christiana Holcomb, Legal Counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom
Owen Strachan, Associate Professor of Christian Theology, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Anthony Kidd, Pastor of Preaching, Community of Faith Bible Church
James M. Hamilton, Jr., Professor of Biblical Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Bryan Carter, Senior Pastor, Concord Church
Chris Larson, President & CEO, Ligonier Ministries
Bruce Riley Ashford, Provost and Professor of Theology & Culture, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Candi Finch, Assistant Professor of Theology in Women’s Studies, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Curtis Woods, Associate Executive Director, Kentucky Baptist Convention
Nathan Finn, Dean, School of Theology and Missions, Union University
James Robison, Founder & President, LIFE Outreach International Founder, Publisher "The Stream"
C. Ben Mitchell, Graves Professor of Moral Philosophy, Union University
Darrell Bock, Senior Professor, Dallas Theological Seminary
David Mathis, Executive Editor, Desiring God
Ken Magnuson, Professor of Christian Ethics, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Daniel Heimbach, Senior Professor of Christian Ethics, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Hershael W. York, Professor of Christian Preaching, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Mary Mohler, Director, Seminary Wives Institute
Hunter Baker, Associate Professor, Union University
Dorothy Kelley Patterson, Professor of Theology in Women’s Studies, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Jim Shaddix, Professor of Expository Preaching, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
John N. Oswalt, Visiting Distinguished Professor of Old Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary
Jack Deere, Author and Speaker, Grace Church
Juan R. Sanchez, Senior Pastor, High Pointe Baptist Church
Malcolm B. Yarnell III, Research Professor of Systematic Theology, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Jonathan Leeman, Editorial Director, 9Marks
Mary A. Kassian, Author, Director, Girls Gone Wise
Mark Daniel Liederbach, Professor & Vice President, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Matthew J. Hall, Dean of Boyce College & Senior VP of Academic Innovation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Micah Fries, Senior Pastor, Brainerd Baptist Church
Nathan Lino, Senior Pastor, Northeast Houston Baptist Church
Paul Weber, President & CEO, Family Policy Alliance
Bob Lepine, Vice President of Content, FamilyLife
Casey B. Hough, Senior Pastor, FBC Camden
Russell Shubin, Director, Salem Media Group
Allan Coppedge, Retired Professor of Theology, Asbury Theological Seminary
Daniel DeWitt, Director of the Center for Biblical Apologetics & Public Christianity, Cedarville University
Charlotte Akin, Homemaker, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Don Buckley, Physician, Spanish Trail Family Physicians
David Schrock, Pastor for Preaching and Theology, Occoquan Bible Church
E. Calvin Beisner, Founder & National Spokesman, Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation
Donald A. Balasa, Adjunct Faculty, Trinity International University
Donna Thoennes, Adjunct Professor and homeschool mom, Biola University
James A. Borland, Professor of New Testament & Theology, Liberty University
Eric C. Redmond, Assistant Professor of Bible, Moody Bible Institute
Grant Castleberry, Pastor of Discipleship, Providence Church
Jose Abella, Lead Pastor, Providence Road Church
Phillip Bethancourt, Executive Vice President, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Adam Greenway, Dean, Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism, & Ministry, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Joy White, Homemaker & Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies, Cedarville University
Gregory Wills, Dean, School of Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Katie McCoy, Assistant Professor of Theology in Women’s Studies, Scarborough College
Rhyne R. Putman, Associate Professor of Theology and Culture, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Barry Joslin, Professor of Christian Theology, Boyce College
Rhonda Kelley, President’s Wife, Adjunct Faculty, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Peter Jones, Executive Director, TruthXchange
Bryan Baise, Assistant Professor of Philosophy & Apologetics, Boyce College
Kenneth Keathley, Senior Professor of Theology, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Jeff Struecker, Pastor, Calvary Baptist Church
Rebecca Jones, Volunteer, TruthXchange
Evan Lenow, Associate Professor of Ethics, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Daniel Patterson, Vice President for Operations and Chief of Staff, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
David Talley, Professor of Old Testament, Biola University
Travis Wussow, VP for Public Policy, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Sean Perron, Chief of Staff, The Association of Certified Biblical Counselors
Michael L. Brown, President, FIRE School of Ministry
Keith Whitfield, Assistant Professor & Dean, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Jeffrey Riley, Professor of Ethics, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Dannah Gresh, Co-founder, Pure Freedom
Matt Damico, Associate Pastor of Worship, Kenwood Baptist Church
Colby Adams, Director of Communications, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Paul Felix, President, Los Angeles Bible Training School
Colin Smothers, Executive Director, Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood

And, while I will not be so presumptuous as to promote myself into the ranks of this learned and distinguished group - given the opportunity I would gladly add my name to this list of Conservative Christian believers who are taking a stand for the Biblical position on sexuality and marriage:

Bill Gray, Apologetic Writer, Bill & Dory Gray Christian Ministries

Do you stand with our Conservative Christian brethren who have boldly stepped forward, ignored the absolute certainty of Liberal stones, and have affixed their signatures to this historical document?   I do.  And I know that the God I worship also stands with these brave Christian Soldiers.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill