This morning, Todd Rhoades sent out God’s Priorities with Lesbians, a Gospel twisting blog in which he promotes Jeff Cook’s “story” about homosexuals and lesbians having a “dramatic conversion experience” that does not include repenting of their homosexual/lesbian lust and perverse behavior. How does Jeff come to this conclusion? First he establishes a new work of the “Holy Spirit” in which homosexuals and lesbians are being converted in radical life transforming ways. He then claims that this “unmistakable” work of the “Holy Spirit” does not include the transformation of sexuality. Jeff then likens homosexual and lesbian vile passion to Jewish circumcision and dietary law. Finally, he suggests that this new, “unmistakable” work of the “Holy Spirit” should override the clear teaching of Holy Scripture just like it happened in the early church with circumcision and dietary law. Jeff can’t deny what God’s Word so clearly says about homosexuality and lesbianism being a sin, so he has created a new, “unmistakable” work of the “Holy Spirit” that supersedes and overrides what the genuine Holy Spirit inspired in the Holy Bible. Jeff has fabricated an “unmistakable” work of the “Holy Spirit” that goes directly against the genuine Holy Spirit inspired Word of God, claiming that it is just like the early church era when Gentile believers were granted “inclusion” into the church without having to be circumcised or adopting Old Testament dietary restrictions. According to Jeff, Gentile believers in the early church didn’t have to give up shell fish, therefore homosexual and lesbian believers in today’s church don’t have to give up their vile passions.

Jeff’s folly is obvious. How is it that Todd Rhoades says he “[doesn’t] have a good answer” for Jeff’s errant logic and “hath God said” methodology? Don’t fall for Rob Bell or Jeff Cook’s corrupt logic and perversion of the Gospel; “Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar” (Rom 3:4). “Hath God said” has been the Devil’s most effective tool since the Fall of Mankind.

Why is Todd Rhoades or anyone, even entertaining a question on this topic? They are playing on a slippery slope of apostasy. Are we going to bow before Jeff Cook’s new, unholy “Holy Spirit,” and allow Jeff’s idol to override the genuine Holy Spirit inspired Word of God? The Lord Jesus said, when the Holy Spirit comes “He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment” (John 16:8). Are we all going to follow Rob Bell and those like him into apostasy? Are we going to change the Gospel in order to include homosexuals and lesbians? By no means!

Homosexuality and lesbianism is sin. Heterosexual fornication is sin. Either will take you to Hell if you do not repent and follow Christ as Lord. Fornication is a sinful misuse of what God designed for the blessing of a husband and wife, and the production of "godly offspring." Homosexuality and lesbianism is blatant, bold, rebellion against God's design and order; thus it is not only a sinful misuse of the sexual relationship, it is an unnatural, abomination that the Lord readily pours His temporal (Sodom & Gomorrah) and eternal judgment upon in Hell. The good news is that homosexuals, lesbians, and fornicators can (by grace alone) repent, believe the Gospel, escape eternal judgment, and have the certain promise of Heaven as a child of God “born again” from above. Here is the plan for Biblical inclusivity. Let’s keep preaching the Gospel in order to include homosexuals, lesbians, and fornicators as they come repenting and confessing Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Mark 1:15 "Repent, and believe in the gospel."

1 Cor 6:9-11 "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God."

Rom 1:26-29 "For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;"

*Leviticus 18 reveals the really bad neighborhood that homosexuality is found in. Don't let anyone you love hang out in that neighborhood. They need to flee from the wrath to come. If we truly love them, we will warn them, not change the Gospel and damn them.

Lev 18:21-23 "And you shall not let any of your descendants pass through the fire to Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. 22 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. 23 Nor shall you mate with any animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion."

*HERE IS TODD RHOADES' ARTICLE:

God’s priorities with lesbians by Todd Rhoades

Jeff Cook teaches philosophy at UNC. And he writes a guest piece over at Jesus Creed today.

Here's Jeff's question (for which I do not have a good answer). When we see the Holy Spirit at work in new believers, should we question His work (or lack of work) in certain areas of their lives?

Jeff tells the story of a lesbian woman in his church that went through a dramatic conversion experience. Her life was turned upside down and changed in what Jeff says has been one of the most amazing transformations he has seen in a life. However, her sexuality is not something that has been changed or prompted to change by the Holy Spirit... at least not yet.

Here's Jeff's story, and a correlation that he makes at the end that you may or may not agree with:

One of the lesbian women who now serves in our church had a dramatic conversion experience and life change that was unlike anything I have seen before. I cannot think of anyone else who, after encountering Christ, changed so many of her habits, pursuits, and priorities. She is a radically different person and her transformation was unmistakably the work of God’s Spirit. But apparently the Holy Spirit is not interested in transforming her sexuality yet, and I find that worthy of note.

Why would God refrain? According to most of Christian culture her sexuality ought to have been the Spirit’s first target for conviction and repair, but her experience was not unique. I hear from those in other churches that gay men and women coming to faith and clearly stepping into a life of discipleship and sanctification are likewise not experiencing God transforming their sexual preferences. So how should we read this?

In the early church, the Jewish Christians became convinced that God desired to save Gentiles through faith in Christ alone, because they saw the Holy Spirit at work in the lives of the Gentiles. The common understanding of conversion in the first century was that one needed to physically change—to be circumcised and give up certain foods in order to be acceptable to God. But the early church shifted its perception of this entire group of people, not because of the Bible (the Bible was clear that all males needed to be circumcised and eating shellfish was a no-no), but because they saw the work of the Holy Spirit bursting forth from the lives of these Gentile believers.

After seeing the Spirit’s work, they changed the rules of inclusion.

I do not have a clear conviction from Christ on this point, but I wonder if that same lesson is being offered to the American Church, who so clearly sees the Holy Spirit alive and awake in some of our gay friends. I wonder if empirically we might make the same move as the first Christians who disregarded the many verses on circumcision and food laws, disregarded traditional mores, and embraced the present activity of God’s Spirit in their midst as authoritative.

I think if we did, we would not only begin to see God in new ways, we might gain many new sisters, many new brothers—just as the early church did.

Thoughts?