Yes, Yes, Yes! Gay, straight, married or not. NONE of it matters without Christ. We're focused on the wrong things. If we stop gays from getting married, they're still unsaved. If we even stop them from "being gay" it doesn't matter, they're not saved. The ONLY way to save anyone is through Jesus Christ.

Ira, You literally brought tears to my eyes with this. I am so pleased to see what God is doing in your life and how His grace is making you more and more like Jesus with each passing year. I wish that every "Christian" in America could read this post of yours today. Thank you, and God bless you.

I saw this article posted on Facebook today, and I felt the need to share my response, which is written below. I believe in God, and I support people who believe in God. I believe in love, and I support people who believe in love. I believe God and love are the same thing. There isn't one without the other. To say that redefining marriage as romantic love cuts Christ out, is saying that Christ isn't present where there's love. If that's what the author of this article believes, that's fine. He's not attacking anyone and I'm not attacking him or those liking and sharing this article. But I encourage taking a moment to realize that this message says that Christ isn't love, Christ is service. And if that's your faith, I support standing up for it. Just be aware this message says Christ isn't love.

This is so well put Ira. It is hitting the proverbial nail on the head I believe.

a big AMEN!!

Crystal, I'm wondering about your train of thinking and must confess I'm a bit confused. Happens to me alot! In what God do you believe and how did you come to believe? What does it mean that God & love are the same thing? Love is an emotion but it seems you are talking about God as a being. How can the two be the same? In other words is God a real being who exists, has a will, has spoken to mankind, etc or is he just an sentiment / feeling that is most defined by love? Is love God's only identifiable trait? Does he care about justice, life, death, poverty, illness, etc. Can he be both loving and also righteous or are they mutually exclusive? In other words can he say there is right and wrong or are you defining love / God as letting everyone do what they think best for themselves? Can God's love include giving people parameters for life that should be followed? If Jesus / God says marriage is God, man, woman and not anything else and his character includes love, how is he unloving to tell us when we get it wrong or use his infinite wisdom to show us the right path? How does offering loving protection constitute a lack of compassion? You don't need to answer any of these, your comments just got me to thinking so I jotted down my inquiry.

I appreciate your commitment and spirit to your particular theological interpretations. It is certainly more compelling than the activist and egocentric theology, as you point out. If I was still a Christian, I would approach this issue this way. However, I can't help but see a bond spot in this theology. As you point to Christ, and would likely say that all th bible was leading there, it's difficult to reconcile the culturally evolved version of marriage within the text and stationed by the god supposedly overseeing this history. It ignores the marriage versions of one man, several women, one man several women and combubines and slaves, women as possessions and purchases etc...I think it is difficult and begs some credulity to either obsolete god from these activities (since he gives several instructions about them) and say he was using this to drive people to eventually accept one man, one women + Christ. Of course, this would be incredibly easier had Marcion gotten his way and divorced Christ from YHWH, who seems incredibly inconsistent across the text without the resue of theology.

Thank you Ira....with a little bit of study and after reading some of the comments, I understand why people become so confused....As humans we believe that tolerance from God is the same as acceptance....which of course it is not...and being a Christian I needed to learn to be against the sin and not the sinner, instead of remaining passive. You have solved a lot of issues for me with this one blog and I thank you for that. I was very impressed when my friend (non christian) called me and said she got it!, and has shared it....Love that...keep up the good work.

Great post Ira.... Thank you!