Author: Victor Scott

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, husband, father, and author. I am an avid Cubs fan and a lover of Chicago-style Deep Dish pizza.

Sex and Religion | The United Methodist Church and the Issue of Sexuality

Regardless of the side you are on, forcing someone else to love you on your terms will never work. Love them in and through the disagreement. Love them in and through the struggle to be heard. Love them in and through the journey until Jesus makes all things new.

This morning the General Conference of the United Methodist Church voted down an amendment to its Book of Discipline regarding homosexuality. The General Conference meets every four years to discuss the life and direction of the entire church. The conference is the “voice” of the church, but there are some that do not agree with what’s coming out of its mouth. The Book of Discipline is the law of the church. It describes and details how each affiliated regional and local church is to function. The amendment under discussion would have “softened” or, in the view of others, “diluted” the church’s stance on homosexuality. After the vote, a demonstration of protest ensued. These protesters were asked to disperse but disregarded the petition of the presiding bishop and the session was recessed until after lunch.

There are several issues here, none of which I will dwell on. I will phrase them in the form of questions.

  1. When did theological fidelity (on either side!) become equal to a lack of compassion?
  2. Why do those who disagree have to accuse each other of intellectual and personal bigotry?
  3. How are we ever going to have a conversation when we are screaming at each other about why we are right?

Love is not a right. It is a choice that we all have to learn to make individually. We can’t make people love us, which seems to be the intended desire of those that are promoting the homosexual position. We have to follow Jesus’ example here. Jesus called us to love our enemies and those that persecute us.

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48, ESV)

If we do this then we prove God’s love in us and God’s love through us. Regardless of the side you are on, forcing someone else to love you on your terms will never work. Love them in and through the disagreement. Love them in and through the struggle to be heard. Love them in and through the journey until Jesus makes all things new.

I am sad about what took place. While I agree with the position upheld, I disagree with both sides of the issue because of the lack of love and compassion toward one another. For the better part of an hour, a majority of what was shared on the Twitter feed tended toward the selfish, dishonoring, and in some cases idiotic. When we stop trying to be right against one another and we get right with God first and then one another, maybe, just maybe we can have a holy conversation about this issue.

The National Day of Prayer is Today

It can be so easy at times to forget that prayer is the duty of every believer and follower of Jesus. While I cannot say that I do this as I should, I understand that the leaders of this country need the prayers of the people, but not for the reasons that you might think. Many times our prayers descend into a kind of political jockeying with God. Here is the bottom line.

God is NOT interested in our politics.

As a matter of fact, God could care less about the political situations in this world. God is more interested in accomplishing his purposes through his people. Therefore, it is important for us, the children of God, to quit trying to get God to change the political situation due to some preference we might have. This could very easily descend into a rant, but I will keep myself from that!

My desire on this National Day of Prayer is this: That we as Christ followers would not pray for God to change the political situation or climate or whatever. I would like for us to pray that God would change the hearts of the politicians toward himself. I want my confidence to be in God, not in some man or woman that wants to represent “my interests.” The only one I trust with my interests is God.

And I want to leave it that way.

Prayer

Most Gracious God,

You are greater and more wonderful that any political system, philosophy, or candidate. I pray that we, your people, would spend more time trusting you, rather than some elected official.

Father, I pray, that as a follower of your Son, I would call out to you for the heart and soul of every member of Congress and every elected official. I ask that you would transform them and conform them into the image of your Son. Trusting in others for what only you can provide will lead us toward idolatry and hopelessness.

Help us to increase our trust in you. In Jesus’s name, Amen.

New Looks in the Coming Weeks.

Over the next few weeks I will be trying out some new looks for the blog. I like my present theme, but I want to test some of the others that are available. I don’t know how many people actually take the time to visit and read, but I just thought I would let you know!

Thanks again for those of you that do read the randomness that comes out of my brain.Let me know what you think. I will be going with the first change later this week.

 

Integrity on the Cheap

This morning I was making a deposit at the bank. It was a personal trip. I had written out the deposit slip and was patiently waiting for my receipt. I don’t know if other people do this, but I try to always check the deposit to make sure it’s right. It’s not that I don’t trust the folks at the bank. I just know that mistakes can be made. Well, this morning a mistake was made, but it was made in my favor.

I was about to pull off and I noticed that there was too much money on my receipt. I had a decision to make (well, not really. I knew what I needed to do). I pressed the “call” button and asked the cashier to double-check the checks I had given. She looked slightly confused. Continue reading “Integrity on the Cheap”

Sermon Sketch | “Boldness is the Need”

I preached this sermon at my dad’s church. They were celebrating the opening of their new church building. We met outside because the fire marshal had not given the church a certificate of occupancy. It was a great service.

Boldness is the Need
Acts 4:13-23, 29-31

1. Confrontation is a sign that God is at work (v. 3)

2. Conflict is the natural result of conviction (v. 18)

3. Continue to show what you have “seen and heard” (v. 19-20)

4. Boldness is the need of the Church (v. 29-31)

  • Courage is the ability to face your fears
  • But… Boldness is courage with a purpose

Book Review | “Where Do Babies Go When They Die?”

Summary

I acquired The Five Dilemmas of Calvinism by Craig R. Brown because it was free at the time. I have always tried to understand the Calvinistic system of theology and have studied it for many years now. There are many things that I like about reformed thought. Just look at the name of this blog. In many ways I am reformed. But, there are also several questions that the Reformed point of view does not answer for me. I do not think, for one moment, that I am the final word on these questions. It is just that the answers provided by the Calvinist camp tend to, at times, resort to a type of logical gymnastics when an answer is not readily available.

One of the major strengths of the book is that it frames the concerns that some have about Calvinism in very provocative questions. Questions that you might see yourself asking.

  1. If God is in complete control of everything, to the point of predetermining all human actions, how can a man be held accountable for what he does?
  2. If we are saved by grace and not by works, why shoudl we do anything good? What purpose do good works serve? Are there rewards in heaven for what do here on earth?

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