Same Sex Unions

With all the furor from the religious right today about the homosexual political machine trying to destroy marriage by bringing in same-sex marriages, I decided I would share some thoughts that have been kicking around in my head.
Marriage is a Biblical institution and God ordained it to be between a man and a woman (Genesis 2:24, Man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife.) Since we do not live in a theocracy, we cannot expect the world to follow Scripture, nor is America a Christian nation. It is a secular nation. It makes sense that there is often a difference between what the church and state say.
Every pastor who has conducted a marriage ceremony realizes that there are actually two ceremonies going on: a religious one and a civil one. He or she simply conducts both of them at the same time, melded together to flow nicely. One, ordained and created by God, and the other fulfills the requirements of the state. This becomes obvious with the pronouncement at the end of the ceremony. The officiate says something like this: Now by the authority vested in me as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ and duly authorized by the state of (name) I do now pronounce that you are husband and wife. Both ceremonies have occurred simultaneously and the couple then walks out legally married and blessed by God in their new relationship together. A Justice of the Peace on the other hand would only perform the civil ceremony.
Since marriage is ordained and created by God, it must follow the principles that God has laid out in the Bible. However, the state can do what it wants outside of the religious ceremony, and this may allow for same-sex couples. I don’t think the state should tell the church what to do and I don’t think the church has a right to tell the state what to do. God established the governing authorities (Romans 13:1, There is no authority except that which God has established.) but that does not make them Christian or spiritual.
There is something else at work here. There has been more than 6000 years of sin on planet earth, which has led to many diseases and our fallen nature that shows up in unfortunate and sometimes even perverted ways. Yes, we know that people can inherit diseases from their parents. Should we be surprised that some people will feel like they had been born a man in a woman’s body or a woman in a man’s body? Through no fault of their own, physiologically they just didn’t start out right. Now I’m not saying that all homosexuals are a result of heredity. We all have the power of choice. Often the influence of our environment or our upbringing can strongly lead us. But we must also recognize that this problem of sin affects us in many different ways. Perhaps men wanting to marry men and women wanting to marry women are simply a result of the sinful world in which we live. A desire for a same sex partner may not have originated from choice but heredity.
There are at least two forces at work in us: Our fallen sinful nature, which likes perversion and inherits perverted tendencies from our forbearers. Ones responsibility comes in choosing to follow that desire. That is also where innocence ends and sin begins. Unfortunately those who sense a pull to homosexuality through no conscious desire on their part will have difficulty (more then the rest of us in this area) remaining free from that lifestyle. It may appear that they are cursed by being in the wrong body. It is true, we are all under a curse. (Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the law. Galatians 3:10). We all need Christ, no one is exempt.
Since we live in a secular society, I am willing to accept same-sex couples having a civil union with all of the legal benefits that come with it. That does not destroy the sanctity of marriage. It does not affect me or any others who do not choose to have that lifestyle. Treating these people as criminals will just alienate them further from God and the healing that God can bring in their lives. God loves them just the way they are, as with all of us, and His transforming power can do a work of righteousness in us through Jesus Christ (We are being transformed into His likeness. 2Corinth. 3:18). Jesus died for them on the cross the same as he died for me. Their sins are no worse than mine are, and they are no more deserving of death than I am apart from Christ.
Tolerance, love, and understanding can go a long way in helping each of us find the transforming power of Christ in our life. That is a far greater goal.