 |
| Alan Chambers |
Alan Chambers, the founder of Exodus International, a Christian ministry devoted to delivering people from the homosexual lifestyle to the heterosexual lifestyle, recently had a change of heart and will no longer try to persuade gays to become straight.
Chambers, who describes himself as a homosexual once again after he described himself as an ex-homosexual for many years, apologized to America's gay community for attempting to do what he now claims is impossible according to nature.
And so, Exodus International, the ministry Chambers launched 37 years ago in Anaheim, California is now past tense. As apparently are the thousands of people that Chambers and his former ministry convinced to leave the homosexual lifestyle. Many of those people not only made the choice to become heterosexuals, they married and raised families.
Here's Chambers' apology for what he now claims was a grievous mistake on his part: "Please know that I am deeply sorry. I am sorry for the pain and hurt many of you have experienced. I am sorry that some of you spent years working through the shame and guilt you felt when your attractions didn’t change. I am sorry we promoted sexual orientation change efforts and reparative theories about sexual orientation that stigmatized parents. I am sorry that there were times I didn’t stand up to people publicly 'on my side' who called you names like sodomite—or worse. I am sorry that I, knowing some of you so well, failed to share publicly that the gay and lesbian people I know were every bit as capable of being amazing parents as the straight people that I know. I am sorry that when I celebrated a person coming to Christ and surrendering their sexuality to Him that I callously celebrated the end of relationships that broke your heart. I am sorry that I have communicated that you and your families are less than me and mine."
I don't pretend to know what motivated Chambers to renounce his biblical worldview of homosexuality after so many years. Was he bought? That's a good possibility. Was he marginalized and threatened by America's formidable and militant gay lobby? That's a stronger possibility. That lobby has the strong backing of the Obama White House, Hollywood, the education industry and the media. If they desire, they have the power to destroy you.
It's possible that Chambers truly now believes that homosexuality is natural and God-given. But I doubt that. You don't operate a difficult ministry for 37 years unless you're absolutely convinced that the Bible is accurate in its proclamation of homosexuality. I believe that someone or some powerful organization coerced Chambers into renouncing his worldview.
Certainly, the Christian Church in America is under tremendous pressure to renounce the biblical view of homosexuality. And many churches already have. Those that don't are marginalized and ridiculed as bigots, racists and homophobes.
They're lumped in with oddballs such as the Rev. Fred Phelps and his freakish Westboro Baptist Church. Obviously, no one wants to be associated with groups such as that one. And that's why many churches cave under the pressure. And that pressure can be relentless.
Nevertheless, consider the alternative. If homosexuality is indeed natural, then why is it condemned in the Bible? The Bible also condemns a lot of other things such as greed, witchcraft, fornication, adultery, murder etc. If Chambers now claims that the Bible is wrong about homosexuality, then what else is it wrong about?
Chambers might want to think about that. If he now believes that homosexuality is normal, then he'll also have to accept such things as pedophilia, necrophilia, bestiality, polygamy etc. You can't pick and choose what you want to believe in the Bible and throw the rest of it out.
That's like removing bricks from a building's foundation. And we know what that can cause.
No comments:
Post a Comment