A Fresh Perspective

The Supreme Court’s landmark decision now makes same-sex marriage the law of the land which Christians can and should support. Here’s why. First, Christians can support same-sex marriage because there is nothing anti-Christian about it. Some Christians speak of marriage as if there is a clear, consistent, unchanging biblical model. For example, i n  a statement issued by Ronnie Floyd of the SBC and signed by 16 past presidents they affirmed, among other things, “What the Bible says about marriage is clear, definitive, and unchanging. We affirm biblical, traditional, natural marriage as the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant for a lifetime. The Scriptures’ teaching on marriage is not negotiable.”   The problem, however, which more Christians are coming to see, is that there simply is no “clear, definitive, and unchanging” biblical view. Consider how polygamy was practiced throughout the biblical world without a single bible verse condemning ...

It takes spiritual eyes to read the Bible in a healthy, transformative way. The Bible can be (and has been) employed as an instrument of oppression and evil, as well as an instrument of change and transformation. All Christians who debate public and faith issues among each other or in a public forum use Scripture to support their arguments. Whether the issues relate to sexual orientation, women pastors or deacons, the role of government, the right to wage war, the role of the military, divorce, the nature of Jesus, or the nature of judgment and salvation, Scripture is quoted and interpreted by all Christians engaged in the debate. The critical question concerns how we use Scripture, how we interpret the Bible, what framework and guiding principles we use to make sense of Scripture and apply it to our lives and communities. Some years ago, I, along with three other pastors, tried to change the policy regarding women’s participation in an Eastern Kentucky Baptist Association of the Sou...