The golden rule and the justification of sin

Just yesterday, President Obama made a very pubic declaration of how he views homosexuality. He said,

"In the end the values that I care most deeply about, and [Michelle Obama] cares most deeply about, is how we treat other people and, you know, I, you know, we are both practicing Christians, and obviously this position may be considered to put us at odds with the views of others but, you know, when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it's also the Golden Rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated."

To provide a little context, the "golden rule" that he is referring to is found in Matthew 22:37-39 - And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

More specifically, it is the last phrase, or the second of these parallel commands of Jesus, "you shall love your neighbor as yourself."

I say they are parallel because they are intricately tied to one another. You can't do one without the other. In other words, the scripture would say that I can't love God and hate my neighbor at the same time (1 John 4:20).

And, I can't truly love my neighbor without truly loving God. 1 John 4:7 says "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God."

But, the real question surfaces when we consider, how would we want others to treat us (or love us). Obama is basing his homosexual ethic on this one question. And, the reason for this post is not just because our president has made this stance, but even today there has been a collective "amen" among many churched and unchurched alike. In other words, it is saying, "I wouldn't want anyone telling me who I can love and marry, so it is only right to not impose that on others." Seems fair, compassionate, and loving.

But, there are at least two things radically unbiblical (and unloving) about Obama's conclusion.

First, the ethic needs to remain intricately tied to the first command - to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. In other words, is my conclusion (about any decision or ethical standard) truly motivated out of a wholehearted love for God? And, is my motivation to truly help others to know and wholeheartedly love God above all things?

And, if I am basing my ethical decision on how I would want to be treated, I have to tie my desires to the first commandment as well. As a believer in Christ who wholeheartedly seeks to know and love Him above all things, ultimately what I should desire is that others would treat me in a way that would help me to know, love, and follow Him. If an ethic imposed on me doesn't lead me there, it is ultimately my harm.

On a very basic, yet foundational level, if I see my 4 year old running into the street when a car is coming, even though I may not like restraints and boundaries, the most unloving thing I could do is to do and say nothing.

So, the question that fuels the homosexual debate is this, "is it truly harmful?" Aside from some of the obvious ethics related to homosexuality, any behavior or relationship that seeks to be primary in our affections or attention is what the bible calls idolatry. These can be "good" things or things that the bible clearly states as sin. And, the Bible states that homosexuality is sin (Romans 1:26-27 - For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error).

Even though it may not feel "harmful", because it is clearly opposed to the very command and intention of God and because He is a good God who created us to know and enjoy Him forever, it is not our joy to ignore, deny, disobey, or reject His good commands. Nor is it loving to turn a blind eye to the joy stealing sin of others. And, of course, we do so by never turning a bind eye to our own sin. And, ultimately, when we are blind to our sin, we long for others to love us enough to speak the truth to us, helping us forsake any joy stealing sin in our own lives. As believers in Christ, never do we use the golden rule to justify our sin by saying, "because I wouldn't want you to call me on my sin (whether it is homosexuality one one extreme or gluttony on the other), I won't call you on yours."

So, in all due respect Mr. Obama, if you truly love God with all of your heart, soul, and mind, you would want others to step in and lovingly call you to a repentance that leads you to love God even more and find greater joy in His loving commands for your life - so you can experience the greatest possible joy for now and for eternity.