Yes and no. Morals are created by people. If there was only one person on this planet, would there be morals? Let that one sink in for a bit.

Or, since you seem to think god ‘makes’ morals; if there was only god, sitting there by herself, would she have morals? Would there be morality?

As for a ‘standard’ of morality… there is no standard. Morals are not absolute. They are born, live, and die, and are constantly evolving. An example is that of homosexuality being immoral. It is pitiful seeing Christians having gone from executing gays to now having weak discussions like this one on your blog.

Bobby Key; You’re a dick. Read your bible… ALL OF IT.

ShahZam “We Christians are so use to having all issues of life boiled down to just few simple verses that we often don’t know how to deal with something as complex as gay-marriage”.

It’s not complex ShahZam. Here it is boiled down in two verses for you. Now get out there and start executing the detestable abominous homosexuals, the way Muslims do. At least they obey their holy writ.

“Lev. 18:22, “You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination.”

Lev. 20:13, “If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltness is upon them”

Pastor Michael Mendoza, “In some of the ancient traditions, it is said that Jesus was writing the sins of the people in the sand.” Where does it say that? Adding to the bible are we pastor? Not unusual. I’d love if you read the Mark Twain article too.

Pastor Michael Mendoza, “Capital punishment among the Jews was also a very holy act.”

Numbers 15:32-36 (KJV)

“And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation. And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to him. And the LORD said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp. And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the LORD commanded Moses.”

Holy act indeed. People that follow bronze-age superstitious mythical texts are lost.

ShahZam “We all deserve nothing but hell except, of course, for the guy who calls himself God’s justice. I think, he got it all figured out.”

You are correct! I, and a multitude of others, are figuring out that there is no god, hell, heaven, fairies, angels, trolls, or Santa. And we are very angry at the false prophets that are perpetuating these lies and taking people’s money to further perpetuate the lies.

By the way, Is this the Clayton with a ministry in Hollywood?

“Do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, sodomites, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, robbers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God. And this is what some of you used to be. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” (1 Co 6:9-11; cf. Gal 5:19-21; Eph 5:5).

Isn’t it interesting that Greed and Homosexuality are mentioned in the same category as those who will not inherit the kingdom of God? Christians had no problem voting against a homosexual agenda but a large number had no problem with voting for a high-speed train which would cost multiple millions of dollars which could go to health care for the impoverished! I wish I would have seen picket signs for Anti-Greed as well.

Now before you overreact, Paul is much harsher… excluding not just the gay community, “Do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, sodomites, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, robbers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God. And this is what some of you used to be. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” (1 Co 6:9-11; cf. Gal 5:19-21; Eph 5:5).

Unfortunately there are a lot of compromised Christians who rail on homosexuals, but whose own immoral (or greedy) lifestyle calls into question their faith (cf. James 2:14-17), and who may just be surprised on the day the Lord returns (Matt 7:21; 24:12-13; Luke 18:8). Actually, if you take the time to read these passages, may the Lord be gracious to us all!

Wow, did I just say that? I’m not a person filled with condemnation, but then again, I’m sick of a self righteous church who does not take the Bible seriously, but wishfully believes themselves as so special that they don’t have to take obedience seriously (James 1:22-25; Matt 28:20; Phil 3:12-16). So, let’s start by being/living truly Christian. Only then will anyone, including the homosexual community, take us seriously!

My NT professor once talked about God’s “severe mercy,” and how the Lord’s justice is not so much punitive as restorative. It is meant to restore righteousness, which is defined as the right relationship with Him. Therefore, the purpose of Divine justice is to remove sin, not necessarily to destroy the sinner. What the Son of God was then doing in the above-mentioned pericope was to exegete the spirit of the Law and not merely to follow blindy its letter. He was affirming that, since He was the only one without sin, that the judgment in that particular situation was His prerogative alone, and I think the people sensed the weight of that responsibility and backed off.

In my ministry, I encounter people from the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community a great deal, and most of them think we, Christians, ought to be convicted of hate crimes. In my opinion, I think the faith-based community struggles with its hermeneutic on gender-alternative issues, not because of its fundamental beliefs, but because of its dialogue, its evangelistic approach. I call it “repent or die” theology, and it makes everyone else nervous. If you’ve ever dealt with an addict, you would know that the sin, the addiction, has become such an integral part of that person’s life that to wrench it out forcibly could cause great harm to the person. You need to be highly skilled to be an interventionist in that regard.

Our challenge is to convince a sinner that the sin cannot be part of that person’s being, that it would eventually lead to catastrophic consequences in this life. But we don’t “throw the baby out with the baby water.” As pastors, it is our job to get them to the point of repentance, and then it becomes their choice. If we do our jobs right, then they will be equipped to make the right decision. It is equally our challenge to be steadfast in dealing with “politically correct” paradigms, knowing that they change with every socially-acceptable idea that comes around. It is our central belief, as Christians, that the Word of God should be the basis of ethical and cultural imperatives. We should think and act, then, in such a manner to convince non-Christians of this fact.

Right before the election, When I told my gay neighbors I was voting yes on 8, they laughed and said, “we expected that from you.” And yet, they are still our good friends and neighbors. I took my stand by loving and respecting them, but letting them know that I don’t agree with them.

By the way, could someone tell me what is Bobby Key talking about??? He is way over my head.