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Can Your Kids Have Gay Friends?


The Glory Land

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Jeffrey,

 

The reason Jesus spoke as He did to the Pharisees wasn't because of their observance of the law, but that they were the religious leaders who while looking down on others were guilty of the same things in their hearts. The religious leaders were leading the people astray while wrongfully declaring themselves righteous.

 

Jesus commended the religious leaders for their adherence to the law while rebuking them for neglecting the other matters.

But this is the crux of the matter! What did Jesus say:

Mat 9: 10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. 13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. 

 

 

 

We (followers of Christ) are called to surrender to Christ and in so yielding ourselves to Him, obeying the commands of Christ (Jesus said those who love Him are those who keep His commandments) inside and out. In so doing our lives should reflect the love of Christ for others to clearly see.

 

As we abstain from sexual sin, as we avoid being unequally yoked, as we faithfully gather with our brothers/sisters in Christ, as we share the Gospel, we are called to do so out of love for Christ and love for others in Jesus name.

 

This was mentioned above, but it is worth repeating, all of this comes from yielding to Christ as Lord of our lives and considering others better than ourselves so that through love and compassion we are testimonies of the transforming power of Christ in our own lives that others may clearly see.

I agree with this as long as we keep Christ as our priority and not focus on ourselves, as you pointed out.

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I think the subject here was about Kids , If my 8 year old came to me about another 8 year old that was gay my first thought would be were and how was this child subjected to such ''the bible clearly states one is not born a homosexual' it s what one chooses with lust in their heart '' has this child been abused by someone that is a homosexual, my second thought would be to contact my pastor for his guidance and help for the child.

 

One of my teenage children had friend that they had invited to church, he came every Sunday and every Wednesday for for a while and one Saturday night he tried to kill himself ,that Sunday morning the service was prayer for him because he wasn't expected to live, Praise God '' he recovered , he came to church Sunday morning a week later but he didn't sit with his friends that morning he set on the front roll and during service he got up and went to the alter and begin to cry and it wasn't long before most of the church was there with him. he confessed that he was a homosexual and wanted to end his life because of the sin he had lived in, that morning he trusted Jesus as his Savior and today he's living a normal an full life.

If we raise our children to know right from wrong by the word of God and if they have a friend that's a homosexual the end result will either be departure or Salvation of this person.

 

As an adult Christian we should know what to do when dealing with a homosexual a lost sinner.

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The homosexual, like all other sinners, needs our love and compassion as we share the Gospel with them.

 

One of the main problems with the acceptance of homosexuality as a right and protected status is the promotion of this sin by the government and others. Schools, under the guise of education in general and sex education in particular, not only teach about "safe sex" (which is teaching children/youth how to commit sexual sin with less chance of getting caught or "in trouble") they also teach of the "positive" aspects of homosexuality, bisexuality (which is still homosexuality), and experimenting to find out ones own sexual orientation.

 

While past generations of children and youth may not have even heard of homosexuality until they were much older, today they are taught such early in school. They are also bombarded with pro-homosexual messages through TV and movies. These are messages they hear weekly, in not daily.

 

The Enemy uses all of this to plant seeds of doubt, wondering, lust and so much more. With all of the saturation in the public schools, colleges, and through TV and movies, is it any wonder we hear so many stories of girls having competitions to see who can sleep with the most boys in one night; that youth are experimenting with homosexuality, threesomes, and other perversions?

 

Thanks to the internet, when children/youth hear of these sinful perversions they can do a search online and not only read more about it, they can see pictures and videos to feed their lust and encourage them into outright sin.

 

May the Lord strengthen us to the task of protecting our children from this assault.

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I agree we are to look out for our children, but we are to train them also to look for opputtunities to be witness's and look for ways to share the Gospel. I don't think we can do that by hiding our kids from the world either.

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I agree we are to look out for our children, but we are to train them also to look for opputtunities to be witness's and look for ways to share the Gospel. I don't think we can do that by hiding our kids from the world either.


We should be training for for witnessing opportunities yes, but also as to what sin is and how to avoid it, whether it be lying, stealing, homosexuality, whiskey, whatever, and teach them to separate from it.
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We should be training for for witnessing opportunities yes, but also as to what sin is and how to avoid it, whether it be lying, stealing, homosexuality, whiskey, whatever, and teach them to separate from it.


What my wife and teach our kids is what is sinful and what isn't, what real obedience looks like and what it doesn't. Of course we don't want our children involved in any activity that isn't pleasing to God. It is our job, also, how to witness, how to be a blessing and to be Christlike towards others, which was a huge topic this weekend with our boys not sharing with each other.
And yes, they see me drink and they have never seen me drunk. I know it's hard for some to fathom, but, there is a difference.
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Sure they can; my children are all adults and they can have any friends they want.

 

I have two children with which Biblical instruction 'took' and they have no friends who are actively involved in the lustful practice of homosexual behavior. These two children are saved and reject the practice of homosexual lust based on the Bible. Homosexuals don't seem to frequent the places my saved children frequent; i.e. their local church, men's retreats, etc. These two saved children prefer the fellowship/friendship of like-minded Christians; this limits opportunity for homosexual contact since homosexuals predominantly associate with other worldly folk such as the abortionists, socialists, drug use advocates, etc. 

 

I have one child, the youngest, presently accepting homosexual lusts as just another 'way for people to conduct themselves." We are praying for the latter to receive Christ as Savior; you see, this child also rejects Christ. 

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What my wife and teach our kids is what is sinful and what isn't, what real obedience looks like and what it doesn't. Of course we don't want our children involved in any activity that isn't pleasing to God. It is our job, also, how to witness, how to be a blessing and to be Christlike towards others, which was a huge topic this weekend with our boys not sharing with each other.
And yes, they see me drink and they have never seen me drunk. I know it's hard for some to fathom, but, there is a difference.

 

Not to get into your parenting business too deeply, but it is the subject of the thread...there is the old maxim that what our children see as do (or deem acceptable) they will at some point do (or deem acceptable) in excess. I don't personally think it's inevitable, but it does greatly increase the likelihood. By normalizing behaviors or choices as acceptable in any capacity translates to total acceptance in the mind of a child (depending on the age of course). With the alcohol example, your children see that alcohol is ok to drink. How do you teach them that it is not ok in excess and keep them from ever becoming drunk? If you can't do that then all you've done is place a stumbling block before them. Similarly with having homosexual friends, by giving that lifestyle choice any amount of acceptability via allowing them to have friendly relationships with them puts in their mind that since their friend is ok then their choice is ok as well. It is particularly hard to get around in this case because they will have such a positive view of their friend (that's why they chose them as a friend to begin with) that the rational part of the human mind will whitewash the issue. I've seen it happen on multiple occasions and in fact have a cousin who grew up in a solid Baptist home compromises her beliefs on this issue because she had a close friend who was gay in college. The things we endorse to our children, we do so wholesale and can nowise do it piecemeal.

 

Approval of a friendship is tacit approval of the friend as they are. Would you encourage your children to be friends with a drug addict because they're overall a nice person and we should look past the sins they choose to wrap themselves in? Would you encourage your children to befriend someone who practices wicca because they have other redeeming qualities? Or would you see those devient behaviors and encourage your children to find other friends because you don't want them to pick up those influences?

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I just saw a post on my facebook page that said "the nicest people I ever met were covered in tattoos and piercings.  The most judgmental people I've ever met are the ones who go to church every Sunday."

 

That's because, unfortunately, some professing Christians only have religion, which focus on the outward appearance, while true Christianity focuses on the internal, which only God can see.

 

There are so many influences in this world.  We can't hide from them.  We can only learn how to deal with them properly and if we teach our children not to associate with such people, we are sheltering them in such a way that may actually cause harm.  They need to be prepared to go out in this world, with such people.  I understand children are easily influenced, but their strongest influence should be coming from a Godly upbringing.

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There is one aspect that has not been addressed so far.

If we say to our children "You can not have anything to do with those people because they are vile and wicked and horrible people" they will eventually meet someone who is a really nice hardworking upstanding citizen and they will think to themselves "someone lied to me - they are nice people".

We need to teach our children that these people are sinners like any other person and in need of the Saviour, and that their activities are not honouring to God.
Then when they meet a nice hardworking, homosexual who contributes to society they will think "another sinner who needs to be saved".

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Wasn't Jesus known as a 'friend to sinners"? He ate with them, loved them, spoke to them-even His disciples were lost sinners until they received the Holy Ghost after His resurrection-Jesus even called one "Satan" as I recall. If we are to be followers of Jesus, how can we not be a friend of sinners?

 

When we are told not to love the world, neither the things in the world, I don't believe this includes people, because it is to them we are called. How can we show them the love of Christ if we keep them at arm's length?  Even the Lord had to show Peter, and then others, how the wall of separation between the Jews and gentiles had been broken down, so they could eat and fellowship together.

 

and of course, the desire is always to bring them the gospel, the live a godly life before them, not partaking in the sins they partake of, but to show them, through our transformed lives, a better way in Christ.

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Wasn't Jesus known as a 'friend to sinners"? He ate with them, loved them, spoke to them-even His disciples were lost sinners until they received the Holy Ghost after His resurrection-Jesus even called one "Satan" as I recall. If we are to be followers of Jesus, how can we not be a friend of sinners?

 

When we are told not to love the world, neither the things in the world, I don't believe this includes people, because it is to them we are called. How can we show them the love of Christ if we keep them at arm's length?  Even the Lord had to show Peter, and then others, how the wall of separation between the Jews and gentiles had been broken down, so they could eat and fellowship together.

 

and of course, the desire is always to bring them the gospel, the live a godly life before them, not partaking in the sins they partake of, but to show them, through our transformed lives, a better way in Christ.

Amen!

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Look again at who Jesus' friends were. His closest friends were Peter, James and John.

 

Jesus took the Gospel to sinners but He didn't pal around with them, He didn't make friends with them. Jesus was friendly toward sinners but He didn't make sinners His friends.

 

If we accept the idea of having lost friends, then we must either cast out various verses which warn against such, say they don't apply today, or ignore them.

 

I'm friendly with the lost. In times past I had lost friends and exactly what Scripture warns of happened; their sinfulness had a bad effect upon me.

 

One could ask the lost and saved alike about how I am around them and hear the same thing, "friendly, polite, cheerful, helpful" and that sort of thing.

 

As was mentioned elsewhere, saved folks and the lost have (or should have) little in common and much different leanings. That in itself helps to eliminate the problem of who ones friends are going to be.

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Look again at who Jesus' friends were. His closest friends were Peter, James and John.

 

Jesus took the Gospel to sinners but He didn't pal around with them, He didn't make friends with them. Jesus was friendly toward sinners but He didn't make sinners His friends.

 

If we accept the idea of having lost friends, then we must either cast out various verses which warn against such, say they don't apply today, or ignore them.

 

I'm friendly with the lost. In times past I had lost friends and exactly what Scripture warns of happened; their sinfulness had a bad effect upon me.

 

One could ask the lost and saved alike about how I am around them and hear the same thing, "friendly, polite, cheerful, helpful" and that sort of thing.

 

As was mentioned elsewhere, saved folks and the lost have (or should have) little in common and much different leanings. That in itself helps to eliminate the problem of who ones friends are going to be.

You're forgetting Judas Iscariot was on of the 12 and in close proximity with Jesus for 3 yrs.  Is that what Christianity is?  Polite, friendly, cheerful, helpful?  You can get that from the world.  Is that what Jesus was to the lost?

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The point being, I don't treat the lost as enemies, I don't speak down to the lost, I don't yell at them, I treat them the same as saved folks; respectfully. 

 

Remember that Judas Iscariot was there as part of God's overall plan in a very unique situation specific to Christ.

 

When we look to the commands given to Christians on how to live it's very clear our close associations are to be with our brothers/sisters in Christ. We are not to form close associations with the lost. James 4:4 is just one of the many verses which makes this clear. Be not unequally yoked, while so often used with regards to marriage, is not speaking directly of marriage, but to all associations. What friendship hath light with darkness, Christ with Belial.

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