Did God make mistakes when he made homosexuals?  Why did Jesus not rebuke homosexuals?

Sincerely,
Looking For Answers

Dear Looking For Answers,

We’ll answer your second question first.  Jesus did rebuke homosexuality, but He didn’t do it specifically.  Jesus answered the question of homosexuality when He taught on marriage.  Jesus said that marriage was intended between a man and a woman (Matt 19:4-5).  Any sexual activity outside of God’s plan for marriage is fornication.  Homosexual behavior, pre-marital sex, adultery, etc. are all sinful and Jesus condemned them all when He taught the right way for men and women to behave.

Now let’s address the issue of people being made homosexual.  God doesn’t force anyone to act upon same-sex attractions, just like God doesn’t force an alcoholic to the bottle or a wrathful husband to strike his wife.  How we act is a choice, not a genetic equation.  There is a lot of debate over why some people have same-sex attractions, but at the end of the day, those temptations need to be mastered.  When Cain was angry, God told Cain to rule over sin or it would devour him (Gen 4:7).  Same-sex attractions are a temptation that stems from within a person, just like anger, unhealthy opposite-sex attractions, and a thousand other temptations (Jas 1:13-14).  The key is that there is always a way of escape from those unhealthy desires (1 Cor 10:13).  God didn’t make a mistake when creating us; it is when we turn from the path He has designed for us and follow our own desires (which are often unhealthy) that we sin (Jer 10:23).

     Why does Joseph run out without his coat when his master’s wife seduced him?

Sincerely,
Feeling Chilly

Dear Feeling Chilly,

He left his coat because it was more important to avoid sin than to keep his jacket.  When Potiphar’s wife tried to force Joseph to commit adultery with her, he fled as fast as he could from her… even though that meant leaving his coat behind because she was holding on so tightly (Gen 39:10-12).  God tells us to flee fornication (1 Cor 6:18), and it is better to lose things and have clean hands than to let sin drag us down to hell (Matt 16:26).  Joseph did the right thing.

    In the news, a boy brought a gun to school and shot his classmate.  The teacher asked him why he did it, and he said his classmate acted “too girly”.  Do you think that the christian church is perplexing young minds and making them do silly things like this?  Also, how should we teach a child about diversity and homosexuals?

Sincerely,
Coexist

Dear Coexist,

The church needs to teach what the Bible says, and the Bible says that homosexuality is wrong (Rom 1:26-27).  Is it right to shoot people because you disagree with them? Absolutely not.  Vengeance, judgment, life, and death belong to God – not us (Rom 12:19, 1 Pet 4:4-5).  The Bible doesn't teach people to hate.  There are people who try and wield the Bible as a book of hatred, but when you read the Book yourself, it teaches forgiveness for sins, the love of God, and hope for the repentant sinner – this includes repentant homosexuals.

We should teach our children what the Bible says about men and women.  God designed marriage and sexual relations to be between one man and one woman (Gen 2:24, 1 Cor 7:1-2).  Homosexuality is a sin, but it is a sin that can be forgiven like any other.

     God bless you, brethren.  Mark 3:5 says that Jesus "looked at them with anger, being grieved at the hardness of their hearts".  I would like for you to help me understand when it is okay for us to be angry at someone for something.  When is anger not a sin?

Sincerely,
Tempering My Anger

Dear Tempering My Anger,

Anger isn’t a sin, but it often leads us into sinful behavior.  The Bible says, “Be angry and do not sin” (Eph 4:26).  Anger is a natural emotion, but we often allow that emotion to control us, and we end up saying or doing things that are sinful.  The example you gave from Mk 3:5 is a good example of the proper use of anger.  Jesus was angry because the Pharisees had such hard hearts that they would have denied an injured man healing just to spite Jesus (Mk 3:1-2).  Jesus was enraged by their attitudes.  So what did Jesus do with that anger?  He healed the man and taught people God’s truth (Mk 3:3-5).  Jesus was angry, but He didn’t say or do anything He would later regret.  We should rule over our spirits when we are angry (Pr 16:32) and be slow to speak when our hearts are hot (Jas 1:19).

     When a person hears the Word, accepts Christ, repents, confesses Christ, is baptized, I understand they are put in the Lamb’s Book of Life.  Now, this is followed by a life of obeying God's commandments, enduring temptation, loving one another, and living for God.  But are God's commandments just to believe in Christ and love one another?  What are the commandments we have to obey?

Sincerely,
I’d Like A Checklist

Dear I’d Like A Checklist,

After you are baptized, you become a christian (Acts 2:38).  As you said, after that, you spend the rest of your life growing and following God’s commandments (1 Pet 2:2).  All of the specific commandments are too numerous to list here because the whole Bible is full of God’s commands (Ps 119:160).  All of God’s teachings can be summed up in “love God” and “love your neighbor”… that is what Jesus said on the matter (Matt 22:36-40).  All the rest of the Bible is full of specific rules and principles that help us to properly love God and our fellow man.  A life dedicated to God is built upon the Bible’s teachings (Rom 10:17), and His Word, in its entirety, should be the guide for our lives (Ps 119:105).