I heard a commercial for a local church on a classic rock station in the city where I work. The confident voice, pumping through the speakers argued that in his opinion, Christians, by addressing issues of marital infidelity, homosexuality, and abstinence are overstating sexual concerns. The challenge posed by the radio personality was to somehow follow God's advice about sexuality, while not addressing specific contemporary concerns. Is this possible? Is it helpful?
On hearing this monologue, two thoughts immediately came to mind. The first is the (in my humble opinion) misguided contemporary Christian conviction that all sins are the same. Many Christians would be surprised to find that the Bible doesn't teach this conviction. The Bible does not teach that all sins are equal before God. What the Bible does teach is that God equally forgives all sins. No matter what the sin may be, once confessed, is forgiven on account of Christ's sacrificial death and victorious resurrection.
The second thought was that Christians have consistently focused on the issues that give impact and conscience within its own contemporary context. To say that Christians talk too much about homosexuality is like criticising Christians in the 1960's and 70's for focusing too much on issues of racial equality, or rebuking the early church reformers for overemphasising the priesthood of believers.
Christians, in order to be relevant and influential must address the concerns and issues of their times.
