Since gay marriage has been legalized in all 50 states, there have been countless posts on the issue. These posts range from hatred, bitterness, and misunderstanding to elation, celebration, and acceptance. All of these types of responses have come from both within and outside of the church. Tensions have calmed down a little, so I feel comfortable posting this letter. I encourage believers and nonbelievers on both sides of the argument to read it. 

If you are a believer, I strongly recommend checking God’s Word (in context and in several locations) to give yourself a heart check and see if your response has been Christlike. Nonbeliever, if a believer’s response has not been Christlike, I’m asking you to please find it in your heart to forgive their error. 

Here is my letter:

Dear LGBT community,

I am sorry for the hatred and judgment that has come from the church. I am sorry if you have been threatened, shunned, spat on, or anything of that sort by someone who comes to you in the name of Jesus. All of those things are misrepresentations of who Jesus is. I know my apology may not mean much, but please know that anyone who dwells in Christ’s love is also sorry for the incorrect responses some may have displayed. 

If you give me a moment of your time, I would like to attempt to let you see things from our perspective and show you the biblically correct and Christlike response you should have received. 

Let’s say that the people who mean the most to you are driving a car. For me, this would be my intermediate family and best friends (so really it would be a van or small bus). You are outside of the vehicle, watching them drive. Depending on who is behind the wheel, this might be a funny sight. For example, if my best friend was driving, she would be slamming on her brakes occasionally for what she calls “seatbelt checks.” (Those are much funnier when you’re not the victim.) 

So you’re watching them driving and all the while you’re thinking about how much you love each of them. Naturally you wouldn’t want anything bad to ever happen to them, whether that means anything from a broken heart to a broken bone. Regardless of race, gender, religion, etc., our humanity gives us the instinct to protect those we love. You would agree that you feel the same way, right?

Back to our scenario: they’re driving and you’re watching with a smile on your face. But – wait a minute. You take your eyes off their vehicle to inspect the rest of the road they are driving on. You find that just up ahead, the path cuts off; if they continue along this road, the vehicle will nosedive and flatten at the bottom of the cliff. You start to panic – you intensely search their faces and find that they are oblivious to the danger that lies ahead. They are all laughing at the silly faces coming from the back seat. They don’t know they are about to drive off a cliff. 

What do you do? I don’t know about you, but I would do everything I could to get their attention. I would scream, jump up and down, and use any resource I could find. I love the people in that vehicle, and I’m going to do everything in my power to open their eyes to the disaster up ahead. If they don’t take heed to my warning, they’re all doomed. If I don’t even try to warn them, I will know that their blood will be on my hands. 
Now let’s take that scenario and make it an analogy by comparing it to the homosexual lifestyle: 

• The vehicle on the path represents this sinful lifestyle. (Check out 1 Corinthians 6, Romans 1, and 1 Timothy 1 to verify that this lifestyle is dishonorable to God.)
• The people on the inside of the vehicle are the same – they’re people I love and care about, especially if I love my Savior. (See Luke 6, Matthew 5, and 1 John 4 to determine that believers’ lives should echo Christ’s love.)
• The cliff at the end of the path symbolizes spending eternity in hell. (James 4, Romans 6, and 1 John 1 explain the consequence of sin – eternal separation from the One who loves you more than anyone else ever could.)

Do you see the analogy? I pray that it helps someone understand how believers view the issue of homosexuality. Actually, the destructive path is equal to a sinful lifestyle, which covers all sins. Believers should be concerned about all sinful lifestyles. (We are just focusing on the particular sin of homosexuality in this letter.)

Considering this, don’t you agree that if the person on the outside of the vehicle loves the people in the vehicle, he/she will do as much as possible to turn the vehicle around? I think that’s one thing we can all agree on, regardless of personal beliefs/convictions. 

This means that if I, as a believer in Jesus Christ, do not say or do anything to warn you about the destruction your path leads to, I don’t truly love you (and thus, by definition, I’m not accurately representing Jesus). Please take a moment and let that sink in. 

However, if I have sincerely experienced Jesus’s presence and been forgiven and embraced by God’s holy love, I should be SO excited to share Him with you! Jesus saved me from death – He can save you, too! He loves you SO MUCH!! As the Bible states, “Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Freely (without pay) you have received, freely (without charge) give” (‭Matthew‬ ‭10‬:‭8‬ AMP). In other words, Jesus offered freedom to me when I was deep in sin, and He pulled me out of it and set my feet on the Rock of Salvation! Therefore I am more than happy to share Him with you. 

Please keep an open mind. No sin is too big for God’s grace. His love is greater than anything else you will ever experience in this life, and it will be so overwhelmingly beautiful to be immersed in His presence for eternity in our next life. 

I know gay marriage is now legal, but I’m here to remind you that legalization doesn’t make a sin okay in God’s eyes. He is and always will be holy. His Word still stands and it always will. 

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to send them my way! Also, if you aren’t yet connected with a body of believers who love on you and encourage you in Christ, you are always welcome at my church. Please don’t deny God the love that He so desperately wants you to accept. 

In Christ,

Tiffany Burke