Today the following notice appeared on the website for the Marriage Bureau of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia:

NOTE: Pursuant to the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Amendment Act of 2009, A18-248, effective March 3, 2010, same sex couples may apply for marriage licenses in the District of Columbia.

Yes, the notice is in red font. The color seems to highlight the alarming content. As of today, Wednesday, March 3, 2010, our country’s showcase city–the seat of American culture, politics and influence in the world–takes a huge step backward, to a morally primitive time. It is not “progress,” as the proponents of same-sex legal pairings assert; it is the opposite. It recalls a period in human history where sexual behavior was indiscreet, unbridled, animalistic and injurious.

The revelation of God’s moral law on Sinai and the subsequent charge to mothers and fathers to model and instruct their children in right and wrong behavior was the cure to an otherwise self-destructive impulse. Research has shown that the human drive towards sex is stronger than the drive for food–and it’s not terribly discriminating. A big part of “civilization” has to do with curbing, controlling and steering this “power” into positive, constructive and ethical directions.

I’ve been engaged for a long time in the conversation and debate on same-sex sexual relationships–and the attendant proposals for publicly sanctioning them with laws and certificates. The argument goes something like this, “There’s no difference between heterosexual and homosexual relationships, therefore gay and lesbian people should be allowed to express their love just like straight people do.” I agree–to a point.

Men should not only be allowed to love other men, but encouraged to do so. In fact, the Bible says this is the only way we can know for sure that we are “saved,” part of the redeemed; indeed, that we are Christians at all, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren.” (1 John 3:14) Obviously, the same is true for women. Love between men and men and women and women is part of the experience of knowing God, who is Himself “Love.” (See 1 John 4:7-11) However, this love of God, and by extension, this “love of the brethren,” is not expressed sexually. In fact, most love bonds do not–or at least should not–have a sexual component. Love for children, for example, is never to be expressed sexually. The same is true of love between siblings.

“Well, of course not!” I hear the celebrants of today’s same-sex marriage licensing saying. “Everyone knows that!” Well, not true. Sadly, there are plenty of people in the world–even in our own country–who don’t respect these moral boundaries on sex. Recent headlines bear that out. Sexual predation of children is on the rise and often includes unspeakably horrible acts, including torture and brutal murders. We think of these things as frightening aberrations, but that’s only true of human culture in the recent past. For example, in ancient times–in fact, in Bible times–pederasty and incest were rampant; inbreeding was practiced as a genetic purifier for royal family lines; and girls were routinely seized and held as sexual slaves by much older men.

Religious, moral and legal governors of sexual behavior are relatively recent innovations. They are only a few thousand to a few hundred years old, and there are plenty of places left in the world where they either remain unknown, non-practiced or are ignored. Just yesterday I sat in on a heart-breaking briefing on the current state of world-wide human trafficking, much of it driven by the sex-trade. My wife, Cheryl, is in training now to be a counselor to victims of child sexual abuse. She’ll tell you just how devastating and life-long these injuries are to soul, mind and body.

All this to say that human sexual behavior cannot be left to simple impulse. Human beings are built for a certain kind of sexual interaction. The body’s architecture alone makes that quite plain, but the soul and psyche even more so. Children are not built for sexual interaction with each other or with adults; and men are not built for sexual interaction with men, neither are women with women. And that grand result of God’s exquisite sexual design, the conception and bearing of children, can only happen between a male and female, wether through intercourse or in a test tube. It’s simple yet profound: It takes a daddy and a mommy to make a baby.

Let me remind everyone that there’s nothing new about what happened today at the Superior Court of the District of Columbia Marriage Bureau. In fact, it’s very old. Thousands of years ago, the world at the base of Mount Sinai looked very much like Indiana Avenue, NW, the street outside the Marriage Bureau office. Actually, it was far worse. On the Day of Pentecost, when the Christian Church was born at Jerusalem, Greco-Roman athletes competed in the nude and engaged in homosexual acts to titillate insatiably wild crowds. Worse, Roman men of stature kept wives to sire children by, but young boys as sexual play toys. Temple prostitutes were used and abused as an act of worship.

It was into this kind of moral abandon that the Jews first taught God’s moral code and Christians later were called to evangelize. Both remain our challenge today. It was this kind of sin-sick, miserably wretched, often shockingly coarse and even frightening world that “God so loved,” and to which He “gave His only begotten son.” (John 3:16) This is the solution to the backsliding of human culture. It’s not to cower, shrink back, denounce or scold, but to love with the love of God; it’s to make known the Truth that alone can “set you free.” (John 8:32)

If there’s anything to be disappointed about today here in the Nation’s Capital, it’s that we thought human progress had come so far, but, in fact, it has regressed. Should that surprise us? The preacher in Ecclesiastes doesn’t think so: “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9) This is why the wise Apostle would later write to us, “[L]et us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” (Galatians 6:9)

With the help of God, let us get on to the work at hand . . .

Rob +

Just got definite word the President will infringe on the sanctity of marriage and the family in tonight’s State of the Union address, when he asks Congress to repeal the so-called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy on homosexual behavior in the military. The proposal is a huge problem for morale and for the privacy of our men and women in uniform, not to mention for chaplains and even our relationship to other nations and cultures. Watch for my post on this after the State of the Union.

Rob +

Today I stood alone outside the All Souls Unitarian Church in Northwest Washington, DC, as inside Mayor Adrian Fenty signed into law so-called “same-sex marriage” for the Nation’s Capital. It was bitter-sweet. I expected others to be there, but nary a soul showed up to witness to the Truth about God-ordained “Holy Matrimony.” Still, it was a rich time of ministry. I prayed, read aloud the Scriptures about marriage to those going into the ceremony and later ministered to many as they exited.

In the taxi heading over from our ministry center, I asked the Lord to fill me with His love so I was sure to communicate that rather than condemn those who are so often deeply wounded people. Because of short attention spans and the very cold weather, I spent the better part of the time simply announcing, “Love is a gift from God, but marriage is reserved for a man and a woman.” God’s answer to my prayer was evident in the unusual exchanges I had. Most people paused, thanked me and went on their way. This was far different from the punches, cigarette burns, spitting and even urinating on that I’ve gotten in other similar situations. (Perhaps it’s that the new “law” made them feel empowered, I don’t know. Whatever it was, it made the whole exercise not only spiritually uplifting, but actually enjoyable.)

I did gently and respectfully confront the mayor as he left the building. He “thanked” me for sharing my opinion with him. What really made the day though, was when a self-identified “lesbian activist” engaged me in conversation. We talked about God’s will for human sexuality, marriage, the complementarity between male and female, and her long history of personal hurts and disappointments. As we talked, she admitted her sin (as I did), prayed with me and asked God’s forgiveness. She cried her eyes out and we hugged, promising to stay in touch by E-mail. It was blessed and beautiful.

I should also mention the horse-mounted police officer assigned to “keep an eye on me” said about what was going on inside the church, “This isn’t right.” He then thanked me for being there and doing what I did. My spirit bore witness with his that he was a fellow Christian believer. Please pray for all these people.

You can watch some of this in the videos soon to be posted below.

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