Affirmation of The Nashville Statement

      

            Over the last few weeks our nation has experienced great loss and tragedy! Our hearts and prayers are with the people affected by Hurricane Harvey and the catastrophic flooding in Houston and the surrounding areas as recovery efforts are still under way. In the midst of our nation that, according to the media, is divided and seemingly collapsing I've witnessed heartwarming and encouraging acts of bravery, heroism, and love in the midst of this tragedy between all races and walks of life because there's neither rich nor poor, black or white, old or young, or legal or illegal when lives are in the balance! While we've all been consumed with Charlottesville, statues, Harvey, and Houston a great victory for the Church in America has been won. There's still some sanity, common sense, and Godly fervor amongst the remnant of true born-again believers who call this great country home. Maybe you've heard it in passing, maybe you saw an article title about it, or maybe you have no idea what I'm talking about but while we were focused on other things The Coalition for Biblical Sexuality which is derived from The Coalition for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood submitted a defining statement that is now known as The Nashville Statement. Today, as a signer of affirmation to The Nashville Statement, along with such men as Al Mohler, John MacArthur, James White, and the like, I would like to go through it's fourteen articles in greater detail and present why I think every born-again Christian MUST hold to these Biblical principles. There will be a link at the end to the Nashville Statement website where you too can sign. Let's get started......

Article 1 

WE AFFIRM that God has designed marriage to be a covenantal, sexual, procreative, lifelong union of one man and one woman, as husband and wife, and is meant to signify the covenant love between Christ and his bride the church. 

WE DENY that God has designed marriage to be a homosexual, polygamous, or polyamorous relationship. We also deny that marriage is a mere human contract rather than a covenant made before God.

            What a truth that is lost, not just in our culture, but in the church! So many "christians" today will scream at the top of their lungs against homosexuality but as a whole have been silent for the last fifty years concerning divorce, premarital sex, birth control, and sin in general. Marriage is a covenant between the participants and God. A vow of life long, procreative union between one man and one woman! Our state owned culture have subsidized marriage to the state and have, in so doing, created a society that views marriage simply as a contract that can be nullified at any moment for any reason! If two "christians" can choose to divorce because of ANY other reason than what Christ stated (Adultery or Death) then I seriously doubt that those two understand Grace and is a great indicator that they are not born-again believers. That may sound harsh but how can we love God whom we haven't seen when we can't love the most intimate love of our lives?

Article 2 

WE AFFIRM that God’s revealed will for all people is chastity outside of marriage and fidelity within marriage. 

WE DENY that any affections, desires, or commitments ever justify sexual intercourse before or outside marriage; nor do they justify any form of sexual immorality.

             It's not how you feel but what is real! Purity inside and outside of marriage! With our sexually engrained society sex has been reduced from a gift from our creator to a cheap thrill whose joy fades ever so quickly! 

Article 3 

WE AFFIRM that God created Adam and Eve, the first human beings, in his own image, equal before God as persons, and distinct as male and female. 

WE DENY that the divinely ordained differences between male and female render them unequal in dignity or worth.

            For some reason this statement is so hard for this society to grasp and understand. Let me get personal with you for a moment, my wife is an extension of myself. I COULD NOT fulfill the purposes God has laid down in my life without her! But, we are different, very different. We're different, not just in biological sex, but in the way we think and process things, the way we manage, our strengths and weaknesses, and so much more! We ARE different yet equal, why is this so hard to grasp? She can do things that I only dream of and I the same! I affirm Complementarianism, God created us that way and revealed it's truth in His Word and is a picture of Christ and the Church!

Article 4 

WE AFFIRM that divinely ordained differences between male and female reflect God’s original creation design and are meant for human good and human flourishing. 

WE DENY that such differences are a result of the Fall or are a tragedy to be overcome.

            Sin shattered the perfection of creation but the distinctions between male and female were before the fall and a part of God's perfect creation. 

Article 5 

WE AFFIRM that the differences between male and female reproductive structures are integral to God’s design for self-conception as male or female. 

WE DENY that physical anomalies or psychological conditions nullify the God-appointed link between biological sex and self-conception as male or female.

            As following the last statement's summary, creation's perfection was shattered in the garden thus abnormalities are guaranteed but this in no way negates the truth that in the beginning God created them male and female!

Article 6 

WE AFFIRM that those born with a physical disorder of sex development are created in the image of God and have dignity and worth equal to all other image-bearers. They are acknowledged by our Lord Jesus in his words about “eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb.” With all others they are welcome as faithful followers of Jesus Christ and should embrace their biological sex insofar as it may be known. 

WE DENY that ambiguities related to a person’s biological sex render one incapable of living a fruitful life in joyful obedience to Christ. 

            All life has worth! That statement is lost in this society drowned in materialism and post modernism! This truth is most evident at every abortion clinic in this country!

Article 7 

WE AFFIRM that self-conception as male or female should be defined by God’s holy purposes in creation and redemption as revealed in Scripture. 

WE DENY that adopting a homosexual or transgender self-conception is consistent with God’s holy purposes in creation and redemption. 

            God's law of creation which makes this world intelligible, which gave rise to the modern scientific method have come under attack and are set to destroy reality as we know it! Up is up and down is down and just the same male is male and female is female!

Article 8 

WE AFFIRM that people who experience sexual attraction for the same sex may live a rich and fruitful life pleasing to God through faith in Jesus Christ, as they, like all Christians, walk in purity of life. 

WE DENY that sexual attraction for the same sex is part of the natural goodness of God’s original creation, or that it puts a person outside the hope of the gospel. 

            We are ALL born with the inclination to sin. Not just the inclination but the guarantee that we all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God! We have ALL sinned in Adam! This truth is evident in our corrupt nature from birth, lying, manipulating, all for our own selfish gain from day one! We are dead in our trespasses and sins and are all gone astray, none of us seek truth and this culminates in such a rebellious nature that we dare to cry against God and live our lives in complete contradiction to God's design! Same sex attraction is evidence of man's shattered image in sin and can only be overcome through Christ and His blood!

Article 9 

WE AFFIRM that sin distorts sexual desires by directing them away from the marriage covenant and toward sexual immorality— a distortion that includes both heterosexual and homosexual immorality. 

WE DENY that an enduring pattern of desire for sexual immorality justifies sexually immoral behavior. 

            Let us refer back to our statement on article 8 and simply add this, just because I want to doesn't meant I'm meant to!

Article 10 

WE AFFIRM that it is sinful to approve of homosexual immorality or transgenderism and that such approval constitutes an essential departure from Christian faithfulness and witness. 

WE DENY that the approval of homosexual immorality or transgenderism is a matter of moral indifference about which otherwise faithful Christians should agree to disagree. 

            This is ABSOLUTELY a hill to die on! We MUST stand and swing the Sword of the Lord which is His divine Word! God's truth doesn't change and to affirm let us hear from the words of our Lord Jesus Christ from the Gospel of Matthew "And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?"

Article 11 

WE AFFIRM our duty to speak the truth in love at all times, including when we speak to or about one another as male or female. 

WE DENY any obligation to speak in such ways that dishonor God’s design of his image bearers as male and female. 

            We must never give in to the insanity of this society. We must never let this culture push us out of reality and deny our right to speak truth. One who believes themselves to be of another sex as what they were biologically assigned may call themselves whatever they please as their reality is already distorted but that in no way makes it my responsibility or requirement to join in with their delusion and refer to them with the pronoun that I know they are not for that would make me a liar which God is not pleased with!

Article 12 

WE AFFIRM that the grace of God in Christ gives both merciful pardon and transforming power, and that this pardon and power enable a follower of Jesus to put to death sinful desires and to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. 

WE DENY that the grace of God in Christ is insufficient to forgive all sexual sins and to give power for holiness to every believer who feels drawn into sexual sin. 

            There is NOTHING greater than the Grace of Jesus! From our perspective, no one is beyond salvation and we should treat every person with that dignity and with the assumption that they too will  hopefully surrender to Christ and become a child of God! 

Article 13 

WE AFFIRM that the grace of God in Christ enables sinners to forsake transgender self-conceptions and by divine forbearance to accept the God-ordained link between one’s biological sex and one’s self-conception as male or female. 

WE DENY that the grace of God in Christ sanctions self-conceptions that are at odds with God’s revealed will. 

            Once again, there is NOTHING greater than Grace. We are saved FROM our sins! God's saving grace is not only capable and sufficient but perfect in it's action, God's grace delivers! With that said, we are God's means as messengers and ambassadors of the Gospel and as such it is our duty to disciple, teach, lead, hold accountable, and graciously forgive those whom God is sanctifying as presented in spiritual fruit in their lives.

Article 14 

WE AFFIRM that Christ Jesus has come into the world to save sinners and that through Christ’s death and resurrection forgiveness of sins and eternal life are available to every person who repents of sin and trusts in Christ alone as Savior, Lord, and supreme treasure. 

WE DENY that the Lord’s arm is too short to save or that any sinner is beyond his reach.

            I believe this is the perfect summary of the church! Though we MUST proclaim hard truths in the face of resistance, God's grace is still saving the lost and using fallen men to preach the Gospel by the power of the Holy Spirit who has, on the other end, prepared the heart of the unbeliever to receive the good news of the Gospel and be saved and transformed by the renewing of their mind by the Word of God! WOW! What a reassuring truth in the midst of all the division and calamities we presently face as a nation and as The Church! May we hold fast to the truth we possess, never wavering and present this pure truth in love to all we cross paths with! Go into all the world and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost! God Speed!

Please click this link to The Nashville Statement