Last Friday (June 26, 2015), five of the nine Justices who serve on the Supreme Court of the United States decided regarding James Obergefell v. Richard Hodge “that same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry” (p. 27 of 103) and “same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry in all States (p. 28).”
Since then, several friends have asked, “What are the implications of this decision for Hope Community Church?” Fortunately, our Elders and Leadership Council have prayed, discussed, searched the Bible and came to unity last summer on two clear implications, which I relayed during our all-church meeting this past Sunday, June 28. For those of you who were unable to join us here is a summary of what I shared on behalf of Hope’s Board of Elders.
- Jesus commands us to love our neighbors (Matthew 22:39). His servant Paul, when addressing a moral issue of his day, rhetorically asks, “What have I to do with judging outsiders?” (I Corinthians 5:12a, ESV) So, as disciples of Jesus who are are learning to become more like our Lord, here is implication #1: Like Jesus, we will love, serve, listen to, care for, pray for and relate with our neighbors regardless of whether they agree or disagree with Jesus and his way for living. Further, like our Lord, we will not be unkind, avoid, criticize, or condemn our neighbors based on whether or not they agree with God and what we believe His will “on earth as it is in heaven” should look like.
- Jesus made a declaration about marriage and here it is, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?” (Matthew 19:4–5, ESV) So, implication #2: Like Jesus, we affirm that God’s design and unchanging intent is for marriage to be a covenant between one man and one woman. Therefore, we will continue to officiate weddings and will use our facilities to host and sign civil wedding certificates for marriages that are consistent with this theological belief (i.e., one man with one woman). We will not officiate weddings or use our facilities to host or sign civil wedding certificates for marriages that are inconsistent with this theological belief (i.e., anything other than one man with one woman).
After our meeting and throughout this week there have been many great conversations acknowledging the high call we have to follow our Lord Jesus, whom John describes as “full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14 & 17, ESV) If you would like to gain more clarity on how we plan to move forward as a relational, disciple-making community within a rapidly changing culture, please connect with any of our Elders and/or leaders to continue the conversation.
With love and gratitude for each of you,
Dean
P.S. Congratulations Jay and Marti Oertli on your 50th wedding anniversary next weekend!