I wish I had checked our online bulletin on Thursday so I could have posted sooner. Pastor Doug Batchelor sermon for Sabbath 8-30 is called “Gay Marriage: A State of Dis-Grace”. If you are home you can watch it live at Sacramento SDA LIve Sermon for Sabbath. We are Pacific time zone so it will be a little after 11:00.

Amazing Facts will soon have this sermon online but until then I have put the audio of it online at:

Gay Marriage: A State Of Dis-Grace

Avalee for alerting us of this most interesting message, which I tried to watch live, but kept being cut off, therefore, I will be downloading it.

I believe the Bible disallows and condemns gay and lesbian relations. However, what business does secular government have in disallowing it? It's discrimination.

I think I'm with MM on this one. It is against God's law, but that is for God's people to deal with. Let Caesar take care of his own business.

Now, if the govt can come up with a secular reason for disallowing it, then there's no problem. But morality is beyond its jurisdiction. The longer we stay true to that concept, the longer it will be before they tell us how to worship.

Mike,

One might also ask what business government has endorsing and supporting gay marriage. Certainly such immorality will bring God's judgment upon cities, and upon nations as well. It's a sign of the end times, just as it brought disaster upon Sodom & Gomorrah. Arnold's right, it's a moral issue. But I fear modern Israel is also implicated. Biblically, homosexuality is an abomination because it's outside of God's established order. (i.e. - He does not condone it by giving positive examples in the Word, but rather condemns it in various passages of Scripture, such as Romans chapter 1). Being out of order is rebellion. For this reason, churches which adopt a policy to place women in positions of leadership also enter into confusion, although approved as progressive by the world.

If God's people had been setting an example of order and righteousness for the world (these last hundred years or more), their influence in society would have turned the tide against immorality as the status quo. Our churches would not be circulating petitions for government to ban gay marriage. Adventists should instead repent that our own loose moral standards (of many stripes) have allowed this movement to come in like a flood. God placed us here to shed light on moral issues for the purpose of elevating the world by showing forth Christ. Seeking the powerful arm of the state to fulfill our mission pays homage to the methods of the Vatican.

I say we should be concerned about laws that go against God's own laws.

Should we not be concerned about the secular law makers that will one day make it legal to remove a certain group of people who will be accused of being the cause of the state of things such as in the "death decree"?

Sister White advocated uniting with other lobbying organizations in opposing laws which protected harmful health practices. I suppose one could include lobbying against gay marriages.

NOTE: IN THE EARLY SUMMER OF 1881 AT THE DES MOINES, IOWA, CAMP MEETING, A RESOLUTION WAS PLACED BEFORE THE DELEGATES WHICH READ: {Te 255.3}

"RESOLVED, THAT WE EXPRESS OUR DEEP INTEREST IN THE TEMPERANCE MOVEMENT NOW GOING FORWARD IN THIS STATE; AND THAT WE INSTRUCT ALL OUR MINISTERS TO USE THEIR INFLUENCE AMONG OUR CHURCHES AND WITH THE PEOPLE AT LARGE TO INDUCE THEM TO PUT FORTH EVERY CONSISTENT EFFORT, BY PERSONAL LABOR, AND AT THE BALLOT BOX, IN FAVOR OF THE PROHIBITORY AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION, WHICH THE FRIENDS OF TEMPERANCE ARE SEEKING TO SECURE."--REVIEW AND HERALD, JULY 5, 1881. {Te 255.4}

BUT SOME OBJECTED TO THE CLAUSE WHICH CALLED FOR ACTION AT "THE BALLOT BOX," AND URGED ITS DELETION. MRS. WHITE, WHO WAS ATTENDING THIS CAMP MEETING, HAD RETIRED, BUT SHE WAS SUMMONED TO GIVE HER COUNSEL. {Te 255.5}

WRITING OF IT AT THE TIME SHE SAYS: "I dressed and found I was to speak to the point of whether our people should vote for prohibition. I told them 'Yes,' and spoke twenty minutes."--Letter 6, 1881. {Te 255.6}
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Amazing Facts has done a quick job on getting this online. You can download the video.

Gay Marriage

I am sure most of you have already seen this website by now:

Adventists forProposition 8