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'Winging It
by Stan Smith
I recently finished Rosaria Butterfield's The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert. This is not a review of the book. If you don't know who she is, she was a leftist, lesbian professor that despised Christians ... and then became one. Good story. She was redeemed and actually turned her life over to Christ. She has drawn a lot of fire from the LGBT community because she stopped being a lesbian and married a pastor. There was one part in her story, after she was a pastor's wife, that shocked me. It shouldn't have, but it did.
She wrote about talking to a woman at a church that was considering calling her husband to be the pastor there. The woman, not knowing Rosaria's testimony, asked what she thought they should do if a homosexual came into the church. Rosaria gave her a copy of her testimony. Later, the woman came back and told her she shouldn't tell anyone about her testimony and that she didn't know how to remain friends with her. (Not a quote; just the essence.)
I'm baffled at this. Isn't this the Pharisee and the sinner? "Thank you, God, that I'm not a sinner like that one." Aren't we all sinners saved by grace? Is there something particularly evil about homosexual sin that is worse than sins of pride, lust, greed, idolatry, or disobedience to parents? (I throw that last one in because on more than one occasion Paul does in his lists of sins (Romans 1:28-32; 2 Timothy 3:1-5).) When did we become "better than them" when it is two Christians in view? "Sure," the message seems to be, "we're saved by grace through faith, not of works lest anyone should boast ... but we can at least boast that we weren't as bad as some others." How is it that we pray for the souls and salvation of people and then balk when it happens? Why do we rejoice in God's grace and then think we may have earned it? How can it be that we expect everyone to view us as redeemed, forgiven, clothed in the righteousness of Christ, but do not expect to view fellow believers the same way? I don't understand.
The response of that Christian woman brought tears to my eyes. Here I was, reading the book, rejoicing in at all that God was doing in the life of "an unlikely convert", and all that woman saw was the sinner Christ didn't see anymore. Dear Lord, teach me to be gracious to my fellow redeemed sinners, to not minimize my sins and maximize everyone else's, to not think more highly of myself than I ought.
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I'm married with four grown children and (currently) four grandchildren. My wife and I live in sunny Phoenix by choice. I hope to encourage people with my words and to share with others what God has shared with me.
For more writings you can see my blog at birdsoftheair.blogspot.com.
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