by Wayne Andre
A
T CREATION, man was made in the likeness of God and, as such, was complete. Although complete, man was alone, so God placed Adam in a deep sleep, removed a part of Adam (a rib), and created woman. The removal of a portion of himself left Adam unbalanced because a part of him was missing. Thus, God instituted marriage as the means by which the man, and the woman whom God had separated from the man, could come together in physical union as “one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). This is God’s plan, and it cannot be improved upon! However, now more than ever, God’s marriage plan is being rejected. Secular culture pressures us to accept “same-sex marriage”—two persons of the same gen- der coming together in an emotional and physical union—as being as valid as the union between man and woman. This produces obvious difficulties for anyone who believes the Bible is the inspired Word of God.
At creation, God instructed man and his wife to “be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis 1:28 NKJV). Two women or two men in union cannot obey this command. Nor can such a union bring a return of the wholeness
COUNTERFEIT
MARRIAGE
as gender-identification deficits.” Nicolosi tells a story of two homosexuals observing a beautiful woman as she passes by. One says to the other, “It is times like these that I wish I were a lesbian!” This man had a nor- mal attraction for the woman, but because of his disorder, he thought that the only way he could pursue a relationship with her was to be of the same gender! More often than not, homosexual tendencies as well as heterosexual promis- cuity are the result of alienation from, or rejection by, individuals [often the parent] of the same gender. In my case, I came from a very dysfunctional home. Both my brother and I experienced the same abuse and rejection, although we responded differently. He became a womanizer; I became a homosexual.
Homosexuality is the manifestation of a deeper issue. Sin always manifests itself
“Neither my homosexuality nor my brother’s womanizing was the real problem; these were the manifestations of sin based on how we chose to respond to it.”
that man knew in the beginning, since a rib was not removed from another man for the man or from another woman for the woman.
My personal testimony is that I lived for more than 20 years in the homosexual lifestyle until I was saved and delivered by Jesus Christ. I was not born a homosexual. Nobody is born a homosexual—God never created someone to be a homosexual. A well-known psychologist, Dr. Joseph Nicolosi, believes the underlying cause of homosexuality is individuals attempting to “‘repair’ unmet same-sex affective needs (attention, affection, and approval) as well
16 EVANGEL • JUNE 2010
in the area where an individual is the weakest. It is like a tree. To remove a tree, you can’t simply deal with its branches; you must dig deep and deal with the roots. Just as with every other dysfunc- tion, the root cause of homosexuality is sin. Neither my homosexuality nor my brother’s womanizing was the real prob- lem; these were the manifestations of sin based on how we chose to respond to it. Nearly 23 years ago, my former partner and I walked into Metropolitan Church of God in Birmingham, Alabama, where Raymond Culpepper was pastor. The church didn’t know how to deal with
us, or we with them. But Pastor Culpepper preached the gospel and shared the love of Jesus. He didn’t condemn us, but he also didn’t compromise the truth. Neither did he say, “We hate the sin, but love the sinner.” Don’t ever say that! When you do, the sinner only hears the “hate the sin” part, and will believe that, in reality, you hate him or her because of the sin. At that juncture, they cannot see them- selves apart from their lifestyle (their sin). Only the conviction of the Holy Spirit can bring them to see the difference. The love of Christ and the conviction of the Holy Spirit brought me to a saving knowledge of Jesus, and the bondage was broken! Twenty-one years ago, I was joined in marriage to a beautiful woman of God. The word commitment took on a whole new meaning. When I began to live out the words “I do,” it was a new revelation of what God’s plan for life is all about. For the first time, I was complete. Being mar- ried to this wonderful woman is the most rewarding part of my life! God has blessed me to become a faithful husband and father, and to serve as co-director of Free My Children Ministries, where we have a greater than 80 percent success rate in ministering to homosexuals who wish to be set free to become what God intended them to be.
Today, I live in the joys of a biblical family, instead of being enslaved by a counterfeit marriage.
Wayne Andre is co-director of Free My Children Ministries in Birmingham, Ala- bama, and a member of Metropolitan Church of God.
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