And He answered and said, "Have you not read, that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this cause a man shall leave His father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall be one flesh."- Matthew 19: 4, 5

When God created the heavens and the earth, He set everything in perfect order. Sin entered and distorted the perfection that God had ordained. God created man to be with the woman, and the woman with the man. The spirit of rebellion always seeks the opposite of the will of God, whether we care to admit it or not.

There are those who have embraced Christianity who are practicing lifestyles that are not in accordance to the word of God. To these brothers and sisters who claim to be in Christ, I would say to you; there are no special privileges afforded to you. You have come under Christ's Lordship and what He requires of His children, He also requires of you. He has called us all to take up our cross, follow Him and die to ourselves.

If you are truly Christ's, then you must be willing to lay all that you are upon the altar of spiritual sacrifice. You must be willing to let Him change you into the person He wants you to be. He is committed to your transformation into the image of Christ and the perfect will of God and it is not God's will for you to remain in a lifestyle that He has not ordained.

Do not mock God with your lifestyle. You will eventually reap what you sow (Galatians 6:7). When we walk in willful disobedience to the word of God, we shut the door to many blessings including deeper intimacy and fellowship with Jesus.

I read a testimony from a Messianic Jew who is gay. He said very simply, “I am gay, but I do not practice it because my Lord does not like it.” This person genuinely loves God. Jesus said, “If a man loves Me, he will keep My words – John 14:23.

You know that God loves you. Do you love Him enough to give Him your sexual idols? Don't cling to your old clay beads when God wants to replace them with diamonds.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood…. Ephesians 6:12

To those who are struggling in the bondage of sin and want to get free but you feel you are fighting a losing battle because of constant failures, God wants to remind you of something. You are also wrestling against unseen forces, demonic entities that have existed in your linage for untold ages. They have entered into you at infancy to make the abnormal seem normal (Mark 9:21). Their goal is to cause you to function in opposition to the word of God.

You have been given all the power you need to defeat them in Christ, but it is a wrestling match and the victory will be secured on your knees. You are not alone. Jesus is kneeling beside you in your own garden of Gethsemane. Be as determined to win over your inner enemies as they are to destroy you. Your desire to overcome them is the first step of victory.

Persevere and be dependent upon the Lord to strengthen you. If you ask for strength He will give it to you (Luke 11:10). If you fail, repent. Repentance is the door you can open that will flood you with cleansing grace and another brand new beginning. Come boldly to the Throne of Grace (Hebrews 4:16).

Don't be discouraged if it takes a long time, even years before you receive your deliverance. Keep fighting. Resist the devil and he will flee (James 4:7).

The Lord is suffering with you and He cannot wait to place upon your head the crown of overcoming victory.

Copyright 2003 by H.D. Shively