Who's the Bully?
It's incredibly disheartening to hear about all the recent suicides of homosexual teenagers as they give up on life after being bullied so intensely by fellow classmates in school. As with media, I'm sure this has been happening before the media started picking up the stories, but thank goodness the media and others have brought this to the attention of the public so we can be outraged at the mistreatment these students are enduring.
While I believe homosexuality is clearly wrong in the Scriptures and that all who come to the Lord must turn away from wickedness (2 Timothy 2:19), I also know that Jesus was a friend of sinners and came "not for the healthy, but for those who need a doctor." There is not one ounce of appropriate or godly behavior in bullying another human being. The true Christian is not a kamikaze but a martyr. The true Christian should be going out of their way to befriend the outcast and serve the broken-hearted. We know one thing from Scripture - God is especially close to the broken-hearted. We should be teaching our churches and youth ministries how to befriend the outcast and preaching against bullying.
However, I can't help but feel in all of this reporting on bullying if there is also not an underlying issue and a great disservice being dished out by some media outlets and celebrities. They are swaying public opinion to believe that we don't have a choice over our sexual preferences - that some people are born gay and genetically influenced to this lifestyle. In their agenda, they are the real bully. (see picture - other kids might be bullying at school, but this kid is up against a much bigger giant that is the real cause of his pain). They are going about it the wrong way, and this false idea is unintentionally bullying people around the world who desire change but are told they can never have it, and is one of the underlying roots swaying a generation of young bullies picking out certain classmates and labeling them based on the tone of their voice, their friendship choices and more - because they also have been told that these people cannot change.
We recently had a formerly gay man preach at our church. He is now married with kids (and grandkids on the way) and has preached around the world for 20 years since leaving this lifestyle. Later in the week a family friend who is a new believer asked my wife about this "man who's pretending not to be gay." This is what the well intended media has done to us - if someone talks in a different tone or has a past influence of homosexuality, they dub them and let the whole world know - THIS PERSON CANNOT CHANGE. Essentially saying there is no hope for them to change, even if they seriously desire to be different. I wanted to respond to this friend, "you mean your relative who's pretending not to be an alcoholic" because they have a past history with it. You can see how people might feel stuck and bullied when our culture is telling them they don't have a choice in one of the most personal, vulnerable aspects of their human existence.
One of the triumphant graces Christ brought to earth is that no matter what you face in life, you CAN change. No sin done against you or sin within you needs to have the last word. "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." (Romans 8:37).
