Thanks to the internet, Facebook, and the twitterverse, the entire country knows about Kim Davis. It's amazing how a small town city clerk can become instantly famous (or infamous). A month ago, no one but her close family, friends, and coworkers knew who this person was. But, now, because of one decision, everyone knows who she is. Not only do people know who she is, but the internet and social media are exploding over the latest news that a judge has ordered her to spend time in jail until she agrees to do her civic duty and issue marriage licenses to gay couples.
This is a delicate situation because there are passionate feelings on both sides of the issue. This blog post is my response to Ms. Davis' decision to take a stand based on her religious convictions.
Let me start by saying that everyone who knows me knows where I stand on the gay marriage issue. I am a pastor of a church and I do not agree with gay marriage. I will always be against the idea, but I will never be against people. I will always be for people no matter what their situation, lifestyle, struggles, background, race, etc. I understand that Ms. Davis wants to stay true to what she believes in. I feel the same way because I want to stay true to what I believe in. But, I do not agree with her approach.
Ms. Davis has decided to make her decision a public spectacle, whether she meant for this to happen or not (but I think it's safe to assume that she had a good idea what would happen when she refused the couple in the first place). There are a few problems with her decision. The first problem is an obvious one, she, along with Christians in general, is coming across as judgmental. Jesus said in Matthew 7:1, "Do not judge or you too will be judged." It's amazing how many people use this verse that do not go to church at all. It's also amazing how little Christians listen to this verse. Christians have such a reputation today of being judgmental. Now, I will say this reputation is not fair in a lot of cases. But, in other cases, I would say it's pretty accurate. What we have done for too long is act like the moral police, attempting to change the moral decay of society one person or group at a time. But, is this what Jesus did? Did Jesus speak out against the moral decay of the first century? The answer is no. Jesus did not publicly speak out against the moral decay of the Romans nor the Jews. He did confront the religious leaders over their questionable morals, but he never publicly took political or moral stands. Rather, he preached the kingdom of God and the kingdom of God is all about a new life, salvation, change, etc. Jesus wanted people to come to him so that he could give them a new and better life. People could not change themselves; therefore, Jesus did not tell people to change their behavior. He told them to surrender. When we start preaching moralism we are going to end up as hypocrites. Ms. Davis has probably issued many marriage licenses to people. She has most likely issued some to couples whose moral behavior she would not agree with if she knew about it. Also, when we judge someone else for their faults, we better be sure we are perfect, which by the way we are not nor ever will be. Jesus also said in Matthew 7:3-5, "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Jesus basically said, "Don't walk around like the moral police. Surrender to me and then you will see what your brother needs; he needs me too."
The other problem with this decision is that it will not bring people closer to Jesus. I want to do everything I can to bring people closer to Jesus because I know that he is the only one who can fix what is broken in our human nature. He is the only one who can cover our sins. It's like when you find a good mechanic. You will recommend that guy to everyone you know because when your car is broken, he knows how to fix it and it's as good as new. I know what Jesus can do because he has done it in my life. Am I perfect? No. Am I perfect in God's eyes? Yes, but only because of Jesus. Let me be clear about one thing, I will never compromise what I believe in. Your response may be, "But isn't that the same idea behind Kim Davis' decision? She didn't want to compromise either." Compromise is to see the other side of an argument or disagreement and give in to demands from the other side. There are good compromises, but there are also bad ones. To do your job as a county clerk is not compromising beliefs. It would be like a Christian police officer who is assigned detail at a pride parade and refuses to stop a violent protester just because he does not believe in that lifestyle. That would be a public disservice and it would not honor God. A clerk who refuses to do her job because of religious convictions, pushing people away from Christ in the process, does not honor God. What would honor God is to do the job quietly, but pray for ways to be a light. I don't want that to sound over simplified; it is definitely easier said than done. That is why we need to pray and ask God to give us the wisdom to make the best decisions possible that will honor Him and not us.
Do you think Paul liked going to all the different Roman and Greek cities? Of course not! He was probably disgusted by what he saw. But, Christ had changed him and his eyes were open with love for his fellow human beings. He wanted to introduce people to Jesus rather than push them away. He did not want to change the morals of the Roman Empire; he wanted to see Jesus change the Roman Empire.
In saying all of this, does this mean that I would conduct gay weddings? No nor will I ever do that. I am a minister of the Gospel and I have to uphold what I believe in the Bible. For me to conduct a wedding is different than a clerk issuing a license. A clerk issuing a license is doing a job; a minister conducting a ceremony is showing full support for the couple of their future marriage, which I just cannot do. The one thing I will do is be about Jesus. I want to introduce people to him so that he can do the work of changing people's live not me. That's too much for me because I couldn't change myself. As followers of Christ, let us strive to be like him and bring people closer to him rather than push them further away.
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