In light of Jennifer Knapp’s “coming out,” I am reprinting my testimony. The cause of homosexuality is ultimately far less important than what God says about it. (1 Corinthians 6: 9-11.)
If you have come to the Lord but still struggle with this, look to God. If you fall, repent. Don’t follow in the footsteps of Jennifer Knapp. She would be far better off giving her life to God, and truly obeying the Bible, than claiming a Christian faith while willfully disobeying the Lord’s clear instruction regarding homosexuality.
Christ can take this obsession from you. I am sorry, there is no place for sexual immorality in God’s Kingdom. This holds for unmarried heterosexuals as well.
We are living in Romans 1:24-32. Homospirituality is here. It wants entrance in every church, and this is what is beginning to happen. A Christless generation doesn’t have a clue. They have been raised on Will and Grace, and fed whatever poison pro-homosexual forces have placed on the education table.
A holy God waits. He sees what we do. He knows our hearts. And he knows our sin.
America has been judged.
Testimony:
That’s a pretty sad song Clay Aiken, Ray Boltz, and now Jennifer Knapp are singing. Their “coming out” is seen by many as a cause for celebration. But my wife and I are not celebrating. We have both repented of this sexual sin. We belong to Jesus Christ, and we rely on His Word.
When I was thirty eight years old, I was informed my father had AIDS. I discovered that he had had a secret life for decades. Once having learned this, much of his misery, his desperate drinking, and his fear and anger began to make sense. My father sobered up in his later years, went to a psychiatrist who convinced him homosexuality was normal, and died of AIDS in the late 1980s. He was in a coma the last three days, and I hold to the hope that Christ came to him.
While I hadn’t known about my father’s secret sin, he never knew about mine. In the early 1990s, I traveled to New York, prepared to fully commit myself to a lifestyle I never did feel right about. I could not seem to escape it. It was a demonic dimension of drag queens, transsexual bars, and drug and alcohol drenched nightclubs. While I am not purposely trying to provoke anyone, neither am I going to deny there is something very strong and very evil behind our nation’s ever-escalating celebration of sexual perversion.
The Lord in His mercy sent a Christian couple to the shelter where I was staying. They knew exactly what I was up to, and ministered powerfully to me. For years the Lord helped me as I fought this thing.
Until now, I have given my testimony and told how the Lord delivered me from being addicted to alcohol, heroin, and life on the streets. I have always been ashamed of the sexual sin that I have committed, and the enemy has used this as a weapon. So I have stayed silent, fearing rejection from my fellow believers.
My wife has waited patiently for me. “Hurry up,” she says, “let’s get on with it.” There is hope in Christ, and she is not ashamed. Time is short-and how times have changed. People are growing up being told that any kind of sexual sin is perfectly normal. Homosexuality and other offenses unto God are celebrated. We are truly in the time spoken about in Isaiah 5:20: Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
As His people, there must be no backing down. Homosexuality is sin, and all the sit-coms and pro-gay movies in the world cannot change that. Sin is sin, and it is appalling how some Christians ignore unmarried heterosexuals who attend church but blatantly live together. Know anybody like this?
Despite the world’s celebration of homosexuality, many do not want to be in such bondage. Here are some blunt but very encouraging words. According to 1 Corinthians 6:9-11:
Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
I don’t have all the answers. But I know the One who does.
Ok thanks man. I have asked many people who claim it is wrong and the only answer that seems to be given is that “The Bible says so”, or “someone said that God said” Sorry, but that just is not a satisfactory answer for me. I am just being honest.
Tim,
We live by the Word of God. The Lord sent Christ as the penal substitutionary atonement for our sins. Christ died and rose again
so that we do not have to suffer eternal torment. Christ did this out of love, and was sent by the Father who loved us enough to do this great thing. You can read this in Isaiah 53, prophesied by Isaiah five or six hundred years before Christ’s birth.
“But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon Him.” (Isaiah 53: 6)
He is a holy God who cannot look upon sin. A person who loves Him seeks to obey His commands. That, too, is in Scripture. Sin is defined by God, not by us.
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to theprince of the power of
the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)… (Ephesians 2: 1-5)
Tim, we seek to obey Him, and we do it imperfectly. When the Sovereign Lord through His Word makes clear something is a sin, nothing can change that. Not all the inventive emergent theology in the world can change the Truth of the Word.
Ok thanks, i read that article, but it doesn’t answer my question; “What is wrong with being gay?” it just says it is wrong. It does not seem to qualify anything. If you can answer in your own words that would be cool, if possible. I can wait for your response.Thx
Here is an article by Ken Silva on homosexuality. I am in agreement with Silva’s Biblical stand on this, and here is a link if you want to check it out. Ken Silva, like my friend Lyn, starts with Biblical Truth, and proceeds from there.
http://apprising.org/2009/05/12/homopression-is-at-least-as-bad-as-homophobia/
Thanks man, I look forward to your response when you have time.
Tim,
Your question deserves a thorough answer, which I do not have time for today. Homosexuality is one of many sins, and it is crucial to follow what God–the God of the Bible–has declared. We are to obey Him, and should want to please Him before all else. As you say you do, I also know many homosexuals who are kind people. That is not the issue. I will expand on this later.
I dont understand. What is wrong with being gay? I grew up around many gay people, they are just normal to me. Kind loving thoughtful people. I have met some nasty gay people and nasty straight people. I knew a guy at high school who was very mean and awful to everyone and mainly his girlfriend. Ten years later I saw him at a party and he was a changed person, really happy and polite and friendly, he finally had the courage to admit to the world that he was gay. If you think gay people are bad because it says that in the Bible – so what? I mean is that the only reason? what about your experience?
Praise the Lord! God is so awesome! I too was delivered from this bondage about 15 years ago, and I have had the best life since I came back to JESUS…CLEAN! He came to destroy the works of the devil and homosexuality is definitely one of the works of the devil! Very deceptive lifestyle…and like somebody else said…you feel like you are entangled and there’s no way out even if you want to get out you feel trapped! I remember a time when I was out with a bunch of friends at a restaurant and I saw some people come in that just got out of church, and they seemed so happy…I remember thinking to myself…”I wish that could be me, but I guess this is the way I’m supposed to be…” Talk about sad…that was the worst feeling in the world! BUT…BUT…BUT…PRAISE OUR ALMIGHT GOD, AND OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST…HE SET ME FREE!!! And no, it wasn’t overnight, and I couldn’t just do this thing halfway…it was all or nothing for me! I went to 5 bible studies a week, and then church in between…I was serious about getting free and STAYING free!! And I know it’s not easy for some people…BUT, BUT, BUT GOD! EVERYTHING is possible with my Jesus! My testimony is on the website “Lighting the Way” and “Faith Travels”…it’s titled “Under The Blood” All I know is I want to be so close to Jesus that HE is all people see when they look at me! I love Him so much for what He has done in my life! Psalm 40…He pulled me out of the miry clay…the pit of hell…and He put a new song in my mouth! (a little paraphrasing there, but you know what i mean)
I am a NEW CREATION…old things are passed away, BEHOLD ALL things become new! (2 Corinthians 5:17) Praise Jesus! Praise Jesus! Praise Jesus! Now that’s some hope right there! 
Ok, I better not take up any more room, I could talk about Jesus all night! God bless you all!
Your heart is hurting for sinners, and as I opened this up first thing this morning, now I know what I am to write.
Joetta Smith is a missionary in Africa. You can learn more at: http://www.missionsfortruth.com
May God bless you. I had a Christian friend who struggled with homosexuality because as a boy his mother divorced his father and she hated all men so much that it affected his concept of being a male. He used to invite me to go to some meetings for people who were coming out of this gay lifestyle or had come out of it. I attended many meetings and met many formerly gay people. The thing that always struck me was their deep gratitude to and love towards Jesus Christ for forgiving them and for bringing them out of that terrible bondage. I talked to so many former homosexuals and the stories they told me of their abuses usually in childhood just broke my heart. They weren’t excusing themselves, only facing what had happened that had caused them to take the wrong direction. These are men and women who desperately need love even if it is in the wrong way. I think the fact a gay person can’t stop sinning is because they really haven’t understood the love of Jesus Christ. He is not willing that any should perish but we are to come out of sin and stop being a part of this world and its evil practices. To say God made you a homosexual or that He wants you to be one is a horrible affront to God. One may SAY they have tried and done everything but bottom line is do they really WANT to stop sinning. The sad thing to me is that now with certain laws we are not even allowed to try to witness to and to help these misguided souls. Society is telling them THEY are NORMAL and those who don’t accept the gay lifestyle are the ones with a problem. My heart goes out to gay people, and it breaks my heart to see they are being told that it is okay….society, governments, calling evil good and good evil….I pray these souls who are so precious to God WILL see the lie and deception of the devil before it is too late. Sin is serious…if your right hand offends you cut it off, if your right eye offends you, pluck it out. We haven’t resisted sin to the shedding of blood. Sin is sin and God is holy and He does NOT compromise. If you sow to the flesh you will reap to the flesh.
God help all who are in bondage to this particular sin. I am not judging them, I am crying for them to come out as fast as they can and do whatever is necessary to stop being involved. When we have the Holy Spirit of God we will have the strength to resist…greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world.
Thank you and your wife for your testimony. God bless you.
Thank God 4 that great testimony and i shout praise the Lord for snatching you from the pit of hell.
God desire is for sinner to come to Jesus and repent of there sins especially the sin of homosexual. The lord hate it and desires that all who are involve in homosexual should repent and forsake there sin and they will receive forgiveness of their sin and Holy Spirit will give you the grace to over the spirit of homosexualism. For Jesus is coming soon to jugde every work one has done whether good or bad. So every homosexual repent and ask the Holy Spirit to sincerely help them. God bless you all in Jesus name. Amen.
I am a Christian and married to a good man, though not a Christian himself. For the past six years, I have been beset with same sex attraction, which at first worried my husband and then was accepted by him. This culminated in me forming a relationship with a woman, through the inter net. Eventually of course, we wanted to meet and have a physical relationship. My husband was prepared to collude in this and arrangements were made that I would tell people that I was going on a training course for work.
Thanks be to God! He laid it on my heart that I could not lie to our daughter about where I was going and that I did not want my husband to have to lie to her either. I cancelled my arrangements with my same sex friend and ended our friendship too. I actually knew that I couldn’t hurt Jesus that deeply by having sexual relations with a woman.
You see, I think at the end of the day I thought that I could hide an area of my life from judgement by others and even from judgement by God. But it was a vain hope and an evil thing that I was getting involved in. I once heard a christian woman, who had walked away from homosexuality, talk about the ‘sin that entangles.’ I was entangled and it was hard to walk away from the attention that my same sex friend gave me. When I ended the relationship, the recriminations form her were deep and hard to take and I felt guilty for hurting her. But I thoroughly believe that my purity before the Lord and my obedience to him are paramount to my future happiness and to the work that the Lord can use me for in this life to help others.
Leslie,
We have to proceed from Scripture. It is the Word that we live by. My wife and I are very much in love, and it was the Lord who gave her to me.
Would you take the time to read this testimony from my friend, Lyn? If not for this sister’s boldness, I would never have taken the hard stand I have taken. http://iamhis-lyn.blogspot.com/2008/11/my-testimony-up-until-fall-of-2003-i.html (If this link doesn’t work, go to the right hand column, and the first thing on my blogroll says, A Bold Testimony. Click there.
Leslie, I am in disagreement with some who expect every homosexual to automatically change into a heterosexual once they come to the Lord. He is God, and all is in His timing. I think one of the most damaging things is to treat a struggling homosexual differently than a struggling heterosexual (I am speaking of those who sincerely do not want to sin, and are fighting their way out of bondage).
The Lord can and does deliver.
Go and sin no more, Christ told a sinner.
May He guide you and bring you to Him.
John
I have considered what you said… And I know that I am a sinner, as in I have lied, cheated, stolen, lusted, and so on… I just don’t agree with my homosexuality as a sin…. The reason being I have done everything in my power to not be gay… I have gone to counselors, church camps, prayed, lied and stayed in the closet… I even remember as a little girl… I think I was ten, my mom was tucking me in when I was going to sleep… I started crying and i told her I didn’t want to be a lesbian… And of course she had no idea what I was talking about… so she just told me that I wasn’t and that I had nothing to be afraid of… And it still happened… I have prayed too… You think that I wanted the life of being hated by others just because I was desperate to be gay? Please rethink that… After I came out my mother freaked out and put me to work to change my sexuality and I did everything I could to please her, my dad, my brother, the world and God…. Eventually I just stopped talking about my feelings because it was like no one understood that I wasn’t meaning to be different…. So I turned to alcohol as way to deal…. When I was seventeen I overdosed and was dead for five minutes until the EMT’s revived me…. I continued to use and abuse alcohol after that… And it wasn’t until this last year at the age of 23 when I got a DUI that I realized how much I was hurting myself and the people around me from hiding who I am… So I have been sober for a year now and have had to deal with what God has planned for me… I no longer talk to my parents because they just don’t want that part of me… You see I don’t believe that me being gay is what defines me… But I do believe that what I go through with it does… Just like when a straight person likes someone they would like to share it with their family and friends… In the straight world it is a lot easier… Well my parents don’t want that part of me…. So therefore they don’t want me…. And I have had to come to accept that…. But I see where you are coming from on the fact that the Bible does say those things… But the Bible has a list of things that we are not supposed to do that people do… Like why in the world are there Red Lobsters if we aren’t supposed to eat shell fish? And I am sure that you have probably eaten some lobster before and haven’t repented every time you have done so… And another thing, why do I feel as though I have God in my life, even though you think I don’t because I don’t think being gay is a sin? I have sinned before and I would agree that God can free you from those things… But I don’t think He is trying to free me from homosexuality… God is love and I am pretty sure he made me this way… And trust me that I have repented for it and it is still in my life… I can tell you one thing though… God did take me away from hiding who I am…. And that was a bigger blessing in my life then placating to my parents and people around me just to make sure that they loved me…… God has shown me… ME!! The good, the bad, and the ugly…. And I have grown so much… God bless Him for that… I am truly blessed…. I appreciate that you are trying to protect me from being ” Hell Bound,” but I don’t think I am…. I have faith that God has a plan for me and that He see’s me….. So what is your story? I am truly interested… I would like to know how God freed you from homosexuality and why He didn’t for me… Is your relationship with your wife true? Is it true to who you are and is it true to who she is? If so I am happy for you and for her…. God Bless!
Leslie,
Thank you for taking the time to write. We should start from Scripture–what does God say? I know you are already familiar with these Scriptures, such as 1 Corinthians 6: 9-10. “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the Kingdom of God.”
Then we learn, “Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6: 11)
Salvation is a matter of faith and grace. You cannot earn it. It is a gift freely given. But Salvation is the narrow path. It is obedience. My friend, submit to Jesus Christ. Not your version or any other custom made version. Sex outside of heterosexual marriage is a sin.
1 John 1: 8-10 tells us, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.”
If we continue in sin and are unrepentant, it is an indication that there has been no Salvation. Leslie, this is the God of all creation. Fear God, and become clothed in His righteousness through Jesus Christ.
I love you, my friend, and hope you will consider what I have said.
I am a Christian who happens to be attracted to the same sex…. And I don’t believe the feelings I have for my same sex are a struggle… I think the struggle is that I have CHOSEN to be a Christian, even though I am very understood… I would say that God does do His work through me and I am very faithful…. I no longer speak to my family… They don’t really want anything to do with me because I am a lesbian… They rejected me, and I still have faith in God and his work… I don’t believe that all gay people do is sleep around, I don’t believe that our intentions are to disguise bad with good or good with bad or whatever… I have been in-love before just as a straight woman has…. I also have been hurt, just as a straight woman… I have feelings, desires, faults, confusions, just as every human being… I have been attracted to woman as long as I can remember… Is it wrong to believe that God might have created me that way?…… In reality, FEAR is the real killer of human kind…. And quite honestly, as a homosexual, I can understand the FEAR that dwells in the gay community…. Not too many straight people are kicked out of their house for being straight… Not too many straight men are killed for giving a valentine to a girl they have a crush on… Not to many straight woman have to feel ashamed for believing that someday they would like to fall in- love with the man of their dreams and start a family… There are certain things that create fears in people… Like if they feel that they wont be able to love or be loved… That is a major fear that can drive someone to do sinful things like lie in order to manipulate “love,” steal in order to feel power, cheat, kill, etc. Whatever the case may be we want love, and when there is fear that we might not get it, we sin!! Many gay men and straight men, not all, sleep around, in hopes of finding that love. We all know straight men brag about their conquests!! Sometimes they even LIE about how many women they have been with. Drugs are also sometimes associated with the gay community… I personally don’t do them, but its because I believe in living in my own truth, but I can see why it’s hard to live in your truth when your truth doesn’t offer much hope… And all the hope that a homosexual wants from their parents, friends, church, and self is the reassurance that they too are loved… Is it so hard to tell your homosexual child that they are welcome in your lives no matter what?… Is it so hard to tell your homosexual friend that their feelings are just as valid as your own?…… Is it so hard for a pastor to tell a homosexual within the church that they also have a chance to sit beside God the moment they die?… I’m lucky, you see, because I didn’t buy into the side that told me I was worthless and was going to hell or needed to change, the average Christian side, and I also didn’t buy into the side that told me to hide, sit in shame, and also reject myself, the average homosexual side…. NO!! I bought into God’s side of things… I have Jesus in my heart and I know I will always have trials and tribulations, but I know that God is right next to me through all of it and sometimes He even carries me… He has aloud me to be weak so many times so that He could be strong for me, which then I have become stronger…. He has chased me down so many times that I have tried to run, and shown me the beauty that he created in me… Through all the things I have been through in my life, God never let me become bitter!! I still know how to cry, I still know how to laugh, I still know that I can have my dreams. Because God does know my heart, He created it, I will follow what He wants for me… And my heart wants to be with a woman not a man, and I want kids; I want the simple life… And I’m not going to apologize for wanting to share that life with a member of the same sex!!!! Give hope, truth, and acceptance to the people around you. A lot of the sin in the world could be avoided if we did this… Thank you all for taking the time to read this… I hope, at least, you can understand God’s love in my life!! God Bless!
This is more of a question than a comment or maybe both….I can’t understand christians, or so they say they are, who still continue to blatantly continue in this sin . First of all I really do not understand it and secondly I can’t imagine someone desiring sex with someone of the same gender…Then after you have been saved still continuing in that sin…Doesn’t the HOLY SPIRIT bring conviction upon them? I know that when I let some swear words slip out I immediately feel conviction–that doesn’t mean I am perfect but to even tell a white lie brings that uncomfortable feeling……Just trying to understand…Thank You
I want to add my encouragement and appreciation to that of the others who have commented. It is so heartening to hear how the Lord is working in your life!
We, the true Body of Christ, NEED to be filled with the love He has for the lost. Homosexuality is a horrible besetting sin, but so is alcholism, gambling, lieing, stealing, gossiping, gluttony ect. Jesus died for each and every one of us no matter what kind of sin(s) we are trapped in. He is able to deliver and glorify Himself in us. Is that not truly amazing?!!!!
I love you in the Lord Jesus and am so thankful to you for for sharing your testimony. May He bless you richly and, through your obedience to His call, save many, many precious people!
Holy is our God. Thank you.
this is amazing.
i serve in a christian organization and from time to time i work with new people and its so sad to see some that show love but when confronted with homosexuality the truth just would not come out.all that come is to show love, and don’t get me wrong, lets love but love enough to tell everyone the truth.
tell the truth in love. because it rejoices with the truth.
thank you so much again.
this is amazing.
i serve in a christian organization and from time to time i work with new people and its so sad to see some that show love but when confronted with homosexuality the truth just would not come out.all that come is to show love, and don’t get me wrong, lets love but love enough to tell everyone the truth.
tell the truth in love. because it rejoices with the truth.
thank you so much again.
I appreciate your testimony. Shame and guilt are tools of the enemy. But Salvation and mercy, restoration, reconciliation… yeah!! that’s Our Lord!!
Praise God. Praise our Lord Jesus!
Keep telling the truth and may our Lord continue to use you in His Kingdom…to set the captives free!
I have not suffered with this temptation, but have had other carnal bondages to deal with. Thank you for speaking out: so many wish to deny your transformation. It boils down to there being many ways to fall short of the glory of God. Though we struggle to reach His standard we dare not pooh-pooh or diminish it. There is truly an eternal hell to shun – don’t hear much about that either, do we? Press on with your calling. God will use it mightily.
This was wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing this with people, God bless you and may God increase the ministry you have to hurting people who were just like you, I believe God will use this to bless so many people!
My sister, it was your testimony that spurred me on.
What a mighty and merciful God we serve! He has delivered you, and me, from the bondage of sexual perversion. It is heartbreaking to hear anyone say they are both ‘Christian’ and ‘homosexual’; it doesn’t get any more deceptive than that. These are very dark days indeed, may God have mercy as His judgments are rapidly approaching. The full force of His wrath is very, very soon to be unleashed on a wicked world that embraces sin of every/all kinds.
Thank you for sharing this, to God be the glory. I love you and your wife dearly and look forward to the day when we will all meet…until then, blessings to you my dear brother in Christ.
Lyn
Thank you. I am not brave. I used to shake with fear about people knowing what I had repented of. But the Lord is kind, and merciful, and He has even gotten me through that.
I salute you in Christ. You are a brave man, and I praise God for the work He is doing through you.