By Pastor Phillip Lee

As an individual that spent many years in the considerable gay communities of Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City and Bakersfield, I remain concerned regarding the many inaccuracies being offered and reported endeavoring to promote the “gay is good” notion and the civil rights of gay men and women.

Clearly, the pro-gay agenda continues its attempts to change, influence and persuade public opinion that the practice of homosexuality (in any form or to any degree) is all about “civil rights.” Nothing could be further from the truth.

Today, more than ever, many within gay communities around the world now view and classify the conservative Christian who holds to the traditional and scripturally correct view that “the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching and conduct” as being politically incorrect, intolerant and homophobic. Ultimately, the crisis we face today is not about homosexuality or gay rights, but rather a “crisis of truth.” Undeniably, “truth is” and it matters greatly regarding homosexual practice and the promotion of gay civil rights.

“The gay agenda” is a phrase that implies a uniform social and political agenda shared by all homosexuals. It also implies there is something inherently wrong in having an agenda. Both points are untrue. There is great diversity among homosexuals, including political and social diversity. For that reason, no one agenda could be nor is it shared by all homosexuals, although it is fair to say there are some goals — same-sex marriage, acceptance of gays in the military and so on — that are common to the political gay rights movement, even if and when they are not shared by all homosexual people. However, to promote the idea that the gay community is a united front in terms of gay rights or even the word “gay” to denote homosexual practice is inaccurate and an illusion. Around the world there is great, great diversity within gay communities when it comes to the promotion of gay rights and homosexual practice.

Homosexuals, or anyone else for that matter, do not have the right to have no one disagree with them on the morality of homosexuality. Nor do they have the right to be free from “attitudinal discrimination” regarding their sexual orientation. But neither does anyone else have such a right.

Indeed, every citizen has a right to his or her own biases and prejudices, as long as they do not impinge upon the fundamental rights of another person or class. This is what it means to live in a society in which the freedoms of speech, religion (and belief) and privacy are guaranteed. Homosexuals have the right, as do others, to believe that homosexual behavior should be accepted as normal. They do not have the right to have everyone else agree with them.

by Pastor Phillip Lee

If you have been following The Bakersfield Californian Newspaper for the past several weeks or so, then you are fully aware of the numerous opinions and articles that have been printed about me and His Way Out Ministries. Articles and opinions that continue to surface primarily on-line and not just within The Bakersfield Californian Newspaper.

In October of 1985, I did not become a Christian to leave homosexuality. I became a Christian because The Gospel made sense. Thankfully, my pastors and numerous brothers and sisters in Christ, immediately instilled in me the command, calling and responsibility of being a witness for Christ, …and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem…and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Frankly, it hasn’t been a challenge  since …out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks (Luke 6:45). For me not to share freedom from homosexuality in Christ Jesus would be to deny Christ Himself.

Today, to be opposed to homosexuality has become the sin rather than homosexuality itself. Personally, I remain convinced that given everything that has transpired regarding homosexuality and the many related issues, and everything that continues to unfold given our present “crisis of truth,” we must refuse to be pressured by it all. We must not allow a minority or even a majority to dictate to us, The Church, what our standards will be. Our standards come from a higher authority.

Our present “crisis of truth” has not been about nor is it presently about homosexuality. The true crisis is about The Authority of Scripture and the Lordship of Christ. That said, I would be the first, having done so numerous times, to offer an apology to the gay community on behalf of the Body of Christ for the many ways The Church has mishandled the topic of homosexuality in not extending a redemptive hand. The Church must reach out in love and compassion with a message of forgiveness and the extension of grace to those who sin sexually, be it premarital, extramarital or homosexual activity. Those involved in sexual sin may be our brothers and sisters, our sons and our daughters. They need the help of The Church to know and follow God’s plan for bringing their sexuality under the Lordship of Christ.

Admittedly, these past several weeks have been more than intense. I am as human as the next. However, I am grateful the Holy Spirit has continued to show me just how much is at stake.

I will continue to hope and pray that we all will put the Word of God in its proper place. The 138th Psalm says, I will praise your name for your loving kindness and your truth, for you have magnified your word above your name. Obviously, God thinks highly of His name – but He has magnified His Word even above His name – and, so should we all.

Copyright © His Way Out Ministries

Today, no subject is more controversial or misunderstood than the subject of homosexuality. Both the Church and our culture remain divided on the issue with many crucial questions frequently surfacing such as:

How should parents and family members respond to gay loved ones? What does the Bible really say about homosexuality? How do we as a church show love to homosexuals without compromising biblical truth? What about gay rights?

We all found the time to be very meaningfully spent and your personal sharing and commentary on the issue of same-sex attraction, choices involved in terms of adopting a gay identity and pursuing gay life were very helpful in expanding our understanding of these complex issues. Pastor Dave Champness, Senior Pastor, River Lakes Community Church.

Teacher and educator on the complexities of homosexuality, Pastor Phillip Lee, has been addressing churches and conferences within the United States, the Caribbean and South America since 1994. He speaks on a variety of subjects specifically related to Christianity and God’s divine intent for human sexuality, including sexual purity, homosexuality, HIV/AIDS, discipleship, sexual and relational brokenness, and recovery and restoration.

Phillip has also designed seminars and workshops to equip pastors and lay counselors that offer Biblically-based answers as well as practical approaches. Phillip frequently speaks and addresses Sunday morning church services, and is often a guest on television and radio programs.

I was gratified by the degree to which we seem to see and understand these issues in a very similar manner. I am grateful to have gotten to know you and may God richly bless and use you and your ministry in the lives of many. Ian Boyne, Host of Religious Hard Talk, Kingston, Jamaica

Educational Workshops

His Way Out Ministries offers the following Biblically-based training and equipping workshops:

Homosexuality and the Reality of Change
Pastor Phillip Lee, Founder and Executive Director of His Way Out Ministries, brings a wealth of personal, as well as pastoral experience to this workshop. Pastor Lee will share his testimony, as well as discuss the questions: Can homosexuals really change? How long does change take? Will the person become heterosexual? How do I respond to pro-gay arguments?

The Myths of Homosexuality
If you’re like most Christians, you’re puzzled by homosexuality. You want to reach out in some way – but how? The first step is to become knowledgeable. This workshop helps clear up the many misconceptions most Christians have about homosexuality. Is homosexuality the worst of all sins? Is homosexuality genetic? Is homosexuality just a choice? Will marriage really fix a homosexual?

There’s Something I Need To Tell You! (When a Loved One Confesses They Are Homosexual)
What do you say and do when a loved one confesses they are homosexual? This workshop offers practical steps and information to help you understand your loved one, guidance to keep the lines of communication open without compromising your beliefs, and presents the biblical position on homosexuality.

Reaching Gay Youth
While the number of youth embracing homosexuality is alarming, there are many ways in which you can reach them. This workshop centers on why youth should question homosexuality and what role you can play in help bringing that about. What if people think I’m gay? Is there a difference between homosexual temptation and homosexual sin? How do I respond to the ‘born gay’ argument? What is the key to overcoming homosexuality?

Understanding Homosexuality
Is change possible? What causes homosexuality? Does God condemn a person for being attracted to members of their own sex? Is there a difference between homosexual tendencies and a gay identity? What are some of the battles each man and each woman will face in overcoming same-gender attraction? The workshop offers biblical and compassionate responses to homosexuality for parents, pastors, co-workers, a neighbor, or maybe just a good friend.

Homosexuality and the Church
The theological debate over what God’s Word says about homosexuality has become quite a phenomenon. Many concerns and questions must be addressed in churches wishing to reach out to homosexuals and their families. As a pastor, how do I lead our church to effectively love homosexuals? How do I introduce a gay-identified person to Christ? Is there a difference between the terms gay and homosexual? How does my church evaluate if we are handling homosexuality appropriately?

For more information about the above workshops or to schedule an educational workshop at your church, please contact His Way Out Ministries.

Dear Editor, Bakersfield Californian Newspaper (Community Voices),

In response to the article titled Pro-Life for All by Valerie Schultz, November 11, 2011.

Ms. Schultz concludes her article with “If we believe life is sacred, we must be life’s protectors.” These particular words compelled me to offer a reply since Ms. Schultz has frequently advocated, if not encouraged and validated, homosexual practice or what many refer to as “the gay lifestyle.” As an individual that knows all too well the realities of homosexual practice and combating the HIV virus since January of 1993, I am regularly alarmed by those that promote homosexual practice having never practiced the behavior or lifestyle themselves.

I remain convinced that an appropriate question to consider is: Are the qualities or consequences of homosexuality beneficial or detrimental to individuals? If homosexual behavior is essentially detrimental to an individual thereby greatly threatening the sanctity of life, then society has the responsibility to resist it, and certainly should not endorse it as acceptable.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) represent approximately 2% of the US population, yet are the population most severely affected by HIV and are the only risk group in which new HIV infections have been increasing steadily since the early 1990s. In 2006, MSM accounted for more than half (53%) of all new HIV infections in the United States, and MSM with a history of injection drug use (MSM-IDU) accounted for an additional 4% of new infections. At the end of 2006, more than half (53%) of all people living with HIV in the United States were MSM or MSM-IDU. Since the beginning of the US epidemic, MSM have consistently represented the largest percentage of persons diagnosed with AIDS and persons with an AIDS diagnosis who have died.

While AIDS is not solely a homosexual disease, the disease was confined almost exclusively to homosexuals in the beginning years of the epidemic in the United States. I personally witnessed this horrific tragedy unfold while living in San Francisco having several personal friends die of AIDS at the beginning stages of what is now a pandemic. Tragically, the reality and threat of AIDS has not stopped men from engaging in unprotected sex and the continued risk-taking by many does not appear to result from a lack of awareness.

There is, therefore, little to no evidence that homosexual practice can be anything other than a severe threat to the sanctity of life. That said, all efforts should and must continue to better understand and find a cure for AIDS and AIDS-related diseases. However, if the sexual behavior that is fundamental to most homosexual practice constitutes the primary means of transmitting such disease, then it only makes sense for society to do all it can to decrease such behavior which ultimately protects the sanctity of life.

Ms. Schultz states in her article, “Somewhere along the line, the hard work of Jesus to establish the Kingdom of God here on earth got softened.” I couldn’t agree more. Today, maybe more than ever, what matters morally should be determined on the basis of our best understanding about what constitutes human well-being. Those behaviors and lifestyles which promote physical health are to be encouraged, while those which are essentially injurious are to be avoided.

For each and every faithful follower of Christ, all life is sacred and to be celebrated. As society and the Church continues to ascertain the rightness or wrongness of homosexual practice, I will continue to hope and pray that more will consider the undeniable facts regarding the effects of homosexual practice which often greatly impacts if not reduces the longevity and sanctity of life.

Is it possible the reason God has been so specific in His Word about not practicing certain behaviors is because He is doing His utmost to protect us from unseen dangers?

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries
1412 17th Street, Suite 313
Bakersfield, CA, USA 93301
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UPDATE 2011.12.05: Published at Opinion > Community Voices > PHILLIP LEE: ‘Gay lifestyle’ poses threat to people’s physical well-being