Pastor,
A friend of mine who is gay asked if she and her friend can go to church with me and my husband this sunday, my husband is hesitant, what should we do?
~ Cathy
ANSWER
Cathy,
What are her motives? Is your friend genuinely interested in spiritual matters? Is she honestly interested in Christ? Or is she looking to make a scene? Is she seeking to try to justify her lifestyle? Is your church family spiritually mature enough to “love the sinner and hate the sin?”
Ask your pastor about this before proceeding in either direction. He needs to have time to prepare himself and the church leadership because this kind of thing is a spiritual battle (Hebrews 13:17; Ephesians 6:10-12) . The enemy has deceived these two young women and will use them to divide the church if possible. One pastor I heard about told a homosexual couple that they were welcome to attend but that he was not going to change the message of the Bible or permit them to teach or have a place of leadership in the church. I do not know if they decided to attend that church or not. Be upfront with the two young women and be upfront with your church leadership.
I remind you that Jesus was called a friend of sinners (Matthew 11:19). Several of His disciples were social misfits. Many of the church members at Corinth came out of immoral lifestyles.
I pray that your church will find a way to minister to these two young women and help them find the Savior who is the only one who can meet their deepest needs for forgiveness, genuine love, and authentic relationship. Jesus wants to heal their hurting souls.
Pastor Chris