Why is it ok for a Christian to claim that some passages in the Bible were a sign of the times and don’t apply in today’s day and age, while other passages still do? I raise this question solely because of the inconsistencies I often receive from devout Christians like I did recently in regards to the subject of homosexuality.
What they said was that homosexuality is written in the Bible as a sin and because of that it’s against the will of God. But, at the same time when I asked them for example, about the many occurrences of wives needing to submit to their husbands, I was told those passages are outdated and were only a sign of what was going on back in those times.
This is one of the single most frustrating things I have with so many fellow Christians these days. Many of them will claim the Bible is 100 percent the word of God and constantly throw that in my face, especially when it comes to homosexuality. But yet they never seem to apply the same rules with the many other passages that really don’t make much sense in today’s day and age either.
Take for example the fact that if we were truly living 100% by the Bible that none of us should be wearing mixed material-based clothes, having ripped pants, sporting gaudy jewelry, brandishing tattoos, touching leather, eating shrimp, consuming pork, having a clean-shaven face, cropping our hair short, and doing a bunch of other strange things as well. But when I bring any of those things up, I’m presented with the argument that those rules were in the Old Testament and were there to help bring law and order to the people during those times. What’s ironic when that point is made though is how in the midst of all those rules is another one that just so happens to be about the sin of a man lying with another man. Yet somehow that reference is usually overlooked. So, whenever I draw attention to that fact, it’s normally at this juncture I’m immediately referred back to the New Testament and to Paul who wrote several times (three to be exact), that homosexuality was immoral.
But there again, how ironic is it that it was also Paul who said those things about wives needing to submit to their husbands, no matter what. You see, back in those days, even when a woman was being abused by her husband she was still supposed to submit to him. And she was also never supposed to be a leader in any capacity nor be allowed to have a voice in worship either. In other words, women were simply meant to be submissive to men back then. And this is exactly the precise moment when so many Christians I meet will begin to argue those passages being a sign of the customs for that period of time and that they don’t apply today. But that same logic never seems to be applied by any of them to the passages about homosexuality.
This is why I truly find it sad and disconcerting when I meet someone stating they know the will of God “because it’s right there in the Bible”, yet they never even see how they have one set of rules for one set of passages, and another set of rules for another set of passages.
Look, don’t take me wrong, even though I’m sure there are some who probably already have by reading this thus far. I’ve said it before in prior writings and I’ll say it again. I love the Bible and the many positive statements that can be derived from it. But I don’t believe the Bible is 100% accurate. Rather, I feel much of what was written in it is was a sign of the times and no longer applies, such as with the position of women in society, with homosexual relationships, and with a number of other things as well. Tell this to many of the devout Christians out there though, and you’ll most likely end up in a huge debate or in some type of an argument you probably won’t win.
The unfortunate reality I’ve come across with most devout Christians who have studied the Bible extensively is that they don’t want to know anything more about God except within the scope of the Bible itself. Thus, when something arises that appears to be outside that scope it usually triggers some sort of fear within them. Fear that often leads them into those debates and arguments and fear that tends to guide them into making those statements about how some passages were a sign of the times, while others still apply today.
Nevertheless, I really am nothing more than just a speck of dust on this planet who’s trying to expand his mind and see God in far more than just from a single book. But I still follow the teachings of Christ because not once did he ever say a man should never sleep with a man, nor did He ever say that a woman needs to submit to her husband either. Rather Christ said over and over again to love one another to the best of our ability. I only wish people who say they are a devout Christian would accept this simple truth, as their words often fall far short of that.
Regardless, I honestly believe the only thing that’s really going to matter to God when we die is how best did we do down here to love each other. As for all those debates and arguments and statements about how some passages in the Bible were a sign of the times and no longer apply while others still do, maybe all of that is just our ego’s attempt at overcoming our fear of ever being wrong…
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson
