i am gay. i am a christian and love God very much. will i go to hell?

Question

the ultimate question...

Answer 1

The Bible very clearly states that homosexuality is a sin. God destroyed cities for this sin. You cannot truly be saved unless you are willing to give up all your sin. If you have repented of ALL your sins and truly saved then you should be working on removing this sin as well as any others from your life. That said, does commiting a sin remove our salvation? No. We should not willingly continue to sin though. I think we may very well be surprised by the people we meet in Heaven - theives, murderers, liars, even politicians! They will all have one thing in common though and that is they will have been forgiven of their sins because they asked and repented of them.

Answer 2

This is a different answer than many you will receive. If you dont' want any remaining preconceptions challenged DO NOT CONTINUE READING.

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Now if you are still with me. The Bible is, while a very nice book that is the basis (in one form or another) the basis of the three great monotheistic faiths of the West -- actually a book of myths, and some of them are pretty horrid myths.

The earth is not flat, it does not have corners, and it is not established on pillars. Beetles do not have four legs, they have six. Rabbits do not chew their cuds, they have none. Ai and Jericho were both abandoned when the Israelites came to them and Jericho NEVER was walled. Oddly, though a million Jews (more or less) marched around the wilderness for 40 years and ALL died there, we cannot find a single skeleton from the march, even though we have found the remains of tribes of 200 non-semites in the same area. Pi really DOES work, and a perfectly round pool cannot be made that uses a pi of 3.0 rather than 3.14 -- it would leak through a gap in the side.

The god of the old testament, almost certainly either a rendition of one of the great Annunaki of the Sumerians or of Ra of the Egyptians, is a monster who cannot possibly deserve worship, even if real. He accepts human sacrifice, demands genocides, and wipes the faces of his priests with dung. He is, in very real terms, anthropomorphic, having a palace on top of the firmament (the dome covering the earth) where he keeps snow and hail "against the time of troubles" (war???) [If you want to read up on this type of thing, there is a fair list on the site I maintain. Go to www.rebuff.org and read the three pages under bible on the left hand menu.]

The short version of what I am saying is -- its myth. Fairy stories, like Grimm's and like Santa Claus. Furthermore, Christianity, despite what you have been told, was not HISTORICALLY based on the Bible as you know it. The canon was not established universally in anything resembling a form you would recognize until the Council of Carthage, hundreds of years after Christ. The early church had 40 gospels, but no one church had more than one book or maybe a very few. Often a gospel, or a letter -- or sometimes nothing at all. Different bishops wrote different canons, just as they had different theologies (gnostic/anti-gnostic for example). The Council of Nice (Nicea) established the creed by vote, and many things (trinity) won by only one or two votes. Divine inspiration? Not unless you count assasination, quite a few occurred connected to Nice and to Carthage.

The idea that the Bible is infallible is no different from the idea the Pope is, and it is even newer.

So, should you be concerned? No. If you want a Christian community to belong to then, if you are protestant, look for a United Church of Christ congregation, or a morelight presbyterian, or contact me and I will suggest more. If you are wanting to experiment with a more traditional liturgy, try calling your local Episcopal diocese and asking to be recommended to a parish that is welcoming to gays. Don't be afraid, just ask. If you are near Pittsburgh -- maybe not, that bishop is nuts, so is ours in Albany but not so badly -- most are ok.

Hope that all helps. Don't worry, you won't go to hell. God knows that the Bible is a myth.

Regards,

Reynolds Jones
Schenectady, NY
http://www.rebuff.org

PS A note to Captain Atheist -- Christianity is NOT historically based on the Bible. The oldest fragments we have are fragments of the Eucharistic prayer, not of any of the books of the (almost certainly flawed) canon. You may well be correct, but faith is a comfort to some people.

I think what I'm asking is that you have the courtesy to distinguish between fundamentalist and non-fundamentalist Christianity -- and not insult groups like the United Church of Christ, which has publicly endorsed, as a denomination, gay marriage by connecting them in your writings with biblical literalists. Thank you.

Answer 3

The Christian religion clearly forbids homosexuality. Anyone who argues that this is not so, apparently has not read his bible. If you truly feel that you are justified in being a homosexual, and you feel that there is nothing wrong with it, then why would you want to subscribe to a religion that disagrees?

Is that not proof enough to you, that the religion is false? Have you ever considered a life without that religion? If you can get their brainwashing out of your head, you may be surprised at just how obviously false the entire organization is. But you must first understand, that you are still under their influence right now.

You won't be able to make a clear decision about his until you can break free of them.


Edit - Radagast - the only thing I distinguish between fundamentalists and moderates, is that the moderates give backpedalling arguments to try to "modernize" the religion. It's folly to do so, and I don't give them any extra credit for it. They understand the fact that the accepted Christian bible is false, for the most part, and instead of making the rational decision to dismiss the religion outright, they instead "make a new one" based on what they view as moral by today's standards. This is no less insane than making up a brand new god, and simply deciding to worship him.

Answer 4

You have to understand that your lifestyle is a sin in the eyes of God but if you have trusted Jesus as your own personal Lord and Savior, then you will go to heaven. The only problem with you is that you must understand that lifestyle is not of God and if you truly love Him and want to live for Him then you have to give up that lifestyle. You have to be willing to do that if you claim to love God. Read the Bible and talk to someone about this. It will make this problem a lot easier to deal with if you do that and talk to the Lord Jesus as well. Being what you are right now will be a big hindrance to you being able to win souls to Christ and how will you be able to tell them that all sin is sin in the eyes of God and yet you live a certain way that justifies it at the same time? I am not condemning you at all in any way. I do not want to do that, I want to help you but I can do so much when there are counselors out there (Christian) who will do a much better job than I could ever do. Make it right!!! God still loves you!!!

Answer 5

Truthfully, only God knows the answer to that question. Anybody who tells you "Yes, you definitely will go to hell" needs to reevaluate their Christian beliefs and spend a lot more time in their Bible. The Bible does say that homosexuality is a sin, but it also says that no one is good, and that we all fall short of the glory of God, and that we all sin. To have homosexual feelings is not a sin in and of itself. The Bible says that engaging in ANY sexual relationship outside of marriage is a sin. Too many people nowadays make homosexuality out to be the worst sin ever and that there is no hope. That is completely false. With God there is always hope. As a Christian you are to abstain from all sin, but if you do fall, God is a loving, merciful God and forgiving. He also realizes that without His help, we would all be lost in our sins. The weight of being gay is very heavy, and unfortunately most Christians would rather just condemn the gay soul without even trying to help. If you would like some Bible verses or other info, feel free to contact me at [e-mail]

Answer 6

This one has always bothered me. I have always believed that homosexuality is not chosen, but rather a trait you are born with, like having blue eyes or brown hair. However, I was raised in a Christian denomination and am well aware of the rather nasty things the Bible has to say in this regard. Frankly, I don't have an answer. I don't understand how God can say homosexuality is a sin, but then get upset when people unfairly judge a known prostitute. "He who is blameless, throw the first stone.", you know? It's one of those unreconcilable contradictions that can really make you question our interpretation of God's Word. It could be that many of the "sinful" references to homosexuality in the Bible refer to other, more explicitly immoral activities that were happening behind closed doors. Homosexual individuals are just as capable of having caring, loving relationships as heterosexuals. I cannot believe God could punish someone for that. And if He can, I don't think I understand God at all.

Answer 7

I am really surprised at some of the answers to this question. I think that homosexuality is a sin just like murder, lying, stealing, fornication, etc. The bible tells you that all have sinned. God knows you are going to sin, he doesn't want you to live in sin. The question is are you sinning or living in sin. Repenting involves turning away from that sin and trying not to repeat it.Different denomnations have diffierent views. I say take it to the source. If you are really a saved christian, then you already know that God will answer every one of your prayers. Ask God. Something else to think about. The Bible says faith in Jesus Christ saves your soul nothing about sexuality. Also, would you do the exact same things you do now if God was standing right next to you?

Answer 8

If you love God, and Christ is your saviour, then you know the answer to that question already, don't you? The Scriptures say that nothing is able to separate you from the love of God, and that no sin is too great to be forgiven. You're forbidden to have sex with the same gender, but who you have sex with is not the same thing as who you are. It's not your identity. To sacrifice your sex life for love of God is a difficult thing to have to do, but it's rather like trading pennies now for hundred dollar bills later. It's hard, if pennies are all you have right now, but can you doubt that the exchange is worth it? Be strong in the faith and in the power of His love. . . and if you can be victorious in the fight against such a strong enemy, I do not doubt that you will have earned more stars in your crown than many others who got through life more easily. Bless you!

Answer 9

There is only one reason anyone goes to hell. That is not accepting the payment that Jesus made for their sin. Check first the link below for more on that.

Now as far as being gay and being a Christian, it is important to remember that any sexual gratification obtained apart from ones own husband or wife is sin. This applies to all of those who think it is OK to "mess around" because they are doing it with the other gender. It is still sin.

There is always a hidden cost for sin. It is always more then we can afford and it always cost someone other then the one doing it. (Check the 2nd link)

As I said, not trusting Christ is the only thing that will send someone to hell, but if we belong to the LORD and we do not do what He wants, He can not bless us.

Answer 10

Bless you, dear child, of course you're NOT going to hell. Those who say you are are being unnecessarily cruel. God loves you. If He is indeed omniscient then He knew in advance what kind of person you were going to be. Why would he torment the Children that way? As long as you are a good person, that's all that matters. Don't fret. You'll go Home, like all the rest of the Creatures of God.