Why I Can't Oppose Gay Marriage

With things like Proposition 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act being weighed upon in the Supreme Court of the US, the idea of gay marriage and its legality is coming to a forefront once again. A friend of mine posted his stance about it on his blog, and I think I should do the same on mine.

As some may know, I am formerly conservative, now libertarian. Part of the libertarian ethos is that people should have the right to do as they please. When it comes to whether gays should be allowed to marry, it is my belief that it is a matter of personal liberty. The government was not intended to legislate morality; rather, it was made to be something that could protect and provide as need be.

This may sound weird coming from someone who claims to be a Christian. After all, aren't conservative Christians (of which I am only kind of one) supposed to be against it? To be fair, most are. But here's the thing. I don't believe that we believers should be forcing our beliefs on the unbelieving world. Force has never, ever, been an effective way of truly leading people to come to Christ. Also, keep in mind that following the commands of God is essentially a Spiritual thing. A person cannot expected to resist sin and serve God unless they have the Holy Spirit in them. People who do not believe do not have the Holy Spirit in them, and as such they cannot be expected to observe spiritual guidelines. So trying to tell people that gay marriage is wrong because it violates God's standards is pointless. They don't have the Holy Spirit, so it means nothing to them!

Some may say, "Well what about things like murder and theft? Those are deemed sins in the Bible, yet those are illegal. Isn't that legislating morality?" To that I respond, perhaps. But the only reason those are made illegal is because Christians and non-Christians alike see them as wrong. The unbelieving population agrees that murder and theft are wrong. The same cannot be said of gay marriage.

Do I believe that a homosexual lifestyle, including gay marriage, is morally correct? No, the Bible is clear about that. Do I hate gays? Of course not! It's very plain to me that they are humans as well, and bearers of the image of God. To hate them would be downright un-Christian! I don't believe the lifestyle is proper, but outlawing it goes outside the bounds of what a Christian can do. We are called to evangelize to the world, not legislate it.