Recently, after apparently prayerful consideration, the Methodist church in the UK has voted to allow same-sex marriages. The Revd S. Hicks, President of the Conferences, commented how she prayed before the vote, asking that “words may be imbibed with your grace, with tenderness from on high.”[1]
So, regardless of what scripture states, the Methodist Church has voted[2] to permit unbiblical forms of marriage to take place in so-called houses of God. Has God changed His mind on what He said in scripture? If so, then God Himself has changed, something scripture states He does not do![3] Furthermore, if God has changed His mind and thus changed, then how can we put our faith in a God who changes? The reality is, unlike the false god espoused by the Methodist church (note I say Methodist church, not the people), the one true God we find in the Bible does not change.
Personally, I do not worship or believe in the God of the Methodist church, who seems to be a schizophrenic god and not the God of the Bible. Instead, I worship the one true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who sent His son, Jesus – Yeshua – to redeem humanity, allowing all creation to be reconciled back to the LORD, a God who changes not.
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17
The above quote informs us that there is no variation in God, no grey areas, for He is the Father of lights who does not change.
God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? Numbers 23:19
We see further in the quote from Numbers that God, unlike man, does not lie or change His mind. For God will do what He states He will do, just like scripture states: ‘Let your yes be yes and your no be no’.[4] God keeps His word. He is never changing – the only constant in an ever-changing world.
If we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself. 2 Timothy 2:13
Furthermore, we find Paul writing to Timothy about this in his letter to him, noted in the above passage, that God is faithful even when we are not. For the very character of God is one of never changing faithfulness. The LORD God Almighty never changes. So, why has the Methodist council, in voting to accept same-sex marriages, declared contrary to scripture that God changes? The simple answer is, they do not know the God of the Bible, nor do they believe in Him. If they did believe and love Him, they would keep His commandments and desist from profaning His name.
Therefore, by accepting same-sex marriages, the Methodist council has created a god in their own image, one that stems from the desires of their unrepentant and deceitful hearts. This heart seeks lawlessness rather than the loving precepts of the LORD, thus showing that the perfect Torah of God is not written upon their hearts, that they are guided by the spirit of lawlessness and not the Holy Spirit who leads a believer into truth. Consequently, through creating a false god, they are leading many astray and open themselves up to the judgment of God. Therefore, the Methodist church has become Ichabod, for the glory of the LORD has departed.[5]
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8
The above passage clearly states that Messiah does not change. However, before some say that Jesus never spoke against homosexuality, let us examine scriptures to see what God says.
Firstly, who gave the commandments and who wrote them? Now, most would say God gave them to Moses, who wrote them down, which in some way is true. However, according to scripture, God wrote them with His very finger – so personally, I would take them to be very important.
The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.” Exodus 24:12
We see in the above passage that God gave Moses the written instructions – the Torah, which is erroneously referred to as laws or the law of Moses. They are, in reality, the loving instructions of our heavenly Father.
When the LORD finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. Exodus 31:18
In the above passage, we clearly see that God Himself wrote the commandments and gave them to Moses. Additionally, we note in other scripture that it was Messiah who actually met with Moses and gave the instructions.
There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who are you that judges another? James 4:12
For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us. Isaiah 33:22
The above passages from James and Isaiah inform us that the one who gave the Torah is the same person who is the King, Judge and Saviour of Israel. So, who is the one who is the Saviour, Judge and King of Israel? It is Messiah – therefore, He must also be the one who gave the Torah. Furthermore, the King of Israel was commanded by God to write a copy of the Torah for himself.[6] So, let me ask, when did Jesus do that when He was on Earth – in His first coming? The reality is, He never did, but He must complete this instruction if He is the King of Israel. We can see He has already done so. He wrote the first one, which all who came after Him had to copy because they were standing in His place until He came. In effect, they were only temporarily filling His place until He – Messiah – comes to rule and reign from Zion over all of Israel.
So, Messiah wrote the first Torah, which He gave to Moses, in which it clearly states believers are NOT to engage in same-sex relationships, for they are an abomination before God. Additionally, within the Torah, it outlines what a marriage is and how a believer should live. One of the commandments God wrote was, ‘do not profane the LORD’s name’, and another is ‘do not bear a false testimony’. The Methodist church, in allowing same-sex marriages, has broken both of these commandments. They are profaning God’s Holy name in allowing such abomination to take place. They are also bearing a false witness in that they believe God has allowed them to accept such practices. Thus, they misrepresent the LORD and reveal that they are not guided by the Holy Spirit but rather by the spirit of the antichrist, which is one that seeks to remove God’s Biblical precepts from within the Body of Messiah. Such actions are the sin of the Nicolaitans, which Messiah also hates.[7]
The problem today within aspects of Christianity is that they seek to appease the needs of the people. They want to be relevant, modern and accepted. However, the Bible states that to be loved by the world is to be at enmity with God.
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. James 4:4
In the above passage from James, we see clearly that the Body of Messiah is called to be salt and light in a perverse world. It is not called to be friends with the world system, nor is it instructed to change God’s word to make it palatable and amenable for people. Rather, the true Gospel of the Kingdom convicts people of their sin, which is the transgression of God’s instructions of which adultery,[8] [9] bearing a false witness,[10] lying,[11] stealing,[12] [13] murder,[14] and homosexuality[15] [16] [17] are some of the sinful practices that God forbids a believer to do.
It is not love that allows a person to remain in sin; rather, true love speaks the truth, in love, without condemnation but showing grace, seeking the person to repent and make Messiah their Lord, as they surrender their life to the living God and commit to living a life according to His word – a life Messiah has shown us how to live.
Unfortunately, the actions of the Methodist Church reveal how they have lost all fear and reverence of God. Furthermore, it shows that the gospel preached by the Methodist church is not the true Gospel, and thus the words of Paul are applicable today as when he penned them in his letter to the community of believers in Galatia:
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!
10 Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.[18]
Paul rebukes those who teach another gospel, after which he states that he is not seeking to please people, for if he were, he would not be a servant of Messiah. Thus Paul here concurs with James in that seeking to appease the people is to be an enemy of God.
So, who is the Methodist Church a friend of, God or the world? Personally, I believe they have used seduction and crafted mistranslation of the word of God to justify a social gospel, a gospel that is bereft of power and inept at saving a sinner. Additionally, it shows that they are not following the Holy Spirit’s leading but have been beguiled by the serpent who seduced Adam and Eve in the garden. The spirit of lawlessness seeks and encourages humanity to reject God and His precepts and to embrace and fulfil their own desires. However, compromise is not the characteristic of a believer and follower of the Messiah.
The actions of the Methodist Council require decisive action by believers who attend Methodist churches. Do you continue to attend a church when the denomination has rejected God’s precepts and consequently set itself in opposition with God, or do you seek out a church that teaches the truth? I believe true believers, especially clergy in the Methodist church, must make a stand. They must come out of the Methodist church, for it no longer proclaims the truth or the God of the Bible. If any clergy remain in the belief that they can change what has been done, then they are deceived.
How can two walk together if they are not in agreement,[19] or how can a person be unequally yoked[20] with sin?
The actions of the Methodist church only reaffirm their unbiblical understanding of the God of the Bible – the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – the God of Israel. For those believers who do not attend a Methodist church, I urge you to pray for our brothers and sisters at this time. However, we must also examine our own lives to ensure that we are seeking to walk in obedience to the word of God and have not walked, in areas of our lives, into sinful activities.
Nevertheless, what we see in the actions of the Methodist Council is a fulfilment of the words of Messiah, who stated:
At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matt. 24:10-14)
Messiah informs us that before His return, believers will be persecuted and hated. Many will turn away from their faith, and because of the increase in wickedness – lawlessness – the love of many will grow cold. However, during this time, the true Gospel – the Gospel of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world. Scripture also tells us that we show God that we love Him by keeping His commandments;[21] [22] therefore, the falling away is linked to people turning away from God’s precepts and, consequently, their love dwindling. This is what we see in the actions of the Methodist council. They have twisted God’s word and, in doing so, prevent people from knowing God. Furthermore, because of their lawless actions, they show their lack of love and respect for the LORD. However, God Himself will ensure that His Gospel will go forth because He will anoint and raise people up in the latter days.
We will see further falling away from the faith and the embracing and accepting of lawlessness. However, as I have already stated, true believers must choose who they follow; they either follow the church denomination or follow Messiah. To be a believer means we must die to ourselves and live a life according to God’s word.[23] We are called to be salt and light, and consequently, we will conflict with the world system.
Thus, we must decide and choose whom we will serve; who is Lord over our life? I pray that you choose life. Thus, let us do as Paul instructed the believers in Rome:
Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1-2
May you be champions of truth and God’s word as you seek to work out your salvation in fear and trepidation of the LORD.
Blessings and Shalom
If you wish to donate by buying me a coffee, please click here BUY me a COFFEE
[1] The Methodists Church. (June 30, 2021). Conference confirms resolutions on marriage and relationships. The Methodist Church, online, available from https://www.methodist.org.uk/about-us/news/latest-news/all-news/conference-confirms-resolutions-on-marriage-and-relationships/
[2] The Telegraph. (June 30, 2021). Methodist church votes to allow same-sex marriage. The Telegraph, online, available from https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/06/30/methodist-church-votes-allow-same-sex-marriage/
[3] Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I change no…
[4] Matthew 5:37
[5] 1 Samual 4:21
[6] Deuteronomy 17:14-20
[7] Revelation 2:6
[8] Exodus 20:14
[9] Deuteronomy 5:18
[10] Exodus 20:16
[11] Leviticus 19:11
[12] Exodus 20:15
[13] Exodus 22:3
[14] Exodus 20:13
[15] Leviticus 18:22
[16] Romans 1:26-28
[17] 1 Timothy 1:10
[18] Galatians 1:6-10
[19] Amos 3:3
[20] 2 Corinthians 6:14
[21] John 14:15
[22] 1 John 5:3
[23] Luke 9:23