PART 2 of DOWN FOR THE COUNT: How the Homosexual Agenda Delivers a Near-Knockout-Punch for Male Friendship.
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We've briefly defined a crisis in Part 1. Let's now have a blog-length look at the solution, men.
I'm addressing all you gentlemen directly because it is only from your godly leadership, approach, and passion that we will be able to affect any change in the perceptions of male friendship and make a difference in the lives of men who struggle with same gender attraction and a society that is increasingly accepting it as the norm.
For us to get up, dust ourselves off, and make progress in combating the homosexual agenda, we have to model healthy, intimate, God-honoring male friendships. Set the example for your sons and other men by following the example of David and Jonathan found in 1 Samuel 18 - 24.
Selfless love conquers sexual perversion.
David and Jonathan were committed to one another and were fearless in expressing these sentiments:"...the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul...Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his own soul." (1 Samuel 18:1, 3)
There is a selflessness in pure, God-centered male friendships that will never exist in a homosexual relationship. Homosexuality is not about selfless love, but is, at its core, a selfish act concerned with worshiping the form of someone who mirrors your own self/body. Though soul ties are made in any type of sexual encounter, a knitting of souls is something completely, wholly and holy set apart.
Real men don't need sex to relate to one another. They need the common bond of Jesus Christ. I imagine as Jonathan listened to David explain to Saul how God strengthened him to face the giant Goliath something was stirred in Jonathan's spirit. He saw in David a heart much like his own and initiated a covenant of friendship and brotherhood, expressed in words of loyalty and actions of selflessness and esteem.
Charles Spurgeon perhaps stated this connection between men of God best:
"Whenever I find a man in whom the spirit of God rests, the Spirit in me leaps to hear the Spirit in him, and we feel that we are one."
Love men rightly and affectionately, bearing each other's burdens.
And as soon as the boy had gone, David rose from beside the stone heap and fell on his face to the ground and bowed three times. And [David and Jonathan] kissed one another and wept with one another, David weeping the most. (1 Samuel 20:41)
There is an emotional intimacy displayed between these two men whose friendship has been affected by events outside of their control. Jonathan's father, Saul, has vowed to kill David. The two men must now part. And they are unafraid to display their innermost feelings and affection in a healthy display.
Men need to be unafraid to put an arm around a comrade's shoulder. Brothers should greet one another firm embraces. My own uncle, an army sargeant, kisses the side of my head each time I see him. Men in battle often hold one another when the fight is done. This is a necessary action of affection stretching all the way back to the Greek catharsis, in which men would attend tragic theater to weep and hone their emotions. This helped them on the field of battle face their fears and grieve healthily after battle's end.
Jonathan empathized with his covenant brother because he loved David's heart as much as his own. The two men had been through much at this point. But now more than ever, David, the man who would be King of Israel, needed strong arms to hold him and cry with him. It was healthy, it was intimate, it was God-honoring, and it even now flies in the face of a culture trying to sexualize any affection between men. It makes a statement still today, as will your example make in the life of the man you would call 'friend.'
David and Jonathan were committed to one another and were fearless in expressing these sentiments:"...the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul...Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his own soul." (1 Samuel 18:1, 3)
There is a selflessness in pure, God-centered male friendships that will never exist in a homosexual relationship. Homosexuality is not about selfless love, but is, at its core, a selfish act concerned with worshiping the form of someone who mirrors your own self/body. Though soul ties are made in any type of sexual encounter, a knitting of souls is something completely, wholly and holy set apart.
Real men don't need sex to relate to one another. They need the common bond of Jesus Christ. I imagine as Jonathan listened to David explain to Saul how God strengthened him to face the giant Goliath something was stirred in Jonathan's spirit. He saw in David a heart much like his own and initiated a covenant of friendship and brotherhood, expressed in words of loyalty and actions of selflessness and esteem.
Charles Spurgeon perhaps stated this connection between men of God best:
"Whenever I find a man in whom the spirit of God rests, the Spirit in me leaps to hear the Spirit in him, and we feel that we are one."
Love men rightly and affectionately, bearing each other's burdens.
And as soon as the boy had gone, David rose from beside the stone heap and fell on his face to the ground and bowed three times. And [David and Jonathan] kissed one another and wept with one another, David weeping the most. (1 Samuel 20:41)
There is an emotional intimacy displayed between these two men whose friendship has been affected by events outside of their control. Jonathan's father, Saul, has vowed to kill David. The two men must now part. And they are unafraid to display their innermost feelings and affection in a healthy display.
Men need to be unafraid to put an arm around a comrade's shoulder. Brothers should greet one another firm embraces. My own uncle, an army sargeant, kisses the side of my head each time I see him. Men in battle often hold one another when the fight is done. This is a necessary action of affection stretching all the way back to the Greek catharsis, in which men would attend tragic theater to weep and hone their emotions. This helped them on the field of battle face their fears and grieve healthily after battle's end.
Jonathan empathized with his covenant brother because he loved David's heart as much as his own. The two men had been through much at this point. But now more than ever, David, the man who would be King of Israel, needed strong arms to hold him and cry with him. It was healthy, it was intimate, it was God-honoring, and it even now flies in the face of a culture trying to sexualize any affection between men. It makes a statement still today, as will your example make in the life of the man you would call 'friend.'
There are many other aspects and examples to pursue and parse here. But blogs are meant to be snacks, not full-course meals. I pray you have been inspired and challenged by these scribblings to stand up and fight: fight for the men in your life, fight for true friendship, fight a warped agenda by setting an example that impacts individuals and changes lives.
We can do this, men. Decide today to take a stand and we can do this.
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RESOURCES
Part 1 is linked above.
If you are reading this and wish to further explore the subject, I commend you the following article. It is exquisitely written and very thorough: A Requiem for Friendship: Why Boys Will Not Be Boys and Other Consequences of the Sexual Revolution
If you are a man struggling in the area of same-gender attraction, I would direct you to an online ministry called Living Hope.
We can do this, men. Decide today to take a stand and we can do this.
-------
RESOURCES
Part 1 is linked above.
If you are reading this and wish to further explore the subject, I commend you the following article. It is exquisitely written and very thorough: A Requiem for Friendship: Why Boys Will Not Be Boys and Other Consequences of the Sexual Revolution
If you are a man struggling in the area of same-gender attraction, I would direct you to an online ministry called Living Hope.
3 comments:
Great stuff, bro. But easy on the Greek references when it comes to male intimacy and sexuality -- there's a lot more where cartharsis came from...
I am aware of some of the historical and sexual conotations with the Greeks. I chose to acknowledge the honorable part of the practice of catharsis, and, I think, make it clear I would never endorse some of the sexual practices the Greeks did.
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