Staying at the Table: Humility over Judgment
This week we tackled a topic close to the heart of who we are as a congregation: what it means for Kaw Prairie to be welcoming and affirming, and how that identity grows out of — not in spite of — our understanding of scripture. We explored God's design for sexuality as intimate and sacred, walked through theologian Mark Achtemeier's journey from opponent to advocate for LGBTQ inclusion, and looked closely at the handful of biblical passages often used to condemn same-sex relationships to understand what they were really addressing. We closed with a brand-new original song, "The Design," written just for this moment. If you weren't able to join us, we encourage you to listen to the full message — and as always, we welcome your thoughts as this conversation continues.
Here are links to things Pastor Clare referenced in her sermon yesterday, if you would like to dig deeper this week. We are also including the lyrics to our closing song that was written by Dave Lingenfelter and put together by our KP band for worship this week.
Scripture - This week Pastor Clare talked through a number of different pieces of scripture as we looked at an overview of the Biblical witness on human sexuality. This included references from the following:
On creation and our sexuality as part of God’s design: Genesis 1 and 2 and Song of Songs
Pastor Clare referenced the seven passages in scripture that either reference stories of or prohibitions against certain same-sex practices that come out of the following books of the Bible—Genesis, Leviticus, Judges, Jude, 1 Corinthians, Romans and 1 Timothy. She summarized the different cultural practices that these scriptures would have been referencing and contrasted them with the loving, committed same-sex relationships of our time. There is a detailed analysis of each one of these texts in Mark Achtemeier’s book referenced below.
Pastor Clare shared the story in Acts 10 as an example of God reinterpreting the law in the midst of changing times.
Mark Achtemeier’s book The Bible’s YES to Same-Sex Marriage: An Evangelical’s Change of Heart was a conversation partner in Pastor Clare’s sermon this week.
Here are the lyrics to The Design, written by David Lingenfelter for our worship service on Sunday. You may listen to his new song after the sermon in the video below.