CA Court Trashes Traditional Marriage – Dr. Paul J. Dean
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The California Supreme Court today trashed society's traditional institution of marriage, opening it up for same-sex duos because retaining the historic definition "cannot properly be viewed as a compelling state interest." In a 4-3 decision replete with concurring and dissenting opinions filed by individual members of the court, the majority opinion determined state laws specifying marriage as being between a man and a woman were unconstitutional. "First, the exclusion of same-sex couples from the designation of marriage clearly is not necessary in order to afford full protection to all of the rights and benefits that currently are enjoyed by married opposite-sex couples," the court opined. "Permitting same-sex couples access to the designation of marriage will not deprive opposite-sex couples of any rights."

Commentary

Three issues stand out here. First, one of the things evangelicals must wrestle with is whether or not it is the role of the government to define marriage. God is the One who has defined marriage. It is His institution and must be regulated by Him, not the state. For the government to define and regulate marriage is to encroach upon God’s territory and set itself up in God’s place.

Second, because this is a church issue and not a state issue, the church ever needs to be the church in these discussions. Only when a culture is permeated with the gospel will that culture adopt a biblical worldview concerning the issue of marriage. Until Christians learn this simple truth, we will not win the battle through the courts. Until we learn what the battle is and where and how to fight it, we will continue to fail.

Third, along those lines, observation of public debate between evangelicals and homosexual activists concerning this issue is instructive. We will never win the debate by attempting to be philosophically neutral or by debating on the homosexuals’ territory, or from their worldview. In other words, arguments advanced by evangelicals connected to scientific studies of how children do better when raised by heterosexual couples, or arguments linked to the redefinition of marriage by society, or its demise in esteem by that society, will not work. While those things are true, homosexual activists will remain unconvinced due to the fact that they look at the data through a different worldview lens and the fact that they are convinced they are right. Further, they have studies and statistics to offer as well.

Whenever we give up our presupposition that God has spoken, we give up the only real argument that has power. The simple fact is that homosexuality and homosexual marriage is sin. This fact must be pointed out and persons must be called to repentance. We must argue at a worldview level. If there is a God, then He has a standard. What that standard is ever remains the issue. We are not trying to convince men that our opinion is right. Neither will we ever be able to do so. We are trying to convince men that they have sinned against a Holy God and need to repent. When we attempt that, the Holy Spirit speaks along side of our voice to do what He alone can do: change hearts, and thereby change spiritual opinions.