Over the past year we have seen bakeries in
both Oregon and Colorado thrown on to the national stage, as they were
sued for refusing to make a cake in honor of a same-sex wedding. The
courts determined that both companies illegally discriminated against the
same-sex couples to whom service was denied. In fact, the Oregon
baker was ordered to pay the same-sex couple $135,000 for
emotional and mental damage that resulted from denial of service.
While
there is much to say about this, my intention is not to focus upon the
government’s infringement of religious liberty, because much has already been
said regarding this issue. My intention, however, is to look at this
situation from a different angle and to consider the question: Can a Christian
in good conscience bake a cake for a same-sex wedding? I’m not
proposing that these bakeries are wrong by any means, as I am a proponent of
religious liberty. A reasonable person should not be forced to
violate his/her conscience. As Martin Luther said during his trial
in April 1521, “To go against conscience is neither right nor
safe.”
With
that said, I believe that the owners of these bakeries had every right to deny
service, because to do the opposite would violate conscience, which as we see
in Scripture is not safe. Romans 14:23 teaches us that whatever does
not proceed from faith is sin. Simply put, to act against conscience
is sin; however, is baking a cake for a same-sex wedding always
sin? Is this a black and white issue, or is there liberty here? If
baking a cake gives affirmation and approval to sin, then there is no liberty
here in Christ. The only reasonable response would be to deny
service for a same-sex wedding; but is this the case? If a Christian
bakes a cake for a same-sex wedding does this undertaking always give approval
to the uniting of two men or of two women?
One year ago, my response to that question
would have been a resounding yes, but now I’m not so convinced that this is a
black and white issue. Recently, I read The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert by
Rosaria Butterfield, and my thoughts on homosexuality are being flipped upside
down. My convictions regarding same-sex marriage have not changed in
the least, but my lenses have been adjusted to see the great divide that we as
Christians have created between “us” and “them.” I use this language
to further demonstrate the great divide. For some reason we have
created and widened this gap rather than rubbing shoulders with those we
disagree with. Too often we are the unloving ones, as we view anyone
in a same-sex relationship with disdain and hatred. Too often we end
the conversation before it ever begins, and that is why I bring up the issue of
baking cakes. The cakes here are the hypothetical issue (at least in
my case, because I do not own a bakery or intend to own a bakery) that
represents a bigger problem. When we turn down service are we
burning a bridge before it’s even built, or are we truly acting out of
conviction? When we refuse someone service is it because we are
disgusted, or is it because we truly love him or her? When we refuse
service are we treating this individual as a second-class citizen or are we
still affirming that this individual is created in the image and likeness of
God?
So
it all comes down to this. Does providing a service affirm that of
which we disapprove? If yes, then we must say no. But
does it really? Can we bake that cake in affirmation that these are
two image-bearers of God, yet at the same time reject the lifestyle and hold it
up as sin against a Holy God?
I can’t help but wonder whether or not we are
too quick to burn bridges and never actually have meaningful discourse about
God’s great love toward sinners. Aren’t you glad that someone loved
you enough to proclaim the love of God, which has been poured out to sinners
through Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death upon a cross? Aren’t you
glad that someone called you to trust in Jesus Christ in the midst of your sin
and rebellion? Why do you think that one sin is beyond redemption,
when God saved you from a whole host of sins?
Whether we would bake the cake or not, let us
attempt to repair this strained, if not non-existent,
relationship. By no means am I advocating an affirmation of sin, but
I am advocating an affirmation of human beings who have been created in the
image and likeness of God. Let us love one another and do everything
possible to be at peace with one another (Romans 12:18). If
hostility and rejection do come, let us continue to pray and continue to trust
in Christ and appeal to Him, for He promised us that in this world we will have
trouble but take heart for He has overcome the world (John 16:33).
~Corey
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