- To begin with, please read Genesis chapters 18 and 19. I'll be using a King
James version. As versions do vary, I'd recommend using the KJV now. Later you can check the
newer versions if you'd like.
- Genesis 13:1 tells us that Abram (he was not yet renamed Abraham) and his family, including his nephew Lot, left Egypt and went into the Ne'gev. As time passed both he and Lot became very successful. In time, Abram's servants and Lot's servants began having arguments over the ownership of their respective master's cattle (13:7). In order to resolve this growing conflict, the two men separated (13:5-13). Lot chose the Jordan Valley while Abram and his company settled in the Land of Canaan.
- The description of the people of Sodom
as "wicked," in Hebrew, ra' tells us nothing more than our English translation. The word translated
as "sinners" is chatta' which is better translated as "criminals." They were bad people; these were
towns populated by many outlaws and gangsters.
There is, thus far, nothing to suggest homosexuality. People who use this account as a proof text usually refer to "the men of Sodom" as if it were the males who were evil. One must ask, what about the females? More on this later. For now, please note that it was the 'enowsh or "mortals" of Sodom. In other words, the people of the cities, not only the men. This term includes men, women and children. - So, it was among these wicked outlaws that Lot "pitched his tent." He did so because the land was fertile "like the Garden of Eden" before the cities of the plain were destroyed. Shortly after Lot and Abram separated, God instituted the Abrahamic Covenant (by which Jews throughout history have claimed their rightful possession of the Jewish homeland). After this, Abram moved his company to the Oaks of Mamre in Hebron. (13:10).
- Later on, a bitter war broke out in the plains (14:1-). It was a long and bloody series of attacks and counterattacks. Finally, Sodom was overthrown and Lot, among others, was taken prisoner. One of Lot's servants managed to escape and fled to Abram, to seek aid.
- Abram was outraged by the report and quickly gathered an army and went to Lot's rescue.Note what happened next!
- As Abram was approaching Sodom after
winning the war, Sodom's king came out to meet him. This was an act of showing respect and
gratitude for the aid. It was the least he could have done. This is not surprising, but along with the
king went Melchizedek, the high priest of God (El Elyon). I must resist the urge to go into a study of
Melchizedek here, but suffice it to say that he is one of the most mysterious and spiritually powerful
figures in the Bible (consider Ps. 110:4; Heb 5:5,6; Heb 6:20; Heb 7:23,24 etc). What is of note here,
is that he was residing in Sodom. Now if Sodom were such an evil place its hard to understand why
this great personage would reside there. Doesn't prove anything, but it is interesting
- At Genesis 14:20 Melchizedek says that it was God who delivered the enemies into Abram's hands. See this? God destroyed the enemies of Sodom and restored everything they had lost! Where else in scripture do we find God defending people who are an "abomination"? God not only defeated Sodom's enemies but restored what they had lost! Yes, wicked things were done there, and it appears as though they harbored many fugitives, however it was not one huge cesspool of vile and evil as we are led to believe.
- Abram returns home and God promises to give him children (15:1-6). In context it is clear that one reason why God gave this blessing to Abram (which resulted in the birth of Judaism, Christianity and Islam) was because of his willingness to fight the enemies of Sodom. At 15:1 God specifically says "fear not... I am thy shield and thy exceedingly great reward.
- Chapters 15-17 deals with the birth of Isaac and Ishmael and does not directly concern our current study.
The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah
- Beginning with 18:1 the account of the destruction of Sodom begins. Abram was still living in Hebron (by the great oaks of Mamre), when the "Lord" appeared to him. Again, I will resist the urge to delve into how "the Lord" (singular) appeared and Lot saw "three men" (difficult is the work of a Biblical expositor!) The important thing here is what happened next.
- After welcoming them and acknowledging his unworthiness of their visit, Abram offers water to drink and to wash their feet with, invites them to rest under his shade tree (18:4). Abram himself rushes to get them a bite to eat (18:5, 6). Now, a person in Abram's position had plenty of servants, but he showed his respect to the visitors by getting them some food himself; he even "rushed" to do so. He gave Sarah his wife detailed instructions on preparing the best possible cakes for their guests. He next "ran" into the herds and took the best calf he could find and had it killed and dressed (18:7,8). When all was ready he took some butter and milk and served the calf to his honored guests. As a servant, this powerful man stood by them as they ate in case they should want something more (18:8). It was partially as a result of this hospitality that they informed him that Sarah his wife would have a child even though she was very old and believed to be incapable of it.
- A bit later in the day, the "angels"
explained their intention to go and destroy the towns of the valley, including Sodom and Gomorrah
"because their sin is very grievous." The word translated here as "sin" is chatta'ah and simply means
"offense." chatta'ah could be anything which is offensive. Again, no reference to homosexuality.
There is however the first hint of why the cities were destroyed. At 18:19 the "Lord" says:
For I know him [Abram], that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.
The word translated as "justice" is tsedaqah and it means more specifically "righteousness." This righteousness is more concerned with inner goodness than outer behavior, though of course they are two sides of the same coin. The "Lord" is saying that unlike the people of the towns in the valley, Abram is a righteous person who acts from that quality.
Note that the word translated as judgment however DOES refer to outward deeds. It is the word neballat and refers to "foolish secrecy" or "paranoid isolationism." What does this tell us? A lot! - There are scores of such commands. I've taken two at random. In the first quote above, note the phrase: "I will surely hear their cry; And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword..." God heard the cries of Sodom's victims. These victims were not locals but strangers. The sins of Sodom were not, therefore, sins carried out among themselves such as homosexuality. It was sins done against "strangers." Which strangers? Let's continue with the story.
- After Abraham's unsuccessful attempt at negotiating a peace settlement, two of the three "men" go down into the city.
- The two "angels" arrived in Sodom about sunset. Scripture says that Lot "sat in the gate" as they entered. This doesn't mean he was hanging out around some gate, it means that he was a person of some importance in the town (compare Dt. 21:19-21). Lot had become at the very least a city elder. Again, it seems quite unlikely that a city of rabid homosexual sex fiends would include a heterosexually married Lot on the city counsel, but again, no proof here.
- When Lot first saw the "strangers" he offered his respects to them by bowing low before them. This is a common form of showing respect. Now, as an elder of the city, Lot would be responsible for offering the noble visitors an official welcome. Under normal circumstances, he would have welcomed them in the name of the city, washed their feet, fed them etc. He did not do this however. He immediately warned them of the peril of their situation and urged them to enter his own home, stay the night, and leave early the next morning. Why should they "...rise up early, and go on [their] ways"? Because from the instant Lot saw them, he knew there would be trouble, but if he could quickly get them indoors and then rush them out by daybreak, maybe no one would discover their presence.
- Little does Lot know however that trouble has only just begun! The "angels" reply that no, they would prefer to sleep in the streets. Now, doesn't this sound a bit odd? Not when you consider why they had come. Lot's city had broken the Hebrew Laws of hospitality: "Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian; because thou wast a stranger in his land (De. 23:7.) And again, "Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the fatherless; nor take a widow's raiment to pledge" (De 24:17). This "judgment" which is not to be perverted is the righteous welcoming of strangers. The people of Sodom not only failed to offer visitors a welcome as commanded by God (and as exemplified in the way Abram had honored them), they even threatened the men.
- This is not what happened in Sodom! The inhabitants of the city utterly violated the Law of God. By so doing they slandered God's reputation. The penalty for such offenses was death (Exodus 22:21-24 above).
- Lot insisted that the two "men" spend the night in his house. As an elder of the city it may be safely assumed that he knew the Law and knew that Sodom might be judged and punished for the way they treated their guests. The two reluctantly agreed, and went into his house where they were fed and shown proper curtsey. Again, considering the stature of the "men," this honor should have been shown by the entire city, not just one of its elders in the secrecy of his own home.
- Before they were ready for sleep the people of Sodom surrounded Lot's house. Again, the word translated as "men" of Sodom is actually the 'enowsh or "mortals," the people of the city.
- Why is this important?
As there is no indication that it was only the men of the city, it seems quite likely that the town's women were also in the mob, women who surely would not support their husband's sexual frenzy (if indeed that is what this was), be it homo or hetero sexual. Also, if the women of Sodom were also demanding to "know these men" sexually we would have to assume that the so-called sin of Sodom was bisexuality rather than homosexuality (an idea I am NOT suggesting!). That it was not only the men who surrounded the house is said directly in this verse, "...both old and young, all the people from every quarter." - So then, what was this angry mob shouting? Did they yell, "You've got a couple of hot studs in there, let us join your party?" No, they cried out: "Where are the strangers which came in to thee this night? Bring them out unto us, that we may know them."
- The single phrase "that we may know them" is were the entire argument is based. The word translated "to know" is yada'. Its primary meaning is "to ascertain some information," just as we use it today. There is a very rare usage of the word where it refers to "knowing someone in the Biblical sense" as the saying goes. Of the hundreds if not thousands of times this word is used in the Bible, there may be a half dozen places where it refers to sexual congress. In virtually every instance it simply means "to know something."
- We have discussed the war which had recently so thoroughly decimated Sodom above (chapter 14 of Genesis). Taken in its literal Biblically historic context, we see that two strangers arrived in war scarred Sodom late at night. A person who was a town elder, but who was not a native of the town, hurried them into his house, attempting to conceal their presence from the authorities. And, as we discussed above when speaking of their "neballat" or paranoia, they were not such a trusting people in the first place. When the context is considered, it makes far more sense to take the word yada' in its normal (almost universal) application. Someone had obviously seen Lot bringing the strangers into his house, reported it to the authorities, and the people of the town, suspecting the worst, demanded to question the strangers, "to know them."
- This also makes the most sense when considering that Lot, the moment he first saw the strangers, devised a plan to save their lives. In such an air of paranoia there would be no hope of the strangers convincing the city folk of their innocence. Their questioning would be comparable to a cold war era American showing up unannounced in the Kremlin. Hence, due to his innate sense of justice, Lot sought to conceal their presence, thus making himself suspect.
- Lot next seeks to bribe the citizens for their freedom. He offers his own daughters in exchange for the safety of the strangers. If this mob had gathered out of a 'homosexual frenzy' this would have been stupid! Why would gay men want to have sex with two women they already knew when a pair of such handsome studs were there? The offer of Lot's daughters itself tells us that this story has nothing to do with homosexuality. It does, however, have interesting reflection elsewhere in scripture. See the account in Judges 19:17-30
- Judges 19:17-30 describes an oddly similar account. Here a stranger arrives in need of help, but the Law of Hospitality is again broken. An old man invites the stranger to his home (Judges 19:20). The kindly man offers him food, fodder for his animals, washes his feet and so on.
- As they sat and spoke to one another, drinking and having a nice time, the people of their town came and began beating on the door and shouting: "Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him."
- As with the Sodom account, the good householder goes out to the crowd and beseeches them: "Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man is come into mine house, do not this folly." But the town folk would not accept it. So the house holder says: "Behold, here is my daughter a maiden, and his concubine; them I will bring out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but unto this man do not so vile a thing."
- There is a vital point made here. Note
that it says, "...I will bring
out now, and humble ye them ..."
This matter of "humbling" is essential to understanding these passages. Even if one insists on translating "to know" as to have sex with, still there is no indication of homosexuality. It was common practice in ancient times, and still is in jails and prisons world wide, to anally rape someone to prove dominance over them. It is indeed possible that this would be part or all of the punishment inflicted on someone suspected of spying. If this is the case here, and I see no indication that it is, then it is still not about sex but about power, as in the case of all rape crimes. But again, nothing in the context of the Genesis account even suggests what the mob proposed to do to the strangers. It is certain however that they did not intend to engage in mutually consensual sex!
Unlike the Sodom account, in this case, while the people of the town again refuse to accept the trade, they took the concubine and brutally raped her. When the householder and his guest awoke the next morning they opened the door to find the poor woman badly abused, bleeding, on her hands and knees on the porch. - The traveler took the unfortunate woman back to his home and: ...when he was come into his house, he took a knife, and laid hold on his concubine, and divided her, together with her bones, into twelve pieces, and sent her into all the coasts of Israel.
- Now, to my knowledge no one has ever suggested that these were homosexuals. How could such horrible crimes happen? It was due to the fear which the people of these cities lived with due to the brutal nature of war. Anyone could be a spy and so no one could be trusted, especially strangers. As scripture teaches, its easy to love those who love us, but loving people we don't know, showing kindness to "angels unawares" is one of the marks of true spirituality. This quality was lacking in Sodom.
- You may be thinking, but here the "knowing" was sexual. Yes it was. It wasn't homosexual, but it was sexual. Using this account to further our understanding, it becomes obvious that in both cases the people of the cities wrongly assumed that the visitor was a spy. They wanted to interrogate them. This interrogation process and subsequent punishment, the householder in both accounts believed, would be the death of their guests.
- As I said above, Genesis 19 tells us that
the people of Sodom distrusted Lot's loyalty. They said: "This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he
will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon
the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door."
"...now we will deal worse with thee..." We now suspect you of being a spy also and will give you the same punishment, and then some! - The "angels" then pull Lot back into the relative safety of the house and explained their mission and their willingness to spare Lot and his family.
- Too bad, your pastor is mistaken! We
have this interpretation from no less an authority than Christ Jesus himself. As Jesus was explaining
to his disciples how they were to live as they preached the Gospel, he said in Matthew 10:11-15:
11 And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.
12 And when ye come into an house, salute it.
13 And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.
14 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.
15 Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city. - Sodom and Gomorrah failed to offer hospitality to strangers to an extreme degree. So great was their offense that they were used as an example of how not to treat strangers. Their hard hearted paranoia was in violation of Jesus' Golden Rule, "Do unto others and you would have them do unto you." Inhospitality was deemed a very serious offense both socially and under the Law. So much so, as I have said above, that in extreme cases the sentence was the death penalty.
- This was precisely the penalty paid by the cities of the plains.
- Friend, there is nothing in account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah to suggest that homosexuality was even indirectly an issue.
- Not so long ago this verse was widely interpreted by many conservative Christians to
"prove" that people of African descent's black complexion was the mark of Cain. Based upon this
interpretation, they justified bigotry. When this verse was used in conjunction with verses like I
Corinthians 7:21-24 it was firmly believed that God blessed the institution of slavery and that in view
of Genesis 4:11-15 the cursed African race was the ideal people to so use.
I Corinthians 7:21-24:
21 Art thou called being a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather.
22 For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ's servant.
23 Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men.
24 Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God.
- Is this what these verses mean? Of course not! One would be hard pressed to find any Christian who still believe this (at least one hopes!), but for hundreds of years this was viewed as the correct scriptural understanding by a large segment of the Christian Church.
- Are women really to view themselves as subordinate to men? Does any Christian literally accept the Genesis 3:16 statement that the only reason childbirth is painful is because of the "Fall," and/or this verse which promises women who submit to their husband's authority that they will have pain free deliveries? While as a man I do not know the pain of childbirth firsthand, I have watched several children enter this world. As Robin Williams says, unless men have ever passed a bowling bowl we have no idea! Yet I know it is excruciating even in "easy" births. Likewise, how many Christians believe that women can not be ministers? Several still do! That one is on its way out but still has a way to go. According to scriptures like these, women are not even allowed to speak in church, let along preach!
- Or how about this one?
Mark 10:11:
And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her.Well yeah, but that doesn't mean... hmm? According to this scripture over half of all Christians are living in an adulterous relationship with their wives! Welcome to the club! How does it feel to be told that the Bible teaches your marriage is illegitimate!
"Yeah, but that's different...." - Christian friend, when you tell lesbian and gay people that we are an abomination to God, when you tell us that we are destined for eternal damnation due to what is an integral part of our basic natures, you are placing a stumbling block in our path. Some of us know the Bible well and know that such accusations are unscriptural lies, however most gays, Christian or not, as most heterosexuals, Christian or not, do not know the Bible. They have never discovered the depths of its loving assurances, the profound nature of it teachings. What they know is that "everybody says God hates me, so forget God!" If I'm going to hell anyway I might as well enjoy my time here!
- Dear Christian sister or brother, I know this is not what you intend. The vast majority of Christians who believe the lie do so in all sincerity. They don't know any lesbians or gay men, or at least don't know they do, and their understandings come from news clips of leather clad men dancing down San Francisco's Market street during the Gay Pride parades, from the hype used by hate groups like Concerned Women for America, the Christian Coalition, the American Family Association, www.GodHatesFags.com and so on to raise millions of dollars. Most Christians do not know that the largest gay organization on earth is the Christian denomination the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches. They don't know that the vast majority of lesbians and gay men hold down regular jobs where they pay, on average, higher taxes than anyone else. They don't understand that it is a contradiction to criticize gays and lesbians for being promiscuous, and then blocking them from marriage. Most people don't know that even a couple who have been together for many years, and there are more of these than most would believe, when illness strikes are often told that the most important person in their life can not enter their hospital room as they are not "next of kin." Most people don't know that by far the vast majority of child molesters are heterosexual men. They don't know what its like to be stared at, ridiculed, and at times beaten severely or even to death because of a good bye kiss at an airport, a simple holding of the hands. Most people just don't know that one can not be "converted" to homosexuality. Sure, one could be seduced into an act, if the proclivity is already there, but being gay in the straight world is hard work! We must constantly come out to people unless we are content to remain in the closet. We must always keep in mind that we are second class citizens. At the office, when co-workers talk about their families, vacations, etc. we often must be careful to remain silent or speak in gender neutral terms lest we be discovered and hence fired, excluded or worse.
- My Christian friend, I urge you to seek God in this matter. God does not condemn us and as Christians we are commanded to love our neighbor as ourselves.
- ~Jag
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Exodus 22:
21 Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of
Egypt.
22 Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.
23 If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry;
24 And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows,
and your children fatherless.
Deuteronomy 10:
18 He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the
stranger, in giving him food and raiment.
19 Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
II Chronicles 6:
32 Moreover concerning the stranger, which is not of thy people Israel, but is come from a far
country for thy great name's sake, and thy mighty hand, and thy stretched out arm; if they come and
pray in this house;
33 Then hear thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the
stranger calleth to thee for; that all people of the earth may know thy name, and fear thee, as doth
thy people Israel, and may know that this house which I have built is called by thy
name.
Exodus 22:
21 Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of
Egypt.
22 Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.
23 If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry;
24 And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows,
and your children fatherless.
Isaiah 1:
9 Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom,
and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.
[note: Had God not left a remnant the Israelites would have become homosexuals?]
10 Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of
Gomorrah.
[note: The two cities had become an infamous figure of speech as an example of Inhospitality. This
section of scripture has absolutely nothing to do with homosexuality. It does however have a lot to
do with Inhospitality as you will see below].
11 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the
burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of
lambs, or of he goats.
[note: If Sodom was the den of iniquity we have been led to believe, and if this verse is referring to
them, it seems quite unlikely that a 'multitude of sacrifices' would have been being made, be they
acceptable to God or not].
12 When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts?
13 Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths,
the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.
14 Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am
weary to bear them.
15 And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many
prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.
[note: "full of blood," not full of sexual transgressions].
16 Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do
evil;
17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the
widow.
[note: The sin of Sodom was failure to show compassion to those who needed it, including strangers,
orphans and widows.
Genesis 4:15:
And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall
be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill
him.
And again: I Timothy 2:
11 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.
12 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.
13 For Adam was first formed, then Eve.
14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
15 Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and
holiness with sobriety.
Of course it is, this time its you!
In love I say to you, Its time we stop using the Bible as a weapon of
hate!
Romans 14: Matthew 23: 1 John 4:
And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not
the beam that is in thine own eye? -- Matt 7:8
13 Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather,
that no man put a stumbling block or an occasion to fall in his brother's way.
14 I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him
that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean.
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint
and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and
faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of
the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them
may be clean also.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which
indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and
iniquity.
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and
garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them
in the blood of the prophets.
31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the
prophets.
32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and
knoweth God.
8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into
the world, that we might live through him.
10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation
for our sins.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is
perfected in us.
13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.
14 And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.
15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth
in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he
is, so are we in this world.
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that
feareth is not made perfect in love.
19 We love him, because he first loved us.
20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother
whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
21 And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.
Whether you are gay, straight or not sure, I invite you to write me
I will answer your letter as soon as possible.
God bless you and yours,
