PASTOR HARRY R. JACKSON ON TARGET!

Pastor Harry R. Jackson heads up a church in Beltsville, Maryland and considers himself a social conservative. While I do not agree with all he says, he is right on target on many things happening in our country. As an African-American he is deeply concerned with the move to make legitimate same-sex marriages. And he says it may soon be approved in Washington D.C. and have a further terrible impact on Black families. (As reported in The Washington Times, July 6, 2009)    As he faces liberal opposition, he says "I believe the Bible. … I'm just worried about the next generation." He says that when in the 60s a lot of government programs, government open-ended welfare, was put in place, it made it easier for [Black] men not to own up to their responsibilities. We helped our pocketbooks and hurt our homes." Many uninformed Black pastors are accepting the same-sex marriage argument as a continuation of the civil rights movement. They are an elite group of people, he says, masquerading as a minority and systematically imposing their will on the majority.    In the fall the same-sex marriage issue will probably come up in Congress concerning the governess of Washington D.C. He says if same-sex unions pass, "it will be the Armageddon of marriage there." Pastor Harry Jackson says that "everybody in the [Black] community knows that our families are all torn up. I don't think you have to be a rocket scientist to say this is not going to strengthen marriage." He adds that the civil rights movement was one of the main reasons that marriage has depreciated in the Black community."    Jackson takes to task Black leaders like Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton for being out of touch with the Black community. "I think they have decided that no matter what the church says at the grass-roots level, … no matter what the community says, they see themselves as leading in a direction that [says] they know better than the people." Pastor Harry Jackson wants to work with other denominations to stop the same-sex marriage movement. He views as ignorance the unintended consequences of same-sex marriage.    While I appreciate what this pastor is doing, the bottom line is the fact that same-sex marriage is being inspired from the pit of hell! It attacks the fundamental purpose of creation! It denies the historical facts laid down in Genesis about the roles of men and women. When the apostle Paul attacked homosexuality in Romans 1:27, he used for the word "male" the Greek word "arseen." God gave homosexuals over to their "degrading passions" for "their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, in the same way also the men abandoned ("dismissed") the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another MEN ("arseen") with MEN committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which were not right" (Rom. 1:26-28).    The idea behind "arseen" is "male sex" which is a legitimate word to use. But the word is very graphic. In their Lexicon, Balz & Schneider point out that the root of the word carries the picture "it flows," or "that which discharges sperm." Here in Romans 1, the word is placed in an earthy context of men who discharge themselves without a female. Paul could have used the word "anthropos" but instead he chose to use this graphic word.    Can same-sex marriage be stopped? In my opinion, No! The larger sin is that those practicing such no longer "acknowledge God." This is the larger sin of our present culture. This is taking us deep into the apostasy. Sin will only accelerate and become more sinful! If same-sex marriage is approved this fall in Washington D.C., it will spread rapidly across the nation. And that is what will probably happen sooner or later! Prepare for a terrible judgment to follow. – Dr. Mal Couch