By: Anonymous

There are no more divisive issues within the church these days than those around sexuality and gender. We have seen denominational splits caused by people feeling forced to choose a side. The way these choices are presented is one part of the problem. This is an issue that is full of nuance and depth that is ignored when it is presented as pro or con. Choose affirming and we are seen as weak on sin, anti-Bible, and worldly. Choose un-affirming and we are seen as unloving, hateful, and bigoted (all of which would also be anti-Bible).

Last year I took a class from the Nazarene Course of Study on the “Nazarene Doctrine of Women in Ministry.” There was a particular lesson in the class that looked at evidence of the work of women pastors. This is where I became overwhelmingly supportive of this doctrine. The evidence shows that women pastors have spirit-filled ministry, they themselves show evidence of entire sanctification, and an overwhelming amount of the fruit of the Spirit. There is no denying the call to leadership and the fulfillment of that call. God has used women as pastors in undeniable ways. This willingness to examine the fruits of our theological stance was so encouraging and logical. On top of that, the process we use to bring pastors to the point of ordination is full of this kind of reflection. If someone is not ready, or not right for ministry, the evidence is revealed in the process. Big picture-wise, this reveals our faith that God transforms lives through sanctification, and empowers lives through gifting, to serve the Kingdom. We declare this truth throughout our articles of faith and through the policy and procedure in the denomination.

With this in mind, as I encountered the continued conversation about sexuality and gender, I found a lack of faith in sanctification and gifting. That is a hard claim to just throw out there, because many of these people are leaders of churches and within the denomination, yet I cannot get around this idea that a certain way of interpreting the Bible is carrying more weight than the sanctifying power of God. If my faith is in God alone, I cannot fear the results of His work. If God fully sanctifies a gay person and they are still gay, what do we do? Do we trust God? If a gay person responds to a call to ministry and they are still gay, do we respect the call and the process which that call initiates? Why did people believe me when I shared with them that I had received an undeniable calling from God to be a pastor? Is it because I am straight? I hope not. We do not have to decide whether being gay is a sin–or is it just homosexual actions? or is it attractions? If we just lean into discipleship and trust the sanctifying power of God in the lives of those who believe, we will find out. What is the fear? Are we secure enough in our faith to back away from the debate and let God be God?

Our Manual lists John 15 as one of the scriptural sources for our statement on sanctification: “I am the True Vine, and my Father is the gardener.” This all comes down to trusting the Gardener. I ask that we let the Gardener do the work that only He is qualified to do. Our job is to simply connect people to the true vine and work with them to keep them connected. That is a job we can do and not be divisive and harmful. To honor our Nazarene theology we should carefully consider adopting a revision of our statement of human sexuality that encourages seeking God’s work and presence in our lives, making us more like Jesus, and serving in the Kingdom of God.