Our Scripture reading, brothers and sisters, to which I invite you to turn with me at this time, is found in the New Testament book of Romans, Romans chapter one. We continue this evening a series of messages begun last Lord's Day evening with the series being entitled, So What's Wrong with Homosexuality? Lord willing, we will continue this series of studies next Lord's Day evening. Looking then, I trust and pray at the broader effects of homosexuality on our country and our culture. And then, Lord willing, two Lord's Days from tonight, we hope to conclude the series by looking at a particular biblical challenge for the Church of Christ today, given these besetting sins of our day, this particular context of our culture at this time. Many of us may know that the book of Romans, penned under the inspiration by the Apostle Paul, some of the greatest systematic theology ever written in this particular form. It was penned by Paul somewhere around late 55 A.D. through 56 A.D., somewhere in there, perhaps early 57 A.D. As you can see in the first chapter, the first couple of verses, he introduces himself as a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God, the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures. Regarding his son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David and who through the spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the son of God by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ, our Lord. And if you'll drop down to verses 16 and 17, we find these familiar gospel verses where Paul proclaims, I am not ashamed of the gospel, though he was living in a pagan culture and not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel, a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written, the righteous will live by faith. Then, as it were, Paul takes on the form, as our scripture reading begins, of a prosecuting attorney. And before he gets to the good news of salvation, he he drives home the fact that we are sinners in need of such a savior. And again, he he does so by mincing no words and in no uncertain terms. And so, brothers and sisters, we begin our Scripture reading this evening in Romans 1, verse 18. We read to the end of the chapter, verse 32. But please note that this evening we will be focusing especially only on two verses. That's all we'll have time for tonight. Focusing especially on verses 26 and 27. Verses 26 and 27 will constitute our text for this evening. Romans 1, beginning in verse 18, hear then the Word of the Lord. The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world, God's invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made. so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him. But their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore, God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator, who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way, the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, He gave them over to a depraved mind to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful. They invent ways of doing evil. They disobey their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things, but also approve of those who practice them. Thus far, the reading of God's holy word. And as always, dear friends, I ask and urge you to keep your Bibles open and handy as we look to God's Word together at the close of this Lord's Day. Dear congregation of Jesus Christ, perhaps you have seen the news headline which others have also shared with me concerning a legal matter affecting the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association. For example, here in an article printed in the Record dated September 18, 2007, there's a headline which reads, Policy on Gays, Cost Group, It's Tax Break. Policy on Gays, Cost Group, It's Tax Break. The article reads in part as follows, and I quote, Refusing to allow gay couples to hold civil union ceremonies in a boardwalk pavilion has cost the United Methodist Church group in Mammoth County its state tax exemption for the property. The State Department of Environmental Protection on Monday stripped the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association of a property tax exemption for the pavilion because the group refuses to make it equally available to all people, a requirement under state law. The association was getting the tax exemption for its beach and boardwalk property in the Ocean Grove section of Neptune Township under a DEP program that rewards private owners who make their property available for public recreation. The pavilion is at the heart of a dispute between gay groups who want the right to hold civil union ceremonies there and the church group which says the state is trying to force it to violate religious beliefs. The Camp Meeting Association has filed a federal lawsuit against the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, saying the Association's right to religious freedom would be violated by being forced to sanction same-sex unions. On Sunday, one of two lesbian couples who are suing the Association held a civil ceremony a few hundred feet from the pavilion. Together for nearly 38 years, Ocean Grove residents Janice Moore, 70, and Emily Sonesa, 77, were joined in a civil union on the fishing pier within sight of the pavilion where they had hoped to hold their ceremony." End of quote. Now, brothers and sisters, concerning this particular article, two brief comments, if I may. First of all, please recall what I said last Lord's Day evening concerning the term gay, concerning the term Gay. For example, in his very excellent book entitled, When the Wicked Seize a City, Reverend Charles McElhenney, whom you may recall served for 32 years in the city of San Francisco, which he calls Babylon by the Bay, writes the following, and I quote, The homosexual lifestyle is by no means gay. It is a life filled with anger, lust, venereal diseases, pain, loneliness, and early death from a number of wasting diseases. The tragedy is that it is so unnecessary." Secondly, please note that as is so often the case in the news media, the particular lesbian couple highlighted here has been together for nearly 38 years. Friends, please know that that is by no means common in the homosexual community. In fact, allow me this evening to briefly pull back the curtain just a little bit, as it were, on a particular characteristic or aspect of the homosexual lifestyle which the The media does its best to keep out of public view. Something you don't read about. Something you don't hear about. And generally speaking, it is not going to be found in any printed news article. That particular characteristic, as you might have guessed, is the virtually unbridled lust an extremely and excessively passionate and prevalent promiscuity of the homosexual lifestyle. For example, I have here an article from Newsweek magazine. It's dated February 28, 2005, just a couple of years ago. And it's entitled, Party, Play and Pay. multiple partners, unprotected sex, and crystal meth. It's a deadly cocktail that has stirred new fears about the spread of HIV. This particular article reads in part, and I've tried this evening to be very sensitive to the children here, so please know that up front. But the article reads in part, and I quote, It's Saturday evening in Manhattan, and three dozen men are crammed into a one-bedroom suite in an upscale hotel across from Ground Zero. Listen to what I'm reading. After shelling out $20 apiece to the man who organized tonight's event over the Internet, the guests place their clothes in hefty bags for safekeeping and get down to business and pleasure. A muscular man in his mid-30s sits naked on the sofa and inhales a bump of crystal methamphetamine. Within minutes, he's lying on the floor having unprotected sex with the host of tonight's sex party, who has sunken cheeks, swollen necklands, and distended belly, which betray the HIV infection he's been battling for years. In the bedroom, a dozen men, several of them sweaty, dehydrated, and wired on meth, having sex on the king size bed. There's not a condom in sight. Quote, It's completely suicidal. The crystal and the barebacking, and I will not define or describe that term because of the children here tonight. But it's completely suicidal, the crystal and the what I just said, says one of the two attendees who described the scene. But there's something liberating and hot about it, too. End of quote. Now, brothers and sisters, whether we are talking about a nearly 38-year lesbian relationship, or whether we are talking about three dozen men who are crammed into a one-bedroom suite in an upscale hotel across from Ground Zero, it doesn't make any difference. It doesn't make any difference. The sacred Scriptures are unequivocally clear on this matter. In fact, as we turn to our study of the sacred Scriptures this evening and particularly work our way through our text as recorded for us in Romans 1, verses 26 and 27, we find that the Holy Spirit-inspired Apostle Paul emphatically proclaims that while essentially all sin is equally as heinous in the sight of a holy God, And while essentially all sin is equaling deserving of His just judgment and fiery fury, and while essentially all sin can be cleansed solely through the shed blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Calvary, the fact remains, that in answer to the question, so what's wrong with homosexuality? The answer is not simply, as we saw last Lord's Day evening, that it is wrong in its core essence. As the Word of God will teach us so clearly this evening, the sin of homosexuality is also wrong in its carnal expression. In its carnal expression. That is, in its physical, bodily expression. As we work our way through our text together this evening, I would like us to take special note of three critical observations which the Apostle Paul makes concerning the carnal expression of homosexuality. I'm going to say them twice in case you're taking notes and desire to jot them down. Observation number one, the carnal expression of homosexuality is a result of having been given over to such sin by God. And I'll say that again. The carnal expression of homosexuality is a result of having been given over to such sin by God. For example, notice. After having set forth the fact in verses 18 and following that the wrath of God is being revealed, notice it doesn't just say will be revealed or was revealed. It says, the wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth about God. Verse 21, who neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to God, having set all that forth in no uncertain terms. Again, in the words of our text, verse 26, because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Or as the King James puts it, gave them over to vile affections. Or as the New American Standard puts it, gave them over to degrading passions. Writes the great Reformer Martin Luther, and I quote, God gave them up. Not just by permission, but by His will and command. And again, says Luther, yes, God is love. But when God deals with transgressors according to His stern justice, He permits the perverse sinner to break His commandments all the more viciously in order that He might punish him the more severely." And friends, I ask you, is that not precisely the way in which our Almighty, Sovereign God dealt with the Old Testament Pharaoh in the days of Moses? For example, turn to the book of Exodus with me for a moment, if you would please. The book of Exodus. It's the second book of the Bible, Genesis, Exodus. Exodus chapter 8, first of all, verse 8. Look with me, please. Exodus chapter 8, verse 8. The context here is the plague of frogs, which God brought against the land in order to cause Pharaoh to set his people free. And in Exodus 8, verse 8, we read, Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord. Then in verse 12, same chapter, After Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh. And the Lord did what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses and the courtyards and in the fields. They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them. But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, notice, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron just as the Lord had said. And then we go into the context of the plague of Nats. Drop down to v. 19, same chapter. The magician said to Pharaoh, this is the finger of God. But Pharaoh's heart was hard and he would not listen just as the Lord had said. And now drop over in the context of the plague of flies to v. 30-32. Here we read of Exodus 8, verse 30, Then Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord, and the Lord did what Moses asked. The flies left Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Not a fly remained. But this time also, Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go. And then we read about the plague on livestock, the plague of boils. Look at chapter 9, verses 10 through 12 with me, please, of Exodus chapter 9, beginning at verse 10. So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air and festering boils broke out on men and animals. Magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians. Notice this now. But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses. Now, friends, think about that. Think about that sequence which we have just read. You see, the hardening of the homosexual's heart, or the hardening of any of our hearts, when we repeatedly sin in unrepentant fashion before the face of our holy, sovereign God, may very well result in God giving us over to that sin and hardening our hearts as a very sign that we have already now begun to fall under His judgment. And so my young friends, my dear friends, listen, if you or I or anyone begins to sin with a falsely quieted conscience, let us say. Or let us say, my young friends, that you or I or anyone begins to sin blatantly, defiantly, knowing we are violating the will of God as revealed in the Word of God. And it does not bother us. We could care less. It does not make any difference as far as we are concerned. Let us beware, because that may very well be and most likely would be a sign that we have already fallen under a measure of the judgment of God, because not only are we now hardening our own hearts, God is beginning to harden our hearts as a sign of his judgment on us. God gave them over. God gave them over. It becomes a refrain in Romans 1, verses 24, 26, 28, I think it is. Go back with me, please, to Romans 1. It becomes almost a refrain of the Apostle Paul. Yes, in verse 24, therefore, God gave them over. Verse 26, because of this, God gave them over. Verse 28, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, He gave them over. The refrain is mentioned three times. And without getting kind of crazy on this, you read so many times in the Bible where the number three seems to refer to the fulfillment or perfection or completion of some particular aspect of the plan and purposes of Almighty God. For example, look at the words of Jesus in Matthew chapter 12. Just go back several pages to the left, please. The first book of the New Testament, the first gospel account. In Matthew chapter 12, verse 40, here our Lord Jesus says, for as Jonah was three days and three nights, in the belly of a huge fish. So the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." He gave them over. He gave them over. He gave them over three times. No doubt, in some way, a reflection of the blessed Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But now, friends, listen. That having been said, that having been said, As we allow Scripture to interpret Scripture, as always we must, we must beware that in such an interpretation, we do not even come close in any way, shape, or form to making God the author or originator or cause of sin. That cannot be. It is absolutely impossible due to the character and nature of God. In fact, writes the great Reformer John Calvin, and I quote, God is both active and passive in delivering men to judgment. Yet the cause of sin is not from God." And in support of that correct doctrine, Calvin notes James 1. If you have your Bibles, turn there with me, please, toward the end of the New Testament. The book of James, right after the book of Hebrews. Here, James 1, the brother of our Lord. The Apostle James in James 1, verses 13-15. James 1, 13-15 writes, when tempted, no one should say, God is tempting me. For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone. And as we saw last Sunday evening, there is no way in which the homosexual individual can say, God made me this way, therefore, leave me alone. I'm innocent. This is not true. No one can say God is tempting me. God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. And after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin and sin when it is full grown. gives birth to death, you see. In fact, the great biblical commentator Matthew Henry sets forth an excellent illustration, saying, and I quote, "...if the patient will not submit to the methods prescribed, but willfully does that which is harmful to him, the physician is not to be blamed. The fatal symptoms that follow are not to be imputed to the physician, but to the disease itself, and to the folly of the patient." And friends, that's true. That's true. And that is why here in the words of our text in Romans 1, turn back there with me, please. The Apostle Paul so clearly and repeatedly proclaims that the carnal expression of homosexuality is a result of having been given over to such sin by God. It is a result. It's not the only result, but it is a result of having been given over to such sin by God. Now, he's second. critical observation, is that the carnal expression of homosexuality exchanges the natural for the unnatural. And I'll say that again. The carnal expression of homosexuality exchanges the natural for the unnatural. Look to the words of our text with me if you would, once again, please. Romans 1.26. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even. It's almost like Paul says, I know this is almost impossible to believe. If you could hardly believe it, it would be true. Even. They're women. Now, if you've got your own Bible, underscore that word women. Here's why. I never caught this before in my study of the Scriptures. It's very interesting. That word translated women in the Greek is the word thalus. T-H-E-L-U-S is how you would transliterate it. Thalus. And it literally means female. Paul does not use here the more common word for woman, which is gune. He uses the word thalus. Female. And friends, I've been prayerfully pondering this week if Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, did that because he was referencing God's creation order. He was referencing the image of God that we read about and considered last Lord's Day evening as recorded for us, for example, in Genesis 1.27 where we read, so God, our Sovereign, Almighty, Omnipotent Creator, so God created man in His own image. In the image of God, He created him. Male and female, He created them. It's just an interesting insight. A thought. It could be correctly translated woman. But it's the more common word translated female. Interesting. Well, back to the words of our text. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts, even their women, the females. Exchanged, notice again how frequently that term is used in verse 23, exchanging the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals. In Reptiles, verse 25, they exchange the truth of God for a lie. They worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator who was forever praised. Amen. Every sin, my young friends, every sin, boys and girls, in some way, shape, or form is rooted in an exchange. We are exchanging something which we want for something which God wants. We are exchanging the truth for a lie. We are exchanging self-sacrificing service for self-serving pleasure, for example. And on and on and on. Even their women exchanged, stay with me, natural, the Greek could be literally translated, that which is inborn, agreeable to nature, or governed by nature. They exchanged natural relations for the natural use or function. They exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way, or likewise, the men, Same thing again. The Greek word is arsene. A-r-s-e-n is how we would transliterate it. Arsene. And that's technically the word for male. It's not anthropos. Anthropology. That would be the normal word for men. It says male. It's interesting. In the same way, also the males, reflecting the image of God, also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed or burned with lust for one another, with lust for one another. Now, brothers and sisters, this is where I've been very, very careful in my preparations, trying to anticipate the children, the boys and girls here tonight, and to somehow bring across the depravity of that text in an appropriate worship fashion. And so I ask for your prayers even as I preach. But to begin, the unnaturalness of the homosexual carnal expression, in the words of Reverend McElhenney, is as follows, and I quote again from his book. He says, the act of homosexual sex is as abnormal a process as someone deciding to eat food only through his nose. It could be done, but it wouldn't be considered normal in any sense of the word. End of quote. You see, brothers and sisters, what is normal? is that which we read, for example, back in the creation account in Genesis 2.24. And I had the honor and joy of reading this text at a couple of wedding ceremonies over the past few days. In Genesis 2.24, our Creator, Sovereign God, declares, for this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to, not his significant other, but to his wife. And they will become one flesh. You see, that's normal. What's normal, and if you care to turn with me to Psalm 128, in the middle of the Bible, Job's Psalms, Proverbs, Psalm 128, what is normal is what the sacred psalmist says here in Psalm 128, verses 1-4. Namely, blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in His ways. You will eat the fruit of your labor. Blessings and prosperity will be yours. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house. Your sons will be like olive shoots around your table. Thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord." And friends, what is normal, if you'll just flip over a few more pages to the right, is that which King Solomon proclaims in Proverbs 5, verses 18 and 19. And I'm just going to read here the Scriptures, a couple of verses. Here Solomon declares Proverbs 5.18-19, May your fountain be blessed and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful deer, may her breast satisfy you always. May you ever be captivated, literally intoxicated by her love. And friends, what is normal is what the Apostle Paul declares in 1 Corinthians. It's just after Romans. 1 Corinthians chapter 7 verses 1-5. 1 Corinthians 7, 1-5. Paul says, now for the matters you wrote about, it is good for a man not to marry. Paul had the gift of singleness. Some of us may have the gift of singleness. He goes on to say, though, but since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife's body does not belong to her alone, but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone, but also to his wife. Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. That's what's normal. That's what God created us to be. That is the joy and the pleasure as ordained by our Creator God of male-female sexual relationships, bringing great joy and pleasure and fruitfulness to us on earth and bringing great glory to the God who created us for all eternity. That's natural, you see. Now, By way of contrast, what is exceedingly unnatural are a whole host of homosexual, carnal expressions. And listen to what I'm saying. That if I were to share them with you in detail tonight, probably would cause some of us, if not many of us, to either literally, physically throw up or pass out. Were I to share them with you in detail, no doubt they would cause some of us or many of us to literally, physically throw up or pass out. And friends, that's why it's part of the reason why I've been struggling with such extreme emotion in preaching this series of sermons to you. And again, because of the children here tonight, and probably even if the children weren't here tonight, I would not share them with you in a worship setting. But concerning them, concerning the homosexual carnal expressions, John Calvin writes, and I quote, They not only abandoned themselves to beastly lusts, but became degraded beyond the beasts, since they reversed the whole order of nature, a filthiness which even brute beasts abhor. End of quote. And so again, I say in stark and direct contrast to the aforementioned God-ordained natural expressions of heterosexual love between one man and one woman, one husband and one wife, what is completely unnatural is that which was reported, for example, in USA Today in November 1984. And I'm just going to read these once. Please listen carefully to these statistics. USA Today, November 1984 stated that homosexuals have an average of 50 different sexual partners every year. End of quote. What is not natural is that according to a 1972 report by the Centers for Disease Control, listen carefully, 50% of white male homosexuals surveyed claim to have had more than 500 sexual partners in their lifetime. What is not natural is that 28% reported having more than 1,000 sexual partners in their lifetime. What is not natural is that 79% of white male homosexuals said that one half of their sexual partners were complete strangers." End of quote. And so, the necessity of the recent sting operation in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport restroom, which apparently even caught a United States Senator in its net, ought not to surprise us. It ought not to surprise us in the least. Indeed, so insightfully writes Chuck McElhenney, and I quote, because of their sexual orientation, because their sexual orientation is such a blatant perversion of God's creation order, they lose their creaturely identity. And so they must distinguish themselves by that very perversion. I'll read that again. It calls their sexual orientation as such a blatant perversion of God's creation order. They lose their creaturely identity. And so they must distinguish themselves by that very perversion." End of quote. The second critical observation of the carnal expression of homosexuality is set forth in the words of our text is that it exchanges the natural for the unnatural. It exchanges the natural for the unnatural. Friends, a third and final critical observation as expounded by the Apostle Paul is that the carnal expression of homosexuality receives the due penalty of its perversion. The carnal expression of homosexuality receives the due penalty of its perversion. Look at our text, Romans 1.26. Once again, please. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones in the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Notice. Men committed, it's actually a present tense in the Greek, it should be read, men committing, ongoing fashion, men committing. indecent acts with other men, and receive," it's also a present tense, and receiving in themselves, that is, in their own persons, if you will, the due penalty or the just recompense for their perversion. If you've got your own Bible, underscore the word perversion. In the Greek, it's the word plane, and it literally means error or a wandering around away from what is true and right. Error. The due penalty for their perversion. Now friends, think about that. Think about that. You see, most commentators are no doubt correctly so. First of all, define this due penalty or this just or appropriate recompense as being the depraved or reprobate mind which is referenced down in verse 28 of Romans 1. They say, well, the due penalty which they deserve, what they received is the sentence by God of a depraved, reprobate mind. And no doubt that is certainly true. No doubt that is part of the penalty which is due their perversion. I don't contest that. But in my own prayerful study and consideration, one text that came to my mind is 1 Corinthians 6, verse 18. If you want to turn there to the right several pages, after Romans, 1 Corinthians 6, verse 18, the Apostle Paul says, flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his own body. But he who sins sexually sins against his own body. You see, God seems to make a qualitative difference in this particular text between any general sin and the sin of sexual immorality. And then when you pair that with the historical precedent of what we read in the book of Deuteronomy, please turn to the fifth book of the Bible in the Old Testament, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, the 28th chapter. In verse one, for example, God says, if you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands, I give you today, Deuteronomy 28, verse 1, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God. And then several blessings are enumerated. In Deuteronomy 28, verse 15, we read, however, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all His commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you. And you can skim over those, but drop down to verse 21, please. plague you with diseases until He has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess. The Lord will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation." Verse 27, same chapter of Deuteronomy 28. The Lord will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, festering sores and the itch from which you cannot be cured. The Lord will afflict you with madness, blindness and confusion of mind. And brothers and sisters, I don't know about you, but to me, they seem to accurately describe any number of venereal diseases generally. And they also seem to be describing the extreme bodily, physical, and mental debilitating symptoms of AIDS specifically. Have you ever seen anybody die of AIDS? I think I mentioned this a few months ago. I have. 28 years old. Englewood Medical Hospital or Medical Center. What somebody referred to as a walking skeleton. The boils and the sores and the fever and the dementia. Not a pretty sight. Not a pretty sight. When I was speaking out at the Reform Youth Services Convention this summer, getting ready to, I should say, speaking on dating and marriage. And in preparation, I knew I was going to have a question and answer session with the young people that were coming through my workshop, my seminar. I had my daughter, Kelly, go on the Internet and print out for me some statistics that I could share as needed. and what Kelly found from the Centers for Disease Control, and I want the young people here tonight especially to listen to this very carefully. This is what she found. I've got it printed out. Sexually transmitted diseases, SDTs, remain a major public health challenge in the United States. While substantial progress has been made in preventing, diagnosing, and treating certain STDs in recent years, CDC, the Centers for Disease Control, estimates that 19 million new infections occur each year. Almost half of them among young people, ages 15 to 24. At the end of 2003, an estimated 1,039,000 to 1,185,000 persons in the United States were living with HIV AIDS, slash AIDS, with 24 to 27% undiagnosed and unaware of their HIV infection. One in five people in the United States has an STD. Two-thirds of all STDs occur in people 25 years of age or younger. One in four new STD infections occur in teenagers. One in five Americans, I'll skip that one, at least one in every four Americans will contract an STD at some point in their lives. The number affected with chlamydia, 4 million. Trichomoniasis, if I'm saying it right, they call it trich, 3 million. Gonorrhea, 1.1 million. Genital warts, 750,000. Genital herpes, 40 million affected with as many as 500,000 new cases each year. Hepatitis B, 300,000. Syphilis, 120,000. HIV, 1 million affected with as many as 45,000 new AIDS cases reported each year. Listen to what I'm reading. Young people. You know, I love you. That's why I bring you. By the grace of God, the whole counsel of God, Pastor Van Dyck seeks to do the same thing. In Galatians 6, verses 7 and 8, God's word says this Galatians 6, 7, 8, Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction. The one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. It's true. God's Word is true. And my young friends, were you or I or anyone to commit sexual immorality, Be it adultery or be it premarital promiscuity or fornication or be it homosexuality, listen to what I'm saying. The fact of the matter is that were you and I to engage in sexual immorality, you and I would in effect be having sex with every single person which that person had ever slept with. That's the fact of the matter. We would literally, physically be inheriting that person's entire sexual history. It's a fact of the matter. Ms. One High Price Hooker wrote on a note which she left by the bed stand of a man down in Texas several years ago who had hired her services for the night. He woke up in the morning and the prostitute was gone and he read the note and it said, Welcome to the world of AIDS. Gentlemen, think of this. Ladies, think of this. Young people, think of this. Is it any wonder that in the words of our text, the Holy Spirit-inspired Apostle Paul makes it so abundantly clear. The carnal expression of homosexuality receives the due penalty of its perversion. You know, recently, I share this as we close. Recently, I was listening to an audio cassette recording of a testimony by a man named Bob Winter. At 19 years of age, he became convinced that he was a homosexual. 19. And for 12 years, he passionately embraced the homosexual lifestyle. or death style, as one pastor put it. Bob said he was looking, and I quote, for love and acceptance. Love and acceptance. But over time, he realized that he was finding only what he called empty promises. And an endless series of incredibly selfish sexual encounters, which only left him more lonely and empty than before. And also caused him to contract AIDS. He said his thoughts of suicide soon followed. And by the way, brothers and sisters, study after study after study has shown that the suicide rate among practicing homosexuals is minimally seven to eight times higher than the general heterosexual population of the United States. As Chuck McElhinney puts it, homosexuals are victims of their own unbridled passions and blinded by a lifestyle that promises them freedom, but only delivers death. Well, back to Bob Winter. By the grace and mercy of God, Bob repented of his sins. And he professed faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. And part of his testimony was, I'm no longer afraid to die. I'm no longer afraid to die. Because Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live even though he dies. And whoever lives and believes in Me will never die. And the interviewer said to him, and I wrote it down, Bob, what would you say to someone who is currently trapped in the homosexual lifestyle? And without a moment's hesitation, he replied, change is possible. If you want out of that lifestyle, God can give you so much more than you ever thought you could have. It's not magic. It's not overnight. But He changes you from the inside out in a very real and powerful way." And my dear, dear friends in the Lord, that's true. That is oh so true. You see, it says in Romans 3.23 that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, and that's you and that's me and that's every person who ever lived, except for our Lord Jesus Christ. And the fact of the matter is, as the Apostle Paul says in Romans 6.23, for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. You see, you and I are no different than Bob Winter. You and I also are sinners in need of a Savior. And that Savior is Jesus Christ. That only Savior is Jesus Christ. The Apostle Peter proclaimed in Acts 4, verse 12, salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. And in John 3, verse 16, our Lord Jesus Himself declared, God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. So, my dear, dear friend, whether your or my besetting sin in the words of the Apostle Paul in verses 29 and following is envy, or murder, or strife, or deceit, or malice, or gossip, or slander, or being a God-hater, insolent, arrogant, boastful, or disobeying their parents, or homosexuality, or verse 32, or approving of those who practice such sins, let us right now, precisely in this hour, By the grace and mercy of God and through the person and power of His Holy Spirit, repent of such sins. Profess our faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and pray and plead that He would set us free. Claiming the glorious gospel promise of God's Word as said by our Lord Jesus so powerfully in John 8, verse 36, where He proclaimed, so if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. Amen. Let's bow our heads and our hearts together in prayer before Him. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious, wrote the Apostle Paul. Sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Oh, forever faithful Father, by Thy grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. Set us all free from slavery to sin, we pray, including and especially those who have been deceived and enslaved by the sin of homosexuality. Deliver them, Lord, from hardened hearts. Deliver them, Lord, from shameful lusts. Deliver them, Lord, from depraved minds and unnatural affections. And bring them today into the freedom and into the fullness of Thy Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In whose most precious and powerful name alone do we pray. Amen.