Gay Christian Identity – Joe Dallas

Joe Dallas equips listeners with the basic tools and concepts necessary for a Christ-like response to the Gay Christian identity.  Joe brings us in for a transparent look at his journey from the downward spiral into sexual promiscuity to promoting the Gay Christian identity and finally to landing on the solid ground of his identity in Christ.

During Joe’s journey, The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches was one of the first organizations that claimed both a Christian base and a pro-gay base and where he heard the pro-gay interpretation of scripture for the first time.  He was confronted with men and women of all ages and all types who identified as Gay Christians.  If you haven’t already, you will meet someone who says “I love Jesus, I have been born again, I believe the Bible is the word of God and I’m openly gay or I’m openly lesbian and God is fine with my lifestyle”.  Joe’s in-depth teaching will better equip you to dialogue with people holding this position.

Joe begins with these terms and concepts to help us better understand and follow along with his discussion:

Gay Christian Identify – Terms and Concepts

• Saved – born again and positioned in Christ
• Gay – orientation, identity or behavior
  • “Gay is not as simplistic as a term as we might think it to be because it can refer either to an orientation or an identity or a behavior or a combination of all 3.”
• Orientation – result of the sin nature – not a choice
• Identity – alignment with a sinful tendency – is a choice
• Behavior – erotic connection with same sex – is a choice

Five Point Progression

1. Discovery – deep feelings others don’t have
2. Conflict – lasts for a season “I didn’t ask to be gay”
3. Resolution Attempt – tried everything, “it” doesn’t work
4. Revision – to accommodate the temptation
5. Gay Christian Identity – adoption / embracing

Many people believe that if you are born again you will no longer have same sex attractions and desires.  They often refer to the apostle Paul stating that “if any man is in Christ he is a new creation old things are passed away and all things become new” (2 Cor 5:17).  While we do become new creations, the Bible also states that we will experience a struggle between the flesh and the spirit.

Joe puts it this way, “When someone tells me well I tried to pray the gay away and it didn’t happen. I would say who on Earth told you that was going to happen?  All of us have sinful desires of the flesh sometimes we are completely relieved of those desires at other times we are allowed to still wrestle those desires. As time goes on they may diminish and other times they stay and at all times we are still told to crucify the flesh walk in the spirit and not live under the power of any particular sin.”

Joe’s teaching ends on a powerful note from Dr. Paul Morris who says, “but if I were a homosexual Christian this one question would bother me, am I interpreting scripture in the light of my proclivity or should I be interpreting my proclivity in the light of scripture?”