8/24/19 

 Exodus 20:14

¹⁴ “You shall not commit adultery.

You shall not commit sexual uncleanness. 

I took a ministerial oath in an orthodox Presbyterian church in 1975.  I have maintained a responsibility to that oath until the present day.

In that oath, common to all orthodox Presbyterian officers, is a responsibility to recognize the Westminster Confession with the Larger and Shorter Catechism 

as the truth of Scripture and the teaching of my church.  If I depart from that, ie the teaching of the Confession and Catechism I am to notify my presbytery of my difference.  Having not done that my presbytery has every right to expect me to agree with the Larger Catechism’s teaching on the seventh commandment.

For my honesty to my confession it does not matter what is understood as a love for sinners, encouragement to repentant gay believers, or sincere evangelism, my understanding of sin as it is forbidden in the Law of God is determined by writing, which constitute my confession as the object of my vows.  Until I deny this confession and make the change known to my presbytery everyone who knows me has the right to expect me to believe and teach that heterosexual, homosexual, and any other type of sexual lust is sin.

The tenth commandment gives us the character of lust.  James 1:14-15    advances our understanding to the point if we deny the fact of lust and the sinfulness of it we have lost the credibility, or of even deserving a hearing.

¹⁴ But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. ¹⁵ Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death

I might debate with you whether a homosexual can be forgiven, I have heard that debate.  I might debate with you what can be categorized as lust, I have heard that debate, but I cannot and will not debate whether sexual uncleanness as described in my confession, (until and unless I have notified my presbytery) is sin.

The Larger Catechism in its exposition of the seventh commandment has defined the bounds of it.  That is my statement.  It is plain.  It is understandable and it is irrevocable.  “Let God be true and every man a liar”, Romans 3:4b