I met a young man last week. I was looking at cars and he was a salesman for one of the dealerships. We walked around the lot a bit, looking at different makes and models, carrying on one of those casual conversations with questions such as where are you from, how long have you lived here, what do you do. I told him I was from Pennsylvania, via a number of decades in California, had been here since the early 90’s. I told him I was a pastor.
It was that answer that caused anxiety to rise in him. He was gay. I think I was already aware of that fact. When I sensed the fear in him, my heart broke. In that moment, I felt within me the love that God had for him. In that moment, I realized that while we are all to fear God (respect, reverence, stand in awe, submit – whatever definition you want to apply to “the fear of the Lord”), no one should stand in fear of God’s children.
After we worked our way inside the showroom, I told him how much God loved him. I told him that if God had enough grace to cover my many sins, He had enough grace to cover his. I told him I would not stand in judgment of his sins, that was between hm and God. My duty was simply to present the hope found in Jesus Christ, and to love him
I repeated how much God loved Him. When I said it again, I saw tears in his eyes. I was once more flooded with an awareness of God’s love. Each time I have prayed for him since, I sense that love. I gave this young man my name and address. I told him that should he ever want to talk, he could call me.
Oh beloved, my heart is still broken over him. How will we ever reach anyone if they are afraid of us, if all they have ever heard from us is judgment. The Scripture reminds us that “the Lord knows those who are His.” It isn’t our job to determine who is or who isn’t His; it is our job to love and offer the same hope that was offered to us.
