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EZEKIEL 44:15-31 In this prophetic book, the Prophet sees into the future, the future priests of the third temple, (to be built in the near future) the descendants of “Zadok” will be the priests in the millennium, and the same high standards are for these priests as well. It also states the job of the priest: “And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and unholy, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean” This should also be the goal of every Torah teacher, rabbi, minister, pastor, etc. to teach the WHOLE TORAH in their place of worship and study so that their sheep might follow their shepherd wholeheartedly and secure. The problem today is that a few "hired shepherds" are there for the money, and their heart is not in the job. Some will preach what the "people want to hear" not what they NEED to hear. There are "prosperity gospels" and "if you are not healed it is because your faith is weak" kind of messages. What is Holy? Yeshua/Jesus is Holy, and we need to become like HIM in all ways, little by little, growing spiritually in the WORD and in faith. It all starts with the "New Birth" (John 3:3) The Commandments teach us what is clean and unclean, Holy and unholy. So, what should be taught by the Shepherds who keep their sheep? 1. We are all sinners and have come short of the glory of God. 2. God loves everyone and because of His immense love, He came to earth in human form, to die in our place, taking upon our sins and the curse of death. 3. We must ALL (individually) accept the one-time sacrifice of Yeshua/Jesus on the Cross, in a personal way, knowing that "he died for YOU!(specifically). 4. The Bible is the inerrant WORD of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, His message for ALL mankind. It is our Basic Instruction guide Before Leaving Earth (B.I.B.L.E.) 5. We have eternal life with God and all believers. And Yeshua/Jesus will return soon as the "Lion of Judah" to set up His 1000-year Kingdom, which we will be part of. 6. There is a Heaven and a Hell, and a Lake of Fire (no joke) Eternity is a serious matter and should not be taken lightly. Our position with God now determines our future in eternity. LUKE 5:1-6:49 Yeshua speaks to the people, from a boat. After teaching, He and Kefa go out on the lake, resulting in a boatload of fish. Kefa hears, yet protests, “We fished all night and caught nothing” yet still obeys and “reaps the harvest” many fish, to take home to sell and eat. In the other incident when Yeshua caused his talmidim to catch a boatload of fish, the number of fish caught summed “153.” Why is this number recorded? Is it significant? Perhaps Yeshua is making a statement through the fish caught. The statement in Hebrew “Ani Elohim” ( I AM Elohim) sums “153” in gematria (using the “vav” in “Elohim”) Yeshua tells Peter 3 times to "pastor and lead HIS lambs and sheep" Who are HIS lambs and sheep? One way we can look at this symbolically is that a "lamb" can be a "very young believer, perhaps just "born-again" and needs a lot of instruction. The "sheep" are the more mature believers, who still need more instruction (more Torah!) So, that is the job of a rabbi, pastor, Sunday School teacher, Torah Teacher, to instruct and lead the "lambs and sheep" of "his or her pasture" With simple obedience through faith, we can all reap the blessings that YHVH has in store for us. A little bit of faith, trust, and obedience, will bring in a big catch. Now, Kefa is promoted to be a “fisher-of-MEN” rescuing men’s souls from the grasp of HaSatan and bringing them into the Kingdom. Are you a fisher of men (and women) or are you still content with the small “fishy” things of life? You decide! Yeshua also, after the blessing of many fish, healed three people; one who had “Tzara ’at” (a skin disease) a person who was paralyzed, and a person who was “worldly-minded.” To the first He said; “be cleansed” To the second one He said; “Your sins are forgiven you” To the third, (Who was Matthew) He just said; “Follow me!” In all three cases, we have changed lives. When our sins are forgiven, through repentance and accepting Yeshua as Messiah and LORD, we are “cleansed” (internally) and at times, physically. And then, we “follow Him” which should be the logical reaction. “I have not called the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32) We must understand that everyone who is “righteous” (in right standing) similar to “Kadosh” was at one time “a sinner” (living a lifestyle of sin and rebellion). So, it is a change for the better, from a lost sinner to a “righteous” one who has been “born again.” The lost sinner needs to be instructed by the Torah unto righteousness, and the righteous need to be instructed by the Torah to “stay guided on the Path of Righteousness”

I've had similar conversations about this subject, with friends and relatives and members of the LBGT community.  I also quoted many scriptures, showing that God considers sodomy to be a grievous sin. I found the main issue was, how they perceive Gods Word. If they don't believe it has authority, then we're not going to convince them of anything.  Most Christians cherry pick the Bible, they only accept those passages of scripture which they approve of. But they dismiss those which don't live up to their expectations. There would be no debate if professing Christians simply embraced what God has said.  The main challenge is to convince people to take the Bible seriously. I think we should share the ten commandments with them to see if they admit to being a sinner and then maybe move on to judgement and punishment for sin. All of the LGBT people I know, claim they were born that way, and they never would have chosen to be homosexual if they had a choice. They all have their own tragic testimonies, of being rejected by some of their family, friends and relatives. we can't convince them to change who they are by quoting from a book they don't believe has any authority.  The Bible says that we inherited a sin nature from Adam, so all of us have to wrestle against our nature and deny ourselves many of the things we desire. If God leaves us to our own devices, and doesn't intervene to regenerate us then we don't know what we're capable of.  We should pray for our LGBT friends and also for those who believe it's normal and good. We can share the gospel and our testimony with them, but only God is able to regenerate and convert them.  1 Corinthians 3:6-9 6. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8. now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his labor. 9. For we are God's fellow workers; you are Gods field, you are Gods building.   

Some of these things don't belong in the same category at all. Sexual assault is a thing that isn't condoned by the world at large, and if someone is advocating it they'll get a lot of people looking at them like they're crazy. Who you're talking to matters as well IMO. I would personally speak differently to someone who simply supported or accepted homosexuality than I would to an actual homosexual. I agree with your perspective that the fire and brimstone has a place but this sort of discussion isn't often it. If someone doesn't believe in God then the threat of divine punishment probably isn't going to make a big impression. Most people's perspectives on morality are born out of what they were taught and exposed to and their feelings rather than logic. They may well have been taught one thing and taken the opposite stance as a form of rebellion. Consequently a well reasoned argument may fail to change minds. Know when to stop. The Bible tells us to live peaceably with others so much as we can. Constantly bringing up the same topic isn't going to come off as gracious or compassionate. Tying into what I said above, for people who reject the Bible you might well have to look outside the Bible. Let's look at homosexuality. Past editions of the DSM (the manual for diagnosing mental illness) included homosexuality and transgender as mental illnesses. This naturally drew a lot of criticism and was considered offensive. A lot of Christians take the position that it's a choice rather than an illness, but I personally think that at the very least a comparison to illness is warranted. An illness hinders your ability to function, and if it overcomes your body's defenses it can potentially kill you. What's one of the basic functions of life? Reproduction. What would happen if all of humanity became homosexual? We'd cease to perform one of our basic functions and die out as a species. It's not an argument that's for every person or situation but it is one you can potentially use that doesn't rely on the Bible to make its point.

Phil 4:19 And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.  This verse may include the counsel of the Elders, we could consider them to be a "need of ours". I certainly do.  Jesus did instruct us to pray and study the scriptures, but God also appointed certain men to lead the Church. The Elders are like Shepherds, who watch over the flock. They are responsible for teaching and guiding, their congregation. God holds them accountable for our spiritual heath.  The Elders from my local Church conduct regular Pastoral visits, to check on us. They get right into our personal lives to make sure that we are on the right track.  I consider it a great blessing to receive Godly counsel from our Elders. They are equipped to provide wise counsel, because they have invested so many years in studying the Scriptures and Theology.  The ordinary Church members are too busy with their studies, careers, jobs, family and other pursuits, so we don't have the time or the gift to provide Biblical counseling to our families. We all benefit from being accountable to our Elders, it helps with personal discipline and spiritual health.        

Let me know.