"Love Is Love Is Love"; "Rebellion Is Rebellion Is Rebellion"
Lin-Manuel Miranda received a Tony Award for the musical, Hamilton, in 2016, just days after the Pulse nightclub (frequented by homosexuals) shooting in Orlando (June 12th), in which 49 people were killed and 53 were wounded. As part of his acceptance speech, he read a poem, which included the lines, "love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love." There is an old saying that seems appropriate for this type of overkill: "Methinks he doth protest too much." Three loves would be sufficient to make the point; eight of them sounds fanatical.
Now one can order T-shirts from Amazon that contains six loves down the front of the shirt. Set on a black background it begins with a red Love followed by five IS LOVEs in orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. Apparently, they skipped Indigo, the I in Roy G. Biv, which is probably the way most of us memorized the colors of the rainbow. Just for the record, the rainbow is a symbol that God gave to all mankind as a promise not to destroy the world by another flood (Gen. 9:10-17). The symbol is being distorted and abused by homosexuals.
But what about the saying, "Love is love is love"? What exactly does that mean? Believe it or not, there is a literary precedent courtesy of Gertrude Stein, who wrote the line, "Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose." She was a lesbian and wrote a poem, "Sacred Emily," for her lover, Alice B. Toklas (the B stands for Babette). The expression, according to Wikipedia, means that "things are what they are." It is a statement of the law of identity, such as Aristotle's "A is A."
As used by homosexuals, the phrase, love is love is love, conveys a more specific meaning; the intent of the saying is that, whether a man loves a woman or another man, it is still love. If a woman loves a man or another woman, it is still love. The implication is that no one can criticize the love one homosexual has for another. However, this type of logic is flawed for two reasons.
The first is that it does not hold up if applied to other situations. A few may remember a headline from many decades ago when Elizabeth Taylor said of her and Eddie Fisher, "Why won't they leave us alone and just let us love?" The background of this situation was explained by the Obituary of Taylor in the U.K. Guardian. She had two marriages behind her when she married Michael Todd. The Guardian records this description:
Ironically, the man she was to marry next was five years older than Wilding. But the flamboyant impresario Mike Todd (real name Avrom Goldbogen), the begetter of Around the World in 80 Days (1956), was noted for his youthful spirit and his abundant energy. At their wedding in Acapulco in 1957, Mike's lifelong friend, the crooner Eddie Fisher, was best man, and Eddie's wife, Debbie Reynolds, was the matron of honour.
Unfortunately, Todd's private plane, which he was piloting, crashed about seven months later, leaving Elizabeth Taylor a widow, who was comforted by his best friend Eddie Fisher to the point of leaving his wife, Debbie, and their daughter, Carrie Fisher. He "married" Elizabeth Taylor. There is a simple explanation for the reason why reporters fixated on them: Eddie belonged to the woman he had married—not to Elizabeth Taylor. But "love is love is love," right? No. Society has certain restrictions on things such as adultery—not to mention The One Who created marriage in the first place—God. Nowadays, society may no longer care about adultery, but God still does.
In 1955, Vladimir Nabokov wrote a novel with the title, Lolita. In the story, a literature professor becomes obsessed by a 12-year-old girl, whom he calls Lolita. At one point in the long and twisted tale, they become intimate. Such an arrangement was shocking and horrifying in 1955 and even in 1962 when the movie was made. Probably most people remain antagonistic toward such a perverted relationship, but should we just shrug our shoulders and say, "Love is love is love"?
What about pedophilia? Most in the nation were shocked and outraged not so long ago to find that priests and scoutmasters had sexually abused youthful males. They called for laws to be strictly enforced and for those perpetrating the crimes to be removed from their positions of trust. Some even lost lifetime reputations because they did not take a stance against such actions when they had a suspicion of what was occurring. Could not the guilty parties have chimed in with their own rendition of, "Love is love is love"?
And what about the politicians and celebrities who have been flown to a private island to interact with underage females? Most oppose such abuse. So, why have the national news media not pursued this story and provided the information to the public, naming those who are involved in the shameful practice? Apparently, the media believe that "love is love is love."
Now we come to a Mormon who has married two women. All three love each other; who dares to condemn love of this type? A Muslim is allowed four wives by the Qur'an. In the name of religious liberty and love, how can they be denied? A few people love their animals and have been married to them, including a dolphin, a goat, a horse, cats, dogs, etc. Repulsive? Just remember, "Love is love is love."
The Second Reason
All of these aberrations have been around for centuries. Francois Rabelais (1467–1540) wrote: "Everyone as they like, as the woman said when she kissed her cow." Polygamy has been on the earth since the time of Genesis 4. All other illicit relationships, including incest, were condemned in the Law of Moses, if not earlier (Lev. 18:6, 20, 22-23). And this is the second reason why "Love is love is love" fails—because it ignores the will of God.
God makes it clear that all of these behaviors constitute sin; He condemns all of these. "Why?" we may ask. The answer is that God commands against particular behaviors for various reasons.
1. Certain actions violate the concept of holiness.
2. Certain actions prove harmful to others.
3. Certain actions prove harmful to ourselves.
Regarding homosexuality (although it stands true for the other behaviors as well), all three of these are true. God describes men being with men as an abomination (Lev. 18:22); it severely violates His design and will for mankind. In Genesis 18:20, God describes homosexual behavior as "very grave" (NKJ, RSV, NAS, ESV) or "very grievous" (KJV, ASV, NIV, YLT).
The Apostle Paul did not regard homosexuality as "love." In Romans 1:26, Paul calls it a vile affection (KJV) or a vile passion (NKJ, ASV, RSV). Translations propose a variety of descriptions: "degrading" (NAS), "dishonoring" (ESV), "shameful lusts" (NIV), "disgraceful" (CSB). Paul also mentions that the practice is against nature, which ought to be obvious to anyone. In verse 27, Paul calls their actions "unseemly" or "disgraceful," depending on one's translation. Such expressed "love" comes forth from a debased, corrupt, or depraved mind.
In other words, first, the practice violates the holy nature of God, along with His design for men and women. To engage in such behavior violates His will for mankind. Second, it also is harmful to others, as certain health problems have shown. But those are not the real problem. Third, one human being is encouraging another to engage in what is shameful, which is bad for the other person. In fact, both parties transgress God's will. The practice of homosexuality, then, violates all three reasons cited above.
Adultery is in the same category. Joseph told Potiphar's wife it would be a "great wickedness" (Gen. 39:9). Those who violate God's sexual laws, whether it be fornication, adultery, or homosexuality, first and foremost sin against God. Then, they sin against each other—even if it is consensual—because they have together conspired to transgress the will of God. They make themselves mutual stumbling blocks, preventing each other from going to heaven.
The Rainbow
The rainbow is God's symbol to mankind promising that He will not bring another universal flood upon us due to a multitude of sins. However, others have borrowed it and distorted its meaning. This occurred in the 1960s when the symbol was used to fight nuclear power, which is nowhere near its original meaning. Then, according to Wikipedia,
the rainbow flag (also known as the gay pride flag or LGBT pride flag) is a symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) pride and LGBTQ social movements. The colors reflect the diversity of the LGBTQ community, as the flag is often used as a symbol of gay pride during LGBTQ rights marches. While this use of the rainbow flag originated in San Francisco, it is now used worldwide.
God ought to sue for copyright infringement, but then it would probably end up in the 9th circuit Court of Appeals—in San Francisco. Actually, He has something already planned that will sort these matters out.
Fire
Someday, God will destroy the world with fire. God created the heavens and the earth by His Word, and it was "standing out of water and in the water" (2 Peter 3:5). He flooded it with water, and it perished (v. 6). But now the earth is preserved by that same powerful Word "for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (v. 7). The "heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat." (v. 10). Yes, the heavens will actually "be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat" (v. 12). This being the case, Peter asks "what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness" (v. 11). The problem is not one of love; it is one of rebellion. Do we need a T-shirt that states: "Rebellion is rebellion is rebellion"?
All those guilty of sin involving sexual pleasure ought to ask themselves, "Will living eternally in the Lake of Fire be worth the little I received in return?" (Rev. 20:15). Some athletes and musicians have boasted of more than 1,000 encounters; no awards for promiscuity will be handed out at the judgment (2 Cor. 5:10). Those exchanging one mate for another two or three times (or more) will not be rewarded for marital adultery. Neither will those involved in numerous affairs. As for homosexuals, Jude writes that those of Sodom and Gomorrah are "set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire" (v. 7). Would not celibacy be a better option? As for those who encourage fornication, adultery, homosexuality, pedophilia, or bestiality, Solomon wrote:
He who says to the wicked, "You are righteous," Him the people will curse; nations will abhor him. But those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, and a good blessing will come upon them. He who gives a right answer kisses the lips (Pr. 24:24-26).