During her sermon this past Sunday, our pastor mentioned that, surprisingly, the infamous Westboro Baptist Church was not on the side of Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk of court who went to jail for refusing to issue marriage licenses. (You can click here to see the sermon—it’s a meaningful message on religious favoritism.)

Westboro’s reason for its position was Davis’ history, including the fact that she’s been married four times (and divorced three), committed adultery and had children out of wedlock. And it’s not just Westboro; I’ve seen other snide comments on social media pointing out Davis’ prior transgressions. That—in the view of some—must make her a hypocrite for opposing same-sex marriage.

Wedding rings on an open BibleThis post isn’t about Davis’ decision to not issue marriage licenses, nor is it about same-sex marriage—those are subjects for another discussion. This is about the fact that I don’t think Kim Davis is a hypocrite. She became an Apostolic Christian four and a half years ago and she is living her faith now. What she did before doesn’t matter when it comes to how she is living today.

People who are holding her past sins against her—including (or especially) those who call themselves Christian—are demonstrating a serious ignorance of what the Christian faith is all about. And those who choose to deride her because of her looks are just saying more about their own character than hers.

 So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! (2 Corinthians 5:17)

When we come to Christ, we are forgiven. The past is washed away; we are new in Christ.

as far as the east is from the west, so far he removes our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)

Christianity is not about punishment or ridicule. It’s about living the life that God calls us to live, a life that is as close to Christ as possible. And the only way we can do that is to let go of the past. God forgives us–how can we do less?

When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” … And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.” (John 8:7, 11)

This is an issue that I discuss in my book, Finding Joy in the Morning: Let the past stay in the past. There’s plenty for us to deal with today.

Jacquelyn Lynn
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