Theology Thursday: Why is slavery allowed in the Old Testament?

Well, you've voted it in, so let's answer the question.  The Old Testament has lots of laws about slavery.  But why didn't God just make slavery illegal altogether?  He certainly could have by laying it out as, "Thou shalt not own slaves."  Instead, God lays out numerous laws in Deuteronomy and Leviticus that spell out how slavery was to work in Israel.  So why on earth is God supporting slavery instead of banning it?

Why is this important?  Because "intellectual" types who are opposed to Christianity, whether atheist, agnostic, or whatever, have claimed the Bible could not have been written by God because it contains moral outrages such as slavery.  They argue that slavery of any form is completely unjust and the fact that the Bible allows it proves that it could not have been written by a good God.  So what do you say to that?  Let me warn you, my answer is not short.

Theology Thursday: What does the Bible say about homosexuality?

I recently got into a long conversation about homosexuality.  I was absolutely shocked to see that Christians I knew were claiming that homosexuality was not a sin.  I was even more astounded when this person began to twist Scripture to support his claims.  

My wife and I watch Modern Family every now and then.  Two of the main characters are gay men with an adopted child.  Gay marriage is now legal in six states in the US and there will probably be more to come.  Many celebrities like Niel Patrick Harris (Doogie Howser/How I Met Your Mother) and Ellen DeGeneres are out of the closet and proud of it.  With homosexuality becoming a regular part of our culture, Christians need to know what God has to say about this topic.