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| Matt Moore |
Interview: Matt Moore on Being 'Outed,' Same-Sex Attraction, and God's Grace .
By Paul Stanley , Christian Post, February 7, 2013
Matt Moore, a Christian Post blogger whose blog "My Story: Homosexuality, Drunkenness, Grace and Redemption" went viral last year, was "outed" for joining Grindr, a popular gay social networking app, recently.
Gawker first ran an article on Moore on Tuesday morning that soon led to stories on Huffington Post and other media sites, all of them rushing to point out how the man who left the active homosexual lifestyle after coming to faith in Jesus Christ had fallen to temptation.
The sites questioned the authenticity of Moore's faith and whether God could indeed save those who are tempted by the flesh. Moore conducted an email interview with The Christian Post to address his joining Grindr, his daily struggle with same-sex attraction, how the church has treated him, and what God's grace means to him after this experience.
CP: I heard that you recently moved to New Orleans from Shreveport, La. Why did you move, and how has it helped or hurt your battle against same-sex attraction?
Moore: I moved to New Orleans as a part of a team of eight individuals desiring to plant a church in the city. I got a job here more quickly than I had anticipated, which put me here ahead of the rest of the team. All of us will be here as of next month. The past few months of being here have been hard and lonely at times. My struggle with sin has intensified since being here.
CP: How has God's grace helped you with your daily struggles?
Moore: His grace has sustained me. I have a hard time wrapping my mind around forgiveness so vast that it could include me and my repetitive failures, but somehow God's grace helps me to believe it nonetheless. The grace of God keeps me in Christ, and for that I am thankful.
CP: Zinnia Jones, writes on a blog post: "So-called 'ex-gays' publicly promote the notion that LGBT people are sinning against a god who will torture them eternally if they fail to suppress and deny their true nature. But privately, they often seem to have trouble practicing what they preach." How would you respond to that statement?
Moore: People such as Zinnia preach a message of tolerance and kindness to all, yet they are not tolerant of my beliefs and show me no kindness. (...) This is why we don't point to ourselves as models of perfection, but point to Christ as the ONLY perfection. On the Cross, Christ took on our sinful identity, and suffered the penalty we deserved. In turn, He offers his righteous identity to all who believe in Him. So Christians do fail and Christians do sin every single day, but the base of our faith in not ourselves or not ourselves. The base of our faith is Christ and His perfect obedience on our behalf. We are saved not because of anything we have or haven't done, but because of what Christ has done for us.
CP: Why do you go back to your Christian faith when you are under so much pressure from the gay community to embrace your homosexuality?
Moore: I always go back to Christianity because it is who I am now. I am Christ's. And at the end of the day, I can do nothing but go to Him.
CP: How has the church community treated you after you've been outed?
Moore: With grace, love and compassion. I wasn't saved by a religion; I was saved by a real, living God. And it is not He that has let me down, but I have let Him down. Time and time again, I have failed Him and failed to live a life of holiness. But my obedience is not my salvation; Christ is my salvation. My glue of my relationship with God is the righteousness of Jesus Christ, and that never changes.
I have learned not to underestimate the power of my flesh. I have learned to be slow to speak and act. I have learned that I NEED solid, biblical community and fellowship on a regular basis. The list of lessons learned goes on and on.
CP: If you're back on Grindr in two weeks, what does that say about God?
Moore: It says that God is gracious, loving, good and forgiving….and that I am rejecting that grace, love, goodness and forgiveness. At the end of the day, God is who He is regardless of who we are and what we do. "Let God be true, and every man a liar."
CP: What boundaries have you established to prevent giving into temptation?
Moore: I have sold my computer and have had someone put a lock on my phone where I cannot download apps or access the Internet through a non-filtered browser. Ultimately, this isn't the solution. My heart being captured by the grace of God and brought into humble obedience is the solution. But not taking precautions is dumb, so these are the precautions I have taken.
CP: What would you say to a Christian suffering from same-sex attraction after this experience?
Moore: Jesus is better than sin. It doesn't matter what the specific sin is, Jesus is better. He is more valuable, comforting and satisfying than homosexual behavior, and I can say that from experience. If you fall, get back up and keep pursuing Him. If Jesus went as far as to die for your sin, why would He not help you up when you stumble?The world will tell you to embrace your homosexual desires because it'll make you happy i n this life. Jesus tells you to deny yourself and follow Him and promises to give you eternal life if you do. You must decide everyday who you will believe and who you will follow: the way of the world or the Way of Jesus Christ.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/interview-matt-moore-on-being-outed-same-sex-attraction-and-gods-grace-89682/#eeGzpKPJs7jAZMol.99