Expanding

We are called not to indulge the flesh but to walk in the Spirit - we can be active participants in abhorrent behavior or we can accept or tolerate the lustful behavior of other, which is to endorse sin. 1st Peter 2 says:
11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

The Bible contains specifics about what "honorable" behavior actually is, and we see a distinct lack of it throughout our culture today.  The door has been opened wide and all sorts of immorality is being demonstrated in relationships, from the acceptance of adultery and sex outside of marriage, to the furtherance of LGBTQ behavior and other types of relationships that stand opposite the Biblical prescription for marriage - one man, one woman, one flesh, surrendered to one God, for life.

+++++

One of the marks of this society is that people and organizations attempt to normalize what the Bible
calls abnormal - or sinful. Romans 1 lays it out very well:
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,
25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

The decision to take a relationship forbidden by Scripture and call it "marriage" has certainly had its far-reaching implications.  And, as a PJMedia.com piece by Tyler O'Neil points out, even in 2015, when the Obergefell decision was handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court, a particular law professor was asking, "what's next?"

That would be Robert George of Princeton, co-author, with Timothy George of Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham and the late Chuck Colson of Prison Fellowship, of the Manhattan Declaration, devoted to upholding life, marriage, and religious freedom.  As O'Neil points out, Brandon Showalter of The Christian Post, in a recent article, had referenced Dr. George, who had written an essay in 2015, called, Is Polyamory Next?, in response to Obergefell.  The article continues:

He noted that a "throttle" in Massachusetts was already pressing for the normalization of polyamory.

"If gender doesn’t matter for marriage, they ask, why should number matter? 'If love makes a family,' as the slogan went when the cause being advanced was gay marriage, then why should their family be treated as second class? Why should their marriage be denied legal recognition and the dignity and social standing that come with it?" George asked.

O'Neil opens his story by saying:

For over a year, the American Psychological Association (APA) has overseen a "Consensual Non-monogamy Task Force," which advocates for relationships like polyamory, open relationships, swinging, and more. This task force claims that people in such relationships are marginalized and need their practices to be normalized. Social conservatives have long warned that the legalization of gay "marriage" and the normalization of homosexual activity would follow a slippery slope, leading to the normalization of other aberrant behaviors like polygamy.

He continues:

"The APA Division 44 Consensual Non-monogamy Task Force promotes awareness and inclusivity about consensual non-monogamy and diverse expressions of intimate relationships," the task force website explains. "These include but are not limited to: people who practice polyamory, open relationships, swinging, relationship anarchy and other types of ethical non-monogamous relationships."

O'Neil credits Showalter for first calling attention to this Task Force; in the story, we can read:

Andre Van Mol, a board-certified family physician in Redding, California who co-chairs the committee on adolescent sexuality for the American College of Pediatricians, told Showalter this task force represents the victory of Sexual Revolution ideology over science.

"This is the entirely expected and predicted consequence of what happens when ideology replaces science. The APA is yet again showing us that they are a professional guild and not a scientific organization," Van Mol told the Christian Post.

Can you say "slippery slope?"  O'Neil relates:

Indeed, Christians have been asked to embrace polyamory, with one particularly daft pastor praising the Holy Trinity as a "polyamorous relationship." Three Canadian adults in a polyamorous relationship have been declared legal parents of one child.

Conservatives have long warned of the slippery slope of redefining marriage, and it appears the APA is working to confirm their fears. Indeed, why restrict marriage to humans? One crazy lady in England has declared herself "engaged" to her chandelier.

Yes, and it is that APA: "The APA has decisively shifted left, declaring war against 'traditional masculinity' earlier this year. It seems the rush of institutions against the traditional family continues apace."

We're seeing it, and it can be discouraging: an all-out redefinition of traditional norms in culture.  This can cause Christians to continue to uphold the principles of Scripture, to not be duped by the so-called "progressive" voices and to embrace the time-honored, time-tested tenets of the faith.

But, we are also seeing evidence of that redefinition in the church. Chelsen Vicari of Juicy Ecumenism wrote a piece about a "minister" named Brendan Robertson, who had stated in a video that had been removed:

“For those who are in an open or polyamorous relationship here this morning who might be squirming, because this is an uncomfortable question to hear in church sometimes. I want you to hear me loud and clear as a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Your relationships are holy. They are beautiful and they are welcomed and celebrated in this space.”

She described the then-26-year-old as "one of the Religious Left’s quickest rising stars."  Vicari writes:

Robertson believes that he is an innovator, presenting novel ideas on sexuality and sin that few have thought before. It is a reoccurring trend that we see among younger progressive Christians who grew up in evangelicalism. Their ideas on inclusion and tolerance have already been implemented by liberal mainline Protestant denominations, and their embrace of sin hasn’t fared well.

What we are seeing is the rejection of God's standards in relationships.  In the pursuit of new and fresh ideas, there are certain individuals and groups who have ended up redefining God and Christian teaching.  We have to resist the cultural urges and hold fast to the Scriptures.