(upbeat music) - Carolyn from Derbyshire, England writes in to ask this, Dear Pastor John, how should I handle friends or family visiting overnight who are non-Christians and who are sinfully living together or who are living in same-sex relationships? Likewise, Wayne writes in to ask, Pastor John, how far should I go to impose my values on non-Christians or even nominal Christians when they stay in my home?

For instance, if an unmarried couple wants to share a bed when spending the night in our home, should I insist that they not share a bed even at the risk of destroying the relationship? - I don't find this question easy, first of all. Some might think it's a no-brainer, but I don't.

Because I agree that in general, we're not responsible for the sins of unbelievers. In the church, among believers, we seek to admonish each other and encourage each other to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, and we discipline those who are unrepentant in flagrant sin. But what about those outside?

So here's the key passage. One of our elders preached on this a couple Sundays ago. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 5, 9, I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with the sexually immoral people, not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, for what have I to do with judging outsiders?

Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. So I feel the concern that Caroline and Wayne express in not wanting to police the bedrooms of unbelievers, and not to let such a policing drive people away when you were hoping that a friendship might lead them to Christ.

But what makes it difficult is that there's another thing we want to avoid besides undermining the relationship. Namely, we want to avoid communicating the message that we are indifferent to their sinful behavior. Behavior in fact that Paul says will bring them to ruin, will bring the wrath of God on them, Colossians 3, 6.

Add to that the concern that a common cultural expectation in our culture is that guests generally conform to the expectations of the host without feeling controlled or policed. And add, here's a third thing that makes it difficult. The possible application of Romans 13, 14. It says, "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ "and make no provision for the flesh "to gratify its desires." Make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.

Now, I know that this applies first and foremost to our own behavior. Don't make provision for your own fleshly sin. Don't make it easy, don't plan for it, don't put anything out there as a base of operations for it. But might it not also have implications for our participation in other people's flesh?

We're not called to police the private sins of unbelievers, but neither are we called to make provision for them in our own home. So my answer is a non-absolute encouragement, this is what seems to me to be wise, given all those factors, a non-absolute encouragement to live the kind of life and speak the kind of robust faith upfront, upfront, at work, in the relationship, at school, so that people know we are Christians with standards drawn from scriptures.

It's not a shock if we bring something up. And then we seek to delicately and humbly, I spoke this, I told Noelle about this question, my wife and daughter, and got their input. And Noelle is always wise when I bring these up to her. And she said, "You know, how you talk about it "is gonna make all the difference." And that's right.

And so humbly and delicately, you say maybe something like this. You know, as a Christian, I think sleeping together is something that God reserves for marriage. I think that's what he taught us in the Bible. I know you don't see things that way, and I don't want that to drive a wedge between us, but it would make me feel better if in my home, you would stay in different rooms tonight.

And my daughter added, she said, "Anytime anybody that I go visit "gives up their bedroom for me, I feel honored." 'Cause it probably would cost that, right? You don't have that many bedrooms to go around. Somebody's sleeping on the couch, and it would be awkward for you to put one of them on the couch, because then they're gonna feel like, "Oh, well, they made it difficult." But you give them your bedroom, the guest room to one, your room to the other, and you go to the couch.

She thought that would possibly have an impact for good. What that simple statement says is a desire for the relationship to continue, sends the signal that you have firm convictions, different from the surrounding culture, which is what the world really expects from serious Christians. It will be far less confusing for them when you talk someday about what it means to follow Jesus.

It would prove awkward if they said, "Oh, I didn't know you had a problem "with us sleeping together, since we did it at your house." So that's my estimate of the situation. Communicate both a desire for the relationship and a firm conviction about sexual abstinence outside marriage. - Thank you, Pastor John, and thank you, Carolyn and Wayne, for the very practical questions.

Keep them coming in. On a related note, see episode number 365 in this podcast series where I ask Pastor John, will you marry a couple already living together? That's episode number 365. Tomorrow we'll be back to talk more about God's will, specifically how God can be sovereign over what he finds to be morally objectionable.

I'm your host, Tony Reinke. We'll see you tomorrow. (upbeat music) (upbeat music)