Specifically, the dilemma of being asked to participate in a so-called “same-sex” wedding is either running the risk of alienating those whom they must show God’s love or displeasing the Lord.

God has structured relational bonds after a pattern that reflects His relationship with His people.  It is called “covenant” that speaks of roles and duties, personally acknowledged.  Some bonds­­—the marriage of a man and woman, parents and the raising of their children, and believers and their relationship with their local church—have specific biblical responsibilities. Essential to this God-structured relationship is the solemn importance of affirming explicit promises to fulfill responsibilities. This arrangement is what the Bible calls a “covenant relationship”.

God created marriage for human flourishing according to this pattern and extends it to all humankind regardless of one’s orthodoxy. Covenant-making’s dual aim is one of experiencing the enjoyment of Divine blessing (arising out of faithfulness to the promises made) and one of strengthening relational bonds (that are meant to be life-long).

How does this understanding of marriage guide our choice to either accept or reject an invitation to attend a wedding? A traditional wedding ceremony is a covenant-making event. Each element of the ceremony—the giving away of the bride by the father, the vows, and ring exchanges, along with the officiant’s prayer of blessing and the post-vow celebration— serves to affirm the integrity and goodness of the new relational bond being established. It is also an assembly where family and friends gather to serve, by default, as witnesses, a role the Scripture has much to say.

A wedding—as a witnessed, covenant-making gathering—is built upon the recognition that we each share a sinful nature where keeping promises isn’t always easy. It is a fact that the resilience of relational bonds will be tested, often severely. In light of this expectation, God’s covenant-making design undergirds the importance of permanence and the seeking of Divine blessing by confronting in advance each one’s frail ability to keep their promises. Even some traditional wedding ceremonies include a hint by the officiant of consequences that could ensue if vows are broken. This weakness of our nature is why a couple that chooses to live together apart from a covenant established relationship is by default resting upon the whim of fleeting feelings.

As it pertains to so-called “same-sex” marriage ceremony, there is an additional dilemma of becoming an unintended participant in a counterfeit, covenant-making ceremony. If you are an invited guest, you will take on the covenant-making role as that of a community witness. By default, your presence is a form of participation where you affirm the integrity and goodness of the vows exchanged and add your voice to reinforcing and protecting the exclusivity of the man and the woman with one another.

Christians, who live under Jesus’ Lordship, cannot participate in that which harms the foundation of an institution that God Himself—not government—created, one that He warns of visiting with consequences. For you to act in this “witness” role would be fraudulent on your part for you cannot, in good conscience, do so. In essence, one’s participation would not be an act of friendship or even indifference, but that of hate as well as hurtful to the advancement of the Lord Jesus’ Kingdom.  Moreover, our Faith expects us to seek His Kingdom over and against the cultural expectations being forced upon us