That any form of sexual activity outside of a marriage between a man and wife is sinful, including everything celebrated during pride month, is not at all in question.

God was very specific on a lot of things that have been normalized in our world, including adultery (Exodus 20:15, Matthew 19:18, Romans 13:9; Hebrews 13:4) homosexuality and lesbianism (Genesis 18-18, Leviticus 18:12, 20:12, Deuteronomy 23:17, Romans 1:22-28, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10) and premarital sex (1 Thessalonians 4:3).

The only question for the Christian is how to deal with all of it, especially since the aptly named pride part of it is inescapable and in vivid colors for a solid month.

As with everything in life, though, we can find the perfect answers in Scripture, both through precept and principle. So here goes.

First off, take the Abraham approach. In the very first passage in the Bible that explicitly dealt with the subject, Abraham became a very good model for a believer’s response to it, perfectly balancing absolute acknowledgment of its wickedness with a broken heart and a plea for God to spare those involved. Three times he used the word wicked to describe the people involved, all the while spending 10 verses interceding on their behalf.

It is pretty easy to miss that balance. Any sin that we are not personally drawn to is ripe for us to get haughty and indignant over and anxious to call the fire of God down from heaven upon, as it were. But though the fire did fall on Sodom and Gomorrah, please notice that it fell in spite of Abraham’s prayers, not in response to them.

Yes, we must absolutely be honest about the wickedness of the behavior. But the day we start gleefully praying for God to destroy sinners, even those who flaunt their sin in his face, is the day we forget both that Jesus died for their sin and that many of them have brokenhearted mothers and fathers and sons and daughters somewhere weeping before the throne and asking God to redeem them.

Second, this month is a wonderful opportunity for churches and families to work together for the benefit of impressionable children (Isaiah 58:1, Deuteronomy 6:5-8). Pastors should preach very clear and straightforward messages showing the sinfulness of what is being promoted and warning of the dire consequences that it brings. Any pastor too squeamish for this is unfit for the calling God has supposedly given him.

Parents should then discuss the topic directly with their children at home, where those kids can safely ask questions and get explanations from the people they trust the most.

Third, Christians should both refrain from stupidity and also refuse to go along with being falsely labeled (Proverbs 25:1). By the first, I mean that we should never become the caricatures we are often portrayed as, namely wild-eyed, insulting, foaming-at-the-mouth hate-mongers. By the second, I mean that we should also laughingly shrug off the tired old trope of homophobe and show no fear of it at all. Like the word racist, it is designed as a handy muzzle to stop all contrary opinions. So simply ignore it and continue to speak the truth in love.

Fourth, we should recognize and utilize the power of the purse (Luke 16:1-8). Here in America, we have this wonderful thing called a free market. For every company or corporation that flaunts sinfulness, there will be some competing company or corporation that quietly focuses on doing solid business instead. And this is especially true for mom and pop local businesses. I love to think of June as “explore other businesses” month. Some that I have found in previous Junes, I have become regular customers of to this day.

Fifth, June is a great month to evaluate your educational choices for your kids starting this fall (Ephesians 6:4). And once again here in America, we are blessed to have choices. If you deem that your child’s school has become a place where they are being indoctrinated with immorality, then consider either joining the more than five million homeschoolers or nearly five million Christian school students in America. You have options, good ones, which is something that anyone who truly cares about children celebrates.

Sixth, if you have a loved one involved in this sin, don’t sell the farm. I take that reference from the account of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. Though the boy went literally far afield into sin (in this case, partying and fornicating and sleeping with prostitutes), when he came to his senses, he knew how to find his way home, and he found that no one had left, and everything was still the same. Make sure your sinner knows you love them and are keeping a light on for them.

Most importantly, remember the awesome power of regeneration. A verse that I referenced in the opening paragraph, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, gives a list of sins that will keep people out of heaven. But the very next verse says, “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” God can take anyone involved in any sin, wash them clean, and make them just as if they had never sinned. 2 Corinthians 5:17 puts it this way, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” All of this lets us know that we should continue to witness to the lost, pray for the lost, and love the lost.

Arguing will never change a person, insulting will certainly never change a person, but God convicting their heart and making them brand new will change everything.