Just one man’s opinion but a lot of good intentions in this thread but both sides are missing the point.
Non-Christians/Methodists - Lots of pointing to the Old Testament for examples of crude/immoral behavior of which there are lots. None of it however was allowed by God. Basically lots of straw-man arguments being made here.
Christian/Methodists - Focus on sections of the Bible of which do clearly state homosexuality is a sin (both Old & New Testaments). Additionally, lots of focus on Christianity and the Golden Rule/forgiveness.
All good talking points above on both sides but still misses THE point.
The discussion is about one sect of the Church deciding not to allow leadership who is openly committing sin to not lead.
Let's be clear - God hates sin! He abhors it! He cannot be in the presence of sin. That is why he sent His Son to die for us, to pay that ransom we do not deserve. We have all been judged as sinners from birth. None of us could prove our worthiness!
Many stories documented in the Old Testament where the Jews repeatedly, over & over again strayed from the first mission of surrendering all to God. They wrote their own laws and thought they had the inside-track. If you want to know why the Old Testament is so long it is because there are countless stories of the Jews straying from God's path and time and time again, God shows compassion to try to get them back on track. Time and time and time again the Jews strayed but God was forever faithful. Like a good parent though, God had to use some pretty forceful tactics to get their attention!
Now, in this particular case, we are talking about the sin of homosexuality. Had the pastor used fowl language, used the church's finances inappropriately, or got too close with a minor then the church would be right to remove them from leadership as well. The Bible clearly states that those who lead the church will be held to a higher standard. The right to remove is Biblically just.
Should the Methodist church forgive and provide compassion? Sure, they do not have to kick them out of the family and can provide counsel to them to get them back on the right path.
Christians (Methodists included) first purpose is not to forgive and provide compassion. The Golden Rule is a nice cornerstone for a daily framework to live a God-inspired life. But it is not our first mission.
Where many folks get confused by what being a Christian means, is that to be a Christian means to SURRENDER to Jesus Christ, your personal Lord and Savior. That is our first mission!
This means you should surrender your time, your finances, your heart, and all of your desires and put them at the feet of God. If you accept this, then you also accept that Jesus is truth, Biblical truth, and you should speak it and act on it. As the Methodist leadership did when they decided to not give in to modern-day human-inspired pressures but to adhere to the truth that all sin is judged bad and you cannot lead the flock.
Bottom line - the Methodists made the right decision, albeit unpopular by today's standards but being a good Christian is not about being popular - it's about surrendering to God's truth.