Working Out What The Scripture Say
On Homosexuality

A perspective statement :- The Bible calls us to see ourselves in these lights:
1) In the light of God's holiness in which "there is none righteous no not one".(Romans 3:10)
2) In the light of God's mercy - "for God has bound over all men to disobedience that He might have mercy on them all." (Romans 11:32) 3)
3) In the light of His salvation - "and that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Cor 6:11).

The homosexual is a sinner, on whom God wishes to bestow mercy, and to bring to the point of salvation and the process of sanctification.

There has been a lot of controversy over the sin of homosexuality with a large lobby pressuring Christians not to call homosexuality a sin but to see it as a "valid alternative lifestyle". In reaction to this, and I must say generally in "over-reaction" to it there has been a scathing and hostile denunciation of homosexuality by certain Christian leaders. In order to help you think through this issue I have collected all the Scripture references I could find and given a brief comment on their meaning and summarized it toward the end. I have not touched on the specifics of pastoral application. This article is long enough and the pastoral approach should be basically the same as that for any life-dominating sin.

Homosexual Lusts

(Romans 1:26-28 NKJV)26} For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. {27} Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. {28} And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

Note: Homosexual lusts, both female and male are called "vile passions" "against nature" and "not fitting".

Homosexual Acts

(1 Corinthians 6:9-11 NKJV) Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, {10} nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. {11} And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

(Leviticus 18:22 NKJV) 'You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

(Leviticus 20:13 NKJV) 'If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them.

(1 Timothy 1:9-11 NRSV) This means understanding that the law is laid down not for the innocent but for the lawless and disobedient, for the godless and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their father or mother, for murderers, {10} fornicators, sodomites, slave traders, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to the sound teaching {11} that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.

Note: The concept here is that of homosexual genital intercourse. The O.T defines this as "you shall not lie with a male as with a woman" calls it an abomination and prescribes the death penalty . In the NT homosexuality is listed among the major acts of law-breaking and those who commit homosexual acts cannot inherit the kingdom of God. However hope is held out in that the repentant homosexual can be "washed, sanctified and justified" - free of condemnation just like any other believing church member. (1 Cor 6:11)

Male Homosexual Prostitution

(Deuteronomy 23:17,18 NIV) None of the daughters of Israel shall be a temple prostitute; none of the sons of Israel shall be a temple prostitute. {18} You shall not bring the fee of a prostitute or the wages of a male prostitute into the house of the LORD your God in payment for any vow, for both of these are abhorrent to the LORD your God.

(1 Kings 14:24 NRSV) there were also male temple prostitutes in the land. They committed all the abominations of the nations that the LORD drove out before the people of Israel.

(1 Kings 15:12 NRSV) He put away the male temple prostitutes out of the land, and removed all the idols that his ancestors had made.

(1 Kings 22:46 NRSV) The remnant of the male temple prostitutes who were still in the land in the days of his father Asa, he exterminated.

(2 Kings 23:7 NRSV) He broke down the houses of the male temple prostitutes that were in the house of the LORD, where the women did weaving for Asherah.

Note: During the apostasy of Israel ritual prostitution became common and part of the ceremonies associated with the pagan religions that largely took over from YHWH worship at that time. Temple prostitutes were forbidden in the law. Their establishment by some kings was seen as a great act of wickedness and the extermination of these homosexual prostitutes as an act of righteousness. The condemnation was partly because they helped promote idolatry and partly because they were homosexual.

Effeminacy and the "Gay Lifestyle"

(Deuteronomy 22:5 NKJV) "A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman's garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God.

Note: Cross-dressing and the camp lifestyle are displeasing to God.

Homosexual Communities

(Genesis 19:1-11 NRSV) The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground. {2} He said, "Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant's house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you can rise early and go on your way." They said, "No; we will spend the night in the square." {3} But he urged them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. {4} But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house; {5} and they called to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, so that we may know them." {6} Lot went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him, {7} and said, "I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. {8} Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as you please; only do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof." {9} But they replied, "Stand back!" And they said, "This fellow came here as an alien, and he would play the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them." Then they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near the door to break it down. {10} But the men inside reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. {11} And they struck with blindness the men who were at the door of the house, both small and great, so that they were unable to find the door.

[Later on in that chapter.....(Genesis 19:22-28 NRSV) Hurry, escape there, for I can do nothing until you arrive there." Therefore the city was called Zoar. {23} The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar. {24} Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of heaven; {25} and he overthrew those cities, and all the Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. {26} But Lot's wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. {27} Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the LORD; {28} and he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the Plain and saw the smoke of the land going up like the smoke of a furnace.]

(Judges 19:22-25 NRSV) While they were enjoying themselves, the men of the city, a perverse lot, surrounded the house, and started pounding on the door. They said to the old man, the master of the house, "Bring out the man who came into your house, so that we may have intercourse with him." {23} And the man, the master of the house, went out to them and said to them, "No, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. Since this man is my guest, do not do this vile thing. {24} Here are my virgin daughter and his concubine; let me bring them out now. Ravish them and do whatever you want to them; but against this man do not do such a vile thing." {25} But the men would not listen to him. So the man seized his concubine, and put her out to them. They wantonly raped her, and abused her all through the night until the morning. And as the dawn began to break, they let her go.

[Later that chapter and the next...(Judges 19:30 - 20:11 NKJV) And so it was that all who saw it said, "No such deed has been done or seen from the day that the children of Israel came up from the land of Egypt until this day. Consider it, confer, and speak up!" . So all the children of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, as well as from the land of Gilead, and the congregation gathered together as one man before the LORD at Mizpah. {2} And the leaders of all the people, all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot soldiers who drew the sword. {3} (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the children of Israel said, "Tell us, how did this wicked deed happen?" {4} So the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, "My concubine and I went into Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, to spend the night. {5} "And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and surrounded the house at night because of me. They intended to kill me, but instead they ravished my concubine so that she died. {6} "So I took hold of my concubine, cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of the inheritance of Israel, because they committed lewdness and outrage in Israel. {7} "Look! All of you are children of Israel; give your advice and counsel here and now!" {8} So all the people arose as one man, saying, "None of us will go to his tent, nor will any turn back to his house; {9} "but now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah: We will go up against it by lot. {10} "We will take ten men out of every hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, a hundred out of every thousand, and a thousand out of every ten thousand, to make provisions for the people, that when they come to Gibeah in Benjamin, they may repay all the vileness that they have done in Israel." {11} So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, united together as one man...(The city was eventually totally destroyed and everyone in it killed)]

Note: Both these homosexual communities became so enmeshed in homosexual lust that homosexual rape was accepted as a part of their communal lifestyle. It had reached the point where there was no contrition for actions of violence towards strangers including group rape and insistence on homosexual intercourse with visitors. Such aggressively homosexual communities incurred firstly God's direct judgment (Sodom and Gomorrah) and secondly His judgment mediated through the courts of Israel (Gibeah).

SUMMARY

Homosexual actions, lusts, and lifestyle are seen as unsuitable for Christians and wrong in God's sight. Both lesbianism and homosexuality are included in Scriptures condemnation. The more outrageous forms of homosexuality such as homosexual prostitution and homosexual communities consumed by homosexual lusts bring direct judgment from God. Homosexual lusts are seen as a sign that a person has departed far from God and are normally judged by God in two ways:

1) A darkening of the mind and spirit.
2) Disease "receiving the due penalty (death) in their bodies" (Romans 1:26-28).

Homosexual actions are seen as being among the great crimes such as slave trading, con-artistry and murder. (1 Timothy 1:8-11). Therefore homosexuality is out of place for the Christian. However homosexuals are not beyond the reach of God's salvation and they can be redeemed, washed, sanctified and justified like everyone else upon repentance from sin and faith in Jesus Christ.(Acts 2:38-40)

 

This article may be freely reproduced for non-profit ministry purposes but may not be sold in any way. For permission to use articles in your ministry, e-mail the editor, John Edmiston at johned@aibi.ph.