A Christian Response To Homosexuals

A Christian Response To Homosexuals

Recently, in Canada and the USA, politicians, courts and activists have been debating this question: Should the traditional definition of marriage – “one man and one woman exclusively bound together” – be upheld? Or should the definition be widened to include homosexual partners?

The Anglican Church of Canada held a heated debate before issuing its statement “affirming homosexual relationships.” But neither side is happy with it. Liberal theologians are offended that it stopped short of “blessing” or “sanctifying” such relationships, while evangelicals disagree with “affirming” what God does not. Which side will win remains to be seen, but this is clear: the issue of homosexual relationships will not go away.

As Christians, what should we do about homosexuality? How should we treat the real people we come in contact with who live homosexual lifestyles? What would Jesus say to them and how would He treat them?

Attraction Versus Action
Let’s make an important distinction: It’s one thing for a person to feel attracted to the same sex, and quite another to participate in a homosexual act. Likewise, it is one thing for a heterosexual man to be attracted to a woman, and another to have an affair with her. What we do with this attraction constitutes the difference between temptation and sin. Passing by a scantily dressed girl may be a temptation for me, just as passing by a bar may be a temptation for an alcoholic, or passing by the refrigerator may be tempting for the glutton. But being tempted does not imply the right to feed our imaginations and then satisfy that appetite.

We should not idolize sexual desires – homosexual or heterosexual – as if they have the overriding privilege of never being denied. Neither should we assume that all our desires are natural and good. It is one thing for a person to feel attracted to the same sex (which may not be their fault), and another to participate in a homosexual relationship (which is their choice). The term homosexual describes both the attraction and the action. This is unfortunate as it blurs the distinction between the temptation and the sin. God doesn’t hold us accountable for our weaknesses, but our actions.

Nature Versus Nurture
What causes homosexual attraction? There are physical factors (such as hormone levels, genetic predispositions) and psychological factors (such as relationship with the same-sex parent, early exposure to erotic behaviors). These “nature” and “nurture” factors play a large role in shaping our character, as well as our likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses.

There is a tendency in judicial and educational circles to say that a person’s decisions are predetermined by these two factors, so they play down the significance of choice. When extended to the sexual sphere, the logical conclusion is that we are not responsible for our sexual behavior; we are products of our past, and our sexual lifestyle is predetermined by “nature” and the “nurture” we received early in life. So not only is homosexuality OK, but all sexual activity is permissible so long as we “don’t hurt anybody” and our partner agrees. This is becoming more and more the world’s consensus – and Christians are starting to believe this lie.

What The Bible Says
A look at a concordance shows that the Bible says much more about adultery, sexual immorality and sexual impurity, than it does about homosexuality. This tells us that God knew how most of us would be tempted. It also sweeps away the hypocrisy of tolerating adultery and living together, while repudiating homosexual behavior. All heterosexual relations outside of marriage are sin. However, the Bible shows that God is not silent on homosexuality. There are several passages that explicitly condemn it.

Sodom And Gomorrah
In Genesis 19:1-29 God sent two angels to visit Lot in Sodom. The men of Sodom surrounded Lot’s house and called out: “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with (know, KJV) them.” Then the angels told Lot, “the outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.” Some argue that the Hebrew word “know” need not mean “have sex with,” but Lot uses the same word when he offers his daughters to the men: “Don’t do this wicked thing. Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with (known) a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them.” Sex was clearly intended in both expressions. While this passage condemns homosexual gang rape, in the New Testament Jude confirms that the sin was not just one of violence: “Sodom and Gomorrah ... gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire” (Jude 7 NIV).

Jude speaks out clearly against all sexual relationships outside of marriage, including perversion. He does not limit the sin to what was intended against the visiting angels, but describes it as an established widespread behavior. Homosexuality was not the only sin practiced in Sodom and Gomorrah, nor was it the only reason it was destroyed. The major prophets condemned Sodom and Gomorrah for hypocrisy, adultery, deceit, arrogance and greed (Isa. 1:10-31; Jer. 23:14; Ezek. 16:49-58); and 2 Peter 2:6-8 says “lawless deeds” led to their destruction. God condemned homosexuality as well as the other sins so widespread in Sodom and Gomorrah.

Levitical Purity Laws
Leviticus 18-20 lists forbidden sexual relationships such as incest, adultery and bestiality, and says: “Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable” (18:22). It also says that certain sexual sins (including adultery) be punished by death: “If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman ... They are to be put to death” (20:13). Some try to disallow this passage saying that it only condemns homosexual activity with temple prostitutes in the context of idolatry, because the passage also forbids sacrificing children to Molech. But this is no reason to limit the rest of the prohibitions which include incest and sex with animals. God makes clear that all sexual perversion, including homosexuality, had defiled the land, and that was why God was punishing the nations.

All Have Sinned
Romans 1 describes the wicked who turned from God, and then says, “God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another ... God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones ... men also abandoned natural relations with women, and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received ... the due penalty for their perversion” (1:24-27).

Those who seek to reconcile a homosexual lifestyle with Christianity claim that Paul is condemning heterosexuals who indulge in homosexual activity (perverts), not homosexuals who remain “true” to their sexual-inversion (inverts) and have never had heterosexual sex. Or they say he is condemning promiscuous orgies. But there is no linguistic justification for either interpretation, as they distort the logical meanings of “natural” and “unnatural” (perverted) to mean “what I am/am not attracted to.” Paul’s whole point is that we are all attracted to sin: we want to do what is against God’s natural order, in one way or another. The fact that I am attracted to sin does not make sin right. It just confirms God’s righteous decree that I, like all humans, am a lost sinner.

List of Sins
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 says: “Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor effeminate-homosexuals (malakoi) nor aggressive-homosexuals (arsenokoitai) nor thieves, nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” 1 Timothy 1:9-10 further says: “We also know that the Law is made ... for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful ... for adulterers and perverts (arsenokoitais).” While some translate malakoi as “male-prostitutes” or “paederasts” (men who sexually corrupt boys), and arsenokoitai as “perverts,” the strongest linguistic evidence indicates that malakoi refers to the passive receptive homosexual partner, and arsenokoitai to the active dominant homosexual partner. If the more restricted meanings had been intended, other Greek words could have been used. Some older translations use the words “catamite” (passive) and “sodomite” (initiator) to make this distinction clearer. Both epistles make it quite clear that homosexual behavior is sinful and not compatible with the righteousness of God’s kingdom.

Strongest Reasons
I believe that the main argument against homosexual behavior comes not from the clear prohibitions already considered, but from those passages that show God’s positive teaching on the correct expression of human sexuality. Genesis 1-2 describe the creation of man and woman, and the establishment of marriage, the two sexes coming together to fulfill God’s perfect plan. In Mark 10:6-9 (and Mt. 19:4-6) Jesus endorses this teaching: “At the beginning of creation God made them male and female. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together let no man separate.” Marriage is a permanent heterosexual relationship; the man and woman become one flesh; it is a life-long commitment. This is the blueprint for human sexual expression.

Any sexual relationship outside these boundaries goes against God’s plan. This does not mean that marriage is necessary for fulfillment. Jesus was fully human, yet He neither married nor sinned sexually. Sexual intercourse is not necessary to complete our humanity. God calls some to be married, others to be single, but none to adultery, fornication or homosexuality.

All Sexually Fallen
In Romans Paul develops his argument that we are all sinful and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). We need to acknowledge that our whole being has become corrupted by sin – including our sexuality. In some cases this evil is obvious: rape, orgies, violent or abusive sex. In others the evil is more acceptable: cohabiting, promiscuity, pornography, adultery. In yet others it may be invisible: lustful looks, impure thoughts and private impure acts. And for some it is a tendency that tempts them to homosexual acts. But we must not put homosexual sin in a category all by itself! Any sexual relationship outside of heterosexual marriage is sin. The biblical ideal for the believer is either monogamous marriage or a single life: no compromise is allowed. Sex in marriage is a gift from God; anything else corrupts this gift. God wants to keep us from misusing it for our own good.

Christian Response
So how should we respond? How should we treat homosexuals? Jesus is our best example. When the Jews asked him what should be done with the woman caught in adultery (Jn. 8:3-11) His answer had two sides. First, He showed her love by defending her from those who wanted to stone her. Second, He said to her, “Go now and leave your life of sin.” Likewise, we need to balance these two attitudes by showing love and respect for homosexual persons, while at the same time showing them that homosexuality is a sin which God wants them to leave.

In this sense we should treat them no differently from anyone else. God loves the sinner but hates his sin; we need to do likewise. We should value them as human beings, and communicate to them the clear gospel: like everyone else, they need to repent of their sins and turn to Jesus for salvation and the power to live transformed lives. We should tell them to stop their homosexual sin. Regarding homosexual attraction, we should encourage them to seek professional Christian help. And those from a homosexual background who have trusted Jesus, should be encouraged to develop healthy relationships which are caring but non-erotic – such as the biblical examples of David and Jonathan, Ruth and Naomi, and Paul and Timothy.

Sin is the fundamental problem we all face. We all need to repent and turn to Jesus for forgiveness and the power for victory over sin. Jesus died for our sins, and rose from the dead, so that we might be forgiven and live in the power of His resurrection. This is the message we should give to homosexuals and all humans: “There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:22-24).

Getting Help
Can the homosexual tendency be reversed? Many Christians who were once active homosexuals, have not just disciplined themselves to abstain, but have found that God’s help and counseling have enabled them to reverse their sexual orientation. Some are now married, others remain single. Those who continue to struggle with homosexuality need help. But churches need to become better informed so they can offer wise biblical support to those who struggle. The world’s claim that “once a homosexual, always a homosexual’ is not true. There are accounts of many who have changed.

But even if one’s orientation does not change, behavior can change. Let’s remember that when Jesus called His disciples he said, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me and for the gospel will save it” (Mk. 8:34-35). Sexual desires are among those areas in which God calls us to deny gratification for His sake – whether homosexual or heterosexual.

Prevention Better Than Cure
Psychologists do not know exactly why a person becomes attracted to the same sex. Many believe traumatic childhood experiences, such as the withdrawal of a mother’s love, or very early exposure to sex, to be inhibitors to normal sexual growth. Those of us who are parents or educators should protect children and meet their emotional needs so they will not acquire distorted views of sexuality. One Christian response to homosexuality is to reduce its occurrence in future generations by encouraging strong marriages, healthy families, and relationships for children with both parents.

Final Word
The Christian message is one of hope. Paul thanked God, “being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). For those who groan under the burden of distorted sexual drive, Paul also says, “We ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we are saved” (Rom. 8:23-24). Ultimately God will succeed, and all His children will be transformed into the glorious likeness of His Son. Are we willing to believe this and live one day at a time, in His power? That’s the gospel message for each of us, not just the repentant homosexual.

By Andrew Nunn