God’s Not Clear on Homosexual Behavior?

I have read your articles on homosexuality and wondering if anyone has read the article [Editors’ note: the article title and author removed per our feedback rules.]

It’s on the net. I have a christian friend who thinks God is not clear that homosexuality is wrong and gave me this article as her evidence and proof. . . .

I am overwhelmed as i read, with all my counter-arguments but wondering if you have a succinct article for me to send her, or someone that has actually written a response to this??

—J.L, Australia

Thank you for contacting Answers in Genesis. God’s Word often comes under attack by those who want to live their lives apart from certain aspects of it. Those caught in adultery want to reinterpret the Bible on that subject. Thieves want to reinterpret it in areas that speak against stealing. It is no different with the issue of homosexual behavior. Many people want to give the appearance of keeping the morality of God’s Word, but they don’t want all of it.

God does not allow us to pick and choose which verses to follow or reject. By doing this, people actually raise their own thoughts and beliefs in authority over God and His Word. It is the same kind of problem when people reinterpret God’s Word. Rather than simply ignoring a particular verse, they change the meaning of it to make it fit their view. In a very real way, they place themselves as the authority over God's Word. But who is the real authority? Ultimately, this is a biblical authority issue.

I have read your articles on homosexuality and wondering if anyone has read the article [Editors’ note: the article title and author removed per our feedback rules.]

Thanks for taking the time to read through our articles on the subject. I have read the article you referenced.

It’s on the net. I have a christian friend who thinks God is not clear that homosexuality is wrong and gave me this article as her evidence and proof. . . .

It’s interesting that your friend would use this article as evidence that God isn’t clear about homosexual behavior. After all, the writer of the article did state that the Bible consistently condemns homosexual behavior as a sin. This is one of the few accurate statements in the article. Both the Old Testament and New Testament classify homosexual behavior as a sin (e.g., Leviticus 18:22; 1 Timothy 1:9–10).

The main purpose of the article you referenced, however, was to declare that the Bible is wrong on this issue. This shows us the writer’s starting point: man’s ever-changing opinions over the unchanging, inspired Word of God. Notice the word choice the author uses: the Bible is a “witness to the Word of God.” This is typical language used by liberal theologians and pastors who do not believe the Bible is the Word of God.

A couple of points must be made. First, the Bible explicitly calls homosexual behavior an abomination (Leviticus 20:13) and places it in a list of other vices (1 Corinthians 6:9–10). It is wrong for any Christian to condone homosexual behavior, since God’s Word clearly speaks against it. However, it is also wrong to single out homosexual behavior and shrug off the other sins listed in these passages.

Second, 1 Corinthians 6:11 reveals the incredible mercy of our God. After emphatically stating that homosexuals, drunkards, adulterers, idolaters, and so on will not inherit the kingdom of God, Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote, “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.” The church in Corinth consisted of former homosexuals, drunkards, adulterers, idolaters, etc., but they had been washed, sanctified, and justified. This shows us that God is willing to forgive sinners, including homosexuals, but they must turn from (repent of) their rebellious ways and place their faith in Christ alone.

I am overwhelmed as i read, with all my counter-arguments but wondering if you have a succinct article for me to send her, or someone that has actually written a response to this??

First, I would encourage you to take a look at some passages from God’s Word on this issue without the influence of humanistic reinterpretations. The Bible is crystal clear about homosexual behavior, but remember that God extends His grace to all who repent of their sins and receive Christ as Lord and Savior. This elevates Him to His proper position as the authority on all matters.

• You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. (Leviticus 18:22)
• If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. (Leviticus 20:13)
• For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 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. (Romans 1:26–27)
• 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, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. (1 Corinthians 6:9–10)

Second, this lengthy article is riddled with logical fallacies, and the writer often pulls verses out of context in an effort to support his view. Let me give you some examples from this article, which are also commonly used by others seeking to justify homosexual behavior.

• After citing passages which state that we are no longer under the Law, the writer says, “We cannot then take even what Paul himself says as a new Law. Christians reserve the right to pick and choose which sexual mores they will observe.” While Christians are not under the Mosaic Law in the same way as the nation of Israel, there are still specific commands for Christians in the New Testament. We are to make disciples (Matthew 28:18–20), imitate God (Ephesians 5:1), and walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). Furthermore, the New Testament directly contradicts the writer’s claim by explicitly stating that it is God’s will for us to “abstain from sexual immorality” and that “he who rejects this does not reject man, but God” (1 Thessalonians 4:3, 8).
• The writer implies that homosexual behavior is genetic. This has never been demonstrated, and there is strong evidence opposing this view. There are many thousands of former homosexuals, and numerous ministries are devoted to helping them. This suggests that a homosexual can choose to not engage in homosexual behavior. Some people seem to be more predisposed to certain types of sin than others, but ultimately every person must decide whether he or she will give in to sin. Furthermore, this argument misses the point. We are all sinners by nature, yet God’s Word tells us not to sin.
• “Adultery is condemned in the Bible, and yet Christians don’t usually speak out against it.” This claim is merely a smokescreen. It commits the logical fallacy of the irrelevant thesis (i.e., the argument has nothing to do with the issue in question). Christians should (and many do) speak out against adultery, idolatry, drunkenness, and every other type of sin. The Bible is very clear on all of these issues (1 Corinthians 6:9–10). The fact that some have not stood against these ideas does not justify the acceptance of another vice.
• The writer claims that those who believe the Bible on this issue are homophobic and intolerant. This is an example of the logical fallacy known as the question-begging epithet, an emotionally-charged response intended to persuade by appealing to emotion rather than reason. We could just as easily call the writer a “heterophobe” or “God-hater,” but that doesn’t accomplish anything. Instead, we should point out that most of those who point out the sin of homosexual behavior do not have an irrational fear (phobia) of homosexuals. No, we love them and want them to know and understand the truth that they can be “washed, sanctified, and justified” by repenting of their sins and trusting in Christ. Also, while we are being accused of being intolerant, we must ask why this writer and others who resort to name-calling are so intolerant of the biblical view.

Although we have not written a detailed response to this particular article, we have written several articles dealing with this subject, such as this one about how a Christian should respond to the idea of gay marriage.

When Jesus was asked about the subject of divorce and marriage He quoted from Genesis:

And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Jesus showed us that marriage is based in a literal understanding of Genesis 2:23–24, which states, “‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” The reason husband and wife become one flesh is that Eve was taken from Adam’s side. They truly were one flesh. Jesus also pointed out that marriage was to be between a man and woman. Any alteration of this message serves as a flat-out denial of the clear words of our Creator.

If we claim to be followers of Christ, then we must be willing to take Him at His Word rather than trying to use man’s ever-changing opinions as our authority. The Bible’s instruction on this issue may be extremely unpopular in our society, but we must desire to please God rather than men. Too often, professing Christians are like the Pharisees Christ rebuked in that they are more interested in the praise of men than the praise of God (John 5:43).

May God give us the courage and strength to stand for the truth and to speak the truth in love no matter what consequences may come.

Sincerely,
Tim Chaffey, AiG–US