Quick Answer
– The “labels” of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Transgendered, Queer, Homosexual and so forth have all
come into our language much more recently and are not
mentioned anywhere in the original languages of the Holy
Scriptures. There are passages that condemn same-sex rape,
prostitution and idol worship. We fully recognize this
and are in agreement with the Word of God that these actions
are destructive and anyone who partakes in these sins
without true repentance will not inherit eternal life.
We could go the long, in-depth route here giving a dissertation
of the lengthy, philosophic controversy, but, there’s
no reason to go the “wordy” route with a bunch
of “Thee’s, Thou’s and Thine’s”
and clutter God’s simple truths with religious rhetoric.
Nevertheless we shouldn’t just try to find the Cliff’s
Notes on Scripture either. We hope that this article is
a good balance.
Understanding
the Scriptures does not begin with church tradition and
dogma but with the Biblical texts themselves. People misunderstand
and misquote the Scriptures for several reasons –
one main one – they don’t read the Bible for
themselves. They swallow any form of “truth”
that sounds reasonable to them and then spew it out in
ignorance. Another explanation is that if they do read
the Word – they don’t “understand”
it.
Knowing what the Bible not only
says but means is important so that you do not allow anyone
to dictate your walk with Christ or get you off track.
When you stand before the Lord - you will stand before
Him alone. You, only, will be accountable for your actions.
It's a serious responsibility to be a Christian. So dig
into the Bible for yourself and challenge your heart to
find the truth - not YOUR truth but God's truth for you.
The Word says to seek and you will find, knock and it
will be opened.
That all being said - Let’s
dig into the Word of God to see His viewpoint on homosexuality.
Did you know that the words "homosexual"
and "homosexuality" do not appear in the Bible
- at least they are absent from the original Hebrew, Aramaic
and Greek texts. Those “labels” were added
in the late 19th century. The authors of the Bible had
little or no comprehension of same-sex, committed relationships.
Their languages used back then had no words for these
concepts.
The idea of sexual orientation was not a part of human
thinking during Biblical culture.
However the controversy happens
because out of over 30,000 verses in the Bible there are
two writers that mention same-sex acts in six different
passages and they are condemned every time. These passages
are crucial to our understanding of how we should view
sex and how we should treat others.
So let’s not just
“read” these passages – Let’s
really understand them.
Understanding Scripture requires
a few steps. It is essential to learn how the Biblical
authors expressed themselves during the time of their
writings and how things related in terms of their culture.
Look behind the scenes. Ask questions like: Who wrote
the Scripture and who was he writing to? What is the main
topic? When was it written and what was the culture of
the day? Why was it written? Looking
behind the scenes will help you understand why God even
wanted these things recorded and how they can apply to
us today.
So the first passage that addresses
same-sex acts is in the first book of the Bible –
Genesis.
From: Moses –
who had been born a Hebrew slave, became a pampered Egyptian
prince, a murderer, and then a desert tribesman who led
the Nation of Israel out of slavery. You might have heard
of him from the Ten Commandments or the parting of the
Red Sea.
To: Genesis is
a part of what’s called the “Pentateuch”
which is a fancy name for the first five books of the
Old Testament. In the Jewish faith it would be called
the “Torah.” This is a Hebrew history book
written for the Jewish people covering from the creation
story through the Nation of Israel preparing for their
exile as told in the following book Exodus.
Re: Moses wrote
this book wanting to remind the Nation of Israel where
they came from so that they could understand where they
were going. Through stories of many people who loved and
quarreled, believed and doubted, married and had children,
experience sin, consequence and grace, Moses traces their
roots to a single family and even back to the foundation
of the planet.
This passage tells the story of
God holding the people of Sodom accountable and it very
clearly shows the consequences of their rebellion and
persistent sinful lives.
Common Misunderstanding:
God destroyed the city of Sodom because of homosexuality.
Truth: The men
of the city of Sodom wanted to commit a brutal, homosexual
gang rape. We simply cannot condemn a sexual orientation
because of a rape. There is a heterosexual rape described
in the Judges 19:1-30. Shall we condemn heterosexuality
because of that rape? This passage clearly teaches us
that rape is evil and certainly not an acceptable form
of God’s idea of sex.
2nd & 3rd passages: Leviticus 18 & 20 Specifically
18:22 & 20:13 Take time out to read it > 12
Now look behind the scenes
>
From: By the time
he wrote Leviticus, Moses’ attitude toward God had
moved from ignorance and terror to fascination and love.
He had tried being a brave freedom fighter on his own
terms and had ended up committing murder – oops.
When those utopian fantasies were far behind him and he
only wanted to be left alone to raise sheep for his father-in-law.
God sent him to be his people’s great liberator
but this time on God’s terms.
To: Leviticus
(when translated means “The LORD spoke”) is
the 3rd book of the Pentateuch, and is also known by the
name it is given by Jewish rabbis, "the Priest's
Manual." Moses was writing to the people of Israel
and specifically their priests.
Re: Leviticus
is a narrative pause in the story of the Israelites on
their way, saved out of Egypt, settling in the land of
Canaan. God literally sets in place a very detailed moral
standard of do’s and don’ts for His people.
Magic was popular in their day. Casting spells was a common
thing in their culture. In Canaan, where the Israelites
were heading, things were even more heathen (sinful).
Canaanite gods liked having orgies that included male-male
sexual idol worship and they also liked having children
sacrificed to them. This book would become a direct guide
for God’s people challenging them to live a life
of holiness.
These two scriptures Leviticus
18:22 & 20:13 are explicitly against sex between two
men for the sake of idol worship. They are also just a
glimpse of a very detailed, very long list of laws found
in the Levitical Law which also contains approximately
600 other laws like “don’t get tattoos, don’t
sacrifice your children to false gods, don’t have
sex with a close relative or animals, and don’t
trim your beard.” While these things might seem
like silly rules, God wasn’t being nit-picky. He
wanted His children to be holy and set apart from the
heathen people of Canaan and not to fall into their idol
worshipping ways.
So why don’t we keep all
of these holy laws? That’s just it – they
were laws set in place for a certain people in a certain
cultural situation. These were a people without a government
at that time. Thousands of years later – our culture
has changed completely and so have our laws. For instance,
our laws today say that you shouldn’t have multiple
wives; that tattoos are legal for those over 18; and that
it’s okay to be homosexual. Also as the New Testament
shows us, Jesus came to fulfill the law and to sum up
the entire law in a single command: 'Love your neighbor
as yourself.'
Galatians 5:13-14 (New International
Version)
13. You, my brothers, were called
to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the
sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. 14.
The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love
your neighbor as yourself.”
Common Misunderstanding:
All male-male sex is condemned by God.
Truth: These men
were celebrating their false gods and worshiping them
with sexual acts. These passages clearly teach us to be
set apart and be different from the world. We should live
holy lives before God and not have male-male sex for idol
worship.
Those are the three areas in the Old Testament
that address same sex sinful acts. Let’s look into
the New Testament.
Understanding
the Scriptures does not begin with church tradition and
dogma but with the Biblical texts themselves. People misunderstand
and misquote the Scriptures for several reasons –
one main one – they don’t read the Bible for
themselves. They swallow any form of “truth”
that sounds reasonable to them and then spew it out in
ignorance. Another explanation is that if they do read
the Word – they don’t “understand”
it. 