On Homosexuality: Souls Are Worth More Than Eggshells
The month of June is seeing a flurry of activity surrounding the support and affirmation of what has come to be known as the LGBT+ community.
The idea that nearly 10% of our calendar year would be dedicated to lauding the LGBT world was unthinkable even just a decade ago—mostly due in part to President Barack Obama who, with the help of his newly appointed liberal Supreme Court Justices, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, deemed homosexual “marriages” as legally recognizable. Indeed, in acquiescing to fantastical claims of “civil rights” the assenting justices superseded their own right to redefine the definition of marriage.
Thus, with a wave of the magical wand of political, pragmatic subjectivism, the heat is turned up for all who hold to the truth of the Word of God. Consequently, those who are not getting on board with the new agenda are labeled as haters and intolerant causing many Christians to walk on egg shells when this topic confronts them.
How ought Christians to think in light of this culture we are in? I think there are a few points of confusion that may be helpful to shine some light on.
Jesus Didn't Promise Safety, He Promised Persecution
J.C Ryle once cautioned: “The world hated Christ, and the world will hate true Christians, as long as the earth stands . . . If you are never persecuted for religion’s sake, and all men speak well of you, you may well doubt whether you belong to ‘the church on the rock’ (Matt 5:11; Lk 6:26).”
Why did he say this? Because Jesus promised it.
In His sermon on the mount, Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matt 5:11–12).
Again, to His disciples He said, “In the world you [will] have tribulation” (Jn 16:33).
Jesus clearly warned His disciples, “They will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold” (Matt 24:9–12).
And why the hatred if Jesus was such a genteel and kindly fellow who healed the sick and ministered to the outcast of society?
In His own words: “[The world] hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil” (Jn 7:7).
No matter what you do, faithful Christian, if you are a mouthpiece for truth, then you will be hated. We have to be willing to bear this for the glory of God. "We must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29).
All Sexual Immorality is Perverse, But . . .
Romans 1 makes it clear that homosexuality takes sexual immorality to a lower level. When we give ourselves to sexual immorality and then become bored with, or unsatisfied (for whatever reason) with this behavior outside of the marriage context, then we look for something else. Something different. Paul identifies the trend and states that once men and women are unrepentant of defiling themselves one with another, they are given up by God to their own further devices:
“Women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men” (vv. 26–27) (emphasis mine).
Make no mistake, however, that any deviation from God’s institution of marriage is a perversion of what is meant to be holy. Whether someone is a fornicator, adulterer, homosexual, or anything else outside of the one-man-one-woman construct, they are considered sexually immoral people, which the Bible makes clear are some of the very obvious marks of the unregenerate who will one day be judged for it—they “will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 6:9; Gal 5:21; c.f. Rom 1), Paul states plainly.
Even Peter and Jude refer back to events like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah to warn of the imminent judgment against all those who live a life of such sensuality, “making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly,” (2 Pet 2:6; c.f. Jude 6).
As Christians, we are simply echo chambers on planet Earth for what God has already announced from Heaven, so we must speak up in regards to the consequences of sin. To affirm the lifestyle of someone’s sexual perversions and deviations while knowing it will be judged in the end is the most callous and cold-hearted thing we could do. The real hatred of our fellow man is manifested in our not being willing to lovingly warn them of their need to be forgiven of all sin and reconciled to God through faith in Jesus Christ. Would we prefer damnation of those we love over salvation? Certainly not. We know what they need to hear: the gospel. The question is: Are we being faithful?
Even some of the Christians in the church of Corinth used to be homosexuals, prostitutes, and the like. Paul recognized that “such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor 6:11) (emphasis mine).
An effective ministry of the gospel of Jesus Christ will affirm the holy standard of God’s law, Christ’s fulfillment of God’s law, and our need to repent of sin and yield to Christ in faith in order to be reconciled to God as if we have kept the whole law. This is indeed amazing grace.
Is the Church Blowing This Out of Proportion?
People often ask with unveiled scorn: Why is it that the church isn’t as vocal about other sins as they are about homosexuality? It is a question worth answering.
The only reason the faithful in the church have decried these particular sexual perversions as clearly and widely as possible is simply because they have been brought to the forefront by its proponents who have been demanding the normalization and acceptance of it. No honest citizen or statesman would expect that the Christian church had nothing to say.
Homosexuality is old news in one sense. It’s been going on for a long time and—as we have seen—even in Paul’s immediate social climate he is dealing with its pervasive existence. Did he back down from warning people of its destructive consequences? Was it a culture-friendly word to condemn homosexuality? No. It was just as counter-cultural in his day as it is now, therefore his inspired writings are just as relevant to us today as they were back then.
When a country, therefore, starts clamoring for the acceptance and normalization of something like homosexuality, then the church must remind the world of God’s Word on the matter and spend an extra amount of time defending the biblical definition of marriage, where the only sexual activity should ever take place.
If the object of the world’s devotion was to normalize and force acceptance of anything else already denounced in Scripture, then the church would spend its focused efforts on that as well, e.g. abortion. We want people to know the truth.
The builder of the sea wall will be sure to match high tide, lest his work be in vain.
Be Patient and Gentle, But Don’t Worry About the Egg Shells
Though the LGBT+ represents an especially perverse set of behavior, the people who are caught up in this sensuality are just as in need of the gospel of Christ as anyone else. Furthermore, the pride that is shown in this one area of corruption is not the only sin in their lives. Like any of us who have come to be saved by Christ, we had a lot to be forgiven—not just one thing. Like the church in Corinth, people today can be washed, sanctified, and justified if they repent of all of their sin and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith.
There is no need to walk on egg shells as if these men and women were actually born as some third variety of the human race with different spiritual needs. Too often, professing Christians can end up coddling them in their evangelism, unwittingly affirming that they are different and need to be recognized that way, rather than doing what we would do with anyone else who needs Christ, which is to lovingly show them where Scripture teaches that all men are born under the wrath of God and only through the blood of Jesus Christ can they be reconciled to God. That is our ministry. The ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18). A faithful presentation of the gospel will immediately confront all of the immorality in one’s life in whatever way it has taken shape.
We cannot affirm the notion that just because someone has a desire that they can’t seem to shake, that it is in itself a natural thing that should just be embraced—this is merely the sin nature revealing itself and we sin when we pursue those evil desires. The choice really does come down to the individual as to whether or not he will submit his will and desires to God, or continue seeking what he knows is rebelliousness in God’s eyes.
In our evangelism, let us remember that though sin manifests itself in various ways, every sinner has the exact same spiritual condition and need. May we be faithful to lovingly confront our friends and family and be sure to offer them the only freedom from the bondage of sin that exists, which is through the shed blood of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.
As Paul said to his young protégé Timothy: Be kind to everyone. Correct with gentleness. “God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim 2:25).
Don't be afraid of the eggshells, friends. The souls of men are of much more value.
In Christ Alone,
Ben
