What does the Bible say about homosexuality?

by Matt Slick

The Bible doesn't speak of homosexuality very often. But when it does, it condemns it as sin. Let's take a look.

• Leviticus 18:22, "You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination."1
• Leviticus 20:13, "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltness is upon them."
• 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, "Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God."
• Romans 1:26-28, "For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. 28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper."

Homosexuality is clearly condemned in the Bible. It undermines God's created order when He made Adam and Eve, a man and a woman, to carry out His command to fill and subdue the earth (Genesis 1:28). Homosexuality cannot carry out that mandate. In addition, homosexuality undermines the basic family unit of husband and wife which is the God-ordained means of procreation. Again, homosexuality cannot do that. And, believe it or not, it is also dangerous to society. (See Is homosexuality dangerous?)

Homosexuality has a heavy judgment administered by God Himself upon those who commit it and support it.

"For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error," (Romans 1:26-27).

As a result of being "given over," they can no longer see the error of what they are doing, will not seek forgiveness, and will not repent. They will then die in their sins and face God's righteous condemnation. We, as Christians, do not want this judgment to fall upon anyone.

But, their rebellion against God does not stop there. Those who are judged by God this way also promote it and condemn others who don't approve of their behavior.

"...and, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them," (Romans 1:32).

So, in their "hearty approval" of homosexuality, they encourage others to accept their practice, and so their sin and rebellion against God spreads. This means they will reject Christ's redemptive work on the cross. Without Jesus, they will have no forgiveness. Without forgiveness, they will have no salvation. Without salvation, there is only damnation in eternal Hell. Again, we don't want this for anyone.  We do not want it for homosexuals, for adulterers, for murderers, for liars.... for anyone.  Everyone can find forgiveness in Jesus.

Persecution of the non-politically correct?

The Bible's view of homosexuality is not politically correct . . . and this is a concern. Will the Bible soon be considered hate speech by the moral-less majority? There is already significant social pressure being put on the American populace to accept homosexuality as normal and healthy.  Homosexuality is promoted in movies, television, magazines, schools, etc. The social re-engineering is well underway. Yet, statistically only 3% of the population are homosexuals.2Christians, on the other hand, occupy a far higher percentage, 70%3 yet they are not fairly represented in the media. Instead, Christians are routinely portrayed as bigots, narrow-minded, idiots, hypocrites, and worse. Why? Because there is little tolerance and equality from the left for those who disagree with them.  Take a look at what Jesus said.

"The world cannot hate you [the disciples], but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil," (John 7:7).

The social attitude of America is slowly being engineered to accept liberal sexual behavior while condemning and silencing those who disagree. Since behavior follows belief, what is to stop our increasingly liberal society from acting on its silence-the-opposition attitude and becoming more and more harsh in its dealings with Christians? Nothing. In fact, there are increasing calls to get Christians kicked off social networks for speaking out against homosexual marriage. Silence the Christians! In workplaces, many Bible believers are told to go through sensitivity training in favor of the LGBT community even though such "sensitivity training" is highly offensive to them. If they don't go, they can be fired. It seems that sensitivity must be shown towards the homosexuals, but never towards the Christians. This hypocrisy is blatant and dangerous.

And then there are the lawsuits by homosexuals against Christians, which are on the increase. Will homosexuals attend churches for the purpose of asking pastors to perform a wedding, and then when they are refused, they sue? Will they seek out Christian owned businesses and ask to have a cake baked, a wedding photographed, or music played at their homosexual wedding and then file a lawsuit when Christians who are holding to their religious convictions refuse to comply? It is already happening. Remember, what happened in Colorado and Oregon where bakers were fined up to $150,000 for refusing to make a cake for a gay wedding?  Is that right?  Or is it oppression in the name of tolerance?

In light of this, we should look at history to see what politically correct momentum can do in and to a society. Think of Nazi Germany and the Jews or communist Russia and its persecution of dissenters in the 1900s. History is full of examples of how those in politically correct power oppress those who don't agree with them. 

Where will the redefinition of marriage stop?

Will the redefinition of marriage stop with homosexual declarations? Don't bet on it. It is human nature to push the envelope, to find new levels of permissibility, and to invent ways to justify our personal preferences and behaviors. The United States Supreme Court has said that same-sex marriage is legal all across America. Marriage has been profoundly redefined by legal precedent, not by popular vote. So, what is to stop further redefinitions? What are we to do when other groups who claim a certain "sexual orientation" start pushing their particular agenda through the court system? Where does it stop?  Pedophiles are now asking for their rights, too, and they are using the same arguments initially presented by the homosexual movement decades ago4). Will marriage be further redefined to include a father and a daughter, a mother and son, a man and a young boy, polygamy, polyandry, open marriage, marrying one's self, marriage to dead relatives, temporary marriage, trial marriage, marriage to animals, etc.?  If you think such categories are ridiculous, think again. Each of them has their proponents here in America as well as other countries. Many of them will be emboldened to move forward and push their minority-held sexual views on the populace just as the homosexual community has done.

Without an anchor a ship can drift into the rocks and be destroyed. Without the anchor of marriage being defined as between a man and a woman, the redefinition can drift so far that marriage becomes meaningless, sexual protections are laxed, and anything-goes can become the norm in a society that falls apart at the seams. Is this good? Is it safe? Is it going to help society?

What right to redefine marriage?

I want to know what right do the politically correct, pro-homosexual minority have to redefine marriage and impose their values on the majority? What right do they have to condemn Christians, call us names (homophobes, bigots, etc.,), and be so very intolerant when we disagree with their behavior and say that it is a sinful? They are successfully getting homosexuality promoted in schools, TV, and movies as "normal" and healthy. Healthy? Check out the health statistics of homosexual behavior. As a result, their confidence and successes have pumped up their bravado so much that they even oppress those who oppose homosexuality, a fact blatantly ignored by the double-standard liberal media. But what are we to expect when dogmatism is king and all opposing views are condemned? The pro-homosexuals want everyone to think like them and approve of their "inborn sexual orientation," and if you don't, well, then you're labeled a bigot, a homophobe, and worse. What they want is for everyone to think that homosexuality is normal. After all, it exists in the animal world, doesn't it? Yes, it does and so does animals eating their young. Just because animals do it, doesn't make it right.

We Christians aren't judging homosexuals. We are informing them. God has declared that homosexuality is a sin. It isn't our preferences we're declaring. It is God's. But, of course, some will say that the Bible isn't true - that it is archaic, sexist, homophobic, etc. We've heard it all before. I'm not interested in freedom without responsibility and the resulting promiscuity and diseases and oppression that accompany the politically correct, sexually promiscuity of liberal morality. Instead, I'll follow my Lord who calls all to repentance (Acts 17:30), me included.

Homosexuality is a sexual orientation

Homosexuals will say that they are born the way they are and that it is a genetic orientation, and since they didn't choose it, it cannot be wrong. If that is the case, then why do identical twins with identical genetics not have uniformity of sexual orientation? This proves it is not just genetic.5 But let's not stop there. What if a person is born with a genetic orientation to dislike homosexuality? Is that okay? Should his orientation be protected by law so that he is not offended or discriminated against? If not, then why the double standard? Would it then be okay for such a person to want laws passed to protect his "homosexuality aversion orientation"? Or, is only the pro homosexual orientation worthy of protection? 

Furthermore, being born with an orientation doesn't mean it is okay. If a person is born with the orientation to lie or steal, does that mean that lying and stealing are okay?  Of course not. Should lying-oriented-people demand national rights based on their orientation and its resulting practice?  Should thieves get rights based on their orientation?  Again, of course not. (See What is sexual orientation?)

What is the homosexual's hope?

The only hope for the homosexual and all people who break God's laws is to realize that God is holy, and He will rightfully judge all who have sinned against Him by breaking His law (1 Kings 8:32, Ps. 9:8, 1 John 3:4). If He did not do this, then He would be approving of wrongdoing. However, God is loving (1 John 4:8), patient (Rom. 2:4), wants people to repent (Acts 17:30), and desires that we come a saving knowledge of Him. What this means is that the sinner must turn to Christ, who is God in flesh (John 1:1, 14, Col. 2:9), who bore our sins in His body on the cross (1 Pet. 2:24), who died and rose from the dead (1 Cor. 15:1-4), and made it possible for sinners to be saved from the righteous judgment of God by faith in what Jesus did on our behalf (2 Cor. 5:21), so they can be forgiven of their sins (Eph. 2:8). Anyone can receive Christ (John 1:12) by believing in Him and accepting His sacrifice on the cross, that is a payment for our sins.  Like any sinner, the homosexual needs to repent, receive Christ by faith, and be saved from God's righteous judgment by trusting in Christ and the judgment that fell upon Him on the cross. They need to pray and ask the Lord Jesus to save them.

What should be the Christian's response to the Homosexual?

Just because someone is a homosexual, does not mean that we persecute them, call them names, sue them for not agreeing with us or offending us, or get laws passed to silence them. We are to love them.  Homosexuality is a sin, and like any other sin, it needs to be laid at the cross and forsaken. Yes, I know, easier said than done. That is true with all sins.

Please understand that I don't hate homosexuals. I wouldn't care if my neighbor is gay. I've had homosexual friends and have loved them the same as I would anyone else. I was their friend, yet they knew I did not approve of their behavior. They didn't try to silence me, and I didn't try to silence them. They trusted me.

But, the Bible says homosexuality is a sin, and the solution to the problem of sin (the breaking of God's Law, 1 John 3:4) is found only in Jesus. He is the Lord, the Savior, the risen King. The fact that Jesus physically rose from the dead three days after He died is proof that what He said was true.

Our eternal destinies depend on whether or not we receive Him and repent of our sins. After all, Jesus is God in flesh (John 1:1, 14). He died to save sinners from God the Father's righteous judgment. We are all sinners, and we all need the salvation (Eph. 2:8-9) that is only found in receiving Christ (John 1:12-13).

We Christians should pray for the salvation of the homosexual the same as we would for anyone else. This is not an issue of arrogance or judgmentalism. We don't want anyone to be lost  due to their sin and that includes gays, lesbians, and transgenders.

The homosexual is still made in the image of God even though he (or she) is in rebellion against Him. Therefore, we Christians should show homosexuals the same dignity as anyone else with whom we come in contact. They won't be won by accusing tones and judgmental attitudes.  They need to see the love of Christ in us.  Don't injure them. Don't hate them. Instead, at the right time, lovingly inform them that freedom and forgiveness are found in Jesus. Let them know that God loves us and died for us so that we might be delivered from the consequences of our sin, which is eternal separation from God (Isaiah 59:2).

But, this does not mean that we are to approve of what they do. We are not to compromise our witness for a socially acceptable opinion that is void of rationality, godliness, and Biblical truth.  Instead, stand firm in the Word that God has revealed to us and patiently love them biblically and pray for their salvation. Be kind to them. Be loving. And, when appropriate, tell them the Gospel because forgiveness of our sins is found in Christ.