A Biblical Lense

First Things First: What does the Bible say?

LGBT issues. What does the Bible say.

The affirmative case for God’s design: A Summary

I’ve included some Hebrew annotations so you can see the Hebrew words for male/female and man/woman.

Genesis 1:27 ESV

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male [zā·kār] and female [neqē·bā(h)] he created them.

Genesis 2:22–25 ESV

And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man [ā·dām] he made into a woman [iš·šā(h)] and brought her to the man [ā·dām].

Genesis 2:22–25 ESV

Then the man [ā·dām] said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman [iš·šā(h)], because she was taken out of Man [îš].”

Genesis 2:22–25 ESV

Therefore a man [îš] shall leave his father [āb] and his mother [ēm] and hold fast to his wife [iš·šā(h)], and they shall become one flesh. And the man [ā·dām] and his wife [iš·šā(h)] were both naked and were not ashamed.

We see two pairings. Male/female corresponding to Man/woman.

Jesus reaffirms that this remains the case. This principle continues.

Matthew 19:4–6 ESV

He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Sexual Identity and the Words We Use

Define our words and describe how they are used. I don’t want to assume everyone knows these things and I want to be clear.

Practice versus attraction

Homosexuality in the Bible does not refer to attraction or temptation as sin, but only the act/practice.

LGBT - these terms could describe attraction, practice, or association with a cultural community.

“Gay”

Man attracted to man.

Or just same-sex attracted.

A practicing homosexual.

Or associated with the LGBT community.

“LGBT community” if that means a group of people who feel marginalized and want fair treatment, that’s fine. if that’s a group of people who want to advocate for and violate God’s design, that’s another thing. The lines are often blurred.

It isn’t misguided to describe oneself in these terms, but it would be misguided for the Christian to define oneself by these words. I am not primarily a straight man. That is not how I define myself. That is not my primary identity. That is carnal and animalistic to identify yourself by how you want to use your genitals when you’re aroused.

Whatever struggles or vices a believer may have, they are defined as a Christian first and primarily.

What does the Bible say about Homosexuality?

That is, the practice of homosexuality.

The Bible is clear that it is sinful.

Leviticus 18:22 ESV

You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.

Abomination means hated, abhorred, detestable. Other things were called abominations in scripture.

Idolatry:

Deuteronomy 7:25 ESV

The carved images of their gods you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the Lord your God.

Cheating others in business:

Proverbs 11:1 ESV

A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is his delight.

Here are some specific NT passages condemning homosexuality.

Rom1:18, 21, 24, 25

Romans 1:18 ESV

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

Romans 1:21 ESV

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Romans 1:24 ESV

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,

Romans 1:25 ESV

because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 ESV

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Some dispute some of the New Testament passages. Explaining them away for one reason or another. I don’t think those arguments are wrong. The foundation of scripture is solid, regardless of the dismissal of a few verses, even if they could be dismissed.

Why is Homosexuality a Sin?

Ephesians 5:31–32 ESV

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

John 17:20–21 ESV

“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Marriage is supposed to be part of the image of God. This is first and foremost. It is good for man and woman because of this. The one-flesh pairing of male and female images the oneness of the Godhead.

Why are some people attracted to the same sex?

Same-sex attraction and sexual identity

There are many reasons why a person may be, or simply claim to be, attracted to the same sex.

It happens. It’s real. The research suggests it can’t be changed that much. It usually isn’t about rebellion or loving God enough.

Story of my friend.

We need to accept that some people have same-sex attraction. What a person DOES with that attraction is the question.

The simple answer to that question is what we have already established. Homosexuality is still a sin even if you are attracted to the same sex.

That’s too bad. That can be a real challenge and I am sympathetic.

However, don’t think this is too unfair. We don’t EVER get what we want just because we want it or have strong feelings. For the same reason, we cannot steal, kill, or commit adultery. Even if we really want to, that doesn’t make it any less of a sin. Even if I really struggle with those sins, it doesn’t make it less of a sin for me.

What about trans and nonbinary identities?

This is more existential. Let’s consider non-binary first. Define.

As we looked at the beginning. God made male and female. God speaks of our flourishing in terms of male and female – men and women – and outlines nothing more. The entirety of scripture describes and outlines the lived and prescribed reality of two genders, men and women. We have already looked at some.

1 Corinthians 11:4–5 ESV

Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven.

Addressing a cultural gender issue in terms of men and women. Non other are under consideration.

Deuteronomy 22:5 ESV

“A woman shall not wear a man’s garment, nor shall a man put on a woman’s cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God.

This principle seems to discuss not confusing or blurring the lines between the identities of men and women. And men and women are ALL that are under discussion.

What about being trans, even if there are only two genders?

Our soul is intimately connected to our bodies. Our souls were each breathed into our own bodies by God. We were given this body.

Genesis 2:7 ESV

then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

Adam was GIVEN his body by God. It is no different for anyone else.

1 Corinthians 15:42–45 ESV

So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

What we do with our bodies actually matters to God.

1 Corinthians 6:15–20 ESV

Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Romans 12:1 ESV

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

1 Thessalonians 4:3–5 ESV

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;

And we have seen how God has defined sexuality in terms of male/female, man/woman.

We are to honor the body we were given in the same way that we honor the parents we are given and the role in our family we are given (uncle, little brother, oldest sister, stepsibling). We don’t choose these things, but they are what we are given by God.

What does this mean about gender roles?

This could be another can of worms. But it seems clear that men and women are addressed differently in scripture and that there are some guiding principles at play, but not the stereotypical ones that we may think of.

The easiest one to point out is the one of mother and father.

Our masculinity and femininity are on a spectrum, but our gender, and thus gender roles, are not.