Sex….is for one husband and one wife.
There it is.
Arguably the most unpopular teaching of Christianity.
It is so unpopular that the vast majority of non-Christians reject it. Our civil laws clearly repudiate it. Our society does not accept it. Furthermore, a significant minority of Christians reject it.
Today, I will focus on same sex relationships. Extramarital sex between a man and a woman is a topic for another day. So what are the arguments for and against extramarital, same sex, intercourse.
For same sex intercourse:
The primary teaching of the Bible and of Christianity is love…….Love God…..Love man. There is no “but”. There is no “except”. We are to love everyone….from God at one end to our “enemy” at the other. To teach that it is wrong for a man to love another man is to reject the very heart of Christianity.
Homosexuality is inate….common….normal. I have no doubt that many of us are born with a natural, inate physical attraction to others of the same sex.
Same sex marriage is common and legal. This takes same sex intercourse out of the category of adultery.
Against:
Every reference to same sex intercourse in the Bible is strongly critical. The Bible uses descriptors like: abomination, unrighteous, shameless, unnatural, dishonorable, and immoral. These descriptions come from the old testament and from Paul in the new testament. Same sex intercourse is never once described in a positive light. This is repeated over and over. In the Bible, things are repeated……because they are important.
But, what does Jesus say? He never specifically addessses the issue of homosexual intercourse. When he gets close to the issue of extramarital heterosexual intercourse, he defines it as sin but is more concerned with repentance and reconciliation. Jesus clearly and unmistakably defines marriage as a rite involving God, one man, and one woman.
Conclusions
First, marriage is a rite of the church…….not a rite of civil government. Marriage was created by God before man created civil government. It is a contract between a man, a woman, and God. Nowhere does the bible define marriage as a union of same sex partners. Same sex marriage is a creation of our culture….of our laws. It is not a creation of God. It is legal……but, the fact that it is legal……. does not make it right. History is replete with laws codifying activities that we all would agree were and are wrong. Just look at Nazi Germany. Just look at “partial birth abortion”.
Second, regarding commonality. There are many common desires, innate predispositions, that are wrong. For a list, just read the ten commandments. The fact that a desire is common, even inherited, does not mean that acting on it is right.
Third, there is a distinction between love and sexual intercourse. We are to love everyone without exception. Sexual intercourse, on the other hand, is strictly limited to one man and one woman. Sexual intercourse outside of traditional marriage falls into the category of entertainment……..recreational sex.
What it comes down to is this:
The Bible and same sex intercourse cannot be reconciled. You must either reject same sex intercourse……or reject the Bible. If you reject the Bible, you are saying either that God, paradise, and hell do not exist……..or that you are smarter than God……. that what you want is more important than what God wants.
And that is a good working definition of hubris.
You must either trust your intellect, your desires, and your appetites……..or trust your creator.
Just because you want something……..does not make it right.
‘For this reason a man will leave his father and his mother and will live with his wife. The two will become one.’ So they are no longer two but one. Let no man divide what God has put together.”
Jesus discussing marriage and divorce
Mattew 19: 5-6, ESV
And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”
Jesus instructing a woman guilty of extramarital sex.
John 8:11, ESV