Homosexuality and the Power of the Gospel Part I

Transcription

1 Homosexuality and the Power of the Gospel Part I Introduction In light of the recent ruling on gay marriage and in light of the often times militant agenda of the gay rights movement, the whole issue of homosexuality has become a huge issue that churches are being forced to address. That s one way to put it. Or we could put it this way: In light of the recent ruling on gay marriage and in light of the often times militant agenda of the gay rights movement, the whole issue of homosexuality has become a huge issue that the church has the incredible privilege and blessing of speaking to from the standpoint of God s authoritative, and redemptive, and life-giving Word. In so many ways, this being forced to address the issue is a good thing because that s the case with anything that drives us back to the Scriptures back to the beauty, and the goodness, and the solid foundation of God s truth. Anytime we re forced back to the Scriptures, that should be a very good thing. So how should the Scripture s teaching about homosexuality ultimately lead us back to the hope, and freedom, and joy of the Gospel? I want to say right now that today will be mostly preparatory for next week. It s only next week that we ll try to fully answer the question we just asked. But today we ll make a very important start, and lay a foundation. So what do the Scriptures really teach about homosexuality? This is an important question for all of us because the issue here is not ultimately our personal preferences or desires, or aversions, even if I m right. Al Mohler writes: Some Christians find homosexuality more distasteful than sinful. And then he quotes someone who refers to the yuck factor as an attitude of disgust that lacks any substantial moral argument. We have to remember that the issue is never ultimately how we feel about things, or what we think even when we re right. When we remember this, it will guard us against all sorts of sinful responses and attitudes. It will guard us against arrogance, and self-righteousness, and sinful judgmentalism. It will leave us with nothing at all to prove and that s a wonderful thing! It will allow our message to carry within itself the true authority of our Creator. The book of Hebrews says: Hebrews 4:12 13 The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. And Paul writes in 2 Timothy: 2 Timothy 3:16 17 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. Only to the extent that our thinking and feeling is produced, and informed, and rooted in, and shaped by the whole counsel of God s Word only to that extent is our thinking and feeling of any true worth and value. So the issue for us is not how we instinctively feel or think even if

2 we re right but rather, always, what does the Word of God say that Word before which all of us here are required to humbly bow and submit. So coming back now to where we started, we ask: What do the Scriptures really teach about homosexuality? And we confess first of all that the Scriptures clearly teach that all homosexual acts are sinful. I. What does the Old Testament say about homosexuality? Leviticus 18:22; 20:13 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. The first thing we need to see is that both of these verses come in the context of other forbidden practices such as child sacrifice (18:21; 20:1-5), witchcraft (20:6-8), cursing of parents (20:9), and other sexual sins such as incest (18:6-18; 20:11-12, 17, 21), bestiality (18:23; 20:15-16), and adultery (18:20; 20:10). We know that all of these other practices are wrong not simply because of their association with idol worship, but rather they are wrong in and of themselves as violations of God s holy character. Therefore, we can t pick out homosexuality (as some do) and say that God was only forbidding cult prostitution in other words, God was only forbidding the homosexuality that was practiced in connection with idol worship. In the same way, we can t say that the law against homosexuality is just a ceremonial law in the Old Testament that s no longer binding under the New Covenant. First of all, as we ll see, this law is repeated in the New Testament. But second of all, the laws against the sexual acts of incest, bestiality, adultery, and homosexuality are all really just a commentary on the seventh commandment, which says: You shall not commit adultery. The seventh commandment explicitly forbids one kind of sexual sin, but it was ultimately intended as a law against any kind of sexual act outside of the bounds of marriage marriage as created by God and defined in His Word. And so the seventh commandment, which reflects the eternally unchanging moral will of God, forbids among many other things all homosexual acts. We know this from the inspired commentary that God wrote in Leviticus 17 and 20. And we can see this also in 1 Timothy. Here Paul gives us a list of sins and vices that are violations of the Ten Commandments. In other words, he patters his list of sins and vices after the list of the Ten Commandments. 1 Timothy 1:8 11 Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers [5th Commandment: Honor your father and your mother ], for murderers, [6 th Commandment: You shall not murder ], the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality [7 th Commandment: You shall not commit adultery ], menstealers [ASV; KJV; YLT; 8 th Commandment: You shall not steal ], liars, perjurers [9 th Commandment: You shall not bear false witness ], and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.

3 Paul understood the practice of homosexuality to be prohibited by the seventh commandment. And so in light of these things, we also have to conclude that the law in Leviticus 18 and 20 is an explicitly clear statement of God s eternally unchanging moral will as He has revealed it to us in the Ten Commandments. Leviticus 18:22; 20:13 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. This is not our word, but the Word of God. Not only do we see here that that homosexual acts are sinful, we also see that they are detestable and abhorrent to the LORD. They re called an abomination, and in the Old Testament context of the Israelite theocracy, they were punished with the death penalty. Even if I m a heterosexual, I should respond to this truth with sober fear and trembling because I remember that homosexuality was not the only sin that came with the death penalty. There was also adultery; and Jesus says that even the one who has looked at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Mat. 5:28) As far as abominations go, once again homosexuality is not the only one that we find in the Bible. At the end of Leviticus 18 we read: Leviticus 18:26 27 (cf. 18:29-30) You shall keep my statutes and my rules and do none of these abominations [adultery included] for the people of the land, who were before you, did all of these abominations, so that the land became unclean. And at the end of Leviticus 20 we read this: Leviticus 20:22 23 You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my rules and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. And you shall not walk in the customs of the nation that I am driving out before you, for they did all these things [including cursing of parents and committing adultery], and therefore I detested them. We read in Deuteronomy, and then in Proverbs: Deuteronomy 25:13 16 (cf. Prov. 20:10, 23) You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. Proverbs 6:16 19 There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. So there is certainly a sense in which the sin of homosexuality is no different than many other sins that we may all be guilty of. But far from making homosexuality any more acceptable, this only shows how utterly detestable, and abhorrent, and hateful all of our sin is to a holy God. When we truly understand this, we can only cry out with Paul:

4 Romans 7:24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Or with the tax collector in Luke 18, who would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, Luke 18:13 God, be merciful to me, a sinner! We ve looked at what the Old Testament Law teaches about the practice of homosexuality, so now we ll turn to the New Testament. II. What does the New Testament say about homosexuality? 1 Timothy 1:8 11 We ve already seen that in 1 Timothy, Paul sees all sexual immorality, including homosexuality as a violation of the 7 th commandment. This is why he is right to say that the sexually immoral and those who practice homosexuality (along with all those who practice all the other vices in his list) are the lawless and disobedient, the ungodly and sinners, the unholy and profane. These are strong words, and they reveal to us not only the seriousness of all sin, but also the absolute holiness and purity of God. But now we come to Paul s words in 1 Corinthians chapter six. 1 Corinthians 6:9 10 [NASB; cf. ESV] Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate [NET: passive homosexual partners ], nor homosexuals [NET: practicing homosexuals ], nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. One thing this passage teaches very clearly is that both partners who are living in unrepentant homosexual activity (both the active partner and the passive partner) will be excluded from the kingdom of heaven. * There are many professing Christians who argue that what the Bible condemns is homosexual abuse or exploitation (such as the kind we see in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah), but not a loving, committed, exclusive homosexual relationship. It s true that the Bible never specifically condemns a loving, committed, and exclusive homosexual relationship. But what is clearly condemned in the Scriptures is the homosexual act, and here in this passage we see that this remains true even when both partners are willing and consenting. It is a blatant violation of the authority of God s Word to say that depending on the type of relationship, the act which is everywhere in the Scriptures described as sinful is no longer sinful. Of course, this kind of logic opens the door to other kinds of sexual sin (such as incest), but even more importantly, this is very simply to add the word of man to the Word of God. We remember what the Apostle John said in Revelation 22: * Cf. Harper s Bible Dictionary; Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary; Ethics for a Brave New World; NICNT

5 Revelation 22:18 (cf. Deut. 4:2; 12:32) I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. It is a serious thing to add the word of man to the word of God. So as we humbly submit ourselves to the Word of God (quite apart from any feelings of our own), we understand that all homosexual activity, no matter what kind of relationship it happens in, is sinful and abhorrent to God it is an affront to His holy and righteous character. But the second thing we need to see in this passage is that once again the practice of homosexuality is mentioned in the same list with fornicators, adulterers, thieves, the covetous, and swindlers. In this list, the one who practices homosexuality is never singled out or portrayed as any worse of a sinner than all the rest. We saw the exact same thing in 1 Timothy chapter one where those who practice homosexuality are mentioned in the same list with the sexually immoral, liars, and perjurers. Those who practice each one of these vices are all called the exact same thing unrighteous, and all are excluded in equal measure from the kingdom of heaven. And so once again, instead of making the practice of homosexuality any less wicked, we re made to see just how eternally destructive, and just how condemning is all of our sin. We re reminded again of how abhorrent, and detestable, and hateful all of our sin is as an affront to the holy and righteous character of God who is light, and in whom is no darkness at all (1 Jn. 1:5). We see again that every single one of us must come to the point in our lives where we re able to cry out with the Philippian jailor: Acts 16:30 What must I do to be saved? [ saved from the everlasting terrors of God s righteous indignation against my sin?] Jude reminds us of the terrors of God s wrath against our sin with three different examples the third one being the doom of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19: Jude 5 7 Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire. Notice once again that homosexuality is just one example of the sexual immorality that so many multitudes of Christians must struggle against. And yet we also see once again that the Scriptures are explicitly clear: they teach that all homosexual acts are sinful and abhorrent to God, and that those who live in unrepentant homosexuality will experience the judgment and wrath of God. But what s the point of saying these things? Think about it! If we truly believe what the Bible says about sin and judgment, then not only will we be motivated by a zeal for the holy character and glory of God, but also by a true pity and love for those who are still children of God s wrath just as we also once were (Eph. 2:1-3). It s for this reason that we must not

6 water down the message that the righteous wrath of God is coming upon all who practice homosexuality along with all those who practice every other kind of lawlessness. Conclusion Remember, it s not ultimately what we think or feel that matters regardless of whether we re right or wrong. I like what Al Mohler says: The gift of God s revelation explains why Christians have something distinctive to say. Our particular expertise is established solely in our knowledge of what God has revealed in the Bible. We do not speak with authority on issues related to human sexuality because of our personal experience; nor can we base our claims upon scientific expertise, popular opnion, or sociology. Everything we know [emphasis mine] about love and marriage [and sexuality] is a revealed knowledge. In other words, what should always matters most of all to us is just the answer to this question: What does the Word of God say? I ll quote Mohler one more time: Human beings have demonstrated time and again that we can overcome any amount of disgust if we are determined to rationalize misbehavior. The fallen human mind is a moral computer [capable] of infinite rationalization, a fact that underlines again why we are so utterly dependent upon the authority of Scripture. All around us we see the rationalization and the justification of homosexual behavior on emotional grounds, on logical grounds, even on so-called biblical grounds; in politics, in the media, and in entertainment. In the face of this overwhelming assault, we must retreat every time not to our feelings, not to our own logic, and not even ultimately to our own inner sense of morality, but rather to the absolute authority of God s Word, which as God s Word, demands from all of us our absolute and humble submission. Let me put it this way: We must not respond to homosexuality as if we were somehow co-authors of the law that forbids it as if we could somehow forbid it by our own moral authority. We must acknowledge that it s never our opinions or thoughts that matter, or what we would like God to say or be, but rather what God Himself has sovereignly revealed to us of His character and will. It doesn t matter if people scoff and mock at this, it just matters that we make this clear as an expression of our own submission and humility, and in order that we don t detract from the true power and authority of God s Word. This morning, we asked the question: What do the Scriptures say about homosexuality. We ve come a long way in answering that question, but by no means have we come all the way. Next week we re going to ask more specifically, What do the Scriptures say about why homosexuality is sin? Or we could say this: How does homosexuality powerfully illustrate the very essence of all sin? These are things we have to be absolutely clear about if we re to respond faithfully to the world in which we live. Answering these questions is the key to moving us from the bad news of sin to the good news to the hope, and freedom, and joy of the Gospel. So next week we ll be looking at Romans chapter one along with the passage in Jude, and then back again at 1 Corinthians chapter six.

7 This morning, we asked the question: What do the Scriptures say about homosexuality. I pray that as we have asked and begun to answer this question, we ve been strengthened in our faith and equipped to bear faithful witness and testimony to the world, and even to many professing Christians in the church. But I also pray that we ve all seen in a new and fresh way the holiness of God and the depravity of our own sin so that we all might cling more than ever before to Jesus Christ alone. May we, too, be those who have learned to cry out with Paul, Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? and with the tax collector, God, be merciful to me, a sinner! and with the Philippian jailer, What must I do to be saved?