UPDATE (20/8/2011) – I went through this post and have changed it’s tone because though I know that I am meant to stand firm in the Bible and in my faith in God/Jesus and do this in and with an attitude of love in my heart, the reality was that in my passion, I had forgotten to let that love flow through my words here and throughout my website. Lord, forgive me for that and help to be mindful here on out.
I felt that this follow up post was necessary because of the comments and questions raised by a YouTube user after watching my video on Same Sex Marriage. Click here if you would like to read that post.
This user, like many others that I have had online debates with recently, are taking Scripture verses out of context, in a misguided attempt to challenge views that are not just my own, but what God clearly says in the Bible!
I do not claim to be a scholar or theologian, but a simple believer in Christ, who acknowledges and confesses that my wisdom is from the Lord and my insight is from His Holy Spirit.
Old Testament
Long before the clearly stated law in Leviticus 18:22 (“Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.”) concerning this sin, (the ACT of) homosexuality was already an abomination to God. If you open your Bible and turn to Genesis 19, you can easily see why God was ready to destroy this wicked city. All the men, young and old, couldn’t wait to have sex with Lot’s guests, who were angels of God!
So, why did God give “the law” as we know it in the Old Testament? Though it would take volumes upon volumes of books to truly answer this question, I am going to go the simple route and give you two reasons:
- God had just liberated Israel from Egypt. In the 400 years that they had been enslaved, their way of life had become like that of pagan Egypt. When God brought them out, He wanted them to be set apart from the world. He wanted them to be different. He wanted them to be holy, just as He is holy. He gave them all the laws in all its detail so that everything regarding every area of life was clear to them! No one could make an excuse and continue in their sinful ways, as they no doubt had, when they were in Egypt. Not only were the laws to safeguard them from sinning against Him, they also helped Israel to live as a united people, under God! With clear guidance from the Lord, Israel knew what God expected of their relationship with Him and with each other!
- Jesus had not yet come into the world. He had not come and set the example for God’s people to follow. Therefore, through the law God gave to His people, because of His love, mercy and grace, He gave them the correct boundaries for personal and communal behavior!
So, are Christians today meant to be following each and every single law in the Old Testament?
The short answer is NO. The long answer again would take volumes and volumes!
From those who don’t believe in God, comes the cries: “Why then are you selectively taking OT laws like Leviticus 18:22 and shoving it down our throats?” and “Why are you not following EVERY LAW?”!
Dear reader, unless you have genuine humility, unless you truly believe in God, unless God is working in your heart even at this very moment, you cannot and will not understand what I am and have been explaining here, but Lord willing, I pray you do.
New Testament
Concerning the Old Testament law and prophets, in the New Testament, the Lord Jesus Himself stated it plainly in Matthew 5:17 –
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”
What did Jesus mean? Again, it’s pretty simple if you are willing to believe.
When a person comes to know Christ, believes in Him and places their trust and faith in Him for salvation, they are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)! Though outwardly they may look the same, inwardly, God’s Holy Spirit takes residence and begins His transforming work in their lives (Philippians 1:6, Hebrews 10:14)!
So, what’s the end result and how does it tie that person with the Old Testament laws?
The end result is that as every single moment passes, that individual who has TRULY given his or her live over to Christ, WILL become more and more like Jesus Christ, inwardly and outwardly! I am not talking about someone who merely claims to be a Christian or does “Christian” things, but one who sincerely reads the Bible and believes and puts to practice what it teaches, prays regularly not just for themselves but other peoples needs, loves and serves people in response to their love for God and in EVERY WAY, reflects Jesus Christ – be it in their words, thoughts, actions or attitudes!
Such a person WILL NOT make it a HABIT to sin CONSTANTLY or CONTINUALLY live in an ungodly/sinful manner! Notice that I did not say that this person will NEVER sin! That’s not true. 1 John 1:8-10 has this to say:
“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.”
As a person grows in Christ, they will become more and more like Jesus! Such a person would not have to worry about obeying the Old Testament laws because in Christ, they would have fulfilled them all, JUST LIKE JESUS!
Do you get what I am trying to say? I am not talking about people pretending to be like Jesus, people whose hearts and minds are corrupted and wicked like the men of Sodom and Gomorrah!
It is sad how many who “claim” to be Christians have caused this world to hate Christians because of the way they live and how they conduct themselves!
That’s NOT the real Christian faith dear reader. But, if you don’t have faith in God, don’t know Jesus and gauge (form an opinion of) all Christians by the actions of these few ungodly pretenders and liars, these “fake Christians”, then that is a choice you have made, but an incorrect one!
Coming back to homosexuality. Many unbelievers (don’t believe in God or Jesus Christ) may argue that Christ never said anything specific about homosexuality in the New Testament!
It is quite sad and frustrating that many people think that just because they have “read” the Bible and are “educated ” in the world, they know everything and understand everything written in the Bible and can argue with genuine Christians about what the Bible says and what it means!
Christ did not have to say anything concerning homosexuality in the New Testament because He is the same God who gave all the laws in the Old Testament, including Leviticus 18:22!
John 1:1-3 states this truth most beautifully:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
If you don’t believe in the One true God, if you don’t have faith in Christ, if you don’t have His Spirit in you, you would neither know this truth, nor understand it!
Paul (once Saul – read about his conversion in Acts 9:1-6, Acts 9:10-16), was appointed by Jesus Himself as an Apostle (meaning one who is sent forth as a messenger). He did not merely “claim” to be one, nor was he delusional about who he was, as the YouTube user suggested. The Apostle Paul had this to say about homosexuality in Romans 1:26-27 –
“Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.”
Taken in the context of the passage (Romans 1:20-27), the Apostle Paul is talking about people who deny God and His existence, despite all of creation itself being the proof! If you are a “Big Bang” believer and an “Evolution” evangelist, then these verses are talking about people like YOU!
What the Old Testament laws state about homosexuality, what the Lord Jesus does not explicitly say about this subject and what the Apostle Paul says clearly and directly about the subject – there are no contradictions!
What God has said in the Old Testament is true in the New Testament because the Yahweh of the Old Testament that Moses got the laws from IS the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, in the New Testament!
Sadly, even all this explanation will not be enough for those who are destined to destruction! If this describes YOU dear reader, I pray and ask the Lord to have mercy on you and to reveal Himself to you, that you and your loved ones will find salvation in Jesus Christ!
Thank Sri 🙂