"Have you not read that
He who made them at the beginning
'made them male and female,'
and said, 'For this reason
a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh'?"
--Jesus, Matthew 19:4-5, NKJV
I'm a believer in God as my creator, in Jesus Christ as my savior, in the Holy Spirit as the indwelling presence of God in my life, in the Bible as the divinely inspired, inerrant, infallible, unchangeable Word of God and from it I draw the basis for all my belief and practice. When I talk about it, I'm not expressing a personal opinion or conviction. I am declaring the truth as delivered to us by God. Whether you accept it as truth or not, whether you accept me and my proclamation or not, the authority of God and His commandments stand on their own. He doesn't need me to protect or defend Him. He doesn't need me to offer explanations or excuses for His hard sayings. What He does require of me is that I repeat what He says.
It's the hot political topic today--President Barack Hussein Obama, in all of his inimitable wisdom, knowledge and understanding, has announced that his evolving opinion on the matter of same-sex marriage has arrived at a conclusion. He is in favor of it. In an official statement on the subject, Mr. Obama said that he
and the first lady "are both practicing Christians and obviously this position
may be considered to put us at odds with the views of others but, you know, when
we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only
Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it's also the Golden Rule, you
know, treat others the way you would want to be treated."
I never cease to be amazed at how people can pull some random Scripture or Biblical thought out of the air and employ it to support their political positions, even when their opinions fly in the face of what the Bible actually says.
The Apostle Paul wrote, in 1 Timothy 1:15 that "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief." And the entire message of the Bible is that Jesus did indeed come to offer himself in a sacrificial way to atone for the multitude of humanity's sin. But the Bible is also clear that the application of such an atonement is not automatic. One has to believe in Jesus Christ as the only begotten, risen Son of God. One has to confess that Jesus Christ is their Lord, that their lives belong to Him. One has to repent of all their sins, turning from them to live as Jesus lived and commanded. One has to be "born-again", becoming a "new creature", letting old things pass away so that Christ can make all things new, turning away from the sinful things of the world in order to receive the goodness of God. The gospel message of salvation is pretty clear on that matter.
The sacrificial death of Jesus was not to give homosexuals and other sinners the freedom to continue living in their sins, but rather the power to turn from those sins to serve the living God.
I really have to wonder if Obama, since he is invoking the Bible to support his new found political cause (and also a vast money-making machine), even knows or cares to know what the Bible really says about homosexuality and the same-sex marriage issue of which he is now so fond.
As Jesus said, in the beginning God created Adam and Eve, put them together as husband and wife in the garden, and blessed them with the command to be fruitful and multiply, to fill the earth and subdue it. He made them male and female, making Adam first from the dirt in His own image and likeness, and making Eve second from Adam's own flesh to be a comparable partner to him. Marriage was the first human institution, officiated over and ordained by God to be the foundation of human civilization with Himself as the cornerstone. (see Genesis 1:26-28; 2:18-25)
Two men, or two women for that matter, cannot be fruitful and multiply, therefore they cannot fill the earth and subdue it. Two men are not physically compatible in any way, shape or form, and neither are two women. It doesn't take much imagination to figure out that the body of a man was shaped to fit together with the body of a woman in a way that would fulfill God's many purposes for the coupling. And God blessed that union, sanctified it Himself, and even inspired the Bible writers to say, "they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." Four thousand years later another inspired writer said, "Marriage is honorable among, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators (those who engage in unlawful sexual practices) and adulterers God will judge." (see Genesis 2:25; Hebrews 13:4)
Though God had issued no direct commandments regarding what constituted sin, He repeatedly made His mind on the matter known. At the murder of Abel, God exiled Cain to fruitless wandering. At the time of Noah, humanity had become so violent and corrupt and sexually perverted that God wiped out every living thing except for the eight people belonging to righteous Noah's family and the animals they preserved on the Ark. At the time of Abraham, God destroyed four cities that were filled with wickedness, the most obvious sin being the blatant homosexuality of its men and their violence toward those who disagreed with them. To this day, the word synonymous with homosexual practices stands as a dark memorial to the cities God destroyed--sodomy.
When God did give His people a written moral and legal code, He made the following declarations:
"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination." Leviticus 18:22, NKJV. Along with incest, bestiality, and adultery, God said these sins defiled the land. He said He was destroying the nations of Canaan because of these abominations, and He would do the same to Israel if they repeated those sins.
"If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood is upon them." Leviticus 20:13, NKJV. In fact, almost every transgression against the laws of God would result in capital punishment.
Those laws recorded primarily in Exodus and Leviticus, with many of them repeated in Deuteronomy, governed Israel for 1500 years. And then Jesus came. He was questioned many times about the finer points of the law, and while it is true that no one asked Him directly about homosexuality, and He never directly addressed it, He did define marriage as between one man and one woman for life, and that was the way God wanted it. He also said, "Do not think I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled." (see Matthew 5:17-18). Jesus elaborated on the true meaning behind the commandments: adultery included lust, murder included anger and hatred, thinking it was as bad as doing it. He taught the true meaning of the Sabbath--that it was not made to be served by man, but to serve his well-being by given him rest from his labors. But something He obviously felt needed no elaboration or further teaching were these morality laws that governed human sexuality. And what He meant by fulfillment was this--when He died for the sins of humanity, He fulfilled the righteous requirement of the law, took the penalty and punishment for all sins upon Himself, nailed sin to the cross, defeated death and hell as the eternal punishers, and provided through His resurrection the only way to escape the wrath of God that sin so richly deserves.
That's why we are no longer supposed to execute sinners. Criminals, yes. But sinners will all have their day to face the righteous judgment of God. For now, the wrath of God has been postponed while He extends grace to all for salvation.
In Acts 15:20, the Apostles declared to the Gentile Christians that following the Mosaic law with all of its rules, rituals and regulations was not necessary, but then instructed them to abstain from unlawful sexual practices--which would obviously include adultery, prostitution, homosexuality, incest and bestiality.
In Romans 1:18-32, the Apostle Paul reveals the descent of one into ungodliness and unrighteousness that will result in the wrath of God. First they put more emphasis on the creature rather than the Creator. Then they ignore what is obvious and plainly revealed through nature about God and refuse to honor Him. Then their thoughts and reasoning become futile, and their hearts are darkened. Instead of becoming like God, they try to make for themselves a god like them and other things in creation. Then God releases them from all righteous constraints, to pursue uncleanness, the lust of their hearts, the dishonoring of their own bodies in sexual sin, and vile passions.
"For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due." Romans 1:26-27, NKJV. Paul goes on to add that such sin leads to a debased mind and reprobate state in which all unrighteousness is practiced: unlawful sexual sin, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness, whispering, backbiting, hating God, violence, pride, boasting, inventing evil, disobedience, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful. And about them he says, "knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them."
In 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Paul writes, "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 homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God."
In 1 Timothy 1:9-11, Paul writes, "The law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly, and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust"
God's Word could not be more clear: homosexuality, and therefore same-sex marriage, is a sin. It's wrong. It's an abomination unto God. So are all other sins. And all sin has an inevitable result: death, judgment, and eternal punishment in hell. Inevitable, that is, unless one repents of their sin, turns to God for forgiveness and salvation, and starts living a new life in Christ Jesus.
And that, my friends, is the real truth, the real message, the real Gospel and good news. Jesus came to save sinners. Will you be saved today?
* * *
"Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
and prudent in their own sight."
Isaiah 5:20-21, NKJV
