24. Homosexuality
“The wrath of God is being revealed from
heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth
by their wickedness...For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as
God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish
hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and
exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man
and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful
desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies
with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and
served created things rather than the Creator.... Because of this, God gave them
over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural 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 indecent acts
with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their
perversion....They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed
and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice....
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things
deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve
of those who practice them” (Rom. 1:18,21-27,29,32).
The above verses clearly include homosexuality
(rather pathetically characterized these days as being “gay”) with
the grossest forms of sin, depravity and even idolatry! There can be no question
as to how God views the sort of conduct that certain “liberated”
elements of our society boldly dismiss as an “alternative
lifestyle”. It is a measure of the increasing sinfulness of our world that
such a prohibition need even be discussed among believers, when Paul referred to
it as the sort of immorality that should not even be mentioned among saints
(Eph. 5:3).
In this, as in other matters, however, the
impulse alone is not a sin. Nevertheless, it can, and must, be controlled and
suppressed. With God’s help (and the help of brothers and sisters) every
sin can be forgiven and overcome. But it must be recognized as a sin, not an
“illness” or an “alternative”. It has been well said
that God never yet forgave an excuse!
