What the Bible says about homosexuality
Homosexuality is growing rapidly around the world. More and more countries allow same-sex marriage, as well as the adoption of children by such couples, all supposedly in the name of love and freedom. We forget that the marriage relationship in the Bible was established for people of the opposite sex, and only such are blessed by the Lord. The institution of marriage, which was intended for people of different sexes, has been turned into an unbiblical practice.
What does Scripture say about homosexuality? Does the Bible condemn homosexuality?
Leviticus 18.22-29 "Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable. ... Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. But you must keep my decrees and my laws. The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you. Everyone who does any of these detestable things - such persons must be cut off from their people."
Leviticus 20.13-23 "If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads. ... Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. You must not live according to the customs of the nations I am going to drive out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them."
Sodom and Gomorrah as an example
One of the reasons God drove out the Canaanites was overt homosexuality. Sodom and Gomorrah is a perfect example of what God thinks about practicing this activity:
Jude 1.7 "In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire."
There are more similar examples in the Old Testament. What, on the other hand, does the New Testament say on the subject:
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."
1 Timothy 1.8-11 "We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers - and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me."
1 Corinthians 6.9-11 "Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men, nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."
Although the above quotes refer to the relationship between man and man, they also apply to women. The Bible is written in such a way that a very large number of commands and prohibitions are addressed to men, but they also applied to women otherwise one would come to the erroneous conclusion that women can do as they please, and not only in the context of homosexuality, but in many other areas of life. Such and not another form of written biblical content, is due to the role of women in society, which does not mean, of course, that they were less important. It's just that in those days the head of the family was the man, and it was his responsibility to make sure that everyone persevered in the faith.
Everyone can be saved
In the above quote we have a sentence that is a blessing for all those who have fallen into homosexuality. At any time a person can abandon this practice and surrender to God, and He will forgive him, just as the Corinthians were forgiven. Such a person, according to the Bible, need not condemn himself to eternal damnation. The words of Scripture are clear: anyone who has sexual intercourse with a person of the same sex will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Note that homosexuality in the Bible is often listed alongside other strongly immoral behavior , such as, for example: ungodly, murderer of mothers, patricide, slave trader. It would seem that this is only an individual matter of the person, but this is not the case, with their behavior they contribute to the biblical downfall.
In the Old Testament we read that such people were to be exterminated from society. The Israelites were a chosen people, they were to be distinguished from other nations. God (or at least part of His glory) dwelt among them in the Tent/Temple, manifesting Himself in the form of a pillar of fire or cloud. The entire nation was to be sanctified, it was unacceptable to dwell so close to God and yet behave uncleanly. As the years went by, Israel was rolling back morally, becoming inferior to the peoples who once inhabited Canaan.
God's standards
God's standards remain unchanged, we should continue to discourage homosexuality, public flaunting of this biblical sin. Let us not throw stones and cause harm to these people, Jesus clearly said that whoever is blameless let him throw the first stone. The punishment for sin is death. Each of us sins in one way or another, so let's not take it out on such people, because we ourselves also deserve condemnation, and only the grace of Jesus Christ can save us from eternal death.
Couples who physically cannot, have a child, get married and adopt a child, enter the realm reserved for normal biblical human relationships. The current world is looking more and more like Sodom and Gomorrah, and people are becoming less and less concerned about it and consider it something natural. The Bible takes a different stance.
This article is not intended to attack people under the influence of homosexuality. God gives everyone a chance and will help get out of any situation, but one must turn to Jesus for help. The Creator forgives, but also heals. Ask God to fight the sin in you, believe that it will work and it will happen.
Anyone who lasts in such a relationship needs purification. Humiliating, scolding, ridiculing, threatening, punishing, etc. is not the solution. The fact that they will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven is the greatest punishment that can befall them. Jesus approached everyone with love, he came to save sinners (each of us is one of them), not the righteous. Let's not treat homosexuals with prejudice, let's not think they are inferior to us or are some kind of misfits. Yes they are enslaved to sin, but is there a man who has no flaws? They have a weakness for the same sex, we in return have a weakness for other impurities that cause us to sin.
It saddens me to see how the rainbow, which God created after the Flood as a sign of God's covenant with man, is being used by homosexuals as a sign of freedom, and a huge part of society has no idea about this. They don't even know where in Scripture there is a text that says that the rainbow is a symbol of the covenant of people with the Lord.
