On Sunday night, I witnessed a sad and misleading representation of the Bible’s views on the topic of homosexuality on CBCTV8’s The People’s Business.
As a result, I felt led to write this article in an effort to bring some clarity, truth and a biblical perspective to the discussion of the topic.
I open with a quote, which I obtained from a debate between an atheist and a theist: “Without God as the supreme foundation for moral values, we are lost in a world of sociocultural relativism.”
Without a biblical world view, the definition and establishment of moral values will be determined by culture, the law and societal opinion, all of which can change at any time.
Disappointingly, the church’s opinion on homosexuality differs from denomination to denomination, reverend to apostle and Christian to Christian. Nonetheless, the Bible’s position is clear and cannot be discredited, and as a result I will refer to its position and not to that of man.
Do not be fooled or misled by individuals who would want to deceive you into believing that only theologians can read and interpret scripture – as was the case on the programme when Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 were introduced as evidence that homosexuality is a sin.
If this were true, the work of thousands of missionaries around the world in distributing Bibles would be pointless. The Bible has been translated over the years in an effort to make it easier to read and understand.
Let me also say that the fact that someone is a theologian does not mean that they are a Christian. Many people have studied and continue to study theology for historical, philosophical and educational reasons alone.
People often say that God hates homosexuals and they use the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, which is found in Genesis 18 and 19, to support their argument. Yes, God did destroy those cities, but it wasn’t only because of homosexuality – it was because of sin and sexual immorality. Below are two passages that prove this.
Ezekiel 16:49 and 50 says: “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.” (NIV)
Jude 1:7 says: “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.” (NIV)
The Bible is clear that homosexuality is a sinful act, and there are other passages that highlight this.
During The People’s Business on Sunday night, Reverend Charles Morris said: “There was a time when I opposed homosexuality [but] now, based on my research, I am able to shift my position.”
1 Corinthians 6:9 and 10 says: “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.” (NKJV)
Since homosexuals were mentioned in the list above, I think it would be reasonable, based on principle, to conclude that if Reverend Morris, who is an Anglican priest, has shifted his position on homosexuality, he has also shifted
his position on all the others listed as well. If this is not the case, it can be argued that he is discriminating against thieves, adulterers, drunkards, and so on.
As I end Part One of this article, I must say that I do not support or promote any violence, abuse or hate speech towards anyone because of their sexual orientation. Just like me, lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transvestites are people.
