Jesus and Homosexuality

Responding to those who say that the Lord didn’t condemn homosexuality and therefore it’s okay:

Jesus didn’t specifically condemn a lot of things that we know are wrong (such as slavery). This silence tells us almost nothing.

He didn’t have to say anything. In contrast to pagan Rome, there was no debate about it in first-century Judaism. The Old Testament teaching on the subject was clear. By saying nothing, He let the teaching stand.

If He had wanted to overturn Scripture’s clear and consistent teaching on homosexuality (or wildly wrong interpretations of the OT), He had every opportunity to do so (“You have heard that it was said…. but I say to you….”).

While Jesus was compassionate with those who didn’t live out the biblical ideal (John 7), He defined marriage as between a man and a woman. Any other sexual union by definition would be adultery or fornication and thus out of bounds.

There are serious and legitimate disagreements about what the Lord meant about this or that and what it means for His people today. This subject isn’t one of them.

About Stan Guthrie

Stan Guthrie is an editor at large for Christianity Today magazine and for the Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview. His latest book is God's Story in 66 Verses. He also is author of All that Jesus Asks: How His Questions Can Teach and Transform Us, Missions in the Third Millennium: 21 Key Trends for the 21st Century, and A Concise Guide to Bible Prophecy. He is co-author of The Sacrament of Evangelism. Besides authoring, writing, and editing books, Stan is a literary agent, bringing together good authors, good books, and good publishers. Stan writes the monthly Priorities colum for BreakPoint.org. He has appeared on National Public Radio's €œTell Me More,€ WGN's Milt Rosenberg program, and many Christian shows, including The Eric Metaxas Show and Moody Radio'€™s €œNew Day Florida.€ A licensed minister and an inspirational speaker, he served as moderator for the Christian Book Expo panel discussion, Does the God of Christianity Exist, and What Difference Does It Make?
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