Homosexuality - a Christ-centered Perspective

How should we as Christians respond to homosexuals? Christian churches have split over the gay issue. Few issues in our generation have polarized Christians as does homosexuality. This topic has become a battlefield, with Christians from two extreme positions lobbing theological grenades and demeaning, judgmental insults at each other from opposing perspectives:

Extreme Liberal View

Homosexuals are born as homo- sexuals. God made them, and therefore any biblical references that seem to prohibit loving homosexual practice are archaic and culturally biased. Why would God create a homosexual and then accuse him/her of sinning if they express their love with another homosexual in a monogamous relationship? Homosexuals in loving and faithful relationships are simply demonstrating their love. Those who take any other position are homophobic, bigots and hatemongers.

Extreme Conservative View

The practice of homosexuality is condemned in the Bible. Homosexuals are not born – they are made. Nature does not produce homosexuals – they are produced by dysfunctional relationships and a corrupt world. Homosexuals are deviates and perverts – they are skilled at using politics and the media, attempting to move homosexuality into the mainstream of society. The truth is that homosexuality is absolutely the worst kind of sin.

A Balanced, Christ-centered Perspective

There is a third alternative increasingly favored by many Christians. These Christians reject both extremes and advocate a balanced and biblical, Christ-centered viewpoint that doesn’t answer all the questions or solve every ambiguity, but comes closer to authentic Christianity than the two extremes.
This third, balanced perspective acknowledges that no one definitively knows whether homosexuals are born or whether they become that way. The jury is still out, with conflicting studies and research, much of which unfortunately seems to be self-serving and subjectively skewed.
The Bible condemns homosexual practice, along with many other sins, including hatred, pride and self-righteousness. On the one hand, no human has the capability of declaring some of the Bible to be true and accurate, with other portions being myth and opinion. Such “scholarship” attempting to justify homosexual practice is self-serving abuse of the Bible.
On the other hand, the Bible does not indicate that homosexuality is the worst of all sins, nor does it give such a ranking to any sin. The gospel of Jesus Christ makes it clear that we are all sinners to start and that we all need Jesus Christ.
Above all, the Bible clearly defines Christians as those who have love. Christians are identified by this love – God’s love. This love is not a word or concept that humans can subjectively use to justify their behavior. Love is not expressed through lying, stealing, hating, pride, envy, drunkenness, gluttony or homosexuality. Love is not expressed by condemning others, shouting insults at them from picket lines or ostracizing them.
Unfortunately, many have taken unbiblical views that are either self-serving and self-justifying on one hand, or judgmental and hateful on the other. Sadly, many Christians have become known as bigots who have no time for homosexuals. All Christians are humanly born sinners, and even continue to sin after their new birth in Christ.
Christians have proclivities and weaknesses of all kinds, including homosexuality. However, Christians who are homosexuals, who have homosexual desires, including those who have once been practicing homosexuals will not, by definition, practice homosexuality. They will not parade their pride in the practice of homosexuality and insist that the church or society at large accept them in same sex marriage. Marriage is one man and one woman according to the Bible.
Therefore, a Christian homosexual will be a celibate homosexual, much as a recovering alcoholic will not drink any alcohol, and they will avoid situations where they may be tempted.
Other Christians who happen to have differing weaknesses and sins will reach out to celibate homosexual Christians rather than condemn them. Christians are known by God’s love that lives in us through Jesus Christ.
Christ lives His life within us and reforms us in God’s image, transforming us from all human culture, including the culture of homosexuality.
We claim to love the sinner and hate the sin, but the problem of homosexuality and its destructive effects within our society has surely made it a challenge. Still, it can’t be right for Christianity to be pitted against homosexuality as though it were the worst sin on parade.
I recently heard of a pastor who resigned his position and filed for divorce to marry the church secretary with whom he had been sexually active. His main complaint: his wife was too fat. Is his sin less than one of homosexuality? Such hypocrisy makes our very specific outrage over homosexuality difficult for those in darkness to understand.
According to the Bible, God intended marriage to be a lifelong, committed relationship between a man and a woman. Divorce, spousal abuse and extramarital affairs all dishonor marriage, as does homosexuality. Yet as restrictive and unpopular as this message is for many people, it can only be heard if it is accompanied by love.
For Christians, the real issue surrounding homosexuality isn’t genetics or religious freedom or even a constitutional amendment. We’ve focused on these enough. The real issue is the call of Jesus Christ. Let us be the first to heed it. We may be surprised to see who follows!

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