The Bible and Homosexuality

1
The Bible and Homosexuality

• Does the Bible approve of gay or lesbian
  relationships?

2
Recent Billboards

• Does God approve of homosexuality?
• Most Christians would probably answer no.
• Yet, some recent billboards in Indianapolis would
  have us believe otherwise.
• Today, lets consider these statements and their
  implications.

3
Background Information

• The religious group funding these signs is called
  the Jesus Metropolitan Community Church.
• According to their web site, one of their main
  missions is,
• Doing Justice. Followers of Christ are called to
  care passionately about fairness and equity in
  society.  The Bible is filled with examples of
  people called by God to advocate justice e.g.,
  Moses, Esther, Gideon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and (of
  course) Jesus. God seems to give every
  generation of Christians an opportunity to make
  earth a little more like heaven. Historical
  examples include slavery, child labor, voting
  rights for women, and the civil rights movement
  for African Americans. In our generation, we
  believe justice for gay and transgender people is
  a critical justice issue.
• http//www.jesusmcc.org/about/belief.html

4
Background Information

• Their history is described on their site
• Our Church was founded in 1990 by a Bible study
  group of 18 devout gay Christians who -- at the
  time -- could find no other Indianapolis church
  that would fully welcome them.  They organized
  Jesus MCC as a member congregation in a
  denomination called Metropolitan Community
  Churches -- an international fellowship of
  Christian churches with a special outreach to
  gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT)
  people.
• In the early days of Jesus MCC, our outreach was
  focused almost exclusively on the GLBT Community.
  
• A few years ago, however, it began to occur to us
  -- as our congregation continued its rapid growth
  -- that there are many straight people who would
  deeply appreciate what we offer-- i.e., a vibrant
  congregation that loves Jesus and the Bible, but
  isn't afraid of diversity and independent
  thought.
• We are now very intentional about welcoming all
  people straight or gay.
• But we are also determined to stay true to our
  roots.  We consider it an honor that there are
  more GLBT people in our congregation than in any
  other church in Middle America. And all people in
  our congregation -- both straight and gay -- feel
  deep sadness that so many churches have long
  shunned GLBT people. We are determined to
  continue aggressively expanding our outreach to
  GLBT people.
• http//www.jesusmcc.org/about/history.html

5
Background Information

• The Pastor for JMCC is Jeff Miner, who
  according to their web site is an avowed
  homosexual.
• Jeff is 45 years old and lives with his spouse
  of twelve years, David Zier, who is a biomedical
  engineer. Jeff was born and raised in
  Indianapolis, and has made a long-term commitment
  to Jesus MCC.
• http//www.jesusmcc.org/about/ministers.html
• In the fall of 2000, Jeff Miner and John Welch
  had a religious debate about the issue of
  homosexuality.
• He is a kind, intelligent man and seems sincere
  in his beliefs and is obviously very zealous in
  espousing his beliefs.
• He claims to believe in the Bible and uses it to
  defend his beliefs.
• Yet, are they true?
• Is he giving a valid and proper representation of
  the Bible or allowing prejudice to guide his
  interpretation?

6

• Their first Scriptural justification comes from
  Matthew 85-13.
• Based on this passage, they claim Jesus affirmed
  a gay couple.
• Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a
  centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6
  saying, Lord, my servant is lying at home
  paralyzed, dreadfully tormented. 7 And Jesus
  said to him, I will come and heal him. 8 The
  centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not
  worthy that You should come under my roof. But
  only speak a word, and my servant will be healed.
  9 For I also am a man under authority, having
  soldiers under me. And I say to this one, Go,
  and he goes and to another, Come, and he
  comes and to my servant, Do this, and he does
  it. 10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and
  said to those who followed, Assuredly, I say to
  you, I have not found such great faith, not even
  in Israel! 11 And I say to you that many will
  come from east and west, and sit down with
  Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of
  heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be
  cast out into outer darkness. There will be
  weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 Then Jesus
  said to the centurion, Go your way and as you
  have believed, so let it be done for you. And
  his servant was healed that same hour (NKJV)
• Did anybody see anything there about a gay couple?

7

• Lets read it from a more modern version, the
  Contemporary English Version.
• When Jesus was going into the town of Capernaum,
  an army officer came up to him and said, 6"Lord,
  my servant is at home in such terrible pain that
  he can't even move."     7"I will go and heal
  him," Jesus replied.
•     8But the officer said, "Lord, I'm not good
  enough for you to come into my house. Just give
  the order, and my servant will get well. 9I have
  officers who give orders to me, and I have
  soldiers who take orders from me. I can say to
  one of them, Go!' and he goes. I can say to
  another, Come!' and he comes. I can say to my
  servant, Do this!' and he will do it."
•     10When Jesus heard this, he was so surprised
  that he turned and said to the crowd following
  him, "I tell you that in all of Israel I've never
  found anyone with this much faith! 11Many people
  will come from everywhere to enjoy the feast in
  the kingdom of heaven with Abraham, Isaac, and
  Jacob. 12But the ones who should have been in the
  kingdom will be thrown out into the dark. They
  will cry and grit their teeth in pain."
•     13Then Jesus said to the officer, "You may go
  home now. Your faith has made it happen."
•    Right then his servant was healed.
• Did anybody see anything in that passage about a
  gay couple?

8

• Lets try it one more time from The Message,
• As Jesus entered the village of Capernaum, a
  Roman captain came up in a panic and said,
  "Master, my servant is sick. He can't walk. He's
  in terrible pain."
•  7Jesus said, "I'll come and heal him."
•  8-9"Oh, no," said the captain. "I don't want to
  put you to all that trouble. Just give the order
  and my servant will be fine. I'm a man who takes
  orders and gives orders. I tell one soldier,
  'Go,' and he goes to another, 'Come,' and he
  comes to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."
•  10-12Taken aback, Jesus said, "I've yet to come
  across this kind of simple trust in Israel, the
  very people who are supposed to know all about
  God and how he works. This man is the vanguard of
  many outsiders who will soon be coming from all
  directionsstreaming in from the east, pouring in
  from the west, sitting down at God's kingdom
  banquet alongside Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Then
  those who grew up 'in the faith' but had no faith
  will find themselves out in the cold, outsiders
  to grace and wondering what happened."
•  13Then Jesus turned to the captain and said,
  "Go. What you believed could happen has
  happened." At that moment his servant became
  well.
• Did anybody see anything in that passage about a
  gay couple?
• So, where does it come from?

9

• If you want to understand why they believe this
  referred to a gay couple, youll have to go to
  their web sites explanation,
• The Greek word that the Roman centurion uses in
  this passage to describe the sick man pais is
  the same word used in ancient Greek to refer to a
  same-gender partner.
• Okay, so lets look up the definition of the
  word, PAIS, and see if this is true.
• According to Thayers Definition, PAIS is
• 1) a child, boy or girl
• 1a) infants, children
• 2) servant, slave
• 2a) an attendant, servant, spec. a kings
  attendant, minister
• According to Strongs, PAIS is,
• Perhaps from G3817 a boy (as often beaten with
  impunity), or (by analogy) a girl, and
  (generally) a child specifically a slave or
  servant (especially a minister to a king and by
  eminence to God) - child, maid (-en), (man)
  servant, son, young man.
• Does anyone see same-gender partner in those
  definitions?

10

• Lets look up PAIS in a few other places too.
• Liddell and Scott state in their Greek-English
  Lexicon,
• 1. in relation to descent, a child, whether son
  or daughter (Euripides, 480-406 BC)
• 2. in relation to age, a child, either a boy,
  youth, lad or a girl, maiden (Homer, 900-800
  BC)
• 3. in relation to condition, a slave, servant,
  man or maid, (Aeschylus 525-456 BC) (p. 585).
• Bauer, Arndt, Danker and Gingrich in
  Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and
  Other Early Christian Literature,
• Point out that beyond the common meaning of PAIS
  there are applications to men in their
  relationship to God, angels, and Christ in His
  relationship to the Father (pp. 604-605).
• Does anybody see same-gender partner or gay
  couple in any of those definitions of the word?
• Friends, the lesson in Matthew 8 is not the faith
  of a gay man, it is the faith of a Gentile man
  beyond that of the Jews!

11

• While we are in Matthew, notice another passage
  cited by the billboards.
• Now, according to the billboard, this passage is
  going to teach some are born gay.
• The New King James Version of Matthew 1910-12,
• His disciples said to Him, If such is the case
  of the man with his wife, it is better not to
  marry.
• 11 But He said to them, All cannot accept this
  saying, but only those to whom it has been given
  12 For there are eunuchs who were born thus from
  their mothers womb, and there are eunuchs who
  were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs
  who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom
  of heavens sake. He who is able to accept it,
  let him accept it.
• Does anyone see Jesus saying some are born gay
  in this passage? What about lesbian? Bisexual?

12

• Lets try the Amplified Bible and see if it opens
  our understanding.
• The disciples said to Him, If the case of a man
  with his wife is like this, it is neither
  profitable nor advisable to marry. 11But He said
  to them, Not all men can accept this saying, but
  it is for those to whom the capacity to receive
  it has been given.  12For there are eunuchs who
  have been born incapable of marriage and there
  are eunuchs who have been made so by men and
  there are eunuchs who have made themselves
  incapable of marriage for the sake of the kingdom
  of heaven. Let him who is able to accept this
  accept it.
• Does anybody see something about being born gay
  in this passage?

13

• So, why would they believe this?
• Once again, you need to go to their web site,
• Here Jesus refers to "eunuchs who have been so
  from birth." This terminology ("born eunuchs")
  was used in the ancient world to refer to
  homosexual men. Jesus indicates that being a
  "born eunuch" is a gift from God.
• http//wouldjesusdiscriminate.com/biblical_evidenc
  e/born_gay.html
• While JMCC tries to claim eunuch is equivalent
  to homosexual lets see if it is defined that
  way.

14

• Vines Expository Dictionary of New Testament
  Words says of EUNOUCHOS,
• denotes (a) an emasculated man, a eunuch, Matt.
  1912 (b) in the 3rd instance in that verse, one
  naturally incapacitated for, or voluntarily
  abstaining from, wedlock (c) one such, in a
  position of high authority in a court, a
  chamberlain, Acts 827-39.
• The previously cited Thayers says,
• 1) a bed keeper, bed guard, superintendent of the
  bedchamber, chamberlain
• 1a) in the palace of oriental monarchs who
  support numerous wives the superintendent of the
  womens apartment or harem, an office held by
  eunuchs
• 1b) an emasculated man, a eunuch
• 1b1) eunuchs in oriental courts held by other
  offices of greater, held by the Ethiopian eunuch
  mentioned in Act_827-39.
• 1c) one naturally incapacitated
• 1c1) for marriage
• 1c2) begetting children
• 1d) one who voluntarily abstains from marriage
• Perhaps I need my rose-colored glasses, but I do
  not see homosexual men in any of those
  definitions.

15

• Lets break down Matthew 1912
• The first phrase says,
• For there are eunuchs who were born thus from
  their mothers womb
• Some are born with physical imperfections or
  deformities and are unable to perform.
• The second phrase says,
• and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by
  men
• In many royal palaces men were intentionally
  castrated as they served the royal harem.
• The third phrase says,
• and there are eunuchs who have made themselves
  eunuchs for the kingdom of heavens sake.
• Those who choose not to indulge in a sexual
  relationship to devote themselves more fully to
  the kingdom of God (see 1 Cor. 732-33).
• No competent translator or interpreter sees this
  as a passage celebrating being born gay.

16

• The same basic argument is used by JMCC with the
  Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8.
• They say,
• In the ancient world, eunuchs were widely
  associated with homosexuality. Here a self-avowed
  eunuch is welcomed in to the early church without
  any concerns about his sexual orientation. He was
  welcomed on the same basis as other people his
  faith in Jesus Christ.
• http//wouldjesusdiscriminate.com/biblical_evidenc
  e/early_church.html
• By reading the context, we might understand more
  of the relevance of the term eunuch.

17

• Acts 826-40,
• Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip,
  saying, Arise and go toward the south along the
  road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.
  This is desert. 27 So he arose and went. And
  behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great
  authority under Candace the queen of the
  Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury,
  and had come to Jerusalem to worship, 28 was
  returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was
  reading Isaiah the prophet. 29 Then the Spirit
  said to Philip, Go near and overtake this
  chariot. 30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him
  reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, Do you
  understand what you are reading? 31 And he
  said, How can I, unless someone guides me? And
  he asked Philip to come up and sit with him35
  Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at
  this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. 36 Now as
  they went down the road, they came to some water.
  And the eunuch said, See, here is water. What
  hinders me from being baptized? 37 Then Philip
  said, If you believe with all your heart, you
  may. And he answered and said, I believe that
  Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
• 38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still.
  And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the
  water, and he baptized him. 39 Now when they came
  up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord
  caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no
  more and he went on his way rejoicing. 40 But
  Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through,
  he preached in all the cities till he came to
  Caesarea.

18

• The reason the Biblical text stresses this
  Ethiopian is a eunuch is because of his
  occupation.
• He worked in close contact with the queen of
  Ethiopia.
• The context in no way implies he was a homosexual
  working with the queen.
• Instead, he was most likely castrated in order to
  obtain this high position.
• This helps avoid any disgraces within the royal
  palace such as infidelity, rape or illegitimate
  children.
• This was a common practice of the culture among
  those who worked in such high positions.
• The early church welcome an celibate man, not a
  homosexual man!

19

• Notice the two passages cited here.
• Genesis 224,
• Therefore a man shall leave his father and
  mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall
  become one flesh
• Ruth 114,
• Then they lifted up their voices and wept again
  and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth
  clung to her.
• Please notice two details
• The word love is not used in either passage.
• Naomi was Ruths mother-in-law (both were
  previously married and their spouses died).

20

• JMCCs main argument from this passage is,
• The same Hebrew word that is used in Genesis
  224 to describe how Adam felt about Eve (and how
  spouses are supposed to feel toward each other)
  is used in Ruth 114 to describe how Ruth felt
  about Naomi. Her feelings are celebrated, not
  condemned.
• And throughout Christian history, Ruth's vow to
  Naomi has been used to illustrate the nature of
  the marriage covenant. These words are often read
  at Christian wedding ceremonies and used in
  sermons to illustrate the ideal love that spouses
  should have for one another. The fact that these
  words were originally spoken by one woman to
  another tells us a lot about how God feels about
  same-gender relationships.

21

• The word they refer to is translated cleave in
  Genesis 224 and Ruth 114 of the KJV.
• This is not the word love.
• It is not a sexual word.
• To imply this is a lesbian relationship is
  stereotyping at its worst!
• According to Strongs it means,
• A primitive root properly to impinge, that is,
  cling or adhere figuratively to catch by
  pursuit - abide, fast, cleave (fast together),
  follow close (hard, after), be joined (together),
  keep (fast), overtake, pursue hard, stick, take.
• Now, lets see if the context implies a lesbian
  relationship or otherwise.

22

• Does the context teach Ruth and Naomi were
  engaged in a lesbian relationship?
• Ruth 11-5 teaches both Ruth and Naomi were
  widows and had been previously marriedto men.
• Naomi kissed both of her daughters-in-law as she
  went back to Moablesbian polygamist (Ruth 19)?
• Ruth vows to follow her mother-in-law Naomi and
  take care of her (Ruth 114-18).
• Does the context imply this is because Ruth
  desired a sexual relationship with Naomi?
• Or, does it imply that Ruth wanted to take care
  of Naomi because she had no one else to do so
  (Ruth 120-21 211-12)?
• If this is a homosexual relationship
• Why does Naomi encourage Ruths relationship with
  Boaz (31)?
• Why does Ruth marry Boazchange her mind (413)?
• Context often exposes false teaching!

23

• At the death of Jonathan, David lamented,
• I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan
  you have been very pleasant to me your love to
  me was wonderful, surpassing the love of women
  (2 Samuel 126).
• The key mistake made by homosexuals in this
  passage is equating sex with love.
• The passage does not say,
• Your sex to me was wonderful, surpassing the sex
  of women.
• It uses the word love.

24

• If lovesex then think of these ridiculous
  consequences
• All Israel and Judah had sex with David (1 Sam.
  1816).
• God has had sex with the whole world (Jn. 316).
• Jesus teaches us to have sex with our neighbors
  (Matthew 2237).
• Peter taught us to have sex with the brethren (1
  Peter 122 217).
• It is pretty pathetic that our world cannot
  separate love from sex!
• Is it possible to love without it involving
  sexuality?
• Then, it is possible for David and Jonathan too.

25

• Yet, this is what we read from the JMCC web site,
• At Jonathans funeral, David declares that he
  loved Jonathan more than any woman. This is just
  one of several Bible passages that describe and
  celebrate an intense love between these two men
  that went well beyond friendship.
• http//wouldjesusdiscriminate.com/biblical_evidenc
  e/david_jonathan.html
• This argument is completely based on supposition.

26

• Suppose
• 1 Samuel 181-5 had been referring to a woman?
• He gave David his clothes and armor because he
  was infatuated with him rather than out of
  respect for a man of God?
• In 1 Samuel 2030 Saul was angry with Jonathan
  about homosexuality instead of dynastic
  succession?
• David and Jonathan were both unhappy in their
  heterosexual marriages and longed for each other?
• David is speaking of sex as he talks of love
  rather than intense, sacrificial friendship?
• Their kiss of parting was sexual rather than the
  normal expression in Eastern countries?
• Again, this is obvious stereotyping from a group
  that does not like stereotyping!

27
What the Bible Does Teach About Homosexuality

• From the beginning, God intended marriage to be
  between a man and woman (Gen. 224).
• Homosexuality was an abomination in the Old
  Testament (Leviticus 1822).
• This sin stirred up Gods anger and led to the
  destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
• The English word sodomy is derived from this
  event.
• Paul declares homosexuality is against nature
  in Romans 126-27.
• Homosexuality in its passive and active sense
  will keep us from Gods kingdom (1 Cor. 69-10).

28
Yet, homosexuality can be forgiven (1 Cor. 611)!

• There is no temptation too great to overcome (1
  Cor. 1013).