We say that homosexuality is not part of God’s plan for us and that it is a sin because that is what the Bible says. Jeremiah 1:5 speaks of God knowing His plan to call Jeremiah as His prophet. It says nothing about God approving everyone as they are. Sin has made people something God never intended them to be. The following statement summarizes our view on homosexuality based on the Bible.
The debate over whether homosexuality is an innate disposition or a free choice, the national debate over the legalization of same-sex marriages, the conflict in many denominations over the ordination of practicing homosexuals, and the deep disagreement on the blessing of the latter. Sexual marriages practiced by the Church are one of the current issues that may lead people to ask, “What is WELS’ position on these issues?” WELS does not have an official statement on these issues, but our public teaching and practice is based on what the Bible teaches regarding homosexuality.
The best place to begin a discussion of the issue is with 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, as this passage emphasizes both the law and gospel elements in addressing this issue.
“Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor the idolaters, nor the adulterers, nor the prostitutes, nor the homosexuals, nor the thieves, nor the covetous, nor the drunkards, nor the slanderers, nor the swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that’s what some of you were. But you have been washed, you have been sanctified, you have been justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
Based on this and other passages of Scripture, we must draw the following conclusions regarding homosexuality.
Scripture declares homosexuality to be a sin, which is contrary to God’s intention in creating male and female. Sinful resistance to God’s revealed will is a factor in this sin. People can become slaves to this sin (Romans 1:18-31, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
Many factors contribute to individual acts of sin: the sinful nature we are born with, the weaknesses of our body, bad influences in our environment, temptations and encouragement from other sinners, and our own sinful choice lead us to fishing. All of these factors contribute to homosexual sin. The proportionate role of these different factors may vary depending on the case.
We must warn the unrepentant that homosexuality, like all sins, excludes people from eternal life (1 Cor. 6:9-10).
We are happy to assure repentants who struggle with this sin that they have full forgiveness through the blood of Christ. When Christ died for all the sins of the whole world, He obtained forgiveness for homosexual acts, for homosexual desires, and for the innate sinful nature that produces those sins (1 Cor. 6:11).
We should sympathize with all who struggle with this sin, remembering that we too have “domestic sins” that can have a strong hold on us. We warn against “selective morality” that harshly condemns homosexuality or other sins we observe in others, while treating sins in our own lives more lightly (Mt 7:1-5). . We must be impartial and impartial when warning against all sins.
We all look forward to the resurrection of the body. Then all the weaknesses of body and soul that now lead us to sin will disappear forever. Then we will all be able to serve God perfectly and purely in everything we do.
Note on homosexuality as Innate or chosen:
Some proponents of legal and religious tolerance of homosexuality claim that homosexuality has a genetic cause. Some reports claim that some gay men share a particular pattern in the X sex chromosome that they received from their mothers. Other researchers have claimed the existence of other types of biological similarities between homosexual men. These researchers acknowledge that their discovery cannot explain all homosexuality and may simply be associated with homosexuality rather than being a direct cause of it. Most researchers conclude that the origins of homosexuality are complex and varied and may never be fully understood.
How should we evaluate such claims in light of biblical teaching on sin? Is homosexuality a free choice or an innate tendency?
Like many “either-or” questions, this question poses a false dilemma. All sin is both a choice of the will and the expression of an innate tendency to sin. Our sinful will is guilty of consent whenever we sin in thought, word, or deed. Because of our sinful nature, we delight in and defend our sins. This universal trend is also evident in the efforts of gay rights activists to condone their homosexuality and deny anything that is wrong.
Although the consent of our sinful will is present in every sin, it is also true that we are born slaves to sin. We may also give in to a particular sin so often that we no longer control the sin, but the sin controls us. We can find ourselves giving in to sin even when we don’t want to.
Sin infects both our body and our soul. The body we have today is not the perfect body God created for Adam and Eve. He was contaminated by the effects of sin. There is no reason to maintain that the specific effects of sin have been identical in each of us or that we are all equally susceptible to each sin. Our individual degree of susceptibility to specific sins may be due in part to differences in our bodies. Alcohol abuse and short temper are just two examples of sins that can be affected by our body chemistry. Few would deny that the pressure for sexual sin is greater at 18 than at 8 or 88 and that one of the main reasons for this is the changing chemistry of our bodies. It may well be that a person’s susceptibility to homosexuality or certain other sins depends in part on bodily differences.
Although the weakness of our own bodies may be a factor that leads us to sin, God holds us accountable for all our sins, even those that enslave us and those of which we are unaware. We need God’s forgiveness even for the sinful desires we resist and do not act on. These desires too are sin. (Read Romans 7 for a treatment of slavery to sin).