Is Homosexuality a Sin?

Posted by Worldview Warriors On Monday, March 17, 2014 2 comments

I want to start this post with a very important truth: God loves you. He made you in His image, and He carefully knit you together in your mother’s womb.

There are multiple Bible passages I could quote here that say homosexuality is a sin. But I want to make something clear up front: there is a difference between the act of homosexuality, and the struggle of dealing with it. This is similar to other sins; for example, the act of lying is different than the struggle of dealing with lying. The act of killing a person is different than the struggle of dealing with murderous thoughts. Keep that thought in mind as you continue reading this post.

Leviticus 18:22 says, “Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.” If you go read the entire chapter of Leviticus 18, you’ll see that it’s pretty specific about all sorts of sexual practices that God does not allow - not just homosexuality as in verse 22. I wrote a two weeks ago about how sexual sin is different from other sins because it happens in your body rather than outside it. Perhaps that’s why God devotes the entire chapter of Leviticus 18 to variations on this topic? The desire for sex is also an innate urge within human beings. God created us with that desire so we could experience its pleasure, but the sin of mankind has corrupted that.

Is homosexuality a sin? Yes. Are there plenty of other sins a person can commit? Yes. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 gives a fairly extensive list: “Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”

Have you struggled with being sexually immoral, or being an idolater, or being greedy, or any of the other things on that list? Guess what - you’re human! Every person struggles with sin, because we’re all born with original sin.

They key thing to remember is this: if you realize that you’re committing a sin, then you can ask God to help you through the temptation. If a person realizes they have a problem with lying, they can ask God for help to recognize that trap and avoid it. If a person realizes they are a homosexual, they can ask God for help to recognize that and avoid falling into sinful acts because of it.

Is there hope for a person who is a homosexual? Of course - Jesus loves people unconditionally! We all commit sin, and that is exactly why Jesus came to live on this earth, die, and be raised back to life again. Remember the hope we have in Jesus, through John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

2 comments:

Janis said...

Katie, I am so sorry to say that this is the first time I have taken the time, sat down and read this blog post. As I read it, I heard in my head so many conversations and my voice saying the same things you point out here. Thank you for writing on this subject. Thank you for seeking out the Lord in such a genuine and real way, he loves your heart, and so do I!

Katie said...

Thank you Janis!! :)

We have a lot more writings out here on similar topics too... in February we did a series on marriage, including why it's only one man and one woman. We've been addressing lots of "tough" questions this year, so if you have a few minutes, browse through the archives and see. :)