Commentaries:
The absence of any outright scriptural condemnation of homosexuality from the lips of Jesus has been a mainstay of so-called Christian, pro-gay rhetoric for many years. Arguing from His purported silence on the issue—a rhetorical no-no—defenders of same-sex marriage try to co-opt Jesus as some sort of proto-liberal, a free-love advocate modeled on "Jesus Christ Superstar" rather than the sinless Messiah of the Bible. The argument has been convincing to some due to the ridiculously high level of biblical illiteracy among the general public and even among professing Christians whose doctrinal acumen plunges no deeper than the lyrics of the Beatles' anthem, "All You Need Is Love."
It ought to be obvious that the same Man who says He did not come "to destroy the Law or the Prophets" (Matthew 5:17)—which Law stipulates homosexuality to be an abomination (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13)—would teach that same-sex relations are sinful and subject to God's judgment. Yet, a "grace only," dispensational mainstream Christianity has discounted the fact that God is consistent in His character and thus His lawgiving. Therefore, to its adherents, Old Testament pronouncements contain little authority in such matters. Those who think this way require a plain statement from Jesus Himself, and a lack of one is as good as approval.
And just to sideline another apparent argument, statements by the apostle Paul, though canonized as Scripture, have no validity to such people. He writes in I Corinthians 6:9-10:
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. (Emphasis ours. See also his unambiguous denunciation of homosexuality in Romans 1:24-32.)
The apostle wholly agrees with the Old Testament law regarding homosexuality, assuring us that God will not accept into His Kingdom those who practice it. Further, in I Timothy 1:8-11, he declares that, "according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God," sodomites are "lawless," "insubordinate," "ungodly," "sinners," "unholy," and "profane." Yet, despite citing the gospel of God, his testimony carries no weight, as he is seen as adding his own Pharisaical prejudices to what Jesus originally delivered.
Only Jesus' own words will do.
So, what does He say on this subject? He says nothing explicitly about homosexuality in the gospels, but He does make a significant ruling about marriage. What He says about marriage completely precludes same-sex "marriage." He does this in Matthew 19:3-6:
The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?" And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."
Using this answer as a template, we actually do know what Jesus thinks about same-sex marriage: He is against it. How can we conclude this?
First, notice that both the Pharisees and Jesus share an understanding of marriage as comprising a man and his wife. A binding relationship of any kind other than a man and a woman is not a marriage; it does not fit the formal qualifications of the term.
Second, Christ bases His answer on what was written "at the beginning," that is, in God's original intent in creating mankind: "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (Genesis 1:27). He is, in effect, saying that Christian teaching on marriage, a relationship between a man and a woman, reflects the Bible's original revelation about being in God's image, which Christians are to conform to now. Concessions (like Moses' laws regarding divorce) made in the meantime due to Israel's carnality undermined God's original intent.
Third, Jesus further cites Genesis 2:24: "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." With both of His scriptural quotations, He implies that God created humanity in two genders for specific reasons, the most obvious of which is to marry and have children (mentioned in Genesis 1:28, "Be fruitful and multiply"). Male-male and female-female unions not only nullify God's purpose of complementary genders producing offspring, but they also cannot even consummate a marriage (becoming one flesh) with the sexual organs specific to each gender functioning as God created them.
In the face of God's intent for men and women, Jesus ignores "love," "honesty," or "sincerity," or whether a relationship is "damaging to anyone else." God wants men to marry women, and no amount of emotion or attraction between two people of the same sex is enough to dislodge God's purpose for creating mankind in two genders. Jesus, being God in the flesh, establishes the boundaries of marriage for His followers, and He does not permit same-sex marriage.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Would Jesus Approve of Same-Sex Marriage?
Jesus' teaching on marriage follows the pattern set in the first two chapters of Genesis. Matthew 19:4-6 appears in a passage on marriage and divorce in which Jesus answers a question posed by some Pharisees about divorce, specifically, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?" (Matthew 19:3). At that time, divorce was quite rampant because of the general notion among Jews, taken from a misreading of Deuteronomy 24:1-4, that the law allowed a man to divorce his wife simply by giving his wife a certificate of divorce and sending her away.
Notice, however, how Jesus answers their cynical question: "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female' . . .?" (Matthew 19:4). He answered their question with Genesis 1:27! This gives us insight into what Jesus based His understanding of the institution of marriage on: God's original instruction just after creation. In the very next breath, He quotes from Genesis 2:24: "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh" (Matthew 19:5).
So what did Jesus do in answering their question? He reached back to the very beginning of mankind and reminded them of God's intentions at that time, explaining that, in His judgment, nothing had changed. His purposes and instructions regarding marriage have not "evolved" over the millennia. He still considers marriage a God-plane union between a man and a woman with significant implications regarding being created in God's own image. In other words, God's reasons for the marriage institution have not been altered by mankind's inability to fulfill them.
Jesus continues in Matthew 19:6, "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate." His answer can be paraphrased as, "Look, you have got things all wrong. Marriage is not just a physical relationship that one can make or break at any time and for any reason. Genesis shows what God intended when He created people male and female, and clearly, He made marriage a divinely ordained, lifelong institution." He explains in verse 8, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning, it was not so." He then proceeds to give the biblical reasons for divorce.
In this New Testament context, Christ shows that God has endorsed the marriage relationship from the beginning as an excellent way to produce righteous character in His children. He is preparing children in His image—not just children who look like Him but also ones who live as He does. Thus, His creation of mankind was not complete with His physical creation in Genesis 1, but it continues to move forward spiritually within the conversion process. As can be seen in Jesus' comments, the marriage institution plays a prominent role in it. Divorce, sundering the union of man and wife, can be a great hindrance to the spiritual growth of both parties involved.
The first purpose of marriage, then, is that it provides a fitting environment for producing divine character.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Marriage—A God-Plane Relationship (Part Two)
