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“Jesus Didn’t Condemn Homosexuality”
Apologetics Press ^ | Not Dated | Kyle Butt, M.A.

Posted on 06/30/2012 6:03:19 PM PDT by GiovannaNicoletta

By and large, the American culture is aggressively promoting the sinful lifestyle of homosexuality. In the midst of such pressure, many people who call themselves Christians are caving in and accepting this perverted lifestyle in spite of God’s clear teachings against it (Butt, 2003). Just recently, the country singer Carrie Underwood stated that her Christian faith lead her to support gay marriage (Nilles, 2012). In truth, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ could never be accurately understood to lead a person to conclude that homosexual marriage is moral (Miller and Harrub, 2004).

One of the most common arguments made in support of homosexuality is that Jesus Christ did not explicitly condemn the practice. Supposedly, since Jesus never stated specifically: “Homosexuality is a sin,” then His failure to denounce the lifestyle can be interpreted to mean that He approved of it. This reasoning is riddled with error.

First, Jesus explained to His followers that He did not have time to teach them everything they needed to know. He told them that the Holy Spirit would bring to their remembrance all that He had taught, and would include additional teaching that He had not had time to cover. He told His disciples: “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:12-13). When we look to the inspired writings of the New Testament, we see the authors boldly and specifically condemning the practice based on the revelation they received from the Holy Spirit (Miller and Harrub, 2004). Thus, it is wrong to suggest that only the “words in red” are Jesus’ teachings. On the contrary, He foretold that more teaching would be done after His return to heaven due to the fact that the apostles “could not bear” all of it at the time.

Second, even if Jesus did not explicitly condemn the practice (though He actually did, as will be noted later), that certainly could not be used as evidence that He condoned the practice. For instance, where does Jesus explicitly state that bestiality is wrong? Where in the New Testament does Jesus state that polygamy is wrong? Where are the “words in red” that specifically condemn pedophilia? Are we to suppose that the Son of God condoned using crystal meth because there is not an explicit statement from Jesus’ mouth that says “do not smoke crystal meth?” The idea that silence from Jesus on a subject means He approved of or condoned the practice cannot be substantiated.

Finally, it must be considered that Jesus did, in fact, speak against homosexuality. On numerous occasions, Jesus condemned the sins of adultery (Matthew 19:18), sexual immorality (Matthew 19:9) and fornication (Matthew 15:19). These terms describe any type of sexual intercourse that is not within the confines of a marriage ordained by God. Jesus then proceeded to define exactly what God views as a morally permissible marriage. He stated:

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. (Matthew 19:4-6).

By defining marriage as between one male and one female, Jesus effectively condemned all other arrangements, including but not limited to one man and two women, one woman and two men, three men and one woman, three men and three women, one man and one man, one woman and one animal, etc. You can see the overwhelming logic of such. For Jesus to have to explicitly condemn every assortment of genders and numbers would be absurd. When He defined marriage between one man and one woman, He clearly showed that such an arrangement is the only one authorized by God.

Several years ago a man named Cory Moore “legally married his 2004 Cherry ES-335” Gibson guitar (“Man Marries Guitar,” 2007). He said: “The day I got her, I just knew she was the one…. I know it seems weird, but I really love her—like, really love her, with all my heart. I just wanted to make it official” (2007). Are we to conclude that because Jesus never specifically condemned a man marrying his guitar then the Son of God approved of such? To ask is to answer. In 2006, 41-year-old Sharon Tendler married a dolphin (“Woman Marries Dolphin,” 2006). Jesus never said one word explicitly about refraining from marrying a dolphin. Does that mean His “silence” should be viewed as approval? Not in any way.

Homosexuality is a sin. It always has been, and it always will be. The inspired New Testament writers repeatedly teach that to be the case. Jesus explained that the Holy Spirit would bring to the inspired writers information that they could not handle at the time of His departing. In addition, Jesus did explicitly define marriage as being between one man and one woman. The ruse to suggest that Jesus approves of homosexuality because He never expressly condemned it cannot be sustained logically, nor can it be defended on any type of moral grounds. The person who presumes to claim to be a Christian, and yet supports homosexuality, misunderstands the teachings of Christ and needs to repent and stop approving of a perverted, destructive practice that Jesus condemns (Matthew 19:1-9).


TOPICS: Apologetics; General Discusssion; Religion & Culture
KEYWORDS: christianity; homosexualagenda; marriage
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To: GiovannaNicoletta
The idea that silence from Jesus on a subject means He approved of or condoned the practice cannot be substantiated.

Jesus never repudiated the 10 Commandments, but I guess the folks who want to justify their sinfulness don't think they apply, either.

61 posted on 06/30/2012 9:34:14 PM PDT by SuziQ
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To: jongaltsr
Homosexuality succeeded in certain societies. Eg. Greece & Rome.

No, it didn't succeed in Rome. It was permitted in Rome. It was also one of the sexual depravities that contributed to the downfall of Rome.

62 posted on 06/30/2012 9:39:16 PM PDT by mtg
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To: SuziQ

Yeshua explicitly stated that Torah is eternal and will outlast the universe. He taught that all must observe even the least of the mitzvot (commandments). The controversy began with the introduction of lawlessness from the nations, and then co-opting his reputation to promote it. Wake up and smell the coffee. HaShem is restoring Yisrael; it cannot be stopped. The question is: Will you be a part of the redemption or not. The answer is up to you. Come home to Torah and find the Moshiach. He waits.


63 posted on 06/30/2012 9:42:37 PM PDT by Torahman (Remember the Maccabees!)
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To: GiovannaNicoletta

^^^^^^^^^^<—Number of humans.
^<—Number of gay humans.
The second group makes a lot of noise. Why pay attention? There are hardly any of them on the planet.


64 posted on 06/30/2012 9:59:17 PM PDT by isthisnickcool (Sharia? No thanks!)
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To: jongaltsr
Islam was against Homosexuality but under Mohamed that started to change (very quickly).

There was no Islam before Mohammed. It was his 'dreams' that began it.

65 posted on 06/30/2012 9:59:23 PM PDT by SuziQ
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To: cripplecreek

*snort* One of my favorite movies!!


66 posted on 06/30/2012 10:01:12 PM PDT by SuziQ
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To: SuziQ

Jesus was around during the old testament- “John— Chapter 8 —verse 57, 58, 59”


67 posted on 06/30/2012 10:02:41 PM PDT by chicken head
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To: jongaltsr
Homosexuality never succeeded in Rome. It was always looked upon with derision particularly if the person was a submissive. It was tolerated at best. Never was it raised to the level it has in our society.
68 posted on 06/30/2012 10:17:46 PM PDT by Jim from C-Town (The government is rarely benevolent, often malevolent and never benign!)
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To: jongaltsr

“It is a wise man who knows not to waste oxygen on an argument with the ignorant.”

And that is why I rarely comment on these so-called religion threads. The was one the other day on the Rapture that I think Giovanna posted, and did so in a way that if you did not believe as she did you could be banned for presenting any ‘truth’ in the matter that did not agree with her.

I think she is the ‘Religion Moderator’ on Protestant threads. Salvation is the Mod on Catholic threads.


69 posted on 06/30/2012 10:23:29 PM PDT by GGpaX4DumpedTea (I am a Tea Party descendant...steeped in the Constitutional Republic given to us by the Founders.)
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To: GiovannaNicoletta

Jesus’ ministry was to the Jews, and not much doubt that homosexuaity was proscribe by Jews. It was in fact a capital offense under the Law. Homosexuality was one of those practices that separated the gentiles from the Jews. In addressing the Jews, Jesus focused on the unfaithfulness of the Jews to the Lord. Why assume that he urged them to become Greeks? Many early Christians even thought that he wanted Greeks to become Jews.


70 posted on 06/30/2012 10:29:30 PM PDT by RobbyS (Christus rex.)
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To: GiovannaNicoletta; WKB

“The person who presumes to claim to be a Christian, and yet supports homosexuality, misunderstands the teachings of Christ and needs to repent and stop approving of a perverted, destructive practice that Jesus condemns (Matthew 19:1-9).”

Thank you for the post and ping!


71 posted on 06/30/2012 11:40:05 PM PDT by dixiechick2000 (This hobbit is looking for her pitchfork...God help the GOP if I find it.)
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To: GGpaX4DumpedTea

“I think she is the ‘Religion Moderator’ on Protestant threads. Salvation is the Mod on Catholic threads.”

Presume much?

You have absolutely NO idea who the religion mods are.

Trust me.


72 posted on 06/30/2012 11:54:51 PM PDT by dixiechick2000 (This hobbit is looking for her pitchfork...God help the GOP if I find it.)
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To: GGpaX4DumpedTea
Have you ever bothered to read the forum rules and see what a 'Caucus' is and what that means?

73 posted on 07/01/2012 12:27:30 AM PDT by Rashputin (Only Newt can defeat both the Fascist democrats and the Vichy GOP)
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To: Tennessee Nana
"Matthew 5:27 “ You have heard that it was said, ‘ You shall not commit adultery’". Here the Lord Jesus Christ affirms the Law which is applicable here.

Paraphrased, it would be "you shall not adulterate marriage in any form for it is Holy".

Modern man is hell bent on adulterating marriage until it is unrecognizable. Bestiality, sex with the dead, sex with children is not far away as much as the media would say not. It is only a logical progression.

The only cure is repentance, both as a society and individually and the repentance will have to be, ultimately, in the form of action which men fear to take.

74 posted on 07/01/2012 2:31:39 AM PDT by sr4402
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To: GGpaX4DumpedTea; Salvation; GiovannaNicoletta; Religion Moderator; Jim Robinson
" And that is why I rarely comment on these so-called religion threads. The was one the other day on the Rapture that I think Giovanna posted, and did so in a way that if you did not believe as she did you could be banned for presenting any 'truth' in the matter that did not agree with her. I think she is the 'Religion Moderator' on Protestant threads. Salvation is the Mod on Catholic threads."


GGpaX4DumpedTea, whenever discussing another Freeper, please include them in the discussion. If the thread you are referring to had " [Caucus] " in the title, only members of the Caucus are permitted to post on the thread. From the Religion Moderator's Profile Page:

Caucus threads.
Who can post? Members of the caucus and those specifically invited

What can be posted? Anything but the beliefs of those who are not members of the caucus

What will be pulled? Reply posts mentioning the beliefs of those who are not members of the caucus. If the article is inappropriate for a caucus, the tag will be changed to open.

Who will be booted? Repeat offenders.

Free Republic has only one Religion Moderator who is highly respected by all, including Jim Robinson. The Religion Moderator has posted an excellent guideline of the rules for posting on the Religion Forum. Please read it:

http://www.freerepublic.com/~religionmoderator/

75 posted on 07/01/2012 3:24:28 AM PDT by Admin Moderator
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To: GiovannaNicoletta
"On numerous occasions, Jesus condemned the sins of adultery (Matthew 19:18), sexual immorality (Matthew 19:9) and fornication (Matthew 15:19)."

Correct, Jesus specifically condemned fornication. The Greek word translated as fornication is "pornea". It means any kind of wrongful or improper sex. Coming from a Jew in a Jewish culture it would absolutely include homosexual conduct. By condemning pornea Jesus specifically condemned homosexual conduct.

76 posted on 07/01/2012 3:48:50 AM PDT by circlecity
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To: GiovannaNicoletta; SkyDancer
Perfect!

Thank you!

77 posted on 07/01/2012 4:18:37 AM PDT by Northern Yankee (Where Liberty dwells, there is my Country. - Benjamin Franklin)
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To: SkyDancer
I had a discussion with a woman whom I have known for years, and she's certainly liberal in her beliefs. We started discussing the Catholic church's opposition of the HHS Mandate requiring the church, and other Christian denominations, to adhere to the mandate's rulings on contraception and abortion.

This woman started arguing about how these "men" in Rome need to get their act together first before making such pronouncements, and that a woman has a right to get rid of her embryo, and or fetus, when she feels it is necessary.

As soon as this woman started blaming "men" in Rome, and twisting the life inside as an embryo or fetus, I knew she had lost any logical argument in following the will of God.

It was breathless to behold and so sad.

78 posted on 07/01/2012 4:26:16 AM PDT by Northern Yankee (Where Liberty dwells, there is my Country. - Benjamin Franklin)
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To: GiovannaNicoletta

Perhaps Christ didn’t find it necessary to point out the obvious? I am not being a smart allek, however wasn’t the whole Sodom and Gomorrah deal a rather large clear statement.


79 posted on 07/01/2012 5:07:06 AM PDT by JohnD9207 (Mitt better grow a pair or this thing will be over soon.)
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To: GiovannaNicoletta

I’ve known three same sex couples in my life. They were all kind, loving and generous people which is why they were my friends. I find their sexual practices repugnant but their lifestyle and other behavior exemplary. Their behavior toward each other mimics that of my wife and I. They seemed to have found much joy in life together and lead productive lives that support God’s creation. One of the couples in particular produce works which support their faith. I’ve read all the scriptures that touch on homosexuality but it is difficult to reconcile in my mind that what brings them together in a loving relationship is sinful. As noted in the article the same can be said for the man and his guitar and the woman and the dolphin. I will continue to obey God when asked he us to love one another and I will trust that God will make the final judgement when they reach the gates of paradise. All my friends sin in various ways and I regularly pray for them and me.


80 posted on 07/01/2012 5:24:32 AM PDT by Outrance
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