Joe Hays

I ended my last post by saying that I get, totally, how someone might come to the conclusion that homosexuality is wrong based upon the creation stories and Romans 1. I also noted in my last post that those other scriptures that some rely upon to make a case against homosexuality are tricky and are hardly worth using to back an anti-homosexuality argument.

So how in the world do I get to a place where I think homosexuals should be welcomed and affirmed, as they are, in church and in the Christian community at large? Acts 15. That’s how. Let me sum it up for you.

Peter, Paul, Barnabas and others shared the good news of Jesus Christ with gentiles. (Gentiles are anyone who aren’t Jews.) They (Peter, Paul…) were shocked when the gentiles received the good news of Jesus Christ and were even more shocked to see the Holy Spirit work through them. But there it was, gentiles were believers! Well, word got back to the “powers” in Jerusalem and they weren’t happy. Why? Because scripture said that to be included in God’s kingdom, these gentiles had to radically transform themselves from being gentiles to being law abiding Jews. There had to be a total change of self. It wasn’t enough, according to scripture, to just declare belief. There had to be circumcision, adherence to sabbath laws, etc… So the powers in Jerusalem called in the rogue disciples of Peter, Paul and Barnabas and said, “what gives? These so called believers aren’t following the law!”

The powers had scripture on their side! The same scripture that time and again Jesus declared was good! In this Jerusalem council, the powers were throwing around scripture. Once they were done, the council turned to Peter, Paul and Barnabas to hear their side of the story. You know what they had? Nothing but stories. They just simply reported what they experienced; what they saw. It was as if they were saying, “Look, I know that you have scripture on your side and we adhere to the laws just as you do but you should see the work of God in these gentiles!”

And you know what won that day? Story. Story trumped scripture.

So when I think of homosexuality, I think of the Jerusalem council in Acts 15. I hear the opposition saying, “we’ve got scripture on our side! It’s so clear what needs to happen. God loves homosexuals but they need to radically change their behaviors if they want to be considered God’s. They need to abstain from their unnatural desires and follow the rules! In short, they need a total change of self!” And then I hear the chorus of ministers like myself who time and again have seen God’s work and the movement of the Holy Spirit in homosexuals. Along with Peter, I say to you, the council, “And God, who knows the human heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us; and in cleansing their hearts by faith he has made no distinction between them and us. Now therefore why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”

Filed under: Bible

After my last post, several of you sent me an e-mail asking to clarify what I meant when I typed, “I started with the Bible and found the six verses that explicitly mention homosexuality. It didn’t take long to realize that the verses were often misused and misunderstood.”

Before jumping in and explaining what I mean by “misused and misunderstood” you should know that my explanation here won’t be exhaustive. You should also know that it’s very possible, and probably very likely, that you and I read the Bible differently. So even as I explain what I mean by “misused and misunderstood” I’m keenly aware that there’s not much I could say here to change your mind or even give you pause. If you didn’t like my last post, it’s not like this post is gonna clear it all up for us.

But I am, apparently, a glutton for punishment because I’m actually going to entertain your desire to clarify what I meant when I used the words “misused and misunderstood” with regards to how we interpret the verses in the Bible that mentions homosexuality.

So there are six verses that explicitly mention homosexuality. Four of them are in the Old Testament…the Hebrew Scripture. Of those four, two are in Leviticus. Out of one of those verses comes the phrase that is most often used by those opposed to homosexuality: “it is an abomination.” I’m always a bit amazed that Christians will go to Leviticus to back up their stance on homosexuality because Leviticus is a hot mess! For example, the Levitical law says that if my kids disobey me or curse me, I should put them to death. And on the Sabbath, I’m not to go anywhere. If I do? Death. So using Leviticus and it’s wording to combat homosexuality is problematic. The other two places in the Old Testament that mention homosexuality are stories found in Genesis and Judges. Both stories are dramatic narratives of a mob of people who are acting in perverse and profane ways. What they do, the lot of them, is very very wrong. However, these stories have nothing to do with the issue of homosexuality. They have everything to do with gang rapes and a kind of perversion that most of us have never had to experience in real life. Thank God.

Then there is the ambiguous scripture in 1 Corinthians 6 and the not so ambiguous scripture in Romans 1. Most thoughtful Christians who oppose homosexuality hang their hats on Romans 1. I say “thoughtful” because they understand that using those 4 Old Testament scriptures isn’t so helpful. They also understand that 1 Corinthians 6 is slippery and so they have built their opposition on the creation stories of the Old Testament and Romans 1. I get that. I really do. But,…

Check back soon to see what I have to say about that…

Filed under: Bible