on SAME-SEX RELATIONSHIPS
[This is a weighty and sensitive topic, so we’re giving it a weighty response. If you’ve never heard from our church on this topic, we recommend starting with Jon’s sermon from 2019]
Both Cornerstone and the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others uphold what is considered to be a traditional position on marriage and same-sex sexual relationships. This means that it is our conviction that the biblical testimony is unambiguously affirmative of heterosexual marriage as God’s desired means for human sexual expression, and is univocally prohibitive regarding same-sex sexual activity as a deviation from that design.
Given the weight of these convictions, we are also committed to advancing and advocating for a more just and loving way forward for same-sex attracted Christians within the church. Our intention, therefore, in what follows is threefold:
• To provide a biblical rationale for our position on these issues, as well as to give clarity to the practical implications of that position for our church community.
• To call the church to thoughtful and Christ-like engagement on this topic.
• To begin a dialogue on how we as a church can lovingly encourage one another where there may be any differences of perspective.
The Bible On Marriage
Beginning in Genesis 1-2 and continuing without exception through the New Testament, the Bible displays covenantal unions between men and women as the normative means for sexual activity and committed romantic partnerships. While biblical models for marriage have evolved from antiquity in terms of number of partners (moving from occasionally polygamous to consistently monogamous), the defining characteristic of covenanted heterosexual partnership has remained consistent. Therefore, as a religiously sanctioned institution, the orthodox understanding of marriage continues to be defined in those terms.
Specific textual examples spanning both Testaments include: Genesis 2:18-24, Matthew 19:4-6, Mark 10: 2-9, and 1 Corinthians 7:1-9.
The Bible on Same-Sex Sexual Activity
While there are only a small handful of texts that refer to same-sex sexual activity directly, the biblical testimony against this behavior is consistently and unambiguously negative. We have elected to mention only three texts in an attempt to limit our focus to those passages that have caused the most disagreement and confusion. What follows is not intended to be an exhaustive exegetical treatment; therefore, we strongly recommend further study on these texts, as well as those not mentioned here (such as 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, and 1 Timothy 1:10). We have included several thorough and trustworthy resources for further study below.
Leviticus 18:22, 20:13—These verses belong to a section of the Old Testament known as the Holiness Code, which outlines various practices for purification and sacrifice among the early Israelites. The verses listed above categorically denounce male same-sexual activity without any qualification regarding motive. Those who argue, therefore, that the issue at hand is the intention of one man to put another man in a position of female passivity (“You shall not lie with a man as a woman”) have to make assumptions that are not directly stated or implied in the text.
It has been rightly noted that since the earliest days of the church, Christians have disregarded many of the practices outlined in Leviticus (eg. dietary restrictions and circumcision). The debate over which laws to maintain and which laws to remit was settled in the early church at the Council of Jerusalem, where it was determined that Gentile converts would be required only to abstain from food offered to idols and sexual immorality (Acts 15:28-29).
Subsequently, the teaching of the New Testament clearly demonstrates that the early church did in fact consistently maintain the Old Testament’s teaching on sexual morality including the prohibition against same-sex sexual activity. It should also be noted that while Jesus himself never mentions same-sex sexual activity directly, those instances in which he refers to sexual ethics at all demonstrate a move in an even more conservative direction than many of his Jewish contemporaries (cf. Matthew 19:3-12).
Romans 1:18-32—Paul’s opening argument in the beginning of Romans is that the manifestation of sin, of which same-sex sexual behavior is an example is the direct result of universal idolatry and human rebellion from God. Paul is not suggesting that only certain individual persons are guilty of idolatry and thus punished with sinful inclinations, but rather because humanity as a whole has rebelled from God all have come under the power of sin.
This is in short Paul’s exposition of the “Fall” as depicted in Genesis 2-3. Because humanity as a whole has “exchanged the truth about God for a lie,” we are all inclined towards “things that should not be done.” In other words, human beings are hardwired for sin. All people in fact have a “natural” predisposition toward rebellious behavior. Thus, Richard Hays makes the point that, “The Bible’s sober anthropology rejects the apparently common sense assumption that only freely chosen acts are morally culpable.” This means that involuntary and even biologically determined inclinations, such as same-sex sexual orientation, do not excuse sinful behavior simply because they are believed to be innate.
To assume that Paul is highlighting same-sex sexual activity as particularly sinful is in fact to have missed the point. While he does emphatically state that such behavior is sinful (cf. Rom. 1:24, 26-27), Paul’s primary aim, as he makes clear in the beginning of Chapter Two, is actually to rebuke the sin of biased judgment. Because all people, Christian and non-Christian, gay and straight, are equally culpable and deserving of condemnation, they are also equally in need of God’s mercy and redemption. “Therefore, you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the same things (Romans 2:1).”
Finally, Paul goes on to argue in Chapter Six that this inborn “slavery” to sin has been brought to an end through the cross of Jesus. “Therefore, we have been buried with him by baptism unto death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).” Therefore, the aim of Romans 1 is to give awareness to humanity’s shared experience of sin so as to highlight the shared need for grace, which is made available to all through the cross.
Responses to Important Questions
Q: Given that that the biblical writers did not have a modern understanding of sexual orientation or monogamous same-sex partnerships and likely believed all same-sex sexual activity to be either shame inducing or the result of excessive sexual appetite, should the Bible’s prohibitions still apply to gay Christians seeking committed, consensual relationships today?
It is true that the biblical writers did not have a contemporary understanding of sexual orientation; however, it is a presumption to assume that they needed one in order to arrive at their negative assessment of same-sex behavior. In Romans 1, Paul categorically rejects same-sex sexual activity as a manifestation of humanity’s innately sinful or rebellious nature. According to Paul, human beings lust after the autonomy to define sin as they see fit, which is a shared inclination among all people. Therefore, a specific act need not be excessively lustful in order to still be regarded as sin. The person who commits adultery deliberately, or even prayerfully, has sinned the same as she who is overcome by passionate lust.
When Jesus speaks on divorce in Matthew 19, it is in fact Moses’ determination to allow for conditional terms of divorce that Jesus scrutinizes. “It was because you were so hard hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning this was not so.” Moses had made exceptions for divorce based on motive and circumstance, and Jesus rejects and rescinds all but one of those exceptions. “And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery.” Jesus is here affirming the point that it is not the motivation or the condition of the compulsion that determines the moral culpability of the action, but rather the violation of the terms of God’s covenant. This same logic applies not only to divorce and same-sex sexual activity, but to all sinful behavior.
Finally, the most troubling aspect of this argument is the implication that our contemporary assumptions about those governing the biblical writers’ commands would allow us to dictate how we apply them. In other words, the logic is that even though Paul says X, given that he assumed Y, we have grounds to reject or reform what he says. This kind of logic is a radical departure from orthodox understandings of biblical authority.
At Cornerstone, we uphold and affirm contextualized readings and application of Scripture. However, those readings and applications must always be consistent with the full witness of Scripture (including Tradition and Reason) in order to be considered valid. Those who argue that the Bible includes texts prohibiting abolition and equality for women must also take into account the Bible’s “redemptive-movement” or trajectory for both (See William J. Webb, Slaves, Women and Homosexuals). Contrarily, this same movement concerning same-sex sexual behavior is entirely absent from the biblical testimony. William Webb writes, “While some Christians advocate covenant/equal status same-sex sexual orientation as an appropriate expression for human relationships today, the results of this study would argue against such a position.” The same canon of cultural analysis, which show a liberalizing or less restrictive tendency in the slavery and women texts relative to the original culture, demonstrate a more restrictive tendency in same-sex sexual activity texts relative to the original culture.
Furthermore, the biblical texts not only hold an aversion to associative features (e.g., rape, pederasty), they appear to voice a concern about the more basic or core issue of same-gender sexual acts themselves. Once this factor is paired with finding a more restrictive movement within Scripture compared to the surrounding cultures, the covenant same-sex orientation argument fails to be persuasive.
Q: Given that gay and lesbian persons, who feel they cannot change their sexual orientation, are not necessarily given the “gift” of life long celibacy, shouldn’t they be allowed to marry?
In 1 Corinthians 7:7, Paul writes, “I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has a particular gift from God, one having one kind and another a different kind. To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is well for them to remain unmarried as I am. But if they are not practicing self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion.”
It is true that Paul indicates that he has been spiritually endowed with the ability to exercise self-control over his sexual appetite. He does not say, however, that this ability is without complication or struggle. What a gift that would be indeed! If one has the option to marry, then Paul is encouraging those in the church not to struggle unnecessarily. He does not assume, however, that all people do have that option. A list of those who do not have the option to marry would include: those who are not able to find a spouse, those who have been called by God to lifelong celibacy (as Jesus, Paul, and others obviously believed themselves to be), and based on Paul’s negative assessment of same-sex sexual activity.
In other words, an intense struggle with sexual temptation, does not guarantee that a person will get married regardless of whether that person is same-sex oriented or heterosexual. If marriage is the only redemptive reality available to those who struggle with sexual temptation, then this is indeed a tragedy not just for gays and lesbians, but also for all who are single for reasons outside of their control.
In his book, Bible, Gender, Sexuality, James Brownson, says the following in affirmation of Question #2, “Celibacy in this context represents a third way, beyond either marriage or ‘burning’ with passion. It involves not merely sufficient willpower to restrain sexual impulses but also the capacity to live in a focused and undistracted way apart from marriage. To use more modern categories, this means not the absence or repression of sexual desires, but the capacity to sublimate and channel those desires and energies into focused and disciplined service to God.”
At Cornerstone, however, we believe (contra Brownson) that the ability to “channel” temptation or desire into redemptive service to God is the calling of every Christian—not a gift reserved for a particular subset of Christians. A spouse no more guarantees that a Christian will be able “to live in a focused and undistracted way” than singleness guarantees that he or she will fall into sexual immorality.
There is, however, a helpful corrective for the church at work in this claim, namely that single persons are solely and singularly responsible for stewarding the Bible’s call to disciplined abstinence. If it is true that the calling of every Christian is to invest our energies and desires into the service of God, then that requires a commitment to work in solidarity alongside one another. “For we who are many are one body in Christ and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us” (Romans 12:5).
In far too many churches the reality is that those who are same-sex attracted and those who are single have been expected to cheerfully live and labor in these communities without the kind of loving support and committed partnership that married people enjoy. The church and particularly those who are married and heterosexual ought to be rightly repentant of this negligence and begin to work with our brothers and sisters to advocate a more redemptive way forward. At Cornerstone, we are both humbly accepting of this correction and committed to working together to bring about needed change.
Life Together at Cornerstone
[A note on language: We use the term “Side A” to refer to those who are affirming of same-sex sexual relationships for Christians and “Side B” to refer to those who are not affirming of same- sex sexual relationships for Christians.]
Can someone be both same-sex attracted and Christian?
Yes. Salvation is available to all who profess that Jesus is Lord and believe in his resurrection (Romans 10:9). Sanctification is the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of every Christian to bring about holiness and full maturity in Christ. Therefore, our hope is that the church will continue to make room for disagreement on this issue as a matter of secondary (not creedal) rather than primary importance trusting that the sanctifying presence of the Holy Spirit is at work among us and through us.
Are “Side A” Christians invited to attend and/or become members at Cornerstone?
Yes. Our intention is to create a culture of hospitality in keeping with the Spirit of Jesus who not only welcomed, but sought out the company of those who longed for community and belonging without qualification or condition. Therefore, the communion table, which is the apex of our Sunday worship at Cornerstone, is open to all who call on the name of Jesus for salvation and who have been baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Membership, according to our understanding, is inclusion and participation in the common life of the church. Therefore, in order to become a member at Cornerstone we require only the following:
• Profession of Orthodox Christian Faith (agreement with the Historic Creeds)
• Baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Willingness to abide by our congregational Rule of Life.
Are “Side A” Christians invited to participate in pastoral leadership at Cornerstone?
No. In order to participate in pastoral leadership at Cornerstone, a person must possess a shared commitment to our mission and be able to lead in agreement with our convictions. Positions of pastoral leadership would include those that require generating theological content and giving pastoral counsel such as: teaching, preaching, and leading worship.
Will you perform marriage ceremonies for gay couples at Cornerstone?
No. At Cornerstone we will uphold an orthodox understanding of marriage and will retain the right to perform only those ceremonies in agreement with that understanding.
For further study, we recommend the following resources:
Jon’s 2019 Sermon on LGBTQ Issues
People to Be Loved: Why homosexuality is not just an issue by Preston Sprinkle
Moral Vision of the New Testament by Richard Hays
Spiritual Friendships by Wesley Hill
Slaves, Women and Homosexuals by William J. Webb
Understanding Gender Dysphoria by Mark A. Yarhouse
Leading a Church in a Time of Sexual Questioning by Bruce B. Miller