We are all being told a story - we who live in the United States. It is, in many ways, a beautiful story: the story of freedom from oppression. It began, really, with the Revolutionary War - a fight to free ourselves from the oppressive government and taxation of England. It continued into the early 20th century, as another group fought for freedom from oppression: women. Women had not been given the right to vote, and they fought for, and won, this freedom. In the 1960's, this "arc" of a story continued to move forward with the Civil Rights Movement. Many of the horrific realities of the laws of our nation were exposed, including the injustice of the so-called "Jim Crow" laws. African Americans fought for freedom from oppression, and there were many important steps forward that were achieved. Many in our country who know, love, and tell this story, then point us to the next step in this upward-sloping "arc" of a story: the homosexual community. This American story - this tale of freedom from oppression - is said to trace its way from the early colonies, to rights for women, to justice for African Americans, to now an overwhelming consensus that the homosexual lifestyle is good, normal, healthy, and something to be celebrated by the American people.
Now, we as Christians who have observed this "arc" of a story up to this point, have been able to celebrated each step along the way. We rejoice that women in our country have the right to vote; it seems absurd to us now that women were once denied this right! We rejoice with our African American brothers and sisters in Christ who, because of the sacrifice and suffering of many heroic people during the Civil Rights Movement, now enjoy the rights that should be granted in this country to any human being made in the image of God. So, what stops us from continuing to celebrate as this "arc" - this story - continues sloping upward? What stops us from rejoicing in the homosexual lifestyle being portrayed as good, healthy, normal, and natural?
What stops us is our commitment to seeing every alternate "story" that we are told in terms of God's "story" - the Bible - which spans the very creation of the world to the climax at the cross to the culmination of all things at Christ's return. You see, rights for women, justice for African Americans - these "fit" with God's story. They are right and good implications of the Genesis creation narrative, which affirms that men and women were made in the image of God - all humans have inherent value and dignity. However, the next "step" in the arc of the story summarized above (the affirmation of the goodness of homosexuality) flies in the face of God's story, specifically the creation narrative. The stories butt heads at this point, and we as biblical Christians are called to answer the "American Story" with "God's Story."
Take a moment to read Genesis 2:18-20. What is the word that is repeated several times, as it relates to God's intention regarding the woman? It is the word: FIT. As God intentionally designs a partner and helper for the man that he has created, his goal is to form a being that is a perfect FIT for him. The woman is designed by God to FIT the man perfectly - to rule the world together with the man in a relationship that reflects God's rule over the earth and relationship within the Trinity, and ultimately comes to reflect also (SEE Eph. 4) the very gospel and sacrificial love of Christ for the church. Homosexuality, then, is something that doesn't FIT God's intention and purposeful design for human relationships. When designing a partner for the man, God purposely and intentionally formed the woman to FIT the man.
Take a moment to read Genesis 2:21-22. We noted above that God's intention for the man was to find the partner/helper that fit him perfectly. In these verses, we see what God did next: He intentionally FORMED the woman for the man. He made her - FORMED her - to be perfectly suited for Adam. After this intentional formation, we see God bringing - presenting even - the woman to Adam. She was FORMED for him by God, and God takes pleasure in presenting his creature this partner whom He has made "just right" for him. We can see by Adam's reponse that he was quite pleased! Homosexuality, then, is a rejection of the relationship that God has intentionally FORMED for human beings. It is saying to God: "No! I won't accept what you have perfectly made for me. I want something different!"
Take a moment, finally, to read Genesis 2:23-24. What is the word (hint - it begins with "f") that sticks out to you in these verses? It's the word: FLESH. Look at Adam's exclamation when he sees Eve - it is pure delight! And in the midst of it, he cries out that the woman is "flesh of my flesh." As God originally intended in his creation, that is the picture of marriage between a man and a woman: they become one FLESH. Remember, now, this is before the Fall - this is God's beautiful design for human relationships even before sin entered the world! Verse 24 re-affirms this FLESH idea, noting that a husband and wife become one FLESH when they are married. Homosexuality, then, loses this FLESH picture completely! The picture is all wrong; men and men weren't meant to go together in this way, and neither were women and women. Even down to the physicality of sexual relationship - the picture of one FLESH is just wrong in homosexuality.
When we take a careful look at God's story, then, we see what he intended for human/sexual/marriage relationships to be. His intention was to create a perfect FIT, intentionally FORMING the woman, in order that the man and the woman would become one FLESH. God saw that Adam needed a partner - a helper. When God looked for a FIT, he FORMED....a woman! This is God's design! And a relationship between a man and woman, even in our fallen post-Genesis 3 world, still can reflect the unity and rule of God over creation, as well as the sacrifical love of Christ for his people, the church. What can we say about homosexuality, then? We must affirm that it is a PERVERSION. It perverts that original and careful intention of God for sexual human relationships. It rejects God's careful gift and formation of man for woman. It messes up the picture that is meant to represent God and reflect the gospel. Homosexual behavior is a sin against God, the Creator.
We have looked at God's intention for human relationships, marriage, and sex. It is a good intention - a beautiful plan for even human sexuality to reflect the glories of God and his love for his creatures. But something happens in Genesis 3 that we have mentioned already: Adam and Eve sin. Their sin is called "the Fall," because it begins a fall for all human beings from their perfect created state into a state of sin. All of us who are born into this world are born into sin - we are "fallen." The Fall touches every part of our lives, including our sexuality. It is because of sin - because of the Fall - that people are tempted toward homosexual relationships instead of the heterosexual ones that God intended for us. This is where the message of the gospel enters God's story. God's own Son, Jesus Christ, entered our fallen world as a human being to make things right. First, he DIED on the cross to pay the penalty that we deserve for our sins against God, so that we who believe in Him don't have to be eternally punished. Second, he ROSE from the dead in order to give us new life and conquer death forever. Third, to those who believe in Him, he GIVES the Holy Spirit - the third person of the Trinity - to dwell in our hearts and lives by faith and help us live lives that reflect the character of Jesus and the rules that God originally intended us to live by - including the rules for human relationships! It is only through Jesus' death and resurrection, and the power of the Holy Spirit living in us through our faith in Jesus, that we can turn away from sin (including homosexual behavior) and live as God intended us to live.
Now, I want to take a moment to use the above paragraph to evaluate a recent song from Lady Gaga: "Born This Way." The reason I want to do this is because this song could very well be titled the "theme song" of the present teenage generation. It is catchy and compelling, but it also includes the reigning theology - or "story" - of the day. Listen to some of the words to this song:
I'm beautiful in my way, because God makes no mistakes! No matter gay, straight or bi, lesbian transgendered life, I'm on the right track baby. I was born to survive. I was born this way hey! I was born this way hey! i'm on the right track baby, I was born this way!
The song is appealing to many because, I would argue, it actually tells part of the "God story" we've been discussing. First, it affirms that God has made us, and that this fact gives us inherent confidence and value ("God makes no mistakes"). Second, it affirms that we are all made differently, and should celebrate our uniqueness ("I was born this way!"). But what part of God's story - the story of the Bible - is missing in this song? Sin! She completely misses the Fall, and the fact that, because of sin, we are all BORN into sin. So, the "way" that some of us are born - even if we are tempted toward homosexuality - is not a good reason for embracing that lifestyle! Many of us are, because of sin, born with certain tendencies toward sin: toward anger, lust, drug abuse, or same-sex attraction. What we all need is Jesus! We need his death for us on the cross, his resurrection from the dead, and his gift of the Holy Spirit to help us live holy lives for him. To put it a different way, God does love us just the way we are ("While we were STILL sinners, Christ died for us"), but God loves us too much to LEAVE us the way we are. An encounter with Jesus Christ - the Savior of the world - will not leave our lives unchanged. We will then desire to live as God wants us to live.
If all of this is true, we need to ask a few practical questions about how we react to the homosexual movement and live as Bible-believing Christians. We will discuss three situations.
