An argument that is often made against the Christian
position on homosexuality is that Jesus himself didn’t say anything about
homosexual acts. Although the assertion
that Jesus said nothing explicitly about homosexual acts is true, in order to
understand Jesus’ position on human sexuality, and adherence to laws such as
those found in the text in Leviticus, we must look at the teaching of Jesus in
the Gospels.
In the
Gospel of Matthew, Jesus delivers what is famously known as the Sermon on the
Mount. During this sermon He addresses
the law: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I
have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth
pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is
accomplished.” [1]
Jesus was
the fulfillment of the law in that through him we are reconciled to God. The Law itself was never intended to restore
relationship between mankind and God because the flesh weakened it.[2] Jesus’ statement in this portion of Matthew’s
Gospel shows that the Law and the Prophets (the Old Testament Scriptures) were
not abolished by the advent of Jesus.
Although Jesus served as the fulfillment of the law, He did not do away
with the Law. This is of central
importance when discussing the issue of homosexual sexual acts because although
Jesus may not have explicitly said homosexual sexual acts are condemned; He did
uphold the authority of the moral component of Mosaic Law.
Another
important passage to consider when determining Jesus’ position on homosexual
sexual acts is found in Mark 10:6-8.
“[F]rom the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man
shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall
become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh.”[3] “Jesus assembles texts from Genesis 1-2 to
establish God’s will for sexuality…. How could any departure from this
teaching, for the purposes of endorsing other forms of human sexual intercourse,
be anything less than a[n] instance of human hard-heartedness?”[4]
The
position that Jesus is taking on the subject of marital relations invokes God’s
intention for creation. In this model,
Jesus points out that they were made male and female, thus bolstering support
for the idea that two becoming one flesh is reserved for those in heterosexual
marital relationships.
The issue
with stating that Jesus’ lack of instruction on the matter suggests that Jesus
permits homosexual sexual acts is an argument from silence. In other words, it claims if Jesus didn’t
address the issue, it must not be condemned.
The issue with that assertion is that if we were to apply it
universally, we would have to say Jesus also did not condemn pedophilia, as he
never spoke explicitly of pedophilia. We
obviously would not agree that Jesus would approve of such acts, yet he never
explicitly condemned them. This would be
an argument from silence, and using this example, we can see that the
conclusion does not follow naturally or logically.
The fact
that Jesus did not explicitly speak of homosexual sexual acts does not mean
that he therefore condoned such acts.
Besides the obvious logical issue with that line or reasoning, we see
that Jesus did uphold the Law as the Jewish people knew it, and that he did
support a natural or Biblical view of marriage.
It is also important
to understand that part of the reason Jesus did not explicitly condemn
homosexuality is because he was teaching in a first century Jewish culture. In the first century, the Jewish people
strictly adhered to the Law, which included Levitical Law. It was understood by the first century Jews
that homosexual practices were forbidden, and as a result, Jesus did not need
to address the issue of homosexuality.
If Jesus had been speaking to a Greek or Roman audience, it would have
been necessary to address homosexuality, and that is what we see in the New
Testament writings of the apostle Paul.
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version.
2001 (Mt 5:17–18). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
[2] Rom. 8:3
[3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version.
2001 (Mk 10:6–8). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
[4] David L. Balch, Homosexuality, Science, and the
"Plain Sense" of Scripture (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub.,
2000), 191.
