Did Jesus Address Homosexuality?
Rev. Dr. Mel White writes, “Jesus says nothing about same-sex behavior.”
To state that Jesus did not address homosexuality is to begin with a faulty premise, which is that if Jesus did not address it then Christianity ought not have an opinion for nor against. But did He not address the issue at all? This issue requires discernment and logic. Let us read just one of Jesus’ statements:
“The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?’ And He answered and said to them, ‘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 19:3-6 also see Mark 10:2-9).
You may be asking yourself, “What does this have to do with homosexuality?” This is the very reason we mentioned discernment and logic. It appears that we have become so impatient that unless we see the particular word that we are looking for spelled out one after another we will not see them (I have commented further on this issue in an essay entitled Did Jesus Say “I am God”? – The Faulty Premise). If I say that the only vegetable I like is asparagus could you really say “He didn’t say that he doesn’t like spinach.” No because spinach was excluded as a possibility along with all and every vegetable with the sole exception of asparagus. When the issue of marriage is brought up it is instantly referred back to, and associated with, one man and one woman in a committed relationship.
.jpg)
Those who say that this has nothing to do with the issue of homosexuality must consider the example we provided above. Should we likewise state that Jesus did not address the issue of bestiality, pedophilia, incest, polygamy, etc.? They are all excluded by the appeal to the very premise upon which marriage and sexuality is founded. Since marriage is between one man and one woman then all else is excluded by logical conclusion, or logical exclusion. Jesus addressed the issue of homosexuality by excluding it as an inappropriate relationship.
Lastly, it is of the utmost importance to understand that unlike some religions that are based upon the teachings of one person; Christianity is based upon the teachings of various prophets and apostles. Therefore, it is fallacious to claim that if Jesus did not address something it should not be considered an issue with which Christians ought to deal.