Page 515 … What the Bible really says
You then ask: “What does the Bible really say about homosexuals?”, and you attempt to answer that question yourself by restating that “The Bible consistently tells us that homosexual activity is a sin (Genesis 19:1-13; Leviticus 18:22; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9).” … My dear Lucy, first of all, it would help this conversation immensely if you would stop “cutting & pasting” from other authors in your responses to this thread. And it is a little silly – if not outright disrespectful – to repeat an argument almost verbatim to which I have already responded so often & at such great length … No matter … As far as I am concerned, you are misquoting the Bible right here & right now – which to me at least is quite the grave offense, so I will simply repeat my responses for you & yours once more …
*First of all, as far as Genesis 19 is concerned, please remember that both the Old Testament and Jesus himself clearly noted that Sodom & Gomorrah were destroyed due to a blatant disregard for the poor & the downtrodden (Ezekiel 16:49) which manifested itself in wanton examples of greed & gluttony (Luke 17:28-29), not due to the presence of homosexuals or the prevalence of homosexual relationships or even any expressions of homosexual desire.
*Secondly, as far as Leviticus 18:22 is concerned (& Leviticus 20:13 along with it), please remember that the “abomination” mentioned in these verses was not homosexual love or homosexual partnerships (or homosexual intimacy, or homosexuality itself), but is rather the act of homosexual intercourse – a sin that Oliver Clyde Allen is not engaging in the picture that initiated this conversation, a sin that Paul placed on par with most other forms of hetereosexual fornication, and a sin that Jesus never once condemned himself (see Matthew 19:12-14)!
*Thirdly, as far as Romans 1:26-27 is concerned, please remember that – when we read this passage in the context of both Romans 1:1-17 and Romans 2:1-11 (and indeed with the rest of that entire letter), we see that Paul is actually using the callous condemnations mentioned therein as an example of how we are not to condemn others, not as a justification for said condemnation! (please refer to pages 509-510 previously)
*Fourthly, as far as 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 is concerned, please remember that the word translated from the ancient menuscripts as “sodomites” in this passage is not referring to homosexuals or homosexual partnerships (or homosexual love, or even homosexual desire). The Greek word used here is arsenokoites (Strong’s #733) – a word that literally means “a male who is actively engaging in same-gender sexual activity”, i.e. a gay man who is in the act of having gay sex. So, unless you can prove that Oliver Clyde Allen and his husband would be actually having sex during his sermon, he would not be sinning at all while sharing The Word of God in his church, and as such you would have no biblical grounds whatsoever for refusing to go and listen to him preach!
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