Introduction
I want to preface this whole article by stating the following: This conversation will be difficult and is a difficult topic. Please see the wholeness of what I am sharing with this post and not a sentence out of context. I have given this a lot of thought, a lot of study, and lots of discussions with other Christians/non-Christians. My main goal here is to deep dive into scripture, culture, definitions, and overall anything on the topic.
I will also state that loving others is a priority of mine. Not love in the sense of what we as a people know is love, but what the Bible defines as love (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). I really do believe the word love in English is very watered down and not fully expressing the concept of love correctly as defined in the Bible. For example, we say we love the tv show Friends then turn and say we love this person then turn and say we love mac n cheese. Does this mean we equally enjoy these things across the board? This is what i mean when I say the word love in English is overused and does not express the love that Jesus talked about in the Bible. In this post I will include definitions from verses for words like “love” so that we can fully see the idea behind each verse and passage.
Our Identity, First Things First: Scripture teaches that who we are is received in Christ, not self-invented from our desires (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:1–4). That applies to every label we could claim. If Jesus is Lord, He defines us; we don’t define Him. This is the backdrop for everything below.
What is Love?
This is the first question I ask people when they say “love is love”, or we are called to “love others”, or even “just love people”, is what do you define love is? Science explains love is a series of complex chemical reactions taking place between the brain and the body. Most simply, romantic love is broken down into three categories: lust, attraction, and attachment(1).
The dictionary(2) describes love as:
noun
1. a strong feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, such as for a parent, child, friend, or pet.
2. a profoundly tender, passionate affection, often mingled with sexual desire, for another person:
verb (used with object)
1. to have a warm personal attachment to or deep affection for.
2. to have a profoundly tender, passionate affection, often mingled with sexual desire, for (another person).
So what does the Bible describe as love? Well the Bible has a few words used for love. Lets go over the varieties so we can reference them here in this blog. Lets start with:
Hesed(Hebrew): “lovingkindness”. This is arguably the most significant word for love in the Bible. Translated as lovingkindness because no Greek or English word has a 1:1 equivalence. Fidelity, loyalty, patience, mercy, grace, forgiveness, covenantal faithfulness, and salvation (among others) are all concepts tied up with God’s lovingkindness. A deep dive into Hesed is out of the scope of a brief discussion on love. It’s covenantal love, loyal, merciful, faithful. Think Psalm 136.
Ahab(Hebrew): a broad verb ‘to love,’ used for God’s love and human love; context gives color.
Dod(Hebrew): romantic love. Used a lot in Songs of Solomon.
Eros(Greek): sexual or romantic love. Probably the most well-known word for love, but it not used in the New Testament manuscripts. It may have been used in the Septuagint translations of the Old Testament.
Phileo(Greek): fraternal or friendly love. The love that you would show a brother or a friend who is closer than a brother. God loves the Son (John 5:20) and us (John 16:27) with phileo love.
Agape(Greek): self-sacrificial love. Of obvious importance in the New Testament. This word connotates a conscious action rather than an emotional feeling. Common in the New Testament but rare in other Greco-Roman works, it describes the love God has (1 John 4:8) and shows his Son (John 17:26) and Christians (John 14:21). It is also used in describing God’s love for the entire human race (Romans 5:8). The NT elevates agapē as the controlling pattern for Christians (John 13:34–35). We use these categories only insofar as the New Testament explicitly reaffirms moral norms (e.g., Matt 19:4–6; Rom 13:8–10).
So when someone in English says they love this or that, we can see why I referred to English word “love” as watered down. It’s very easy to say we love a lot of things but we do not always fully grasp the idea of true love. Please note that up to this point I am sharing definitions and truth, I want this here at the beginning so we can use it as a referral during this post. I hope you continue to read as we discuss this topic.
Mosaic Law VS Moral Law
What a jump in topic, mosaic law? Moral law? why these things? what does this have to do with anything? Well, we first need to establish some facts about the Bible. The first 5 books of the Bible are known as the Torah(Hebrew for “law”) or Pentateuch(Greek for “five books”). There are over 600 commandments in these 5 books. Exodus is the start of the Mosaic Law and the commandments brought through him. There are a lot of commandments here and we need to understand what was going on during the time of Moses. These categories are theological tools (not headings in the Bible) that help us see what the NT reaffirms explicitly.
God’s people were just freed from the Egyptians, and God needed His people to turn from their habits and practices that they learned from pagans and cults they were subject too. The Mosaic Law was to push God’s chosen people towards God’s absolute Moral Law. These things don’t happen overnight so we can see progression of the law pushing away from traditions that they learned and towards what God wanted them to do instead. One thing I love about the Mosaic law was said in John 1:17(Context verse 1-18) which states, “for the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
John 1:17 explains an important difference between the ministries of Moses and Jesus. Moses’ ministry brought knowledge of the law. But the law could only show us how sinful and broken we were (Romans 3:20). Rather than just bringing us truth, Jesus also brought us grace. Instead of simply telling us that we were broken, Christ gave us a way to fix what was wrong. This is an important, common theme of the Bible. Human efforts will always fall short, and everyone is corrupted with sin (Romans 3:23). Instead of leaving us to face that uncomfortable truth alone, Jesus provided a way for us to experience forgiveness. Merely doing good deeds can never save us, only God’s grace, through faith, can do that. This is further symbolized in miracles. Moses’ first miracle was turning water into blood, which is symbolic of judgment (Exodus 7:20). Later, only those homes which had the blood of a lamb on their doors were “passed over” by God’s wrath (Exodus 12:26–28). Jesus’ first miracle was turning water into wine—symbolic of blood—as a gracious gift (John 2:7–11). Only those who accept Christ’s sacrifice of blood are spared from the judgment we all deserve (1 John 1:7).
There is a great difference between accepting the Law of Moses as God’s standard of righteousness, and making that same law the means to earning your own salvation, by the work of law-keeping. In Romans chapter 3, Paul made it clear that no one could be saved by law-keeping. So it is that when Paul refers to the “law” in Romans 7, he is referring to the “Law of Moses” or to the commands of God more generally in the Old Testament. Paul loved the “Law of Moses” when it was looked upon as “the law of God” and not as that set of laws that were twisted by the Jews into something they were never meant to be.
The law of God given to Moses is a comprehensive set of guidelines to ensure that the Israelites’ behavior reflected their status as God’s chosen people. It encompasses moral behavior, their position as a godly example to other nations, and systematic procedures for acknowledging God’s holiness and mankind’s sinfulness. In an attempt to better understand the purpose of these laws, Jews and Christians categorize them. This has led to the distinction between moral law, ceremonial law, and judicial law.
Lets talk Moral Law.
The moral laws, or mishpatim, relate to justice and judgment and are often translated as “ordinances.” Mishpatim are said to be based on God’s holy nature. As such, the ordinances are holy, just, and unchanging. Their purpose is to promote the welfare of those who obey. The value of the laws is considered obvious by reason and common sense. The moral law encompasses regulations on justice, respect, and sexual conduct, and includes the Ten Commandments. It also includes penalties for failure to obey the ordinances. Moral law does not point people to Christ; it merely illuminates the fallen state of all mankind.
Modern Protestants are divided over the applicability of mishpatim in the church age. Some believe that Jesus’ assertion that the law will remain in effect until the earth passes away (Matthew 5:18) means that believers are still bound to it. Others, however, understand that Jesus fulfilled this requirement (Matthew 5:17), and that we are instead under the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2), which is thought to be “love God and love others” (Matthew 22:36-40). Although many of the moral laws in the Old Testament give excellent examples as to how to love God and love others, and freedom from the law is not license to sin (Romans 6:15), we are not specifically bound by mishpatim.
Lets talk Ceremonial Law
The ceremonial laws are called hukkim or chuqqah in Hebrew, which literally means “custom of the nation”; the words are often translated as “statutes.” These laws seem to focus the adherent’s attention on God. They include instructions on regaining right standing with God (e.g., sacrifices and other ceremonies regarding “uncleanness”), remembrances of God’s work in Israel (e.g., feasts and festivals), specific regulations meant to distinguish Israelites from their pagan neighbors (e.g., dietary and clothing restrictions), and signs that point to the coming Messiah (e.g., the Sabbath, circumcision, Passover, and the redemption of the firstborn). Some Jews believe that the ceremonial law is not fixed. They hold that, as societies evolve, so do God’s expectations of how His followers should relate to Him. This view is not indicated in the Bible.
Christians are not bound by ceremonial law. Since the church is not the nation of Israel, memorial festivals, such as the Feast of Weeks and Passover, do not apply. Galatians 3:23-25 explains that since Jesus has come, Christians are not required to sacrifice or circumcise. There is still debate in Protestant churches over the applicability of the Sabbath. Some say that its inclusion in the Ten Commandments gives it the weight of moral law. Others quote Colossians 2:16-17 and Romans 14:5 to explain that Jesus has fulfilled the Sabbath and become our Sabbath rest. As Romans 14:5 says, “Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.” The applicability of the Old Testament law in the life of a Christian has always related to its usefulness in loving God and others. If someone feels observing the Sabbath aids him in this, he is free to observe it.
Lets talk Judicial/Civil Law
The Westminster Confession adds the category of judicial or civil law. These laws were specifically given for the culture and place of the Israelites and encompass all of the moral law except the Ten Commandments. This includes everything from murder to restitution for a man gored by an ox and the responsibility of the man who dug a pit to rescue his neighbor’s trapped donkey (Exodus 21:12-36). Since the Jews saw no difference between their God-ordained morality and their cultural responsibilities, this category is used by Christians far more than by Jewish scholars.
The division of the Jewish law into different categories is a human construct designed to better understand the nature of God and define which laws church-age Christians are still required to follow. Many believe the ceremonial law is not applicable, but we are bound by the Ten Commandments. All the law is useful for instruction (2 Timothy 3:16), and nothing in the Bible indicates that God intended a distinction of categories. Christians are not under the law (Romans 10:4). Jesus fulfilled the law, thus abolishing the difference between Jew and Gentile “so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross…” (Ephesians 2:15-16).
Leviticus Explored
Everything so far is preface to the topic to better understand a grasp on what we as Christians should and shouldn’t do. Leviticus is referenced a lot by scholars, Christians, and non-christians on its validity and severity.
Scholars divide Leviticus into two main sections: chapters 1–16 (cultic elements) and 17–26 (the Holiness Code), with one chapter remaining that contains various vows. In other words, the first 16 chapters address how the ancient Hebrews were to carry out sacrifices and offerings, while the remaining chapters focus on how they were to live together in community.
As the book transitions from discussing elements of the cult (Lev. 1–16) to addressing how the people should live together (Lev. 17–26), it begins the next section by explaining why and how blood was to be shed (Lev. 17). From there, one final preparatory warning remains (Lev. 18), before instruction for how to live with one another.
It’s important to note that several elements of the Holiness Code (Lev. 17–26) were unique to Israel’s status as a theocracy. Many times, those are the elements identified as obscure, outdated, or just plain odd (Lev. 19:19, 28). They’re the very kinds of elements listed by Martin Sheen’s character in his castigation of Dr. Jacobs that—without a context—seem unreasonable, if not ludicrous.
But these peculiar Hebrew elements are not the substance of Leviticus 18. Rather, this chapter addresses moral issues that—at least from the biblical author’s perspective—were, or should have been, understood by the former inhabitants of the land.
Note how the chapter begins and ends. The first five verses (Lev. 18:1–5) address the sinful actions of two groups: the Egyptians and the Canaanites. The final verses of the chapter (Lev. 18:24–30) speak again about the actions of the nations that had occupied the land before the Hebrew people. This literary structure serves as a framing device to draw attention to those details discussed within the intervening verses (Lev. 18:6–23).
Those items are not obscure or unclear, nor are they peculiar to the Hebrew people—because they’re identified as the very things that led to the expulsion of other, non-Hebrew peoples. And the message of the passage is very clear: if the Hebrews do what the Canaanites did, they will suffer as the Canaanites did.
So what are we to make of Leviticus 18 today? There are several items within the Leviticus 18:6–23 section that are often ignored to the reader’s detriment. This isn’t merely a chapter on homosexuality. It’s a caution regarding every kind of sexual immorality, from pornography to incest to bestiality. Paul incorporates the same idea from Leviticus 18:8 when he writes that such sins are not even practiced among the pagans (1 Cor. 5:1).
Leviticus 18’s core sexual ethics are rooted in God’s creation design and are treated as morally weighty, not merely ceremonial (see Matt 19:4–6; Rom 1:26–27; 1 Cor 5–6). Not every detail of the holiness code binds the church, but the NT reaffirms the creation-order pattern for sex and marriage. The New Testament repeats this creation-order ethic for the church (Matt 19:4–6; 1 Cor 6:9–20; 1 Thess 4:3–5).
The result for the ancient Hebrew people was expulsion from the land and withdrawal of Yahweh’s presence. While we don’t live at the sacred space God had set apart for the construction of Solomon’s temple, we are the temple of God, both corporately and individually (1 Cor. 3:16–17; 6:19). And this has moral implications for how we use our bodies (1 Cor. 6:20).
Because we did not obtain our righteousness or secure our salvation, we have no fear of losing his presence from our lives. As the people of God, however, we cannot be any less aware or concerned by actions that historically carried such weight (1 Cor. 10:8; Jude 1:7). To do so proves we are no different than the Egyptians or the Canaanites, who didn’t know the God of the Bible.
Lets Talk LGBT
Now that I have prefaced all these things, we can discuss this clearly. As I sit here and get ready to write this out and discuss, I pray that God uses me to share His word accurately and precisely without opinion but just truth and that I may share His word accurately and precisely without mere opinion, but in truth.
I want to start off this section explicitly sharing this first. Many believers describe complex, persistent experiences of same-sex attraction. Scripture never mocks or minimizes that burden. The question for every disciple (whatever our attraction pattern) is whether we will submit our desires to Jesus’ Lordship (Luke 9:23; Titus 2:11–12). The church welcomes all to Christ; in Him we all learn obedience together.
The Long Answer
Can gay people be Christians? As said the short answer is Yes, just as adulterers, porn users, liars, addicts, and the self-righteous can be saved (1 Cor 6:9–11). Salvation is by grace through faith (Eph 2:8–9). Following Jesus then reorders our loves and our lifestyle.. The long answer is way more in depth than most people want to discuss, but here we are doing the long answer. If someone is a chronic alcoholic which we know drunkenness is a sin (Proverbs 20:1, Ephesians 5:18, Galatians 5:19-21,Luke 21:34, Romans 13:13, REF), they can become Christian, and give their life to Christ. Now once someone gives their life to Christ, we are to follow Christ (Luke 9:23; 1 John 2:3–6). If we truly love God and what he has done for us through Christ, then we want to follow His commands (John 14:15; 15:10).
John 8:30-32 states, “As he was saying these things, many believed in him. Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you continue in my word(Or my teaching, or my message, also in v. 37), you really are my disciples. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
As with verse 30, it is tempting to think that those who “believed” in Jesus were expressing saving faith. However, the Bible distinguishes between those who believe in a shallow, superficial sense from those who express legitimate faith in Christ. This verse explains one of the ways to know the difference: those who truly submit to Christ “abide in [His] word” (John 8:12; John 5:38; 1 John 2:14). Some of Jesus’ earlier teachings caused some who claimed to believe in Him to walk away (John 6:65–66). Many of the crowd who find Jesus’ words compelling at this moment, will reject Him later.
The terminology used here needs to be understood. “The Jews,” as used in the gospel of John, typically refers to the religious leaders of Jerusalem and their followers. This would include the temple Scribes, the Pharisees, and the local residents who agreed with their approach. The conversation Jesus is having now, is still mostly aimed at the Pharisees, but it actually includes all of the hostile crowd which has now gathered.
So what does it mean to be a legitimate follower of Christ? A great verse for this is Romans 7:7 (context is 7-25) which states, “What should we say then? Is the law sin? Absolutely not! But I would not have known sin if it were not for the law. For example, I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, Do not covet.”
Paul has previously written in Romans about the connection between the law of Moses and human sinfulness. In Romans 5:20, he wrote that “the law came in to increase the trespass,” and in verse 5 in this chapter: “our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members.” As with many spiritual ideas, it’s easy to miss the context of a statement, misunderstand it, and take offense as a result. Or, to spin those words off into something the author never really intended.
Paul’s critics may have suggested he was teaching that the law was, in itself, a bad thing. He quickly answers his own question about this by saying “By no means!” This again uses the phrasing mē genoito in the original Greek, a strong, emphatic “may it never be!” This also follows Paul’s pattern of refuting a wrong idea by asking and rejecting an imagined question about it. Paul clarifies: he doesn’t believe the law to be sinful. Instead, it is the way that God reveals to human beings that we are sinful. It shows us what sin is and then reveals our desire to sin in that specific way.
I want to bring up 1 Timothy 1:8-10(Context 3-11) which states, “But we know that the law is good, provided one uses it legitimately. We know that the law is not meant for a righteous person, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and irreverent, for those who kill their fathers and mothers, for murderers, for the sexually immoral and males who have sex with males, for slave traders, liars, perjurers, and for whatever else is contrary to the sound teaching…”
Why this verse? It’s one of the many verses that talk about this concept of male-to-male sex and other things counting towards sin. I would love to get into all sin and discuss everything but this post is specific because it’s such a sensitive topic. This verse uses a word “Arsenokoites” which is a compound word of “Arrhen”(Male) and “Koite” (sexual intercourse, marriage bed). This was a new word used and compounded since they didnt have a word used for men having sex with men and woman having sex with woman. The word here is also used in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10.
Paul also uses malakoi (1 Cor 6:9), a word that in context likely addresses effeminate or passive partners in male same-sex acts. Importantly, Paul condemns all sexual immorality, heterosexual and homosexual alike (1 Thess 4:3–5; Heb 13:4).
Notice this doesn’t state anything about being attracted to the same sex or desire towards. Lust is noted to be a sin and just looking at a woman with desire is committing adultery. This is not to condemn people but to help them understand that we NEED Jesus(John 14:6). We cannot live up to the perfect, moral, standard of God and have(and will) fall short of that (Romans 3:23).
Galatians 5 is a great representation of the life in Christ. Once saved, we are gifted the Holy Spirit to help guide us and strengthen us(Acts 2:38, John 14:26, John 14:15-17). It talks about living a life of fleshly desires compared to living a life of Christ. Read the whole chapter. Sin is sin, anything against that of which God has said, is sin. If we love God, then we follow his commandments, we listen, read, learn, and grow(2 Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 4:12, Romans 10:17). John contrasts ongoing, unrepentant practice of sin with walking in the light (1 John 3:4–10; 1:6–10). Christians still stumble (1 John 1:8–9), but they don’t make peace with sin.
So still need more info about LGBT in the Bible? Lets talk Romans 1:26-28(context 18-32). This passage states, “For this reason God delivered them over to disgraceful passions. Their women[females] exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones(for one another). The men[c] in the same way also left natural relations(sexual) with women and were inflamed in their lust for one another. Men committed shameless acts(sexual acts) with men and received in their own persons the appropriate penalty of their error. And because they did not think it worthwhile to acknowledge God, God delivered them over to a corrupt mind so that they do what is not right.
Paul has revealed some remarkable things in this section. God’s wrath is actively being expressed against humanity in very specific and surprising ways. For instance, God is said to have responded to our refusal to acknowledge and worship Him as creator, and our worship of created things, instead, by giving humanity up to our own sinful desires (Romans 1:18–23).
Specifically, Paul seems to have said that God removed some restraint within human beings about how we express our sexual desires with and to each other. Unchecked, we as the human race, have fully indulged our lusts by dishonoring our bodies together. This applies to all forms of sex outside of marriages between men and women.
God has also given us up to homosexual passions, leading women to have sexual relationships with other women (Romans 1:26) and, now, men to have sexual relationships with other men. This “giving over” by God resulted in men being consumed with passion for other men and indulging that passion without shame.
Paul adds a note that, in the case of male homosexuality, men have received some kind of penalty for their actions “in themselves.” It’s not clear what this means. What is clear is that even though God has given humanity up to these desires and sexual actions of all kinds, He still holds us responsible for our choices to indulge in the corruption of sex as it was intended for us by Him. That, too, is part of the expression of His wrath. In large part, the consequences of those actions are natural—they are the expected result of such an unnatural practice.
As normalized as sexual sin is in our culture, it seems to have been even more normalized in Paul’s day. It was built into the worship of all kinds of pagan gods and idols. Paul has not written Romans to condemn sinners as irrevocably lost—otherwise, all of us would be lost (Romans 3:23)! He has written to present the joyful gospel message that all can be forgiven and redeemed through faith in Christ, no matter our sinful choices, past and present (1 Corinthians 6:9–11).
For any believer wrestling with sexual sin (of any kind), the path is the same: Scripture and prayer (Ps 119:9–11), belonging to a local church (Heb 10:24–25), confessing and receiving help (James 5:16), pursuing accountability, and embracing chastity outside of marriage and fidelity within (1 Thess 4:3–5; Heb 13:4). The Holy Spirit empowers real change over time (Gal 5:16–24).
Conclusion
As I wrap this topic up, I want to express that if someone struggles with sin, the struggle or temptation itself is not sin. We all struggle, we all are tempted by our own fleshly desires. I pray for my brothers and sisters who struggle with sin as I do everyday. Is living a life of homosexuality a sin? yes just as alcoholism, prostitution, lust, etc are sin. I can’t celebrate movements (of any kind) that normalize what God calls sin. That’s not hatred; it’s loyalty to Jesus and love for people made in His image. For those reading this and made it to this conclusion, I really hope this doesn’t bring you condemnation but HOPE in the gospel of Jesus and why we all need him equally.
Can a Sinner be a Christian? short answer is yes. Christ does not call us to self-hatred; He calls us to self-denial (Luke 9:23) so that we can truly live (John 10:10). Every Christian lays something down to follow Him. Identity is received, not self-invented. In Christ, we don’t discover ourselves by desire; we receive ourselves by grace (Gal 2:20; Col 3:1–4). Every Christian (whatever their story) lays something down and takes up a cross (Luke 9:23).
Accept Christ, Repent, turn, receive the Holy Spirit to help you, and walk away from living in sin. Jesus loved you first and as such, we turn to Him in love and trust, and follow His commands and love others to show the salvation that is available to them as well. Know you are not alone, and temptation is not the sin, lean on Him and spend time in the Bible and prayer. God bless
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