Homosexuality in the Church and the Call to Grace-Filled Repentance
Mark A. Taylor reflects on how Christians should speak about homosexuality in the church with both biblical conviction and compassion. He urges believers to confront sin without condemnation and to remember that repentance, holiness, and accountability are calls for every Christian.
- The article warns against assuming same-sex attraction is only an issue outside the church.
- It emphasizes that shame does not bring wholeness as effectively as love joined with accountability.
- It calls every Christian to repentance, holiness, and renewed focus on God.
By Mark A. Taylor
Several years ago a friend asked me to read an opinion piece about homosexuality he had written for a Christian audience. Frankly, I donโt recall what he wrote, but I do remember his reaction after one comment I made to him.
โWe need to keep in mind that some who see this will be homosexuals,โ I said.
The look on his face told me heโd never thought of that.
Remembering Who May Be Listening
Heโd probably react differently today. So would I, because as one writer this week indicates, homosexual may not even be the best word to use when we talk about those with same-sex attractions. The word tends to stereotype those whose real-life stories reflect a variety of problems and experiences.
But today more than ever we cannot assume that only those outside the church are coping with this issue.
This week we introduce you to men committed to helping. They point out that love brings folks to wholeness long before shame. They tell what it means to look a sinner square in the face with a call for accountability but without condemnation. They describe the tightwire they walk when they commit to โhate the sin but love the sinner.โ
Calling Every Christian to Repentance
Theyโre demonstrating the awareness of the apostle Paul who included โmale prostitutesโ and โhomosexual offendersโ among those who will not inherit the kingdom of God and then added, โAnd that is what some of you wereโ (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).
Of course, โwereโ is the important word there. The greater struggle is with those who still โareโ but who claim allegiance to Christ.
Thatโs a problem not limited to this one shortcoming. The church today is also populated with those who worship something other than God (โidolatersโ), those who take what is not theirs (โthievesโ), those who engage in extramarital sex or view pornography (โsexually immoralโ), alcoholics (โdrunkardsโ), and the money hungry (โgreedyโ). Paul puts all of these sins in the past tense (vv. 9, 10), but they are present today in our congregations.
Perhaps we cannot agree on how to respond to such sin when we see it in other Christians. But all of us know how we want help with the sin we see in ourselves.
Perhaps all of us can agree that this weekโs writers confront sin just as weโd want someone to offer us a hand when we fall.
The way to deal with homosexuality in the church is neither to claim that same-sex activity is OK or unforgivable, but to acknowledge that itโs the same as the failures all of us experience. The call to repentance, holiness, and a new focus on God is not just for us to extend, but also for every Christian to heed.
Author: Mark A. Taylor
Mark A. Taylor, who served as Christian Standard editor from 2003 to 2017, retired in June 2017 after almost 41 years with Standard Publishing (Christian Standard Media).
