God's Blueprint for Marriage - Part 2: Marriage is Heterosexual

From creation, God designed marriage to be a committed heterosexual union between one man and one woman.

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Image designed by Paul D. Reich

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Last year, my dashboard’s “check engine” light came on indicating something was wrong with my Toyota Sienna. As with all vehicles since 1996, the “check engine” light is triggered by the car’s On-Board Diagnostic (OBD-II) system, which monitors emissions, engine performance, and other critical systems. The light coming on not only indicates something faulty, but it also signals that an error code has been generated.

Thankfully, my mechanic has the necessary diagnostic equipment to read the alphanumeric error codes that are generated by the OBD system. The error code showed that one of my vehicle parts had failed and was likely wearing out. Fortunately, I was able to locate a used part with 1/3 the mileage at about 8% of the cost of a new part. When replaced, my van was once again able to function dependably according to the manufacturer’s specifications.

Photo by Compagnons on Unsplash 

In a similar fashion, the Creator of marriage has designed marriage to function according to His specifications. When marriage breaks down, something in the marriage is not working according to His design. Thankfully, His “Maker’s Manual” outlines His specifications for marriage and also serves as our OBD system – Official Bible Diagnostic. When we violate God’s design, our OBD generates “error” messages showing where we fall short of His design and fail His operating specifications for marriage. Understanding these “error” messages requires skills in rightly interpreting and applying them for the health of marriage both as a sacred institution and for the well-being of our own marriages. If we misinterpret the “error” messages, we will damage God’s design for marriage, and thereby harm our spouses, our families, our own lives, and our society.

As noted in my previous blog, the Bible has much to say about marriage, but the first and most foundational of the Maker’s specifications for marriage are found in Genesis 2:24

Genesis 2:24 (NASB95)

24. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united

to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

These verses outline God’s creation design for marriage. As highlighted in the theme of this blog series, these verses are “God's Blueprint for Marriage,” outlining His original purpose and design for marriage. If God is the architect of marriage, then it only makes sense to follow His blueprints for marriage and build according to His design.

As noted in my previous post, when the Pharisees questioned Jesus about divorce, He went back to God’s creation design for marriage, quoting both this passage and Genesis 1:27 as the authoritative foundation for His answer.

Matthew 19:4-6 (NIV)

4 “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made

them male and female,’

5    and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be

united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?

6    So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together,

let man not separate.”

Jesus’ response based on God’s creation design is packed with insight into God’s purpose for marriage. His answer outlines 6 essential truths about the nature of marriage according to God’s intent. Later, when writing to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul also quoted from Genesis 2:24, giving us one additional insight into God’s purpose for marriage. Together, these seven truths are as follows:

SEVEN BIBLICAL FOUNDATION TRUTHS OF MARRIAGE

1.     Marriage is God’s Idea

2.     Marriage is Heterosexual

3.     Marriage is Monogamous

4.     Marriage is for Life

5.     Marriage is Intimate

6.     Marriage is to be Supported by Society

7.     Marriage is a Picture of Christ and the Church

In my last post, I discussed the first truth, “Marriage is God’s Idea.” In this post and the next, I will examine the second of these truths, “Marriage is Heterosexual.”

2. Marriage is Heterosexual

"... the Creator ‘made them male and female’ ..."

"... a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife ..."

From creation, God intended the estate of marriage to be enjoyed by a man and woman, not a man and a man nor a woman and a woman, and not either of them with a pet or robot.[1] This may not be politically correct, but it is biblical. Jesus affirmed heterosexual marriage and He supported His conviction with two passages from Genesis (1:27; 2:24).

Sadly, society today has undermined the biblical foundation of marriage. In 2005, the Supreme Court of Canada redefined marriage to be a union of “two persons,” changing the legal definition of marriage codified in Western common law in 1866 by Lord Penzance as "the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman, to the exclusion of all others."

Similarly, the US Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that states cannot define marriage as only being between a man and a woman. Then in 2022, the Respect for Marriage Act was passed to further protect same-sex marriages at the federal level. Yet God’s plan for marriage and the understanding of marriage from the earliest of recorded history is to be between one man and one woman.[2] 

Though I understand that a secular pluralistic democratic government seeks to support the rights of all its citizens regardless of religion, race, or sexual orientation, redefining marriage undermines God’s very creation design for marriage. At creation, God defined marriage as a life-long exclusive union between one man and one woman. Regardless of the rulings of secular society and the orientations or choices of individuals, as believers we look to God’s authority and His creation design for defining marriage.

The Bible consistently upholds the sanctity of marriage and the exclusive conjugal intimacy between one man and one woman within a committed marriage (we will discuss the issue of polygamy in a future post). The Scriptures place serious boundaries on all sexual expressions that violate this sacred union.

Hebrews 13:4 (ESV) 

4 Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be

undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

Marriage is to be held in high regard by ALL. Marriage is God’s gift to all humanity and should be honored by all people, but at the very least it is to be honored by all Christians who hold to the Bible as their authority for faith and practice. Marriage is not to be disregarded, distorted, or discarded.

 Image by Thomas Breher from Pixabay

Further, the marital sexual union is to be protected from all defilement. In fact, God Himself will judge those who defile the marriage bed. God’s judgment on sexual sin is a topic that is often avoided or even rejected by progressives due to their distortions of the nature of God’s love – something I will address later. But the Bible is clear that God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

Most understand why adultery defiles the marriage bed because adultery is a direct violation of the marriage covenant in which both partners vow exclusive sexual faithfulness to their spouses. However, the marriage bed is also defiled by all sexual immorality. God has restricted all sexual intimacy to marriage, where one man and one woman are exclusively committed to each other. All forms of sexual intimacy outside the bonds of marriage between one man and one woman whether prior to or after marriage violate the sanctity of the marriage bed – premarital sex, incestual sex, homosexual sex, pedophilia, pederasty, prostitution, bestiality, group sex, and more – even if it is consensual.

The Greek terms pornos (feminine – pornē), meaning “the sexually immoral,” and porneia, meaning “sexual immorality” (translated “fornication” in the KJV, a term meaning "consensual sexual intercourse between two people who are not married to each other"), are catch-all terms that incorporate all sexual immorality. Respected Greek lexicons are consistent in their definitions for porneia:

• “every kind of unlawful sexual intercourse”[3]

• “lewdness, or any sexual sin,”[4]

• “sexual immorality of any kind.”[5]

In a first-century Jewish context, porneia served as a broad term encompassing all the illicit sexual behaviors prohibited in the Old Testament law, particularly those found in Leviticus 18 and 20, located in a portion of Leviticus known as the holiness code. To both Jews and early Christians, sexual immorality included all sexual activity outside the bonds of a committed marriage, such as pre-marital sex, incestual sex, homosexual sex, and adulterous sex, extending even “beyond intercourse to any activity of a sexual nature” outside of marriage.[6] While some revisionist interpretations seek to restrict porneia to nonconsensual or paid forms of sex, the scholarly consensus is that porneia was used in the New Testament to encompass all sexual prohibitions in the Old Testament, in particular those outlined in Leviticus 18 and 20. I will further substantiate this when I discuss Acts 15.

In summary, all those who are sexually immoral (pornos/pornē) who engage in sexual immorality (porneia), that is any sexual activity outside of a marriage union between one man and one woman, commit sin and violate the sanctity of the marriage bed.

Many progressives argue that Jesus did not directly speak against homosexual activity, and they thereby wrongly conclude that Jesus did not oppose same-sex relations - some even go so far to say that He actually supported it. This is a logical fallacy based on an argument from silence. Jesus didn’t speak against incest, pedophilia, pederasty, prostitution, slavery, sex-trafficking, child abuse, domestic violence, and a host of other sins, but it is erroneous and foolish to assume that Jesus supported such activities simply because He did not speak against them. Old Testament prohibitions against homosexual activity were clear to the Jewish people, so this was not an issue that Jesus needed to address among “the lost sheep of Israel” where He concentrated His earthly ministry. However, homosexual activity was a critical issue that the apostle Paul needed to address among the Gentiles, something we will look at later.

Furthermore, Jesus resolutely endorsed heterosexual marriage, even going back to the creation of man and woman and God’s marriage mandate to support His position. In fact, the only alternative He gave to heterosexual marriage was celibacy (Matthew 19:10-12)—eunuchs whether by birth, castration, or as a chosen lifestyle were all celibates (Paul likewise only gives two options: marriage or celibate singleness, 1 Corinthians 7:1-4). Moreover, Jesus cited porneia, (which includes homosexuality), as grounds for divorce (Matthew 5:32; 19:9), and He included porneia in His list of sins that proceed from the heart (Matthew 15:19-20). In both cases, Jesus broadly identified all forms of sexual immorality as sin.

Matthew 15:19–20 (ESV) 

19   For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual

immorality [porneia], theft, false witness, slander.

20   These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands

does not defile anyone.” 

In contrast to ceremonial defilement that may come from eating with unwashed hands, Jesus is clear that sin proceeds from the heart and morally defiles a person, something ceremonial defilement does not do. Much like the writer of Hebrews stated that porneia defiles the marriage bed, Jesus stated that porneia morally defiles a person. Both passages have clear mental connections to the Levitical sex prohibitions that outlaw various forms of sexual immorality because they defile both the people and the land, resulting in the land vomiting out its inhabitants (Leviticus 18:24-30). The theme of moral defilement (making something morally unclean) is frequently associated with sexual sin. (Numbers 5:11-31; Deuteronomy 12:1-4; 1 Chronicles 5:1; Ezekiel 18:6, 11, 15; 22:11).

As for New Testament prohibitions against sexual immorality in general, it merits looking at several other important passages before we turn our attention to New Testament prohibitions specifically against homosexual or lesbian activity. In nearly all his letters, the apostle Paul includes one or more vice lists of sinful behaviors that he exhorts his readers to eschew. Always prominent in his lists are sexual sins. Three of Paul’s favorite terms are immorality (porneia), impurity (akatharsia – "moral filth and uncleanness"), and sensuality (aselegia – "sinful abandon, indulgence in sensual pleasure unrestrained by convention or morality, shameless and unbridled lust that disregards public decency" – sometimes translated “lasciviousness” or “wantonness”). These three terms frequently all occur together or two of them in tandem (2 Corinthians 12:21; Galatians 5:19; Colossians 3:5; Ephesians 4:19; 5:3-5).

In his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul goes to great lengths to teach believers to avoid all sexual immorality.

1 Thessalonians 4:1–8 (NIV) 

1 As for other matters, brothers and sisters, we instructed you how to live

in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge

you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.

2 For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord

Jesus.

3 It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual

immorality;

4    that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is

holy and honorable,

5 not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God;

6 and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother

or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told

you and warned you before.

7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.

8 Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human

being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit. 

While previously visiting the believers in Thessalonica, Paul had instructed them how to live lives that were pleasing to God. Here in his letter, Paul again repeats the same instruction. His repetition emphasizes the importance of this instruction. In fact, three times in this passage Paul indicates he is emphasizing what he previously taught them: “we instructed you” (4:1), “you know what instructions we gave you” (4:2), and “as we told you and warned you before” (4:6).

The instructions he gave and now repeats were by the authority of the Lord Jesus (4:2). The Greek word translated “instructions” (NIV, ESV) can also be translated “commandments” (NASB, KJV, NKJV) and “commands” (NET). In the book of Acts and in Paul’s epistles, the related verb form always refers to giving a “directive from an authoritative source.”[7] Regarding the noun form used in 1 Thessalonians 4:2, Lenski writes:

But these are really “orders,” παραγγελίαι, the word to designate military commands passed along from the commander through his captains to the troops. The word thus points to divine authority.[8]

Whether Paul is citing instruction that he received directly from Jesus or asserting his authority as Christ’s apostle, the truth is the same: As Christ’s representative, Paul is authoritatively presenting instructions that carry the weight of Christ’s command. To further emphasize this, he describes his instructions as “God’s will” (4:3) and closes his instructions on abstaining from immorality with “The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, …. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God” (4:7-8). These statements act like parentheses highlighting that his instructions sandwiched between these bookends are indeed commands from God and disobeying them is a violation against God.

God’s will is that we “be sanctified” (4:3), that we be set apart from the sinful world around us by living “holy and honorable” lives (4:4). Specifically, Paul’s three-fold command is

1) that we avoid sexual immorality (porneia),

2) that we control our bodies in a way that is honorable and holy,

not in passionate lusts like those who don’t know God, and

3) that we do not wrong or take advantage of others sexually – i.e., that

we do not seduce, manipulate, coerce, or extort others into any form

of sexual immorality (4:4-7).

The word “body” in 4:4 is not soma, the normal Greek word for body, but rather skuos, meaning “vessel” (See NASB, KJV, NKJV). Some scholars equate Paul’s use of “vessel” with Peter’s description of one’s wife as the “weaker vessel” (1 Peter 3:7 - ESV, KJV), and they interpret this to mean that believers are to acquire their wives in a holy and honorable way, not engaging in lustful passion like the pagans, nor using any form of sexual coercion or manipulation. In other words, they are to honor and protect the marriage bed from any form of sexual defilement.

Others equate “vessel” here with Paul’s use in 2 Corinthians 4:7, where Paul describes the treasure and power of Christ dwelling in “earthen vessels,” meaning the bodies of believers, which are made from dust and will return to dust. Hence, they interpret this to mean that we are to responsibly steward our bodies in holiness, not carrying out lustful desires, and not taking advantage of others through sexual manipulation, seduction, coercion, or exploitation. Because Paul is the author of both passages, I think the weight of evidence supports understanding “vessel” here to mean “body.” However, regardless of which view one holds, the truth is the same. We are to avoid all sexual immorality and not engage in the lustful behaviors of nonbelievers, nor influence others to engage in sexual immorality.

Paul then reminds the believers in Thessalonica that God will punish all who engage in sexual immorality or influence others to do so, a warning previously given to them by Paul and his ministry companions (4:6b). Paul’s warning echoes the warning in Hebrews 13:4, “for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.” Paul then restates his affirmation of God’s will, “For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life” (4:7). He concludes that the one who violates his instruction is violating God’s instruction, and ends with a parenthetic statement, “the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.” In other words, the same God who calls us to holiness also gives us His Holy Spirit whose holy character will lead us into holiness and whose indwelling presence enables us to live holy lives. More could be said on this passage, but this hits the high points.[9]

Why is Paul so vocal about sexual prohibitions in his letters? We discover from 1 Thessalonians 4, that Paul is giving commands “by the authority of the Lord Jesus.” Paul’s firm conviction is that his instruction is “God’s will” and further that “anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God.” So, Paul is vocal because he is convinced His instruction is from God. But where did Paul get this idea? It may very well be that he received direct instruction from the risen Christ; however, there are also two other clear sources of divine authority from which he derives his mandate: 1) the Old Testament Scriptures, and 2) delegated authority from the apostles. Both of these divine sources of authority converge in Acts 15, where Paul was sent by the original apostles to carry a message of moral purity to the Gentile churches.

As the Gospel spread to more and more Gentiles, there were some Jewish believers in Judea, referred to in Acts 15 as “certain men” (15:1) and “Pharisees who had believed” (15:5), who taught, “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved” (15:1). They believed that Gentiles should first become Jewish proselytes before placing their faith in Christ. Paul and Barnabas (and Peter) hotly disagreed with this teaching, believing that salvation was by grace through faith in Christ alone (Acts 15:8-11; Ephesians 2:6-8). Their disagreement led to sharp debate and this matter was taken to the original apostles and the elders of the church residing in Jerusalem.

At the Jerusalem council, after much debate and abundant testimony of God’s Spirit coming on Gentile believers as well as doing wondrous miracles among them, a decision was rendered by the apostles. James, the brother of Jesus and the leader of this assembly quoted several passages from the Old Testament Prophets regarding God’s plan for the Gentiles (15:13-18) and then pronounced this decision:

Acts 15:19–21 (NIV) 

19 “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for

the Gentiles who are turning to God.

20 Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food

polluted by idols, from sexual immorality [porneia], from the meat

of strangled animals and from blood.

21 For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest

times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.” 

So, the apostles and elders drafted a letter to communicate their decision, and they sent Paul and Barnabas along with Judas and Silas to deliver the letter to the Gentile believers and orally confirm the regulations in the letter.

Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Acts 15:22–29 (NIV) 

22 Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose

some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.

They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders

among the believers.

23 With them they sent the following letter:

The apostles and elders, your brothers, To the Gentile believers in

Antioch, Syria and Cilicia: Greetings.

24 We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization

and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said.

25 So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our

dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 

26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

27 Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth

what we are writing. 

28 It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with

anything beyond the following requirements:

29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the

meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality [porneia]. You

will do well to avoid these things. Farewell. 

Why these four prohibitions? Where do these four prohibitions come from and why did the apostles choose these four prohibitions out of all the Old Testament commandments?

First, these four prohibitions all come from the Holiness Code of Leviticus 17-20, and they are all presented in the same order they first appear in Leviticus. [10]

• No Food Sacrificed to Idols: Leviticus 17:7-9 forbids making sacrifices to idols. See also 18:21, 19:4, and 20:2-5. Some idolatry involved eating a portion of the sacrifice.

• No Eating Blood: Leviticus 17:10-15 forbids eating blood (4X). The reason given is “for the life of all flesh is in its blood” (17:11, 14). This is a restatement of God’s instruction to Noah when He approved animals as food for humans (Genesis 9:4).

• No Eating Meat from Strangled Animals: Leviticus 17:13 stipulates that the blood must be drained from animals before eating, hence do not eat the meat of strangled animals. So, this restriction further expands the “no eating blood” prohibition above.

• No Immorality: Leviticus 18:1-30 forbids various forms of sexual immorality including incest, adultery, homosexual relations, and bestiality, with a summary prohibition in 18:26. All the sexual prohibitions of chapter 18 are then repeated in chapter 20 with the addition of penalties prescribed for violating each sexual prohibition.

So, it is clear the apostles got their prohibitions from the book of Leviticus. Leviticus was written during Israel’s nearly one year stay at Mount Sinai. It stipulates various requirements for sacrifices (chapter 1 to chapter 6:7 and 21:17-33), requirements for priests (6:8 to chapter 10 and 20:1-21:16), requirements for holy days (chapters 23 and 25), requirements for the tabernacle (chapter 24), and requirements for things dedicated to God (chapter 27). It also contains a variety of dietary, health, and purification laws (chapters 11-15) and a chapter outlining blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience (chapter 26). Sandwiched in the middle of all of this are four chapters, 17-20, that stand out from the others because they cover moral laws that are not only applicable to all Israel but also to “any foreigners residing among them.” This phrase is stated repeatedly throughout these chapters specifically regarding prohibitions against idolatry, eating blood, and sexual immorality (17:8, 10, 12, 13, 15; 18:26; 20:1).

In these chapters we also have God’s recurring injunction to all Israel “to be holy because, I the Lord your God, am holy.” 

19:2 “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy

because I, the LORD your God, am holy.

20:7 “ ‘Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the LORD your

God.

20:24   "… I am the LORD your God, who has set you apart from the nations.

20:26   “You are to be holy to me because I, the LORD, am holy, and I have

set you apart from the nations to be my own.”

“Holy” refers to that which is separated or dedicated to God for a special Godward purpose, as opposed to that which is used for “common” or “ordinary” purposes. There are repeated descriptions throughout Leviticus of the sacrifices and offerings as holy, the tabernacle and its furnishings as holy, the priestly garments as holy, and the various feasts and special days as holy. That is, these objects and days were to be set apart to God and only used for His prescribed purposes.

All of this was to teach that God is holy: that He is uniquely set apart from and transcendent over all created things; that He is uniquely distinct and perfect in every way; that He is entirely righteous, just, and morally pure, unstained by sin, evil, or moral darkness; and that He alone is deserving of worship and must be approached with great reverence and deep humility.

God’s people were also set apart to God as “holy.” As such they were to keep themselves both ceremonially and morally clean so that God could dwell in their midst. This was especially important for the priests who served in the tabernacle and for anyone approaching God to worship Him. They must be holy and treat God as holy because HE IS HOLY. However, God’s intent was not that the people divide their lives into sacred and secular, but that their holiness, that is their devotion to God and their purity, would characterize all of life and relationships, to distinguish Israel from all the other nations as a holy nation unto God.

This is why there is great emphasis in the Old Testament on the “clean” and “unclean.” The concepts of “clean” and “unclean” were applied both in a ceremonial sense and in a moral sense. Ceremonial uncleanness resulted from eating prohibited foods or from coming into contact with things considered to be ceremonially unclean, such as bodily discharges or a dead body. Ceremonial defilement brought temporary uncleanness and required various cleansing rituals to return to a state of cleanness. Cleansing from ceremonial defilement was attained through such practices as a period of waiting, quarantine, ritual washing, and in some cases sacrifices. After following the prescribed protocols, a person was once again deemed “clean.”

In contrast, moral defilement was treated much more severely in the Old Testament. Sins such as idolatry (Deuteronomy 7:25-26) and sexual immorality were deemed “abominations” (tōʻēḇā). Sexual sins that are specifically described as “abominations” (tōʻēḇā) or “perversions” (tě·ḇěl) include homosexual sex (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13), bestiality (Leviticus 18:23), and prostitution (Deuteronomy 23:18 – both female and male prostitution are mentioned). Adultery and incest both mentioned in Leviticus 18 are also included as abominations in the summary prohibition (Leviticus 18:24-30).

Unlike ceremonial defilement that requires only ritual cleansing, sexual immorality (adultery, various incestuous relationships, homosexuality, and bestiality) is punishable by death (Leviticus 20:10-16), while lesser sexual sins such as menstrual sex and some incestuous relationships deemed to be less damaging to family structure and lineage (i.e., sex with a non-blood relative or a half-sister) are punishable by spiritual separation from God, excommunication from the community, and childlessness (20:17-23). Similarly, Paul calls the church of Corinth to excommunicate a man who is sleeping with father's wife (1 Corinthians 5). Either way, all these sexual sins are recognized as capital or punishable offenses, not mere ceremonial defilement that is rectified by ceremonial cleansing.

Moreover, Moses goes to great lengths in Leviticus 18:24-30 to describe sexual immorality as morally defiling not merely ceremonially defiling. These sins not only defile those committing the sins, but they also defile the nation and the land. To emphasize this, God mentions “defilement” six times in His summary of sexual prohibitions. The result of this defilement is the land “vomiting out” (KJV) its inhabitants (a concept alluded to five times in the passage).

Leviticus  18:24–30 (NASB) 

24 ‘Do not defile yourselves by any of these things; for by all

these the nations which I am casting out before you have

become defiled.

25 ‘For the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its

punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants.

26 ‘But as for you, you are to keep My statutes and My judgments and

shall not do any of these abominations, neither the native, nor

the alien who sojourns among you 

27 (for the men of the land who have been before you have done all 

these abominations, and the land has become defiled);

28 so that the land will not spew you out, should you defile it, as it

has spewed out the nation which has been before you.

29 ‘For whoever does any of these abominations, those persons who

do so shall be cut off from among their people. 

30 ‘Thus you are to keep My charge, that you do not practice any of the

abominable customs which have been practiced before you, so as

not to defile yourselves with them; I am the Lord your God.’ ” 

Except for one prohibition against child sacrifice, all the prohibitions in Leviticus 18:1-23 are against sexual sins: (incest, adultery, homosexuality, and bestiality). In summary of the prohibitions in this chapter, four times Moses calls these sexual perversions “abominations,” six times he asserts that they “defile” people and the land, and five times he describes the defilement so severe that the land will “spew out” the inhabitants (5 times including “casting out” and “cut off”).

Add to this the death penalty for the most severe sexual violations (adultery, homosexual sex, bestiality, and the forms of incest that most damage the family structure and lineage) and excommunication (equivalent to being “spewed out”) for the less severe sexual violations, and it becomes obvious that these sexual sins were deemed moral violations far worse than the activities causing only ceremonial defilement.

With this background, it is obvious why the leaders of the early church included “abstain from sexual immorality” in their prohibitions to the Gentile churches. While the ceremonial and sacrificial laws were understood as having been fulfilled in Christ and no longer applicable to New Testament believers, these sexual prohibitions were viewed as moral laws reflecting God's unchanging character and were reaffirmed by the apostles as important moral standards for all Christians, even the Gentile believers.

Because the believer’s body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, sexual sins (all sexual activities outside of a monogamous committed marriage) are a misuse of God’s design, a form of self-harm, and a cause of moral defilement (Matthew 15:18-20; Romans 1:24; 6:12-23; 1 Corinthians 6:13, 18-20; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7; Hebrews 13:4). Recall also, as I mentioned previously, that the apostle Paul often links immorality (porneia) with impurity (akatharsia – moral filth and uncleanness), demonstrating the defiling nature of sexual sin, a concept with which he was very familiar from his study of the Old Testament Scriptures.

So, why does Paul make a big deal of sexual sin in his epistles? In part, because he accepted the authority and relevance of Old Testament prohibitions on sexual immorality which is evident throughout his writings. But also in part, because he received a commission from the other Apostles in Jerusalem as recorded in Acts 15. Following this commission, the book of Acts then records that Paul went about doing exactly what he was commissioned. Immediately after the apostolic decision, Paul departs on his second missionary journey taking along Silas while Barnabas and John Mark go a separate direction. Paul’s purpose is to revisit the cities where he preached on his first Missionary Journey and see how the believers are doing. By the time we get to chapter 16, Paul and Silas are joined by Timothy in Lystra. As they continue to revisit the cities in southern Asia Minor, they deliver the decision made by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.

Acts 16:4–5 (ESV)

4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for

observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and

elders who were in Jerusalem.

5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in

numbers daily.

The result of their visit is that the churches were strengthened and continued to grow. After revisiting the churches, Paul was then led by the Holy Spirit to Philippi in Macedonia and other new cities throughout Greece. Later in Acts, when Paul returns to Jerusalem and meets with James and the elders of Jerusalem, they remind him of the earlier decision

Acts 21:25 (ESV) 

25 But as for the Gentiles who have believed, we have sent a letter with

our judgment that they should abstain from what has been sacrificed

to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from

sexual immorality.” 

It is no surprise, therefore, that Paul regularly and consistently wrote against sexual immorality in his epistles. In addition to broadly addressing sexual immorality in many of his epistles, Paul specifically addresses the issue of homosexuality in three of his epistles. However, since this blog has already become much longer than my normal posts, I will cover these texts in my next post.

Conclusion

Though many more details could have been added to this lengthy post, it should be clear that any sexual activity outside of a heterosexual marriage between one man and one woman is prohibited by Scripture and is immoral. This is consistent in both the Old and New Testaments.

Further, Jesus affirmed heterosexual marriage by endorsing the creation texts in Genesis as authoritative on this matter. He also addressed sexual immorality as sin and as morally defiling. Moreover, all the apostles rendered a decision prohibiting sexual immorality even among Gentile churches. Their understanding of sexual immorality is drawn from the Old Testament, in particular Leviticus 18 and 20. These texts forbid homosexual practice.

Paul, together with other leaders, was commissioned by the apostles to bring a letter outlining their decision prohibiting sexual immorality to the Gentile churches. Acts records Paul’s fulfillment of this directive. Further, Paul addressed the issue of sexual immorality in at least 8 of the 13 letters attributed to him, and this doesn’t include prohibitions by Peter or Jude.

Regardless of the issue, it is always important to both courageously uphold biblical standards while at the same time reaching out compassionately and redemptively to those who fall short of those standards. This is also true when it comes to those who have fallen short of God’s standards for sexual purity. At the very least, this means that we be respectful in our conversations, demonstrate the love of God to those trapped in sin, convey God’s forgiveness in Christ to those who repent, and teach the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome sin. However, it does not mean that we shy away from difficult conversations or compromise the truth of biblical morality. We should never condone sin that God condemns.

In my next blog, I will unpack the passages in Paul’s letters where he specifically addresses the issue of homosexuality. Originally, I had hoped to cover everything in a single blog, but as this post grew to be much longer than my normal posts, I decided to split God’s heterosexual design for marriage into two posts. For those who wish to go deeper than I can cover in these two posts, I will recommend a variety of resources for personal study in my next post.

REFERENCES

[1] Though not legally recognized, a quick search on Google reveals that a number of people have held ceremonial weddings with pets, robots, or AI entities.

[2] The earliest recorded marriage ceremony between one man and one woman is dated about 2350 B.C. in Mesopotamia.

[3] William F. Arndt, Walter Bauer, and F. Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001), 693.

[4] Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 1992), 1201.

[5] Johannes P. Louw and Eugene A. Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1989), 771.

[6] Sam Allbery, Is God anti-gay?: And other questions about homosexuality, the Bible and same-sex attraction? (United Kingdom: The Good Book Company, 2015), 41.

[7] Otto Schmitz, “Παραγγέλλω, Παραγγελία,” in Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Gerhard Kittel, Geoffrey W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1964), 763.

[8] R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistles to the Colossians, to the Thessalonians, to Timothy, to Titus and to Philemon (Columbus, OH: Lutheran Book Concern, 1937), 306.

[9] I would love to describe the chiastic structure of this passage and other insights that have enriched my understanding of this passage, but this is already a long blog post.

[10] I owe this insight to Donald S. Fortson and Rollin G. Grams. Unchanging Witness: The Consistent Christian Teaching on Homosexuality in Scripture and Tradition. Kindle Edition. They summarize a range of scholarly sources.