The Ghanaian And The Homosexuality Upsurge : What Does The Bible Really Teach

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WHAT IS HOMOSEXUALITY , if l may ask ?

The Greek word HOMOS means the same.

In general terms, the word or terminology has come to be understood as the manifestation of sexual desire toward a member of one’s own sex or the erotic activity with a member of the same sex.

Ordinarily, the current debate about homosexuality in our country should have been deemed as a non -starter, given no true religion be it christianity, islam ,traditional or any other religious faith has an open door policy towards this social phenomenon.

However, given the persistent approach and the insistence to propagate if not root homosexuality within the fabrics of our communities, may account for the need to place the subject in perspective

Whether it is a right ,appropriate , wrong or unacceptable social phenomenon, the view may depend on which individual or groups of individuals are asking the question.

On my part therefore , my contribution to the subject of the place of homosexuality in our Ghanaian society will focus solely upon the basis of true christianity-the Bible , the divinely inspired Word of Jehovah God. A truly christian standard of ethics, that reflect the conduct of divine revelations neither of impirical research nor of public opinion of the christian.

Undoubtedly, the Bible is the absolute and supreme authority for either christian belief or standard of conduct , behaviour and lifestyle.

The Bible has said much about sex sins in general, but for the purposes of this discourse, my focus will be on what the Bible really teach on the subject of homosexuality.

Homosexuality is condemned in the Bible.

Apostle Paul in his writing inspired by the holy spirit, declares that HOMOSEXUALS ” shall not inherit the kingdom of God ”-Cor. 6: 9-10.

Homosexuality , is an illicit lust ,forbidden by God, as he told the Israelites ” thou shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind”. Lev. 18 :22 .

In Lev.20 :13, homosexuality is seen as an abormination, ”if a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed abomination; they shall be put to death; their blood be upon them.

These passages reflect the condemnation of homosexuality as a prime example of sin-sexual perversion.

Clearly, no true christian worthy of it’s kind, cannot and should not attempt either to alter Jehovah God’s view point or deviate from it.

The biblical accounts use the term sodomy as a synonym for homosexuality, with Jehovah God speaking succintly on the issue when he said ” There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel- Deut.23:17 .

The whore and the sodomite as used here, are in the same category of sinners. Indeed, a sodomite was not an inhabitant of sodom or a descendant of an inhabitant of sodom, but a man who had given himself to homosexuality, and the unatural vice for which sodom was known- Gen. 19 4-8

It is well known and acknowledged that the Hebrew word for ”KNOW”, as reflects in verse 5, is ”Yada”, a sexual connotative terminology, used frequently in describing sexual intercourse-( Gen. 4:1, 17, 25, Matt. 1 :24-25.

The message that reflects in Gen. 19, is evidently implicit, where Lot pled with the men to ”do not so wickedly”.

Homosexuality is a wicked act and must and should be recognised as such, else there will be no hope for the homosexual, who may be asking for help to be extricated from sinful way of lifestyle.

MARRIAGE.

This refers to the unique union of a man and a woman to live together as husband and wife according to the standard set out in the Bible.

Marriage thus is a divine institution, that provides for intimate relationship between husband and wife along with a feeling of security because there is a climate of love and because a personal commitment has been made by each mate.

When establishing the institution of marriage, Jehovah God did so not only to provide a close companion who would complement a man but also to make the provision for producing more humans and doing so within the framework of a family arrangement.- Gen. 1 :26-27 ,2: 18-25.

Thus,referring to a union of two persons of the same sex as a ‘ marriage”, from the biblical perspective is a misnomer, given we see the Bible defining marriage as a divinely ordered institution, designed to form a permanent union between one man and one woman, for the the one purpose among others of procreation or propagating the human race peiod.

Significantly,this is Jehovah God’s order in the first of such a union, as recorded in Gen.1:27-28, 2:24 and Matt.19:5.

If in his original creation of humankind, Jehovah God had created two persons of the same sex, there would not have been a human race in existence as it is today or has been in history.

The whole idea of the same sex marrying is nothing less than absurdity gross ignorance, hollowness, foolish pride ,ridiculous, unreasonable and stupidity

We need to get one thing very clear and that is, a clergy might bless a homosexual marriage, but Jehovah God is not in it, he won;t bless it today, tomorrow or at anytime.

PUNISHABLE SINS IN THE BIBLE .

The book of Romans 1: 26-31, lists twenty three punishable sins of which homosexuality leads the list.

In his writing, Paul indicated ” Because they do this, God has given them over to shameful passions. Even the women pervert the natural use of their sex by unnatural acts.

In the same way the men give up natural sexual relations with women and burn with passion for each other. Men do shameful things with each other, and as a result they bring upon themselves the punishment they deserve for their wrong doing.

….They know that God’s law says that people who live in this way deserve death, yet not only do they continue to do these very things, but they even approve of others who do them.”

Some socio-religious commentators describe the behaviour and social conduct of homosexuals as ‘vile affection’ translating the Greek word for ”vile” ATIMIA,which means dirty, filthy, evil, dishonourable

The word affection in Greek is patnos, used by the Greeks of either good or bad desire. Thus in the contect of the book of Romans, the word may have been used in a bad sense

The ”vile affection” as used , presents a degrading passion , a shameful lust. Both this desire ( lustful affection) and the act of homosexuality are condemned in the Bible as SIN.

Biblically, the debate about homosexuality should be unecessary and waste of precious time, a time that should well be devoted to learning more about the truth as contained in the holy scriptures

For one thing , homosexuality need be accepted and conceptualised for what Jehovah God says it is , – SIN.

It is open hypocrisy for some homosexuals who attempt to circumvent the plain and open teaching of the bible, with the argument of being created by Jehovah God in this way -as a homosexual.

. There is no imperical evidence or the slightest of indication in the scripture to give credence or support this fallacy or claim.

God never created man with a so-called ” homosexual-need”. No child is born homosexual. Everybody is born either as a male ( man) or female ( woman )

Notably, in every circumstance the Bible refers to homosexual, the emphasis is on the perversion of salvation.

Any practising homosexual or their apologists, are just guilty of ”leaving the natural use of the woman- as in the book of Romans 1:27, which clearly explains that his behaviour is much against ”nature”,as in the case of of the lesbian in Roman 1:26.

Given that homosexuality as described above is much against nature, the acceptable and most reasonable position is to debunk the genetic concept and dismiss it out completely as irrational ,foolish, naivety and ambigious

Evidently, were homosexuality to be a genetic problem, there would be none or little hope for the homosexual, simply because there is no chance for the genes in a person to be altered in any shape or form.

ADVICE TO THE CHURCH

The sixty-six books and letters that make up the Bible, are inspired work of Jehovah God. -2 Timothy 3:15.

In 2 Peter 1 :21 ” Men spoke from God as they were borne along by holy spirit”. Thus the Bible as we come to know, contains God’s message, not that of the men who wrote it down, and that the entire Bible truthfully is ”the word of God.”-1 Thessalonians 2 :13.

Against this pre-disposition, it can be said with ease of conviction that there is nothing foundationally essential for the church and the world than to return to the TRUTH, the word of Jehovah God-the BIBLE.

Someone recently said that the church and the world are suffering from a famine, of the worst type. and that modern society is in a degenerating and deteriorating state, created by a stark departure from the TRUTH.

Unequivocably, this TRUTH, does not exist independently of Jehovah God, and his written word the BIBLE, and his begotten son Jesus Christ.

The TRUTH,as discussed earlier,is not and never a sense of a man’s imagination or convictions, for man in his fallen state ( Genesis 3 :1-19 ) does not know TRUTH, and that is why man contines to sin.

It has become obvious that a civilization without the truth is doomed to obscurity. Historical accounts are good testomonies to this fact.

Every civilization be it ancient or medieval,that ignored and treated the word of Jehovah God , the truth and his laws with contempt and dishonour has crumbled

No doubt, our current civilization is well on the ”hard road to travel,” -road to doom..

There cannot be any escape or survival independently of Jehovah God and his words of truth and wisdom

It is crucially vital for the church to return to the truth , the whole truth, nothing but the truth , founded and grounded upon HIM who said” l am the truth- John 14:6, and also on the reflections of John 17:17….” Dedicate them to yourself by means of the truth,your word is truth.”

It is very neccessary and important for the churches to undertake clear and unambigious discourse of the scriptures and a continuing exaltation of the person and work of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ, if our civilization and it’s citizens are to be saved from the disaster, doom and total destruction that overcame past civilizationS.

For evidently, any historical epoch or civilization with the philosophy or doctrine which denies the real TRUTH, does not stand a dog’s chance of survival.

WORD OF CAUTION

The current homosexual upsurge in our community today, is a reflection of one phase of declining trend in morality.

When the disciples of the Lod Jesus Christ asked himof ” what shall be the sign of his coming,, and of the end time, he told them that ”iniquity shall be abound”-Matt.24:3-12.

There is so much permissiveness and promiscuity in sexual behaviour and conduct unprecendented in today’s Ghana .

There is little or no restraint upon the widespread of material containing pictures and writings depicting erotic conduct and behaviour, intended to cause sexual excitement and or arousal.

The view is that this is what is contained in our Lord’s prophecy about’abounding iniquity’.

There is also a prophetic statement in Paul’s second epistle to Timothy, which has some implications for this discourse and our country.

Paul wrote ” This know also that in the last days, perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters,proud, blaphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful ,unholy, without natural affection-2 Timothy 3:1-3.

Homosexuality is an unatural affection, practised by individuals ”that defile themselves with mankind-1 Timothy 1 :10, which the New American Standard Version translates as ”homosexual”, and in the New International Version as ‘ perverts’.

Against these revelations of the bible, the upsweep of homosexuality is more than definately a trend which is indicative of the approaching end of the age- the end of this civilization, the end time.

THE CHRISTIAN’S RESPOND TO HOMOSEXUALITY

As true and practising christians, there is the need for us to be guided that homosexuals like all of us sinners are the object of Jehovah God’s LOVE.

The Bible says”But God commandeth his love toward us, in that while we are yet sinners,Christ died for us-Romans 5:8

Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only,but also for the sins of the whole world- 1 John 2:2

As we share Jehovah God’s love for lost sinners as Christians, it will be worth to seek to reach the homosexual with the message of truth, gospel of the Christ which is ” power of God unto Salvation, to everyone that believeth- Romans 1:16.

As Christians we should and must hate all SIN but not the SINNER. The homosexual is a precious child for which Jesus Christ paid the ransom sacrifice, through his death on the torture stake.

We can resolve to point all sinners to the Lord and Saviour, who commissioned us to ”Go ye into all the world , and preach the gospel to every creation- Matt. 16:15

The true practising Christian is obliged and duty bound to take the good news-the gospel, the message of truth to all ( sinners) inclusive of the homosexual.

The body of Christ the church and the Christian can help the homosexual by endevouring to draw their attention to what Jehovah God say in his word, in a kind and loving spirited manner, demonstrating to the homosexual that they are wrong in their total disregard, disobedience and the rebelliouness towards Jehovah God and his words of truth

However, it is significant the homosexual must have to admit to the fact that their lifestyle is sinful and demonstrate the humility of commitment and the desire to be made free from sin.

For a trully born again Christian cannot and must not continue to practice sin without reaping the fruits of sinfulness-misery and unhappiness brought about by the loss of fellowship with Jehovah God, the fear of retribution and the anxiety produced by guilt.

The homosexual would need to ask he/herself if the value of the temporary sexual gratification of the flesh he/she is cacooned in is worth all the consequences and the losses he/she would be subjected to.

THE AUTHOR WHO IS AN OFFENDER MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT, IS A STUDY OF THE TRUTH

Can be contacted via [email protected]

Source: Marcus-Chris Lawson.

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