Recently an individual (Rick Thompson) wrote a letter to the editor of the local paper. In his letter, he was complaining about another letter writer's (by the name of Hartz) use of the Bible. Hartz had written to support the concept of marriage as being ONLY between a man and a woman. Thompson took offense to Hartz's use of the Bible and so he wrote, "According to Hartz, 'My position is based on some easily understood statements in the Bible (Romans 1:26.).' Oh, really? If Hartz wants to invoke this passage by Paul (often taken out of context and open to various interpretations by biblical scholars) for discriminating against gay people, fair enough; but let's hope that Hartz also then embraces Paul's support for the oppression of women and acceptance of slavery."Thompson's comment about the Bible - (that it is) "often taken out of context and open to various interpretations by biblical scholars" - is one that is used over and over again to try to explain away the clear teaching of Scripture. So if Mr. Thompson wants to talk about the context of Romans 1:26 - let's talk context. The immediate context of this verse reads as follows:
"Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion" (Romans 1:24-27).
Paul's letter to the Romans is all about the Gospel. In chapters 1-3, Paul is demonstrating humanity's NEED for the gospel. Specifically in chapter one, he describes humanity's downward spiral into depravity due to man's suppression of God's truth (1:18) and the exchanging of God's truth for a lie (1:25). When Paul makes reference to homosexual behavior it is in the context of humanity's rejection of God the Creator. Because man has rejected Him, God "gave them over to shameful lusts" - one of which is homosexuality (which Paul also refers to as a perversion.).
Now understood in its proper context, Romans 1:26-27 makes it clear that homosexuality is immoral. Labeling it such is not a form of discrimination as Mr. Thompson would like to believe. Just as stealing, adultery, murder, etc. are immoral acts - so is homosexual behavior. Mr. Thompson, like many others who don't want to hear what the Bible has to say, revert to the old "taken out of context and subject to various interpretations" argument. Now I am not saying that the Bible can't be taken out of context (because that is surely a danger in interpreting any piece of literature). But I think in the case of Romans 1 - Hartz got the context right and Thomspon got it woefully wrong! (Oh, and regarding Thompson's closing comment, "let's hope that Hartz also then embraces Paul's support for the oppression of women and acceptance of slavery" - again he is the one guilty of not understanding context (in this case of the first century Roman-Graeco world) - but that's a subject for some other day.
Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj
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