The 1960s were some of the most tumultuous and divisive years of our young country's history. Our union was still not so unified on the issue of equal rights, and therefore, the civil rights movement pressed ahead. Draft cards were shredded and burned as antiwar protests raged on. Our nation saw the raw terror of political assassination in the deaths of men such as John F Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Robert F. Kennedy.

Our country was in turmoil and it seemed as though the political opinion was split right down the middle. Strong opinions raged on both sides.

Today, in 2019, our country is equally divided. Though I personally did not live in the 1960s, it would appear to me that we, as a modern culture and society, did not get much closer to unity and tranquility than those before us.

However, today, we are divided on different issues than those that dragged on during the 60s. Today, instead of civil rights and antiwar protests, we are divided concerning women's rights, the tragedy of abortion, and the issue of homosexuality.

While lengthy articles could (and should) be dedicated to the issues of women's rights and abortion, this article is devoted to the social issue of homosexuality.

On June 26, 2015, same sex marriage became legal in the United States. Now, more than ever, evangelical Christians have had to stand up and fight the fires of sexual rebellion in our society. Like never before in our nation's history, Christ-followers now have to defend the sanctity of marriage and the Scriptures that our God breathed into inspiration.

It should seem obvious that when speaking out against homosexuality it would be a reasonable and natural thought to quote the words of our Savior Jesus Christ on the subject. However, when locked into the heat of a debate on homosexuality, many evangelicals are surprised to find that when they sift through the Gospels, Jesus doesn't have much to say about the subject. In fact, Jesus never directly addressed the issue at all!

Why is that? Why did Jesus Christ - God almighty in the flesh - never address the subject of homosexuality? Does that mean that Jesus approved of same-sex relationships? Absolutely not.

Those who support same-sex marriage love to point out to Christians that Jesus never addressed homosexuality in His three year ministry. According to them, since Jesus never mentioned it, that obviously means that He supported it. They are wrong.

Here are 5 reasons why Jesus never discussed the subject of homosexuality:

1. Directly Correcting Every Social and Theological Issue was not why Jesus Came to the Earth

Just because Jesus did not mention a subject in the Gospel accounts does not mean that we have the freedom to decide what He did or did not believe about that subject.

There are many subjects that Jesus did not approach. Do we just assume that He approved of those issues simply because He never brought them up in the accounts we have of His three year ministry? I don't think so. In fact, there is a pretty clear reason as to why Jesus doesn't address every controversial subject and hotly debated theological question: that's not why He came!

Certainly, every theologian in human history would have loved for Jesus to have set the record straight on so many questions that have divided so many churches for so many years, but Jesus did not come to earth to answer theological questions.

Certainly, every evangelical would love to point to a passage of Scripture in red that stated, "Homosexuality is wrong," but it is not in there. Why is it not in there? It's not in there because Jesus didn't come to directly correct every single controversial issue.

Yes, Jesus did a lot of social clarification. Every time He ran into the Pharisees He did some type of social clarification. But it is not like Jesus had a list of social issues to clarify that He was marking off - one by one - before He died. When He clarified social issues, it was always a means to something greater.

Jesus came to save the lost and glorify God. Jesus' purpose was not to set the record straight on social and theological issues but to die, be buried, raise from the dead, set the captives free, and make the name of God look great.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." John 3:16-17 (emphasis added)

"And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:9-10 (emphasis added)

When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." John 17:1-5 (emphasis added)

Jesus did not directly address the subject of homosexuality because directly correcting every social issue of mankind was not His purpose in coming to this earth.

2. Jesus Held a Very High View of the Old Testament

Jesus didn't directly address the subject of homosexuality because He didn't have to. Jesus had a very high view of the Old Testament and believed that it was the inspired Word of God.

To Jesus, whatever the Old Testament stated was God's holy law and was the last say-so on any subject and was to be obeyed. To Jesus, there were no if, ands, or buts. Jesus revered the Scriptures. And since the New Testament hadn't been written yet, the Old Testament WAS THE SCRIPTURES.

What we, as modern Christians, call the Old Testament, the Jews call the Tanakh. It is divided into three main sections: the Torah (Law), the Nevi'im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings).

Jesus quoted from every section of the Tanakh.

The Law:

He quoted the law when He was tempted by Satan:

And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4 (cited from Deuteronomy 8:3)

Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Matthew 4:7 (cited from Deuteronomy 6:16)

Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” Matthew 4:10 (cited from Deuteronomy 6:13)

The Prophets:

When Jesus came to His home town in Nazareth, He went to the synagogue and quoted from the prophet Isaiah:

And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:17-19 (cited from Isaiah 61:1-2)

The Writings:

Jesus quoted often from the Psalms. In fact, He quoted no other book more than the Psalms.

When Jesus was healing the blind and the lame in the Temple, people began to say, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" and the chief priests became furious. They said to Jesus,

“Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?” Matthew 21:16 (cited from Psalm 8:2)

Jesus quoted the Psalms again in Matthew 21 and said,

Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? Matthew 21:42 (cited from Psalm 118:22-23)

My hope is that you can clearly see that Jesus highly revered the Old Testament and fully understood it to be the Word of God. We have only began to scratch the surface of Jesus' citations of the Old Testament. He quoted from every book of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament) and quoted from many of the prophetic books. When Jesus spoke of the Scriptures, He was speaking of the Old Testament.

So, what does the Old Testament say about homosexuality?

"Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." Genesis 2:24

"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination." Leviticus 18:22

"If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them." Leviticus 20:13

Why did Jesus not mention homosexuality? He didn't mention it because He didn't have to - the Old Testament clarified God's position on the issue long before His ministry.

3. Homosexuality Wasn't a Prominent Issue in Jesus' Society

Today, as evangelical Christians, we have to battle the issue of homosexuality because we live in a society of homosexuality. In a 2019 America, a homosexual can proudly proclaim his/her homosexuality with no fear of consequence. Our culture has legalized gay marriage and the media glorifies people of the same-sex coming together.

This was not the case in Jesus' day.

We have already seen what the Old Testament says about homosexuals:

"If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them." Leviticus 20:13

Jesus lived in a society that stringently followed the laws of the Old Testament to a fault (as odd is that seems). Any man or woman caught as a homosexual in His day would have, quite literally, been stoned to death. If their were any homosexuals, they certainly would not have been open about it.

Jesus didn't bring up the subject of homosexuality because it wasn't a subject that needed to be brought up - He didn't live in a society that struggled with the issue of homosexuality. To bring the subject up would have been quite random.

He did, however, bring up and rebuke the subjects of anger/murder (Matthew 5:21-26), lust/adultery (Matthew 5:27-30), divorce (Matthew 5:31-32), swearing/oaths (Matthew 5:33-37), vengeance/retaliation (Matthew 5:38-42), love (Matthew 5:43-48), forgiveness (Matthew 6:14-15), correct fasting (Matthew 6:16-18), the Sabbath (Luke 6:1-6), etc.

Jesus addressed these issues because they were prevalent problems in His society - issues that were wildly misunderstood and needed immediate correction.

Jesus did not bring up the topic of homosexuality and speak on it because it was not a prevalent issue of His society.

4. Jesus Clearly Stated What a Biblical Marriage is

It is always a joy when someone who defends same-sex marriage brings up the fact that Jesus never directly addressed the subject of homosexuality.

It is a joy because it opens up the avenue to the presentation of an equally powerful truth of Jesus' ministry: though He did not directly address the subject of homosexuality, He most certainly addressed the subject of what a Biblical marriage is and looks like.

In ancient Palestine, wicked humanity did what wicked humanity does and perverted God's Word in regards to divorce. Women were considered second class citizens that could be cast away like an empty soda can, and therefore, divorce became easy and prevalent.

Jesus openly spoke against divorce (Matthew 5:31-32), and so, the Pharisees sought to theologically trap Him by asking the question: "Is it lawful to divorce one's wife for any cause?" (Matthew 19:3). Jesus' answer to this question established His view on Biblical marriage:

He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female,and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” Matthew 19:4-6

Jesus quotes from Genesis 2:24 and presents His view of what a Biblical marriage looks like: a holy union between one man and one woman that come together to create one flesh. His model of marriage leaves no room for homosexuality.

When Jesus clearly states that He views Biblical marriage to be a union between a man and a woman, it goes without saying that He views homosexuality as an unnatural abomination to God.

5. Jesus Entrusted His Word to the Apostles

As wonderful as it is that we have four Gospels that contain Jesus' words in red, we must understand that all Scripture is God breathed (2 Timothy 3:16) and is due or observance and utmost respect.

Therefore, when the apostles penned the words of the New Testament under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, it carried as much authority as Jesus' words.

Jesus revealed this truth in the Gospel of John when He was teaching the disciples before His arrest and crucifixion. He said,

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you." John 16:12-15

After Jesus resurrected from the grave and ascended into heaven, the apostles were empowered by the Holy Spirit and became the workforce of God's kingdom ministry. This included the writing of the last 27 books of the Bible. These books demand our full obedience and respect. Being God inspired, these books hold the same authority as Jesus' words in red.

What does the New Testament say about homosexuality?

"For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error." Romans 1:26-27

"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (emphasis added)

Jesus did not have to broach the subject of homosexuality because He would inspire His warriors to do so after His ascension.

Conclusion

No, Jesus did not directly address the social issue of homosexuality. However, that does not mean that He approved of the practice. Jesus Christ was God almighty in the flesh. God does not change. If God the Father was against homosexuality in the beginning (before Jesus), and if the Holy Spirit was against homosexuality post-ascension (after Jesus), that means that Jesus, too, was against homosexuality.

But just as He extends His hand of grace toward the liar, the cheater, the gossip, the murderer, and every other chronic sinner, He extends His love and mercy and grace toward the homosexual.

It is Jesus Christ who has the power to transform the sinner into a saint, the damned into the redeemed, and the captive into the victor. It is Jesus Christ who is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, and there is no sin He can't overcome.

Author: A.C. Minor

Learn more about A.C. Minor

Scripture quotations are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the English Standard Version.