Same-Sex Marriage is Unbiblical
A commentary by Larry Walker
United Church of God paster, Bend, Oregon
From coast to coast—literally—same-sex marriage is in the
news. In New York and California , city officials have issued marriage
licenses to and "married" thousands of homosexual couples.
It's not that we shouldn't have expected it. When the U.S. Supreme Court
last year struck down a Texas law banning "deviate sexual intercourse
with another individual of the same sex," thus legalizing homosexual
behavior, this was only a matter of time. Supreme Court Justice Antonin
Scalia predicted that the ruling "will have far-reaching implications
beyond this case." In writing for the minority view, he predicted
that this ruling would "mark the end of all morals legislation" and
leave traditional marriage "on pretty shaky grounds."
The controversy surrounding same-sex marriage will likely become a hot
political issue in the upcoming national elections. In the recent Democratic
Party primaries, most candidates said they opposed gay marriage but supported "civil
unions." At a presidential forum sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign,
members of the audience hissed Senators Joe Lieberman and John Kerry
when they referred to marriage as an exclusively heterosexual union. "Marriage
has a special status in our culture, our society and our history," Lieberman
said.
Marriage is not just a social custom. It is a divine institution, ordained
by God at creation. From the beginning of history, the Bible has limited
marriage to the union of one man and one woman. Although the word marriage does
not appear in this initial account, God gave Eve to Adam to be his wife.
God told Adam, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" (Genesis
2:24 ). The reference to "a man" and "his wife" establishes
the divine pattern for future generations.
In Ephesians 5:22-33 the apostle Paul quoted these words in reference
to marriage of a man and a woman. To the church in Corinth , a city that
was a cesspool of immorality, Paul also refers to marriage only in terms
of husband and wife. Nowhere does the Bible allow for same-sex unions.
The argument has been made that all citizens deserve equal benefits,
regardless of sexual orientation. But is same-sex marriage the solution
to this dilemma?
So far only the state of Vermont has granted full legal rights and benefits
to same-sex couples. In time more states will likely decide to grant
legal status to same-sex partners. But to refer to this type of arrangement
as a marriage would be a misnomer. That term has already been taken and
is clearly limited to a heterosexual union, not only by God but by U.S.
courts as well.
The United States legal code, title 1, section 7, states that "the
word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman
as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of
the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife." More than a century
ago the U.S. Supreme Court spoke of marriage as the "union for life
of one man and one woman in the holy estate of matrimony.
Of course, these facts may not prevent the term marriage from
being inappropriately used. It would not be the first time that supposedly
more enlightened authorities have made decisions that run contrary to
biblical principles.
The crux of the problem lies in a lack of understanding and acceptance
of biblical standards in our pluralistic, multicultural society. At the
time when the U.S. Constitution was written, the nation was more committed
to fundamental Christian virtues. The main concern of the men who put
together the Constitution was to avoid governmental imposition of religion
and to assure all citizens the right to believe and live by their individual
religious convictions.
The concept of "separation of church and state," first introduced
in a letter by Thomas Jefferson to a church, has since become the philosophical
foundation for court rulings. The resulting assumption is that it is
wrong to legislate morality. As the morals of the U.S. and other nations
continue their downslide, more and more longstanding moral restrictions
will be struck down in the courts and laws of the land. Sadly, in many
ways the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Bill of Rights
has since degenerated into freedom from religion.
The coming rule of the Kingdom of God, which Jesus Christ will establish
at His return, will restore the fundamental truths of the Bible expressed
in the Law of God (Isaiah 2:1-4). Church and state will be reunited,
rooted in the teachings of the Bible and enforced by His righteous rule.
All nations will then learn and experience the benefits of the laws of
God, including the true values of marriage. |
