Jesus’ disciples were stunned by His teaching against
divorce:
·
“‘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 19:5-6)
God had joined Adam to Eve, making them one. Divorce
represented the undoing of what God had done. Therefore, it violated His
normative pattern. Consequently, divorce was forbidden.
The disciples were aghast. Moses had allowed Israel an easy divorce because of their hardened heart. To the disciples, marriage only seemed like a viable option if they could be guaranteed an easy divorce. They, therefore, answered that if divorce wasn’t a possibility, “it is better not to marry” (Matthew 19:10).
The disciples were aghast. Moses had allowed Israel an easy divorce because of their hardened heart. To the disciples, marriage only seemed like a viable option if they could be guaranteed an easy divorce. They, therefore, answered that if divorce wasn’t a possibility, “it is better not to marry” (Matthew 19:10).
Therefore, Jesus explained:
·
“Not everyone can receive this saying, but only
those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth,
and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs
who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the
one who is able to receive this receive it.” (Matthew 19:11-12)
Marriage was not for everyone but just for those willing to
follow God’s pattern. Singleness was always an option. It certainly was for
those who had been born eunuchs, without the ability or the inclination to have
sex. Some even chose to become eunuchs. This group likely included those with
same-sex attraction or those with gender dysphoria.
There is not a single bit of Scriptural evidence that same-sex marriage would have been tolerated – nothing that violated the male-female pattern God had established. Likewise, any form of male or female impersonation was strictly forbidden. Consequently, even cross-dressing (Deuteronomy 22:5; 1 Corinthians 11; 6:9-10 (“effeminate” in KJV)) was not tolerated. The sexes could not be confused. Men were to remain men and women were to remain women. If they struggled with gender dysphoria, the Biblical faith offered no recourse apart from abstention from sex.
There is not a single bit of Scriptural evidence that same-sex marriage would have been tolerated – nothing that violated the male-female pattern God had established. Likewise, any form of male or female impersonation was strictly forbidden. Consequently, even cross-dressing (Deuteronomy 22:5; 1 Corinthians 11; 6:9-10 (“effeminate” in KJV)) was not tolerated. The sexes could not be confused. Men were to remain men and women were to remain women. If they struggled with gender dysphoria, the Biblical faith offered no recourse apart from abstention from sex.
Their subjective sexual preferences or birth defects could
not be used as a justification for another form of marriage. A man who claimed
that he had absolutely no interest in a woman was not exempt from God’s pattern
for a monogamous marriage. Likewise, a husband could complain that he was
miserable with only one wife. But even if he was so miserable that he beat his
wife, this would not suffice to justify polygamy. Marriage and sexuality would
remain as God had designed them.
To violate sexual purity carried heavy consequences:
·
Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a
person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins
against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy
Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were
bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:18-20;
Romans 1:27)
We need to have compassion for those who do not fit into God’s
prescribed pattern for marriage. However, if we truly care about them, we will
plead with them to “glorify God in your body.”
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