Kentucky Baptists still believe same-sex marriage is wrong. Here’s why.

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Last Friday’s Supreme Court ruling represents a departure from the entire scope of civilized human history as the justices turned a blind eye to the historic teachings of every major religion in the world. Determined to alter our society, they have thrown nature, the needs of children, and the rights of voters to the wind and cast marriage to the moral gutter. Moreover, they clearly usurped the will of Kentucky voters and defied the foundational governing document that ensures order and justice, i.e., the Constitution of Kentucky.

While the sin of homosexuality may be no more offensive to God than other sexual sins, for a society to be forced to endorse it through the sacred institution of marriage is both objectionable and dangerous, moving us further down the slippery slope toward moral chaos. In the wake of the ruling, Kentucky Baptists remain resolute in our stand for biblical marriage, resting on the authority of Scripture that same-sex marriage is wrong. Let me explain why.

First, the Bible is not fuzzy when it comes to homosexuality. Both Testaments unequivocally condemn it. In Matthew 19:4-5, in response to a question on divorce, Jesus clearly defines marriage in heterosexual terms, being perfectly consistent with Genesis 2. Jesus asked, “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’?”

The Apostle Paul includes homosexuality in a list of eternally condemning sins when he writes, “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” (1Cor 6:9-10). In Romans 1, Paul associates the sin of homosexuality with God’s deadly wrath. Paul writes, “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” (vv26-27). Our Lord and Paul do not stray from the more direct and condemning Old Testament language of Leviticus 18:22, where the Lord refers to homosexual sex as an “abomination.” Leviticus 20:13 reveals homosexuality to be a mortal sin.

Second, beyond the arguments from Scripture, same-sex marriage precludes government’s primary interests in marriage, i.e., procreation, and, at the same time, denies natural order. Whether one is a Bible-believing creationist or a secular evolutionist, any rational observer of our world must admit that the survival of any and every species on the planet depends upon a natural order that includes reproduction. Homosexuality perverts the natural order and homosexual marriage cheapens the institution of marriage by removing from it the essence of its purpose.

Third, government-endorsed same-sex marriage wrongly legitimizes homosexual couples as parents. Some will find this statement offensive, arguing that homosexual parents can be successful at rearing children. Indeed, homosexual parents, like single parents, grandparents, foster parents, or even abusive parents can successfully raise children. But attempts to sanctify homosexual relationships via marriage, placing them on par with heterosexual married couples, is a grave injustice not only to marriage but to children as it presents homosexual couples as the ideal context for creating a family and raising children. In so doing the Court tragically endorses depriving children of their innate need of both a father and a mother. Children raised by homosexual couples are ensured to have either/or not both/and when it comes to a mother and father. The Court’s decision not only thwarts nature, it robs children of an intrinsic need.

Fourth, in every state in our nation, same-sex marriage is now forced upon the citizens by liberal judges even though many states, like Kentucky, overwhelmingly voted to refuse it. The Court subverted the democratic process in tyrannical fashion. Simply put, that is wrong.

Fifth, same-sex marriage is a headlong leap down the slippery slope toward moral chaos. The rally cry from gay activists and their growing band of supporters is, “Love wins!” If the mere profession of an individual’s love for someone or something else is now the new standard for marriage, gay marriage clearly opens the doorway to bigamy and polygamy and at least cracks the doorway of state-sanctioned childhood brides and bestiality. This type of government-sanctioned perversion has teenage girls in locker rooms at Louisville’s Atherton High School being required to undress in front of teenage boys pretending to be girls. That kind of moral outrage denies the rights of children to be protected.

Sixth, same-sex marriage is a clear threat to religious liberty, a foundational principle of American law and life. Within hours of the ruling, cries went up for religious institutions to lose their tax exempt status if they are found unwilling to adopt the government’s new ethic. In a number of states the civil rights of individuals who refuse to use their businesses as a platform to promote homosexuality have already been tread upon. Now enter the earthmovers.

The Book of Proverbs contends that, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people” (14:34). The United States has never been righteous. But on June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States took the deadly step of endorsing, even celebrating, unrighteousness and, in so doing, has brought reproach upon America.

This entry was posted in Creation, Culture, Denominational Life, Gay Marriage, Government, Public Affairs, Religious Liberty, SCOTUS. Bookmark the permalink. Both comments and trackbacks are currently closed.

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