Is it fair to say because Jesus didn’t mention homosexuality, He was for it?

I'm sure you've heard this argument before. It's a common argument in LGBT-affirming circles. It goes something like this: Since Jesus did not specifically address homosexuality, it is assumed that he was accepting of it. This position is often referred to as the “silent argument.”

In this article, I aim to provide you with a biblically grounded and theologically sound refutation of the “silent argument.”

By examining Jesus's teachings on marriage, sexuality, and sin, we can clearly understand his beliefs and teachings. This will allow us to respond to the misinterpretations promoting Jesus as a gay-affirming Jewish rabbi.

It is poor reasoning to think because Jesus didn’t mention a particular sin or immoral evil, he somehow was for it. This is problematic for three primary reasons.

First, are we to assume that Jesus' failure to mention bestiality, rape, and incest explicitly implies his support of these immoral acts? Of course not. Even gay revisionists recognize the flaws and limitations of using “silence” as an indicator of Jesus' support for immoral behavior.

Second, the “silent argument” makes unwarranted assumptions about the cultural context of Jesus' time and attributes excessive importance to what Jesus' culture should have acknowledged and accepted as truth. But it wasn’t like parents were having kids coming out left and right like in our culture today. At that time, homosexuality wasn't a significant issue. It was widely understood that same-sex behavior was not in line with the Scriptures and was, therefore, forbidden for Jews to practice.

Third, the “silent argument” falsely assumes that the Gospel accounts encompass all of Jesus' teachings and views, which is a stretch. A close companion of Jesus even said at the end of his account, “Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written” (John 21:25). John uses a bit of exaggeration to emphasize that Jesus had plenty to say about a wide range of topics. This goes back to the point made earlier. If homosexuality were as prevalent and acceptable as gay revisionists claim, then indeed, we would have evidence of Jesus speaking directly to the moral issue in the affirmative.

But wait. Many gay revisionists like to cite the Sermon on the Mount as supporting their inclusive beliefs about sexuality. However, it's not a solid source to support their view. If there were many LGBT individuals in Jesus’ time and he was accepting of them, why then didn't Jesus deliver a “Gay Pride Sermon on the Mount.” That would have been the perfect opportunity to address the issue of homosexuality openly to help change people’s minds.

Yet, that’s not what Jesus did. What we actually see in the Sermon on the Mount is Jesus addressing the issue of lustful desires, teaching that those who look at another person with lust have already committed adultery in their hearts (Matthew 5:28). In Mark 7:21-23, Jesus takes it a step further and explicitly lays out specific lusts and sins, “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” Jesus used the Greek word porneia, which encompasses not only “sexual immorality” but also homosexual sex.

Based on these two passages alone, it is evident that we receive direct teachings from Jesus that are far from silent. Jesus' teachings stress the significance of self-control and the necessity to safeguard one's heart and mind against impure thoughts and sexual sin, which dishonor God.

A straightforward and honest reading of the canonical Gospels reveals that Jesus’ ministry, teachings, and self-understanding are firmly grounded in the Jewish Scriptures.

In Matthew 5:17-18, Jesus declares, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” In this statement, Jesus affirms the moral laws of the Old Testament, which include prohibitions against homosexual acts as outlined in Leviticus 18:22 and Leviticus 20:13. The consistency of the moral law in Jesus' teachings (as we just read in Matthew 5:28 and Mark 7:21-23) indicates that He supported these prohibitions.

There is, however, an attempt to counter the interpretation of Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, which details homosexuality as an “abomination,” by suggesting that it refers only to pagan practices or rituals centered around temple idol worship. But that’s not what you see in the context of Leviticus. In Leviticus, Moses lists sexual tiers from bad to worse: 1. adultery, 2. homosexuality, 3. incest, and 4. bestiality.

These prohibitions are determined based on their rejection of the standard of moral living, especially regarding sexuality and marriage. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus emphasized the sanctity and permanence of marriage as outlined in the creation account in the book of Genesis.

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 19:5-6).

Jesus couldn't have been more explicit about his beliefs and affirmations regarding marriage and sex. In Matthew 19, Jesus provides a clear blueprint for the sacred union of marriage and emphasizes the importance of sexual relations within the context of marriage. His teachings align with and affirm the moral standards set in the Mosaic law, upholding the purity and holiness of sexual relations within the bonds of marriage between a man and woman.

Considering Jesus's affirmation of the Jewish Scriptures, the creational model of marriage being between a man and a woman, and the call for repentance from all types of sin, including sexual sin, it is evident that Jesus did not need to address homosexual practices specifically. His teachings made it clear that he had high standards for sexuality, relationships, and marriage.

Sodomy shows up in the bible BEFORE the Ten Commandments do.

Genesis 13:13

Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD.

Genesis 18:20-21
20. Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous
21. that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know."

Genesis 19:4-7
4. Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom--both young and old--surrounded the house.
5. They called to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them."
6. Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him
7. and said, "No, my friends. Don't do this wicked thing.

We are living in a Genesis 19:9 world...

"Get out of our way,” they replied.
“This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge!
We’ll treat you worse than them.”
They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

Leviticus niv

18:22 Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.

20:13 If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable.

They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

Psalms 12:8 The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.

Isaiah 3:9 The look on their faces testifies against them;

they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it.

Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.

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2 Peter 2:13b Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight.

They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you.

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Ezekiel 16:49-50 "`Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom:

She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.

They were haughty and did detestable things before me.

Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.

Romans 1 New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)

18 The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven against every impiety and wickedness of those who suppress the truth by their wickedness. 19 For what can be known about God is evident to them, because God made it evident to them. 20 Ever since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and perceived in what he has made. As a result, they have no excuse; 21 for although they knew God they did not accord him glory as God or give him thanks. Instead, they became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless minds were darkened. 22 While claiming to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for the likeness of an image of mortal man or of birds or of four-legged animals or of snakes.

24 Therefore, God handed them over to impurity through the lusts of their hearts for the mutual degradation of their bodies. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 Therefore, God handed them over to degrading passions. Their females exchanged natural relations for unnatural, 27 and the males likewise gave up natural relations with females and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their own persons the due penalty for their perversity. 28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God handed them over to their undiscerning mind to do what is improper. 29 They are filled with every form of wickedness, evil, greed, and malice; full of envy, murder, rivalry, treachery, and spite.

2 Peter 2

1. But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves.
2. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.
3. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
4. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment;
5. if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others;
6. if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;
7. and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men
8. (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)--
9. if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment.
10. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander celestial beings;
11. yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in the presence of the Lord.
12. But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish.
13. They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you.

What kind of a people are we;

that we allow men dressed in womens clothes

to pervert the minds of little children?

But there IS hope!!!

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

9. Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived:
Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders
10. nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
11. And that is what some of you were. 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.

If you could NOT change, you would be in most pitiful shape...

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