For a Christian, marriage is about far more than one person loving another. Society says that people should be free to love and marry whoever they want, and that includes people of the same sex.
For a Christian, this is simply not an option. It goes far beyond the individual verses which speak out against homosexuality (Lev 18:22 and Rom 1:26-27). It is to do with the real reason for marriage and God's relationship with people.
The Old Testament makes it clear that God's relationship with Israel is symbolised by marriage: the Lord God is the husband and the nation of Israel is the wife or bride (e.g. Jer 31:32). In the New Testament, Jesus the Messiah is the husband and the church is the bride (e.g. Eph 5:21-32).
The symbolism is clearly male-female. The Divine is male (God, Jesus) and the human is female (Israel, the church). It could be said that the relationship is "hetero" and not "homo": male and female are different; the Divine and human are different.
The Old Testament speaks of Israel's adultery towards God (e.g. Ez 16:32-33) when the Israelites began serving idols and false gods instead of the Lord God. It is interesting to note the connection with adultery and prostitution, which seems lost in today's culture.
Leviticus 18 lays out God's laws against sexual immorality (including homosexuality and incest), because a marriage in a broken world (i.e. after Genesis 3, where humans sinned and all humanity suffers punishment because of it) cannot work with close family members, and studies show that human inbreeding greatly increases genetic defects (see here for an overview).
So where does homosexuality fit in? Or, more precisely, what is the spiritual significance of gay marriage?
Let's recap:
- Heterosexual marriage symbolises the devotion between God and His people (or between Jesus and the church).
- Adultery symbolises Israel's (or the church's) desire for a god other than the Lord God.
- Prostitution/promiscuity, which follows from adultery, symbolises Israel's (or the church's) passion for devoting themselves to many other gods ( more than just 'spiritual flirting') or the current social trend (e.g. materialism).
Therefore, gay marriage amongst Christians could be symbolic of:
Option 2 shows a misunderstanding of the relationship between God and Jesus: Jesus did not sacrifice himself for God (which could be seen as a form of divine child abuse), he sacrificed himself for his bride, God's people. Ephesians 5:21-32 would have to be re-written. Alternatively, this view could imply some sort of divine incest. Either way, there's a problem.
Essentially, due to the symbolic nature of it, Christian marriage must be heterosexual. Any deviation would be an abomination, the same as defiling the Lord's Temple, along similar lines of Caligula erecting a statue in the Temple in Jerusalem.
But don't misunderstand me: God loves all people, and that includes heterosexuals as well as homosexuals and every other modern identity people wish to label themselves with. What people wish to do with each other is for them to decide. We all make mistakes, and we all have a habitual sin of some kind. We need to work through those things in our own time and not force a change on people who aren't ready for it.
Whilst I have no real issue with non-Christians wanting to engage in homosexual partnerships (they have chosen not to live under God's rule, which carries its own consequences), there is a huge issue when it comes to Christians wishing to redefine marriage. It is not purely about feelings and desires, there is divine symbolism entwined with Christian marriage.
As such, it must not be tampered with.
For a Christian, this is simply not an option. It goes far beyond the individual verses which speak out against homosexuality (Lev 18:22 and Rom 1:26-27). It is to do with the real reason for marriage and God's relationship with people.
The Old Testament makes it clear that God's relationship with Israel is symbolised by marriage: the Lord God is the husband and the nation of Israel is the wife or bride (e.g. Jer 31:32). In the New Testament, Jesus the Messiah is the husband and the church is the bride (e.g. Eph 5:21-32).
The symbolism is clearly male-female. The Divine is male (God, Jesus) and the human is female (Israel, the church). It could be said that the relationship is "hetero" and not "homo": male and female are different; the Divine and human are different.
The Old Testament speaks of Israel's adultery towards God (e.g. Ez 16:32-33) when the Israelites began serving idols and false gods instead of the Lord God. It is interesting to note the connection with adultery and prostitution, which seems lost in today's culture.
Leviticus 18 lays out God's laws against sexual immorality (including homosexuality and incest), because a marriage in a broken world (i.e. after Genesis 3, where humans sinned and all humanity suffers punishment because of it) cannot work with close family members, and studies show that human inbreeding greatly increases genetic defects (see here for an overview).
So where does homosexuality fit in? Or, more precisely, what is the spiritual significance of gay marriage?
Let's recap:
- Heterosexual marriage symbolises the devotion between God and His people (or between Jesus and the church).
- Adultery symbolises Israel's (or the church's) desire for a god other than the Lord God.
- Prostitution/promiscuity, which follows from adultery, symbolises Israel's (or the church's) passion for devoting themselves to many other gods ( more than just 'spiritual flirting') or the current social trend (e.g. materialism).
Therefore, gay marriage amongst Christians could be symbolic of:
- The Lord God's devotion to himself (for male-male marriage, as God is symbolised as the male partner in the marriage) or God's people's devotion to themselves (for female-female marriage, as Israel and the church are symbolised by the female partner in the marriage).
- The Father-Son relationship between God and Jesus ('homoessence' or something like the greek 'homoousion' since God and Jesus are both Divine).
Option 2 shows a misunderstanding of the relationship between God and Jesus: Jesus did not sacrifice himself for God (which could be seen as a form of divine child abuse), he sacrificed himself for his bride, God's people. Ephesians 5:21-32 would have to be re-written. Alternatively, this view could imply some sort of divine incest. Either way, there's a problem.
Essentially, due to the symbolic nature of it, Christian marriage must be heterosexual. Any deviation would be an abomination, the same as defiling the Lord's Temple, along similar lines of Caligula erecting a statue in the Temple in Jerusalem.
But don't misunderstand me: God loves all people, and that includes heterosexuals as well as homosexuals and every other modern identity people wish to label themselves with. What people wish to do with each other is for them to decide. We all make mistakes, and we all have a habitual sin of some kind. We need to work through those things in our own time and not force a change on people who aren't ready for it.
Whilst I have no real issue with non-Christians wanting to engage in homosexual partnerships (they have chosen not to live under God's rule, which carries its own consequences), there is a huge issue when it comes to Christians wishing to redefine marriage. It is not purely about feelings and desires, there is divine symbolism entwined with Christian marriage.
As such, it must not be tampered with.
No comments:
Post a Comment