Gay, Lesbian, and Homosexual - these words have become common in our vocabulary as homosexuality has become one of the big ethical issues of our time. Supporters view homosexuality as a form of love that should be accepted as normal by society. They advocate legal same-sex marriage, promote homosexual equality, and some even claim that the Bible supports homosexuality. In some respects, their reasoning sounds right. If two people of the same sex love each other, then why shouldn’t they be together? However, many people, even those who aren’t religious, view homosexuality as something wrong. This is because at the core of their beings, people know that there is an underlying blueprint for humans. In truth, homosexuality is something that is wrong, and it is wrong for two main reasons.

First, homosexuality goes against God’s design for human beings. The first two chapters of Genesis perfectly illustrate this. At the beginning of the world, God created the first people, Adam and Eve. “And God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him. He created them male and female" (Genesis 1:27). God designs each person (while they are still in the womb) as either a male or a female.

Furthermore, God designed sexual attraction and marriage to be between a man and a woman, not between people of the same sex. After creating Adam, “the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him” (Genesis 2:18). Considering that Adam is a man, wouldn’t a comparable helper be a man as well? Genesis 2:22-24 gives the answer: “Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” God created a couple – one man and one woman. As the first humans, Adam and Eve reveal the basic blueprint or template of God’s design for human beings. It is evident, then, that man and woman are divinely designed for one another; they complement one another. For example, in areas where men are stronger, women are usually weaker, and in areas where women are stronger, men are usually weaker. Furthermore, one of the most apparent proofs that God designed sexual attraction and marriage to be between a man and a woman is that reproduction of the human race can only come through the union of a male and a female. This is the way the Creator designed it to be. "And [Jesus] answered and said to them, ‘Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning "made them male and female", and said, “For this cause a man shall leave father and mother and shall cling to his wife, and the two of them shall be one flesh?” Therefore they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate’" (Matthew 19:4-6).

Rejecting God’s design will only cause negative effects. For instance, consider a little child who has recently discovered how delicious candy is. It is so pleasing to his taste buds, that he decides he will never eat anything else. When he refuses the dinner that his mother made, asking for candy instead, she adamantly refuses. “But why can’t I eat candy?” the child asks, “I love candy; it tastes good.” When his mother explains that candy is filled with sugar, which his body was not designed to live off of, the child retorts, “I don’t believe you! Why would something that tastes so good be bad for me? I was born with these taste buds, and these taste buds tell me that candy is good!” The little boy decides to stick to his beliefs, eating nothing but candy. It is not long before he starts to feel sick, and his body dramatically weakens. As time goes on, he will only get weaker and weaker because his body was not designed to live off of candy. Going against the way something is designed only brings malfunction and eventual breakdown. Homosexuality is against God’s design, and, therefore, practicing it will bring a person to ruin because humans were created for something better.
Not only does homosexuality go against God’s design, but it also goes against God’s commands. Being perfect, all-powerful, loving, and the one-and-only, God created rules for human beings to follow. He did not create these rules to be mean, oppressive, or controlling, but rather, to instruct people as to what is best for them. Since He designed them, He would know. One of His commands is that He alone be worshipped because He alone is God. “It is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God and serve Him only” (Luke 4:8). To put anything else above God in our hearts and minds is idolatry, and idolatry is at the heart of homosexuality. Homosexuality (or any sexual sin, for that matter) is the result of a sinful heart that worships (covets, lusts after) the image of the human instead of worshipping God as it should. Romans 1:26-27 aptly refers to this: "For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error" (Romans 1:26-27).
Also, the Bible contains many of God’s commands against sexual sins (of which homosexuality is a part). One of the first examples is found in Leviticus 20:13, where God is giving His laws to the set-apart nation of Israel: "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their blood-guiltiness is upon them." This verse and the previous verse from Romans reveal God’s view of homosexuality. To the Designer of human beings, homosexuality is “degrading”, “unnatural”, “indecent”, and “detestable”. That is why God commands that we “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body” (1 Corinthians 6:18).
As with rejecting God’s design, rejecting God’s commands will only bring sorrow. God is just, and He cannot let sin go unpunished. Breaking His laws is just like breaking the law of the land – there will be consequences. The consequences to rejecting God’s commands, however, affect ones soul; it affects where a person will go after dying. “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

Proponents of homosexuality may argue that such punishment is unjust, considering that people can be born with homosexual tendencies. However, although it is true that people can be born with homosexual tendencies, that fact does not make them innocent of breaking God’s law. The reason a person can be born with homosexual tendencies is because every human being is born with a sinful nature. That is, a heart that does not want or seek after God; a heart that is naturally inclined to reject God’s design and disobey God’s commands because it wants what it wants when it wants it. Consequently, influences such as medical imbalances, improper upbringing, and sexual or mental abuse may cause a person to have stronger tendencies to give in to his sin nature, which can be expressed in homosexuality. No one is forced to be a homosexual, however, nor is a person born homosexual. Homosexuality is the result of a person giving in to his sinful nature. Giving in to one’s sinful nature may feel right; however, that does not make it right. As Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way which seems right to a man, but the end of it is the ways of death."

Also, the fact that certain influences may contribute to a person giving in to his sinful nature does not make the person innocent. For example, imagine a man who just lost all of his vast wealth because the corporation in which he invested just crashed. Depressed, angry, and hopeless, the man buys a gun and takes out his frustration on some innocent townspeople, killing a little girl and her mother. Evidently, the man was not in his rightful mind, but, nonetheless, he is responsible for his crime and must bear the punishment. Similarly, to practice homosexuality, regardless of influences, is to reject God’s design and break His law. Thus, God’s punishment is fully just and appropriate.

In spite of this, there is hope. God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to release people from the hold sin has on them. Just like every other human being, a person practicing homosexuality is unable to do anything to make himself good enough for heaven. Before God, every person is guilty. However, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might through Him be saved” (John 3:16-17). By sending His Son to die for sinners, God is offering the free gift of eternal life in heaven and salvation from death. The only thing a person needs to do is accept God’s offer by repenting of his sin and believing in and following God!

To summarize, homosexuality is wrong because it goes against God’s loving design and commands for human beings. God designed each human being as either a male or a female, and he designed sexual attraction and marriage to be between a male and a female, not between people of the same sex. Also, God commands that He alone be worshiped and that people flee from sexual sins (including homosexuality). Because God is the Master Designer and Lord over all, rejecting His designs and commands will only have negative and serious consequences. These consequences are not unjust because each person has broken God’s law and is guilty before God. However, God offers hope. He sent His only Son to pay the price of the sin of those who repent and believe in Him.