by Allen Dvorak
I don’t watch a lot of television, but I recently saw some thing which disturbed me. It was one of the segments of the program entitled “20/20.” The segment to which I refer focused on the story of a young man named Corey. To introduce the segment, Corey was identified as an outstanding high school football player who had made a courageous decision to reveal something about himself to his teammates and friends.
I guess that I knew what was coming before the program revealed the details. As I had suspected, Corey was a homosexual and had decided to tell his teammates, unsure of what reaction he would encounter. In the course of the story, Corey’s unhappiness with his secret life was emphasized. Also discussed was the unflattering attitude of football players in general toward homosexuals.
I suppose that I should not be disturbed by the general message of the program. It is, after all, the typical slant of the national media in general – homosexuality is good while sexual morality which originates from the Bible is radical, narrow-minded or homophobic. Corey was applauded for “coming out of the closet,” a decision which, according to the television program, manifested courage and character. His disclosure served also to make his coaches and teammates more sensitive to the feelings of homosexuals.
It came as no surprise to me that the teaching of the Bible on the subject of homosexuality was never even mentioned. Some have tried to defend the practice of homosexuality from the Bible, but the Scriptures are clear about the divine view of such behavior. Sodom was destroyed because of homo sexuality (Genesis 19). The Law of Moses mandated the death penalty for acts of homosexuality (Leviticus 20:13). In Paul’s day, homosexuality was commonplace in Gentile society. The apostle described such behavior as “shameful,” “error,” “against nature,” “vile,” and “debased” (Romans 1:26-28). He wrote to the Corinthians that homosexuals and sodomites would not inherit the kingdom of heaven (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
In America, however, we praise those who are “courageous” enough to confess publicly that they are homosexuals. We have come a long way toward Sodom. Instead of being ashamed of what the Scriptures refer to as sin and an abomination (Leviticus 18:22), we seem to be more embarrassed by those who speak out against the practice of homosexuality. Perhaps it would be good for us to read again the account of the divine judgment against Sodom.
I wonder if Corey would have been the hero of the 20/20 segment if he had announced that he practiced bestiality? Probably not, but only because the American public has not yet been conditioned to accept the idea of people having sex with animals. I am convinced that the Biblical prohibition against bestiality has little to do with it; the Bible also condemns homosexuality, but what seems to bother fewer and fewer people. When we reject the divine standard of morality as expressed in the Scriptures, anything goes…there is no logical stopping place!
~via “Gospel Power”; vol. 13, no. 29; July 16, 2006