Sexual Orientation

The subject of sexual orientation is one that is gaining prominence almost everywhere. From the news media to even discussions on the streets, many people are talking about the morality, legality, rightness and wrongness of the possible sexual orientations present in our world today.

By way of a definition, we will say that a person’s sexual orientation describes his/her emotional, romantic, and sexual attraction to individuals of a particular gender (male or female), both genders or neither gender. The question we are exploring here— “Is there a single Christian answer to sexual orientation?”— seeks to consider the Christian position on sexual orientation and how Christians must deal with matters pertaining to sexual orientation.

And for a subject like this, it is really a blessing to return to the very beginning— the Book of Genesis—for some insight into this question. In Genesis 2, we read about the account of Adam and Eve (the first created human beings, so we believe as Christians). In verse 18 of Genesis 2, God speaks:

"It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."

In the wisdom of God, He created Eve to be that suitable helper for Adam. Still in Genesis 2, from verses 24 and 25, we read this:

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. 25 The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.”

These verses tell us something we need to understand even as we have received the grace of God that permits us to call ourselves by the name of Christ’s followers: Christians. These verses, together with other verses we will be exploring soon, tell us that for all romantic relationships, the established order as God designed it from the beginning was to have one man and one woman together becoming one flesh.

This was how it was in the beginning. This was how God created it in the very beginning, such that when He (God) had finished with creation, He saw what He had created, and said that it was very good.

But as we all know, very early on in the history of the world, sin entered into the world and distorted the perfection that was established by God. With sin came the lust of the flesh, the pride of this life and the lust of the eye. From that time onwards, the created order has been distorted.