I. 導言

在許多社會中，同性戀問題引起爭議。對於一些社會來說，同性婚姻合法化已成為平等權利問題；對於很多社會來說，它也是一個宗教和道德的問題，因為聖經有相關的教導。這個問題引發了辯論、討論、爭論，有時在互動中甚至出現暴力，非常可悲。

有些人純粹從學術角度看待聖經對同性戀的觀點，這些人也許既不是基督徒、也不是同性戀者。這課題不會直接影響他們，只因它是當前的問題而產生興趣。對於另外一些人，卻很可能是切身問題，他們或許是一名基督徒、一名同性戀者或一名同性戀的基督徒。不管是那種情況，這篇文章旨在提供一個滿有恩典、愛和充滿真理的資源。因此，這篇文章將詳細按聖經的教導討論基督教對同性戀的觀點。¹

不需多久，讀者便會發現這篇文章會朝著同性戀是罪這個結論前進。因以此為終點，有兩件事情需要先清楚說明，以避免任何誤解。

1. 作者、所有基督徒和非基督徒都犯罪，並且是罪人。這是所有人都充分平等地參與的可悲情況，它並不是獨特情況。

2. 這篇文章提出了「基督徒應如何回應聖經有關同性戀的教導」的邏輯結論。雖然它並不處理每一種情況，但卻提出回應這問題時應有的態度和心態：恩典和愛。基督徒對任何人都沒有使用暴力、侮辱或虐待的餘地。這篇文章是為了人與人之間以真正的愛與關懷而寫。

以此為目標，這篇文章會看看在舊約和新約有關同性戀的教導，耶穌關於性罪行的教導，每部分會有自己的總結，文章完結前有個人的評論。在文章後，還有發問與回應部份。此外，在這文章的末後，還提供了進一步資源。只要點擊下表，便可跳到相關的內容。

I. 導言

II. 舊約關於同性戀的教導

III. 新約關於同性戀的教導

IV. 耶穌對於性罪行的教導

V. 結論： 真誠的愛 - 我的背景

VI. 發問與回應

VII. 資源

VIII. 詳細目錄

II. 舊約關於同性戀的教導

在舊約中有四篇經文明確地討論同性戀。兩篇是律法書中禁止同性戀活動，另外兩篇是歷史事件：所多瑪 / 蛾摩拉和基比亞的事件。在這篇文章裡，我們不會嘗試回答每個因應經文的文本而提出的問題，因這已經在引用或列出的資源中處理了。但會清晰地確定聖經的觀點，那是基督徒應該持有的觀點。我們的討論從律法怎樣處理同性戀作開始，然後再看那兩篇敘事經文。

A. 利未記 18:22：律法禁止同性戀

利未記18:22：你不可與男人同睡交合，像與女人同睡交合一樣，這是可憎的事。

這律法直接禁止所有同性戀行為。不管他們是否兩廂情願，也沒有區別。經文出於和性相關的律法，在律法條文之後，雖然沒有列出後果，但這一張清單列出絕對不可以做的事。利未記第十八章所列出的事情，都被稱為「玷污」的事（利未記18:24），也稱為「可憎」的事（利未記18:27, 30）。中肯來說，經文並沒有把同性戀從其它的性罪行挑出來（有些性罪行被突顯），不過，同性戀卻被包括在內。不論犯同性戀，或是別的性罪行，這人「必從自己的族人中剪除」（利未記18:29）。原本居住在迦南的各族，因為犯了這些不同的性罪行，被神懲罰趕離該地（利未記18:24）。按律法，同性戀是對上帝的褻瀆。它和其它性罪行，都絕對不可在以色列存在。

B. 利未記 20:13： 律法對同性戀的懲罰

利未記 20:13：人若與男人茍合，像與女人一樣，他們二人行了可憎的事，總要把他們治死，罪要歸到他們身上。

在神權管治下的以色列，這律法直接指出犯同性戀所造成的後果。這章經文是關於犯了性罪行的審判和刑罰；而這節則詳細列出犯了同性戀罪行，二人都被判死刑。這似乎澄清了在利未記第十八章「必從自己的族人中剪除」是甚麼意思。故此，按律法，同性戀是犯罪得罪神，需要判處極刑。²

C. 創世記19:1-11：所多瑪和蛾摩拉

在創世記18:20-21，神宣告祂要毀滅所多瑪和蛾摩拉，因為「所多瑪和蛾摩拉的罪惡甚重，聲聞於我。」當兩名天使前往察看「他們所行的，果然盡像那達到我（耶和華）耳中的聲音一樣麼？」可是除了羅得外，城中所有人都沒有好好款待他們。事實上，全城的男人拼命想㚻姦（雞姦）他們。有人嘗試將這經文解作只是沒有好好款待，或與天使進行不自然關係。然而，經文並沒有指出城內有任何人知道他們是天使，相反，他們被城中各人和羅得稱為「男人」（創世記19:5, 8）（譯者註：中文聖經沒有明顯譯作「男人」）；同樣地，按經文字面的最佳解釋，所多瑪和蛾摩拉的罪，不止是沒有好好接待，還包括同性戀行為。³ 猶大書1:7證實這點：

猶大書1:7：又如所多瑪、蛾摩拉和周圍城邑的人也照他們一味的行淫，隨從逆性的情慾，就受永火的刑罰，作為鑑戒。

這節經文（對天使）逆性的情慾方面可能引起一些問題，但它一定超出待客和姦淫罪行。⁴ 它告訴我們在所多瑪和蛾摩拉的唯一性罪行是企圖㚻姦天使（事實上，他們鄙視主動為他們提供異性替代者作為緩和 – 創世記19:9）。

因此，在賜下律法以前，神認為企圖㚻姦（那些人就是在眼都昏迷時仍想繼續）的行為是大惡，而導致這些城鎮完全毀滅。

D. 士師記 19:22 – 基比亞

在士師記第19章還有另一個沒有好好款待客人的例子，當中亦出現企圖㚻姦行為。在這事件中，雖然並非全城的男人都參與，卻「全然不管用」。在這裡，那群匪類接受那人的妾取代那人作為安撫，但那妾卻被他們凌辱至死。

這些行動導致以色列歷史上首次內戰，便雅憫支派更幾近滅絕。因基比亞人拒絕交出犯事的人而受審判，神允許這場戰爭作為制裁。（士師記20:18; 20:23; 20:28; 20:35）

就像今天許多的生活實況，導致這一切的罪，似有一連串的行動。首先，這些人試圖「作惡」和「知道」這些人的性別（19:22-23a）⁵ 。第二，，因為它試圖要對正接受別人款待的客人進行「醜事」，使情況變得更複雜（士師記19:23下）。第三，他們整夜強姦和虐待那人的妾，使她死亡（士師記19:25-30）。第四，便雅憫支派其餘的人拒絕把犯事的人交出來接受處罰（士師記 20:13 ）。

這故事握要地向各支派重述（士師記20:5），但卻沒有將焦點放在原本企圖㚻姦那人（士師記19:22-24）。重述似乎聚焦在實際發生的罪行，而不是那起初的企圖。可是那企圖佔較長的篇幅，並明顯標記為錯誤。因此，將它視為這事件被審判的部份原因是完全恰當的。若要進一步研究此事件，參 Bob Deffinbaugh 相關的文章。⁶

由此可見，神賜予律法後，企圖強姦同性別的人（㚻姦），導致神以內戰作為制裁的原因之一。

舊約關於同性戀教導的結論

在神賜予律法以先或在律法之下，以色列人和外邦人（非以色列人），不管在自願或非自願的情況，同性戀都被視為罪，會帶來神的審判和死亡。

在賜予律法以前，這並非神唯一因人的罪進行直接和大規模的審判（參創世記第六章洪水事件，是更重的審判，它不經意地沒有提及同性戀活動）。賜予律法後，神同樣地審判其它罪行（參列王紀下17章，神審判拜偶像和相關的罪；第19章審判亞述；第24-25章審判猶大）。

這表明神絕對不矮化（或擴大）任何罪，並不斷地宣告很多行為是罪，而且施予懲罰，當中並沒有不公義。神的行動並不限於某一種罪行，我們可以從舊約舉出很多的例子，顯示祂參與處理罪。這些強調偶像崇拜、同性戀和其它的罪的審判，不會使我們感到驚訝，因為律法其中一個目的，便是要清楚揭示罪就是罪，並以神的公義標準作判斷（羅馬書7:7-14）。雖然，拜偶像的罪相對各式各樣的性罪行和它們背後的拜偶像行為，可能受到更嚴厲的懲罰和警告（參利未記18:24-30和上述列出的審判）

舊約故事並不在這裡完結，因為還可以舉出許多神賜下恩典的例子：挪亞和他的家人、羅得和他的家人、亞伯拉罕、以撒、 雅各、 約瑟、 摩西和亞倫、大衛（恩典的典型例子，在律法下，他犯了該死的罪）、以色列和猶大的餘民、賜下祭祀制度、約拿和尼尼微等。雖然神已定下公義的標準，但祂的恩慈也是不變的。

III. 新約關於同性戀的教導

在新約有多處經文總體上禁止「不道德性行為」（參使徒行傳15:20; 15:29；帖撒羅尼迦前書4:3；希伯來書13:4；啟示錄21:8, 22:15）。這些命令都包括同性戀在內。不過，其中三篇經文明確地談論同性戀。第一篇對同性戀詳加探討，而另外兩篇卻把同性戀和其它的罪一起列出來。如舊約部分的討論，這裡不會試圖討論文本可能所產生的每個問題，而將目標放在這些經文對同性戀的教導和基督教基於這些經文對同性戀的觀點。如前，那些渴望深入了解的讀者，可參考文末所列出來的資源。

A. 羅馬書 1:20-32

羅馬書1:20-32：  20 自從創造天地以來，神的永能和神性是明明可知的，雖不是眼見，但藉着所造之物就可以曉得，叫人無可推諉。 21 因為他們雖然知道神，卻不當作神榮耀他，也不感謝他，他們的思想反而變為虛妄，麻木的心昏暗了。 22 他們自以為聰明，反成了愚拙， 23 將不能朽壞之神的榮耀，換成必朽壞的人、飛禽、走獸和爬蟲的形像。

24 所以神任憑他們隨着心裏的情慾行污穢的事，彼此玷辱自己的身體。 25 他們以虛謊代替神的真實，去敬拜事奉受造之物，不敬拜那造物的主。主乃是可稱頌的，直到永遠。阿們。

26 為這緣故，神任憑他們放縱可羞恥的情慾。他們的女人，把順性的用處變為逆性的用處； 27 男人也是如此，棄了與女人順性的交往，慾火攻心，男和男彼此貪戀行可羞恥的事，就在自己身上受這過失當得的刑罰。

28 他們既然故意不承認神，神就任憑他們存邪僻的心行那些不該行的事。 29 他們就裝滿了各樣不義、邪惡、貪婪、惡毒；滿心是嫉妒、兇殺、爭競、詭詐、毒恨；又是讒毀的、 30 說是非的、怨恨神的，侮慢人的、高傲的、自誇的、捏造各樣惡事的、違背父母的、 31 麻木的、背約的、無情的、無惻隱之心的。 32 他們雖知道神公義的判定：行這樣事的人是該死的，然而他們不但自己去行，還贊同別人去行。

這段經文比新約其他經文更廣泛地討論同性戀，然而同性戀卻不是本段經文的首要主題。保羅的重點是要清楚地解釋福音。為了做到這一點，它需要顯示所有人都在神的審判和譴責下，故此需要福音。保羅的聲明從神的永能和神性，可藉着所造之物就可以曉得，叫人無可推諉。神的義怒在一切不虔不義的人身上（羅馬書第一章）。接著，他指出當我們指摘別人的罪的時候，我們就是定自己的罪（羅馬書第二章）。就是擁有神的律法的猶太人，因他們所犯的罪，同樣在神的審判之下。此外，他們沒有能力糾正這種情況（羅馬書第二至三章）。因此，不管一個人是不是在律法之下，都沒有分別，所有人都在神不偏不倚的審判下。這解釋為神在基督裡的恩典鋪路，這是福音的好信息。這確是我們從這種困境中被拯救的方法。

故此同性戀和別的罪在這段經文一起出現，顯示為甚麼神向人發怒，為何人在神面前難辭其咎。在轉往反面論證以先，保羅刻意從好信息開始分享。神的公義從福音顯明出來，這福音需要憑著信來接受（羅馬書1:17）。相反，神的憤怒則在不虔不義的人顯示出來（羅馬書1:18）。在那裡可以見到這些不虔不義的人？被抑制的真理又可以在那裡見到呢？它們在不可饒恕的偶像崇拜中顯示出來。所有人都可以透過受造之物，看到那原本看不到的神的屬性、神的大能和本質（羅馬書1:19-20），可是人不敬拜創造主，卻敬拜偶像和受造之物（羅馬書1:23-25）。大自然的存在需要一位設計者，這真理被抑壓，並且轉移敬拜個人和受造之物。神對這些行為的其中一個審判，就是任由他們隨著心裡的情慾而行（羅馬書1:24），讓他們受這過失當得的刑罰，當中特別提到同性戀（羅馬書1:26-28），這裡簡要地列出其它的罪（羅馬書1:29-32）。

有人反對使用這段經文來討論同性戀，指這段經文只能用於異性戀的人犯了同性茍合的行為（或 「濫用」了同性戀這詞），它不可以應用於「天生」有同性戀傾向和只有一個同性伴侶的人身上（或某種形式的「婚姻」），若加以檢視，這並不成立。保羅在這裡並不是談「自然」傾向，他說的是功能：神設計了男性和女性的功能。按這段經文，人透過同性戀行為反抗這些功能。⁷

我們可以從這段經文看到，神將同性戀列為叛逆祂的其中一個例子，他們需要承擔後果。在這裡，雖然同性戀並不是唯一被列出來的罪，但卻被突顯出來。看來這個例子被突顯出來是因為它截然違反了神明確的設計。神按自己的形像造人（創世記1:27），一男一女的婚姻是神的配套設計（創世記2:22-25）。同性戀行為清晰地違反了神的計劃，那是從本質層面明顯地宣告叛逆神。它宣告神的設計和計劃是錯誤的、是不足夠的。如經文所列，同性戀和別的罪都會得到神即時的（縱使不是終極的）刑罰。罪為自己帶來刑罰，種的是甚麼，收的也是甚麼。⁸  此外，刻意將神的真理換作謊言，於是神將他們交給他們自己邪僻的心，一個人原有分辨道德是非對錯的能力，可能嚴重受損（羅馬書1:28）。

為免任何人變得自義，保羅即時表明這一切都在被譴責的罪惡之下。事實上，譴責別人的罪即譴責自己（羅馬書2:1-5）。保羅可以用這有意義的方式分享，唯一的原因是他不倚靠自己的義，他倚靠神的義；這義，是神的恩典在基督裡已經加給他，他的罪已經被赦免了。他提出這點並不是要指摘他人以表明自己有義；他清楚地表明在每個人裡罪確實存在，神的恩典救了他，所以他能夠和那些需要被拯救的人分享，讓他們同樣得到神的恩典。

保羅在羅馬書表達的目的和論點，基督徒在今天仍然適合和別人分享。我們同樣是罪人，我們都在神的盛怒之下。我也是個罪人，同樣被這些真理審判。透過神的恩典，我們可以得到赦免。即使我們有這恩典，在我們裡頭，並不比別人好一些。我們沒有甚麼可誇口的，這顯示出神的工作就是那麼令人驚歎，當我們還極力地敵對祂的時候，祂卻愛我們，救贖我們，祂的愛和救贖是無法言喻的。這恩典改變了我們，還繼續改變我們的生命，這將使我們永恆地與神同在。這恩典是給所有人的，不分性別、 種族、 國籍、 族裔、階層、或其它分野的群體，沒有人被排除在這恩典以外。基督徒應將這恩典宣揚給其他人，因為這是神的真恩。

B. 哥林多前書 6:9-11，繼承神的國

哥林多前書 6:9-11：9 你們豈不知，不義的人不能承受神的國？不要被騙，無論是淫亂的、拜偶像的、姦淫的、作孌童的、同性戀的、 10 偷竊的、貪婪的、醉酒的、辱罵的、勒索的，都不能承受神的國。 11 你們中間也有人從前是這樣，但如今你們奉主耶穌基督的名，並藉着我們神的靈，已經洗淨，成聖稱義了。

有人質疑這經文裡兩個使用於同性戀的希臘文。他們將這兩個字解釋作溫和的不道德行為（μαλακος）和男妓（αρσενοκοιτης）。可是，這樣翻譯和權威的聖經希臘辭典（BDAG）有分歧。⁹   除此以外，它基本上和大多數 （如果不是全部 ）標準英語詞典並不一致，這樣的翻譯不好。¹⁰  這兩個希臘文，按上下文，確指同性戀關係中兩個不同的角色。

這無疑是一個強烈、明確和毫不含糊的聲明，這聲明包括甚麼是罪和罪的後果，以及從這些罪中唯一得救的途徑。經文中，保羅強烈地提醒哥林多教會，這樣的行為並不符合神的國的要求。在這卷書和這段經文，保羅處理好些困擾著教會的行為和道德問題。他們過往的行為，完全不恰當地影響著他們目前的生命。顯然，情況已經變得很糟糕，保羅在下一封信甚至質疑他們，要求他們作自我反省，看看它們是否已成真正的信徒（哥林多後書13:5）。

他們不會因這些罪本身，或在這些罪裡，而不可以真正接受神的恩典，成為神的兒女。只是繼續在這些罪中，作為生命的方式，¹¹  則顯明他們並非真信徒，不能承受神的國（參約翰壹書第三章）。從這段經文，我們可以明確地看到有些哥林多信徒，他們在這樣的生命方式中成為基督徒，這對我們今天很有用。我們可從中得出兩個結論：

1. 和其它的罪一樣，同性戀行為可以得到神的赦免。神的恩典並不限於這罪或那罪。就如羅馬書5:20-21所寫：

20 律法的加入，叫過犯顯多；只是罪在那裏顯多，恩典就更倍增了。21 就如罪以死掌權，照樣恩典也以義掌權，使人藉我們的主耶穌基督得永生。

2. 有些基督徒離開這些罪，他們應該是最渴望和別人分享神的恩典的人。就如哥林多後書5:17-21所述：

17 因此，若有人在基督裏，他就是新造的人，舊事已過，看哪，新的已經來臨了。 18 一切都是出於神，他藉着基督使我們與他和好，又將勸人與他和好的職分賜給我們； 19 換句話說，神在基督裏叫世人與自己和好，不將他們的過犯歸到他們身上，並且將這和好的道理給了我們。 20 所以我們是基督的使者，就好像神藉我們勸你們一般。我們替基督求你們「與神和好」。 21 神使那無罪的替我們成為罪，好叫我們在他裏面成為神的義。

C. 提摩太前書 1:8-15，最糟糕的罪人 — 保羅

提摩太前書 1:8-15：8 但我們知道律法是好的，只要人用得合宜， 9 瞭解到律法不是為義人設立的，乃是為不法和叛逆的，不虔誠和犯罪的，不聖潔和褻瀆的，弒父母的，謀殺的， 10 淫蕩的，同性戀的，綁票的，說謊話的，並起假誓的，就是為不依從真道而活的人設立的。 11 這話是遵照可稱頌之神交託我的榮耀的福音。

12 我感謝那給我力量的，我們的主基督耶穌，因他以我有忠心，派我職份。 13 雖然我從前是褻瀆神的，逼迫人的，和傲慢的，然而我還蒙了憐憫，因那些是我不信、無知的時候作的。 14 並且我主的恩是格外豐盛，使我在基督耶穌裏有信心和愛心。 15 「基督耶穌降世，為要拯救罪人。」這話是可信的，是配得完全接受的。在罪人中我是個罪魁！

保羅在這段經文指出律法的目的，與誤用律法的人的看法形成對比（提摩太前書1:6-7），律法把人的罪和需要「救恩」顯明出來。保羅所列出的這些例子中，同性戀清晰地被列入不義之中。¹²  有別於這裡虛假的「義人」（第9節），我們必須留意耶穌是唯一的義人（希伯來書4:15，羅馬書3:10-24）。

有些人嘗試讓他們看來像正義的人，這不應與真正的正義混淆。他們會得到神的審判，因為神按照祂聖潔的標準和準繩來審判。他們的嘗試，只能在他們的腦子裡把自己從神的恩典抽離。他們若不承認他們的需要，神的恩典又怎能適用在他們身上呢？

被列出的罪行包括同性戀和許許多多被人認為是「最糟糕」的罪：弒父母的，謀殺的，淫蕩的，同性戀的，綁票的，褻瀆和目無法紀。有趣的是保羅列出這些罪後，他說底線是耶穌基督降生來到這個世界拯救罪人，而他（保羅）卻是罪魁。我們從別的經文知道保羅按律法是無可指摘的（腓立比書3:6）¹³，保羅並沒有犯某些罪行或律法中最小的一條，以致他十惡不赦；然而，他知道他在神的面前誠然是最壞。毫無疑問，我也是罪人中最糟糕的一個。感謝神透過基督，讓我在祂裡面，不再受審判。你不也需要嗎？

新約關於同性戀的教導總結

誠然，同性戀是罪；它並非沒有問題，它是不道德的。它和別的罪一樣，結出受到神審判的果子，上面提及的經文已經確認這點。可是這並未完結，我們討論同性戀的基督教觀點同樣不應這樣完結。聖經和基督教對同性戀的觀點是同性戀是錯誤的，但神有恩典，那恩典就如神給我們的一樣，使所有人從罪中得釋放。神的恩典能給人帶來新生命，並且在向前行的每一步得到幫助。就如耶穌第一次來到世上時所說：

約翰福音3:16-21：16 神愛世人，甚至將他的獨生子賜給他們，叫一切信他的，不至滅亡，反得永生。 17 因為神差他的兒子到世上來，不是要定世人的罪，乃是要叫世人藉他得救。 18 信他的人，不被定罪；不信的人，罪已經定了，因為他不信神獨生子的名。 19 光來到世間，世人因自己的行為邪惡，不愛光，反而愛黑暗，這就是他們被定罪的理由。 20 凡作惡的便恨光，不肯接近光，因為恐怕他們的行為被顯露出來。 21 但行真理的必愛接近光，這就顯出他所行的是靠神而行。

因我曾看見我生命中罪的威力，所以每當我看到聖經稱某些東西為罪、或可憎惡的、或某人做了些甚麼不能承受神的國時，我會即時想到我生命中的罪。我的罪同樣是神所厭惡的：

箴言 6:16-19： 16 耶和華所恨惡的有六樣，連他憎惡的共有七樣：17 就是高傲的眼，撒謊的舌，流無辜人血的手，18 圖謀惡計的心，飛跑行惡的腳，19 吐謊言的假見證，並家庭中佈散不睦的人。

我經常記起我曾經歷的痛苦、憤怒、空虛和絕望。¹⁴  我無法控制自己，但我卻希望其他在這種處境的人，能夠認識神的愛和恩典。神的愛和恩典大大改變了我的生命，我亦希望你能得釋放。

耶穌在地上生活時曾經歷掙扎，祂能夠真正瞭解和同情我們的弱點；因祂像我們一樣，凡事受過試探，可是祂卻沒有犯罪（希伯來書4:15）；只有祂能勝過所有的罪，並在我們這生命的道路上伴著我們一起往前走。當然我並沒有經歷各種不同的處境，但我也在我的生命中看到足夠的罪。以下是我對你的三個願望：

1. 我希望沒有任何一個人像我經歷罪所產生的痛苦與苦果。
2. 我希望所有人都能經歷基督的恩典、愛與赦免，並得著基督所賜永恆的新生命。
3. 我希望透過基督所加添給我的能力，我能夠繼續成長、更像主耶穌。只有這樣才能使我在愛中，用我的語言和行動，向你更好地表達祂的真理。

你會在我旁邊與我一起走嗎？

同樣地，如果你已經真真正正接受這恩典，你會把它活出來，與及在愛中和別人分享嗎？

IV. 耶穌對於性罪行的教導

當討論耶穌有關同性戀或LGBT（同性戀）¹⁵ 的生活方式時，總有人嘗試宣稱耶穌從來沒有處理這個問題。然而這並不準確。耶穌（和神一樣）是一位獨特的老師，祂時常權威性地處理事件背後的原則，這些原則並不是為了單一事件，而是在整個範疇內可能發生的各種情況。祂經常透過辨別人的心思意念與企圖，揭穿我們罪惡的心，並揭示祂聖潔的標準。以下兩個例子給我們詳細表明我們都虧缺了神的榮耀，並且迫切需要神的恩典。

A. 馬太福音 5:27-28：罪最廣闊的定義

馬太福音5:27-28： 27 「你們聽見有話說：『不可姦淫。』 28 只是我告訴你們，凡看見婦女就動淫念的，這人心裏已經與她犯姦淫了。」

耶穌清楚指出神的標準，對與錯並不單單按外在的行為評定，神察看我們的心思意念。甚至幻想不道德的事，也是錯誤的。¹⁶

耶穌的教導直接處理已婚人士在肉體和思想上犯奸淫。可是當我們深入了解耶穌教導的原則，便會看到耶穌實際涉及更廣闊的範疇。耶穌向社會和宗教領袖指出，罪惡超出他們允許自己在思想和行為上所定的界限。在前一段經文，耶穌討論謀殺（馬太福音5:21-26），祂指出向弟兄動怒或侮辱弟兄，都會帶來神的審判，無需實際殺人。明顯地，神的標準遠超出只按行動作判斷，同時亦清楚地顯示（與宗教領袖自義的觀點明顯形成對比）他們無法遵守。律法首要指出我們的罪，並驅使我們信靠神，並接受祂為我們提供的恩典。

性罪行遠遠超出犯奸淫或實際的行動；憤怒和關係破裂的罪，也遠遠超出兄弟之間的問題。這些例子和具體案例亦遠遠超出「律法的條文」。人會限制律法的應用範圍，讓他們看起來聖潔公義。儘管如此，神是不會受騙的。儘管我們淡化不同的罪如：說謊、作弊、偷竊、嫉妒、貪婪、通姦、巫術、色情、淫亂、詐騙、醉酒、同性戀或任何其他不義的行為。耶穌對罪的定義比我們所願意接納的廣闊多了，祂刻意表明祂不會同意我們處理神的道的方式。耶穌的倫理觀，是律法的一部份，明顯適用於同性戀行為（利未記18:22, 20:13），這些律法不會是無效的（路加福音16:17）。

B. 馬太福音 19:3-9, 婚姻的明確定義

馬太福音 19:3-9： 3 有幾個法利賽人來試探耶穌說：「人因任何原因和妻子離婚都合法嗎？」 4 耶穌回答：「那起初造人的，是造男造女， 5 並且說：『因此，人要離開父母，與妻子連合，二人成為一體。』這經你們沒有念過嗎？ 6 既然如此，夫妻不再是兩個人，乃是一體的了。所以神配合的，人不可分開。」 7 法利賽人又說：「這樣，為甚麼摩西吩咐只要給妻子一張離婚書，就可以和她離婚呢？」 8 耶穌說：「摩西因為你們的心硬，所以才准你們和妻子離婚，但起初並不是這樣。 9 只是我告訴你們，若不是因淫亂的緣故，離婚再娶的就是犯姦淫了。」

在這裡，耶穌明確地表明了神對男人、女人和婚姻的計劃。耶穌回答關係問題的基礎，是回到神起初的計劃與設計。神的計劃與設計被我們充滿罪惡的心和心裡剛硬，盡力將它遮蔽和扭曲。這段經文談論離婚、不道德行為和奸淫。耶穌在這裡重申各種可能改變神起初的設計，同樣是對抗神的計畫。透過肯定神的造物計畫，耶穌聲明任何與這設計不乎的活動，是破壞、 無效，並錯誤的。唯一豁免死罪的情況是另一方犯奸淫（這使安分守己的一方不再受約束）¹⁷。例如離婚這類不道德的行為，是宣告神的提供和設計不足；同性戀亦然。

在大多數社會中，這對與錯的標準對那些涉及不道德、 同居、一夜情、通姦、離婚，虐待兒童、色情等，比那些同性戀的群體有更深遠的影響（以數量而言）。可是神的道和神的標準，並不是將我們與其他人的行為作比較，在神面前它們都是錯的。事實上，這些情況都需要如實和在愛心中面對。它們完全違反了神起初的設計與計畫，它們都應受到神的審判。按神的標準，我們都是失敗者，所有人不論是在思想或行為上都有罪，未能達到神的標準。耶穌如此強烈的聲明，它的好處就像我認識到我所做的（仍在做的）是邪惡的，我絕望了，我不能解決這個問題，我被毀壞。我們必須讓它引導我們往奇異恩典、愛、寬恕和耶穌基督轉化生命的大能，通過耶穌基督在十字架上的救贖工作，將我們的刑罰也釘在十字架上，在那裡，我們可以得到新的生命（約翰福音10:9-11）。

耶穌對性罪行的教導的結論

耶穌的教導讓我們看到我們沒有一個人，可以從這些按神的標準所作有關性與婚姻的教導的規管之下逃脫。耶穌親自教導性與婚姻的倫理，它更清楚和更嚴謹地強調神原本的計劃只接受一夫一妻的異性結合，除此以外，其它的都無效，甚至帶有情慾的思想也不接受。

對於那些在一男一女的夫妻制度這真理以外參與異性戀或同性戀的人，有廣泛和深遠的影響；耶穌宣告這些關係無效，並且是罪。

縱使有些人已不再參與這些罪行，但這些真理仍有影響力。事實是你和我在內裡可能以某種方式與它鬥爭，直到我們離世的那天。我和很多清醒的九十後對話，從中察覺到當我們仍在這個被罪敗壞的身體時，有些事情是不會改變的。作為基督徒，如果我們每日倚靠神的恩典，我們希望親切地與其他人分享這恩典。如果我們不是倚靠那恩典，我們是活在謊言中，並且假裝比我們的實況聖潔。我們擁有的唯一聖潔是耶穌基督在我們裡面工作，我們的聖潔是祂給我們的，我們沒有自傲或誇口的餘地。

不管我們的罪是外在的，還是內在的；不管我們的本性是雙性戀，還是同性戀；不管我們所犯的能看見，還是不能看見，如果我們繼續這種行為，可以肯定這些罪惡將慢慢地摧毀我們的生命。這些行為使我們無法活出神的計劃或達到祂的標準。要解決這問題，神在基督耶穌裡的恩典是唯一的答案。（使徒行傳 4:12，提多書 3:3-7）

V. 結論： 真誠的愛 - 我的背景

聖經對人本質的描述是真實的。聖經告訴我們，我們都沒有達到神公義的標準；在神面前，我們全都不義（羅馬書3:10-23）。世上其它宗教為人提供通過某種方式，讓人可以靠自我的努力實現到達天堂的希望。聖經卻沒有這樣做，相反，聖經告訴我們神的標準是人不可能達到的。

我 ¹⁸ 曾親自發現這些標準不可能遵守，它導至我生命中最糟糕的時期，那時我正值青少年期。我從小學習聖經，並曾經因耶穌在十字架上的代贖，我求祂拯救我。可是，當我漸長，我竟讓驕傲和自滿勝過了我，我開始為某特定的罪掙扎；我明白我是錯的，我清楚知道聖經說的是甚麼。接著，我的學業開始受影響，我亦知道沒有甚麼比我的創造主和我的關係更重要，可是我的心太冷，只有空洞的禱告，時間就這樣消逝。我沒有自殺的唯一理由是因為我知道自殺也是罪。這時期的空虛與絕望，是我生命中最糟糕的經歷。罪控制了我的生活。我知道它是空虛的，而且具破壞性；雖然我知道有美好的事，可是，我無法解決我的心思意念，我無法停止犯罪。有一段時期，我曾嘗試不理它，但那揮之不去的思想與現實，總是潛伏著。真相是我沒有遵守神的標準、我並不聖潔，我應得的只有神的審判。

幸而神介入我的生命。對我來說無法克服的事，對神來說卻不是不可能。祂透過我當時所讀的經文和我從收音機聽到的信息，打開了我的眼睛，讓我看到其餘的真理。

這段日子，我日記所記載的，是我每天的失敗、我的心對神是怎樣的剛硬、我的掙扎、我的憤怒、我罪性的實況。我知我應當悔改，但我冰冷的心使我無法做到……突然間我卻欣喜若狂地感謝神，因祂使人驚歎的愛而感謝祂。

發生了什麼事？隨著時間的推移，我意識到我的罪，並且正在自我毀滅的情況下，我完全明白我無能為力，我無法單靠自己的能力處理我生命中的問題。我不能賺取神的愛、神的認可或寬恕。在我的驕傲與自滿中，我需要看到我的真實境況，以至我能夠虛己，把自己完全投入和依靠神的恩典。當我看到了實情，並把自己完完全全向神降服，祂開了我的眼睛，讓我確切地明白祂的愛與恩典。

神的恩典、憐憫和幫助超越兒時的一次性經歷，延伸至一個年輕男子每日實實在在的經歷。只有在神的加力和恩典下，我初嚐從罪中得拯救和永遠的拯救。同樣，只有持續在這恩典中，我才可以每天活出合神心意的生活方式。神工作的大能將我的生命完全轉化。它能把我的邪惡、驕傲和充滿罪的生活，轉化成愈來愈像主耶穌那「不可能」的生活方式。

自此，我強烈地渴望和別人分享。我不想任何人重蹈我的覆轍 -那被罪捆綁，受憤怒和絕望折磨的痛苦日子。我並沒有「做」什麼來賺取神的愛或「做」什麼來得到它，亦沒有神奇公式。不知神使用甚麼方法幫我看見我的罪的真面目，不知甚麼緣故我坦率地在祂面前承認我的罪和接受了祂無法抗拒的愛、恩典和寬恕，祂並幫助我克服我的罪。雖然我早就知道這些事實，但神在那個時候把它們放在我的心和生活中，我降服了，憑著單純的信心，我把生命託付祂。就如祂的死亡、埋葬與復活戰勝了罪，祂戰勝了我的罪。自那時起，我知道我的罪已被戰勝，我會好起來。在我這生，祂會每日與我一起，幫助我面對每天的掙扎；我只要繼續依靠祂，祂會以信實待我。祂確實如此。

這和按聖經教導的基督教同性戀觀點有甚麼關係呢？情況好像我的罪，最初阻礙我進神的國；好像我的罪和驕傲奴役我，因我不斷向我的罪屈服，差點兒就毀了我的生命。任何別的罪也會對你做成相同的傷害。

在我掙扎的初期，聖經已使我明白我的罪；或許你的情況並不相同。或許在你的腦海中，你還有一些疑問。在附註、資源和文章末端的詳細目錄所列出的文章，我極力建議你閱讀它們。

至於那些已接受聖經真理，並已明白這罪和別的罪的人，最理想就是讀福音書（羅馬書對那些注重細節的人也可能有幫助）。你會讀到基督為我們做了甚麼，使我們從罪中得釋放。願神的愛也降臨在你的身上；也給你的生命帶來如給我的改變。

對於那些以聖經怎樣看同性戀作為一個學術性問題的人，請記著：所有罪都會奴役你，使你得到神公義的審判，就如罪對我所作的一樣。在神面前，社會能接納的罪依然是罪；然而，神卻為我們預備了在基督裡的寬恕、救贖和自由。

不管你發現自己在那一種情況，我也會與你一起向神祈求：祈求耶穌基督把賜給我的自由也賜給你。那自由我不是賺取的，因我過於高傲，以至我太晚才接受。請你不要把自己陷於我曾經歷的苦楚，也不要等待以至為時已晚。若神能叫耶穌從死裡復活，寬恕我的罪，勝過我的掙扎和每天加給我幫助，那麼，祂同樣能使你得釋放。在祂裡面，我們的罪所當受的審判得以移除。（羅馬書第八章）

最後，那些相信耶穌基督的信徒，我鼓勵你從聖經的角度來思考這個問題，並每天追隨主，讓祂處理你的罪和轉化你的生命。當我們這樣做，我們將會被預備好，向同樣在罪的困境中的人分享。需要詳細資訊，請參閱短文： https://bible.org/article/homosexuality-and-church.

VI. 發問與回應

Q1. 甚麼是同性戀？

同性戀是向同一性別的人性慾的表達。

Q2. 如何確定同性戀行為是對還是錯？

要確定任何事情的做法是對或錯，需要一個標準來衡量。唯一的權威是那位擁有萬物主權的造物主。神已將祂的道透過聖經賜給人，可作為任何事情作準則，包括：同性戀、道德的對與錯……文化和個人喜好各不相同，但創造萬物之主所定立的準則，卻無差異。

Q3. 聖經對同性戀有甚麼明確的教導？

舊約和新約聖經都明確教導同性戀是罪。聖經亦明確教導神救贖的恩典是神自己付贖價，透過耶穌基督的受死、埋葬、復活使各種各樣的罪人與神自己復和。上文在新約部份的結論已簡要地指出這點。「聖經和基督教的觀點都認為同性戀是錯誤的，但神的恩典，給所有人提供從罪的綑綁中得自由的途徑，就如加給我們的恩典相同。」（詳情請參看上文）

Q4. 在聖經中同性戀常和偶像敬拜、強姦、賣淫或侵犯綑綁在一起，這是說這種組合在神面前被視為有問題或罪嗎？

在聖經中有關同性戀的參考經文，確與其它的罪一起談論（按上文所引用經文的討論，很容易發現這一點）；但若說同性戀與其它罪行混合而使同性戀是罪則不正確。就是單單閱讀有關同性戀的經文，就會發現同性戀行為被確定是錯誤的。例如：羅馬書第一章「順性」被變作和捨棄（羅馬書1:26-27）、做出「羞恥的事」（羅馬書1:27），同性戀違反神創造時的設計。因為所有的罪惡都是偶像崇拜和叛逆神，所以它們在文本中被放在一起並不足為奇。參看這篇文章羅馬書第一章的附註，為這議題作進一步討論。請特別留意 Guenther Haas 出自《Global Journal of Classical Theology, Vol 1, No. 2 (2/99), http://phc.edu/gj_haas_hermen.php》的文章《Hermeneutical Issues In The Use Of The Bible To Justify The Acceptance Of Homosexual Practice》。

Q5. 曾參與同性戀行為便會下地獄嗎？

不，耶穌來到世上為人的罪承擔刑罰，為那些願意相信祂所作的工的人提供赦免。任何真心相信祂的人不會進地獄，同性戀和其它的罪的情況相同，可得到赦免；從反面來看，同性戀和別的罪一樣，需要寬恕，需要透過神的恩典來克服。細節請參看上文相關經文的討論。

Q6. 同性戀的罪比聖經中其它的罪更壞嗎？

聖經並沒有明顯地把罪分「等級」，因此這是一條很難回答的問題。另一方面，耶穌曾說若在迦百農所行的神蹟，如果行在所多瑪，那城還會存留到今天（因她會悔改，就不會被審判）。耶穌還說在審判的日子，所多瑪所受的，比迦百農還輕呢（馬太福音11:23-24）。這似乎顯示神審判的嚴厲程度，取決於對神的知識和所看見的見證而有所不同。那些知道「更多」的人，會受更重的刑罰。在另一方面，羅馬書第一章確實刻意將同性戀作為持久悖逆神和被審判的例子。有趣的是，這段經文似述說那些人十分理解同性戀行為的罪性，縱使他們認識神和神的審判，他們仍追求他們所做的，還鼓勵別人也這樣做。從這些例子，我們可以看到聖經並沒有直接回答這問題，但它卻顯示不管你犯的是甚麼罪，愈是刻意犯罪，神的審判愈嚴厲。聖經卻清晰地回答了比這更重要的另一個有關同性戀的問題 – 神的恩典是否足以拯救和使人脫離這種罪孽。答案是肯定足夠的。

Q7. 你怎樣解釋婚姻儀式中主禮的神職人員或地方治安法官為兩個同性別的人證婚？

有很多地區的政府已經把這種做法合法化，並正式承認同性婚姻。這確實給予他們法律上的權限，而對於很多人來說，這使它看來得到道德上的認可。然而，只有神能夠真正給予道德上的准許，神宣告同性戀是罪，基督徒應以真理和愛心回應，好像回應所有別的罪一般。有些神職人員和教派宣稱基督徒應容許同性婚姻，他們的行動並沒有得到聖經或神的認可。顯而易見，他們的行動與這篇文章看到的聖經真理相違。

Q8. 為何兩個真心相愛的人，只因他們的性別相同就不能容許他們結婚？

這個問題的答案，在今天的政治和宗教圈子裡，都引起很多爭議。簡單來說，答案似乎都歸結到一個人對愛情、 婚姻，和道德定義。真正的愛情，會不惜一切為對方做到最好，按神對人的婚姻設計，是一男一女的結合（創世記1:26-28; 2:18-25）。女人是神賜給男人合適的伴侶。道德必須按神的標準訂立，錯與對也要按神的標準。按這些定義，若與另一人結合違反神的道德標準、不符合婚姻的設計、並非最適合的伴侶，這不會是愛最高的表達。

因非信徒不承認神的道德標準和設計，因此，這觀點對他們來說是不相關的。但對基督徒而言，甚麼是「應該」和道德的問題，則是由那位決定對與錯的來斷定。實際上，這不單是對基督徒說的，而是當人論及甚麼是「對的」時，必須考慮的。「對」只有在承認創造主賦予受造物的道德標準時才存在。自然主義沒有資格決定甚麼是對的。¹⁹

在美國的政治角度和其他信仰體系的造物主可能有不同的道德準則，若按這些不同的準則重新為婚姻作定義，超出了傳統的定義基礎。然而，尋求以這些罕見或新的宗教系統標準，是喧賓奪主，不是真實的道德信念。

試圖透過好像「愛」這類模糊的術語定義婚姻，透過擴大其定義，並不是一個安全的方式。²⁰   事實上人們「愛」各種各樣的東西，我們實在沒有需要因為愛便允許進行各種行為，因這也是不合適的；這也不意味政府必須因有人愛這樣或愛那樣就促進所有行為。同樣地，同性婚姻有別於異性婚姻，這並不關乎平等的問題。²¹

Q9. 同性戀是遺傳的嗎？如果它是遺傳或是「自然」的，它在道德上便可接受嗎？

同性戀是否遺傳是一個有趣的問題。由於科學研究在性質上不斷產生變化，這個問題也錯綜複雜，若這篇文章加入任何篇幅的討論，這篇文章很快便會過時。對這問題有興趣的人，我只可以說直至2013年，沒有同性戀遺傳或 DNA鏈被發現。²² 但是，我必須強調不管是否有某種遺傳方式，也不是決定某事情是否合乎道德的因素。理論上有人可能有某些遺傳，例如：對藥物或酒精濫用、說謊²³ 或盜竊癖等， 但卻不會改變這些問題是否合乎的道德標準。

有兩篇Greg Koukl的著作對於討論「自然」是否合乎道德這個問題很有幫助，頭一篇從一個邏輯和哲學的角度探討問題：Homosexuality Is Unnatural: The Is-Ought Fallacy? http://bible.org/article/homosexuality-unnatural-ought-fallacy；第二篇是較直接從聖經的教導看這問題：Paul, Romans, and Homosexuality, http://bible.org/article/paul-romans-and-homosexuality. 遺傳不一定是自然的（從指定的設計角度來說），同樣地，天然的也不一定是合乎道德的（David Hume Is-Ought fallacy）。

Q10. 可有導致同性戀的因素，可使同性戀者無須負責任嗎？

不同的因素導致我們從事不同的活動。這幫助我們較容易看到一個人為何以自己特定的方式進行某活動。可是，我們必須為我們的行動負責。別人向我們所做的，我們或許沒有責任，但我們需要為我們的選擇負責。

我們對某特定的罪出現傾向或取向。所有人面臨的問題是我們怎樣面對呢？ ²⁴ 對我來說，我不肯放開我傾向的罪的時間過長，實況是，我每天都受試探要留在那罪之中，無法脫離；有時還有新的罪出現。我需要終生學習我在基督裡的身份、抵擋罪的誘惑和行在真理中，我無法勝過我的罪。透過信靠基督可勝過罪和勝過世界（約翰壹書3:2-3; 5:4）。這是激烈的鬥爭，我們實不可低估我們都在這樣的鬥爭中。 罪很普及，我們並沒有瞧不起別人的餘地。

有人只感到要「克服它」。要克服它，我們必須承認罪就是罪，我們亦需要下決心按神的恩典和供應做正確的事。不過這僅是個開始，我們還需要每日互相同行和協助，必須持續肯定我們在基督裡的身份。這是「持續在神恩典中」的課題，讓我們透過神的恩典「克服它」，在神的恩典中「持續克服它」！沒有神的恩典，我們無法做到。

Q11. 基督徒應如何對待同性戀者？

我們應該以神向我們顯示的愛和恩典對待他們。我們都是罪人，我們所犯的罪可能並不相同，但我們都悖逆神。我們已經、也持續從罪中得拯救，這應使我們能理解、真正關心和同情所有的人。耶穌的愛沒有因人身處的境況離開他們；而是與基督的愛相遇。

基督徒不應期望那些不信的人，能像基督的追隨者一般生活（哥林多前書5:9-11），雖然我們不能縱容罪或參與罪（不管是性罪行或別的罪），但我們卻應像基督一般，與所有的人推進友誼。沒有空間容讓我們偏袒、蔑視、不尊重或不仁；卻有很多空間向他們展示我們正從神所領受的恩典。

基督徒應該協助那些相信的人活出基督追隨者的樣式。成長是一個終身的過程，信徒在生命旅程的不同時刻，都面對不同的掙扎，不管在甚麼情況下，我們應按需要不斷提供協助，門徒訓練，鼓勵、 輔導、 挑戰和責備。

在我們的一生和與人相交的過程中，都應提供這種協助。一位自稱基督徒的人，應堅持這種正常教會紀律的生活方式（馬太福音18:15-22）。按此，同性戀和別的持久性的罪沒有什麼不同。這一切我們都必須以謙卑和愛的態度進行（加拉太書6:1）。

對於那些持續在同一罪中掙扎的人，應謹慎處理當中的關係。應時常以神的仁慈和恩典對待他們；然而，我們必須小心，任何的接觸不要導致自己犯罪。

Q12. 我們如何幫助那些捲入同性戀行為的基督徒？或怎樣幫助那些曾經有同性戀經歷，但決志成為基督徒的信徒？或怎樣幫助那些正面對同性引誘的人？

無論是色情、 酗酒或吸煙成癮，都會影響我們的頭腦，使我們上癮，使人陷入難以打破的模式和惡習，留下永不磨滅的影響。性活動持久地影響我們身份的認同。神的恩典給人赦免和潔淨，神寬恕我們。但作為耶穌的門徒，需要終身追求。我們都有不同的經驗、不同的掙扎，更不消說基督徒終身互相服事的掙扎了。

對伴侶維持在心思意念和道德上的純潔是異性婚姻者終生在意識形態上的爭戰。性是一個深層次的問題，因它關乎我們作為一個人的核心問題。為何我們期望它與那些被同性相吸的人所面對的有分別呢？有些人或許能即時、並完全地勝過它；大部分人可能像你或我，他們在某一天透過神的恩典才能勝過試探。當我們漸次明白我們在基督裡的身份，這天將會來臨。這並不是單單嘗試管理罪便可，而是認識基督、效法基督之路。

VII. 資源

（這些資源除了特別聲名的以外，是免費的）

A. 視聽資源

Dallas Theological Seminary (音訊+ 錄像)
Homosexuality in the Context of Christian Sexual Ethics, Podcast http://www.dts.edu/thetable/play/discussing-homosexuality-sexuality-together/
Controversial Same-Sex Texts In The Bible, Podcast, http://www.dts.edu/thetable/play/queen-james-passages-old-testament/
Engaging with Sexual Identity Issues: Engaging with LGBT Persons, Podcast http://www.dts.edu/thetable/play/engaging-lgbt-persons/
Engaging with Sexual Identity Issues: Ministering to People Wrestling with Sexual Identity, Podcast http://www.dts.edu/thetable/play/ministering-to-people-wrestling-sexual-identity/

Greg Koukl (供購買音訊)
Setting the Record Straight: The Bible and Homosexuality https://secure2.convio.net/str/site/Ecommerce/1202380276?VIEW_PRODUCT=true&product_id=3981&store_id=1161

John MacArthur (音訊 + 手稿)
Answering Key Questions About Homosexuality, http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/GTY89/answering-key-questions-about-homosexuality
Homosexuality and the Bible (Selected Scriptures, 2 messages), http://www.gty.org/resources/sermon-series/12
God’s Plan for the Gay Agenda, http://www.gty.org/resources/articles/A170/Gods-Plan-for-the-Gay-Agenda

John Piper (音訊 + 手稿 + 部份錄像)
Why is Homosexuality Wrong?, (Some gracious thoughts on the brokenness of us all) http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/ask-pastor-john/why-is-homosexuality-wrong
Discerning the Will of God Concerning Homosexuality and Marriage (Romans 12:1-2), http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/discerning-the-will-of-god-concerning-homosexuality-and-marriage
The Other Dark Exchange: Homosexuality, Part 1 (Romans 1:24-28), (http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-other-dark-exchange-homosexuality-part-1
The Other Dark Exchange: Homosexuality, Part 2 (Romans 1:24-28), http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-other-dark-exchange-homosexuality-part-2
Bethlehem’s Position on Homosexuality (a sample of a church's attempt to practically live out a Biblical view of homosexuality), http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/taste-see-articles/bethlehems-position-on-homosexuality

Frank Turek
March 16th podcast from his radio show dealing with same sex marriage issues, equality, and reason: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/feelings-or-reason-march-16/id337782458?i=136358756&mt=2.

B. 文章資源

Wayne Grudem
The Bible and Homosexuality, reprinted in World Magazine with permission from Crossway. Original article is from the ESV Study Bible. http://www.worldmag.com/2013/04/the_bible_and_homosexuality

Stanton Jones
Sexual Orientation and Reason: On the Implications of False Beliefs about Homosexuality. Text version: http://www.wheaton.edu/CACE/Hot-Topics PDF Download: http://www.wheaton.edu/CACE/CACE-Print-Resources/Articles

Bible.org 網上文章:

Sue Bohlin
Homosexuality: Questions and Answers, http://bible.org/article/homosexuality-questions-and-answers
Can Homosexuals Change?, http://bible.org/article/can-homosexuals-change
Answers to Questions Most Asked by Gay-Identifying Youth, https://bible.org/article/answers-questions-most-asked-gay-identifying-youth
When Someone in Your Congregation Says “I’m Gay”, http://bible.org/article/when-someone-your-congregation-says-im-gay
Keys to Recovery from Same-Sex Attractions, http://bible.org/article/keys-recovery-same-sex-attractions

Bob Deffinbaugh
Israel’s Sodom and Gomorrah (Judges 19-21) http://bible.org/seriespage/israel%E2%80%99s-sodom-and-gomorrah-judges-19-21

Daniel Wallace
Review of Mel White’s ‘What the Bible Says—and Doesn’t Say—about Homosexuality’ (deals with Romans 1:26-27), http://bible.org/article/review-mel-white%E2%80%99s-what-bible-says%E2%80%94and-doesn%E2%80%99t-say%E2%80%94about-homosexuality

Christian Apologetics Research Ministry 文章:

Matt Slick
On "There is nothing wrong with two homosexuals getting married if they love each other", http://carm.org/love-homosexual-marriage

Stand To Reason 文學:

Greg Koukl
Paul, Romans, and Homosexuality, http://bible.org/article/paul-romans-and-homosexuality
Homosexuality Is Unnatural: An Is-Ought Fallacy?, http://bible.org/article/homosexuality-unnatural-ought-fallacy
Homosexuality: Giving Your Point of View, http://www.str.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=5302

Alen Shlemon
Homosexuality: Know the Truth and Speak it with Compassion, http://www.str.org/site/News2?id=8779

Cross Examined 文章:

Frank Turek (Articles + Radio show podcast)
The Case Against “Equality” Part 1 and 2 (Deals with the political issue of marriage and the claim of inequality in its not being applied to homosexual relationships.) http://townhall.com/columnists/frankturek/2013/02/28/the-case-against-equality-n1521881/page/full/ and http://townhall.com/columnists/frankturek/2013/03/01/the-case-against-equality-part-2-n1523048/page/full/

C.神學期刊資源（需付月費，可點擊這網頁http://www.galaxie.com//訂閱）

Gary R. Gromacki
Why Be Concerned about Same-Sex Marriage? Journal of Ministry and Theology, 09:2 (Fall/05)

Guenther Haas
Hermeneutical Issues In The Use Of The Bible To Justify The Acceptance Of Homosexual Practice, Global Journal of Classical Theology, Vol 1, No. 2 (2/99), http://phc.edu/gj_haas_hermen.php

David E. Malick
The Condemnation of Homosexuality in 1 Corinthians 6:9, Bibliotheca Sacra, 150:600 (10/93)

Mark McGinniss
The Church’s Response To The Homosexual, Journal of Ministry and Theology, 14:2 (Fall/10)

P. Michael Ukleja
Homosexuality and the Old Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:559 (07/83)
The Bible and Homosexuality Part 2: Homosexuality in the New Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:560 (10/83)

D. 網誌資源

Darrell Bock

http://blogs.bible.org/search/apachesolr_search/homosexuality?filters=tid%3A2789

Tim Challies

http://www.challies.com/search/google?cx=006311167884800022839%3Ajcs6rz6z3lw&cof=FORID%3A11&query=homosexuality&op=Search&form_build_id=form-acb816b66500dbffbe20717127db5612&form_id=google_cse_searchbox_form

Michael Patton

http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2013/03/is-limiting-marriage-to-unions-of-a-man-and-a-woman-discrimination/

E. 事工資源

Living Hope Ministries http://livehope.org/

Outpost Ministries http://www.outpostministries.org/home.htm

VIII. 詳細目錄

I. 導言

II. 舊約關於同性戀的教導

A. 利未記 18:22：律法禁止同性戀

B. 利未記 20:13： 律法對同性戀的懲罰

C. 創世記19:1-11：所多瑪和蛾摩拉

D. 士師記 19:22 – 基比亞

舊約關於同性戀教導的結論

III. 新約關於同性戀的教導

A. 羅馬書 1:20-32

B. 哥林多前書 6:9-11，繼承神的國

C. 提摩太前書 1:8-15，最糟糕的罪人 — 保羅

新約關於同性戀的教導總結

IV. 耶穌對於性罪行的教導

A. 馬太福音 5:27-28：罪最廣闊的定義

B. 馬太福音 19:3-9, 婚姻的明確定義

耶穌對性的教導的結論

V. 結論： 真誠的愛 - 我的背景

VI. 發問與回應

Q1. 甚麼是同性戀？

Q2. 如何確定同性戀行為是對還是錯？

Q3. 聖經對同性戀有甚麼明確的教導？

Q4. 在聖經中同性戀常和偶像敬拜、強姦、賣淫或侵犯綑綁在一起，這是說這種組合在神面前被視為有問題或罪嗎？

Q5. 曾參與同性戀行為便會下地獄嗎？

Q6. 同性戀的罪比聖經中其它的罪更壞嗎？

Q7. 你怎樣解釋婚姻儀式中主禮的神職人員或地方治安法官為兩個同性別的人證婚？

Q8. 為何兩個真心相愛的人，只因他們的性別相同就不能容許他們結婚？

Q9. 同性戀是遺傳的嗎？如果它是遺傳或是「自然」的，它在道德上便可接受嗎？

Q10. 可有導致同性戀的因素，可使同性戀者無須負責任嗎？

Q11. 基督徒應如何對待同性戀者？

Q12. 我們如何幫助那些捲入同性戀行為的基督徒？或怎樣幫助那些曾經有同性戀經歷，但決志成為基督徒的信徒？或怎樣幫助那些正面對同性引誘的人？

VII. 資源

A. 視聽資源

B. 文章資源

C.神學期刊資源（可透過付月費或透過神學期刊圖書館訂閱http://www.galaxie.com//）

D. 網誌資源

E. 事工資源

VIII. 詳細目錄

¹這篇文章有三重目標：

1. 在愛心中提供聖經對同性戀的教導。
2. 建立教會： （a） 清楚展示神的恩典； （b） 提倡基督徒誠心去愛那些被識別為by LGBT 的人（女同性戀，男同性戀，雙性戀，變性人）；和 （c）移除對聖經、耶穌和教會的錯誤觀念。
3. 提供進一步研究的資料 (a) 聖經和同性戀相關的經文，和（b）嘗試真正活像基督的基督徒，怎樣以最理想的方法在愛中表達真理。

²從道德禁令而不是簡單的宗教規條來討論這些聖經的律法（這可能以某種方式被忽視）， 參看 P. Michael Ukleja, Homosexuality and the Old Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:559 (07/83). 這篇文章在結束時有一個很有幫助的討論，這些律法對今天的基督徒繼續適用。

³ 參 P. Michael Ukleja, Homosexuality and the Old Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:559 (07/83).

⁴ 參 NET Bible 猶大書 1:7註釋；也參看這篇文章附註一 作進一步討論這節經文的全面詮釋，與及這節經文和創世記的關連。

⁵ 有關「知道」這用語的討論和它在這裡清晰的意思，參看P. Michael Ukleja, Homosexuality and the Old Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:559 （07/83）相關的討論。請注意，按上下文，他們並非單單想認識那人，屋主清晰知道他們的企圖（和合本已翻譯作「交合」）（士師記19:23）。 按他們對待那人的妾的方式，他們的意圖昭然若揭。這可得出那些人明確地有㚻姦的意圖。

⁶ Bob Deffinbaugh, Israel’s Sodom and Gomorrah (Judges 19-21) http://bible.org/seriespage/israel%E2%80%99s-sodom-and-gomorrah-judges-19-21.

⁷有關反對意見的更詳細的討論和它欠缺可持續性， 參： Greg Koukl, Paul, Romans, and Homosexuality, http://bible.org/article/paul-romans-and-homosexuality, 和 Homosexuality Is Unnatural: An Is-Ought Fallacy?, http://bible.org/article/homosexuality-unnatural-ought-fallacy.

較從釋經學的角度討論，可參看：Guenther Haas, Hermeneutical Issues In The Use Of The Bible To Justify The Acceptance Of Homosexual Practice, Global Journal of Classical Theology, Vol 1, No. 2 (2/99), http://phc.edu/gj_haas_hermen.php 和 P. Michael Ukleja, The Bible and Homosexuality Part 2: Homosexuality in the New Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:560 (10/83).

從較著重詮釋學的角度討論，參看：John Piper, The Other Dark Exchange: Homosexuality, Part 1 (Romans 1:24-28) (http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-other-dark-exchange-homosexuality-part-1 and The Other Dark Exchange: Homosexuality, Part 2 (Romans 1:24-28), http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-other-dark-exchange-homosexuality-part-2

⁸ 這觀點不常被察覺，但在Bob Deffinbaugh的羅馬書系列： Romans: The Righteousness of God. http://bible.org/seriespage/present-wrath-god-romans-115-32中有洞見地提出。

⁹ Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, rev. and ed. Frederick W. Danker, 3rd ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 135, and 613.

¹⁰ P. Michael Ukleja, The Bible and Homosexuality Part 2: Homosexuality in the New Testament, Bibliotheca Sacra, 140:560 (10/83). 有關這些話和其他問題，如雞奸，進一步討論，請參： David E. Malick, The Condemnation of Homosexuality in 1 Corinthians 6:9, Bibliotheca Sacra, 150:600 (10/93). The NET Bible notes on 1 Corinthians 6:9 也很有啟發，可點擊: https://net.bible.org/#!bible/1+Corinthians+6.

¹¹ 在這裡我們指的不是終身的爭鬥 — 我們都居住在一個充滿罪惡的世界和充滿罪的肉身之中，我們可以透過耶穌基督和信仰征服它（約翰壹書5:3-5）。

¹² 討論在這裡所使用的特定的詞彙，請參看哥林多前書6:9-11的討論，同一個希臘文用語「αρσενοκοιτης」用於哥林多前書6:9-11和提摩太前書1:10。

¹³ 從他所說的和下面關於耶穌的教導，當我們繼續看這篇文章，我們將看到他必已承認他在神面前的嚴重罪孽。（參看他在羅馬書 7:7-25關於自己的陳述。）

¹⁴ 看結論所作出有關，我自己經驗的進一步討論。

¹⁵ 女同性戀、 男同性戀、 雙性戀、 變性

¹⁶ 對這內客的審慎討論，參看 Bob Deffinbaugh: http://bible.org/seriespage/avoiding-sin-adultery-matthew-527-30

¹⁷ 進一步討論和重要的討論，參看William F. Luck, Sr.在他書中的討論： Bible.org: http://bible.org/series/divorce-and-re-marriage-recovering-biblical-view

¹⁸ 作者在 Bible.org工作，持有達拉斯神學院神學碩士學位，你可點擊這裡與他聯絡。

¹⁹ 參看 Greg Koukl, http://bible.org/article/homosexuality-unnatural-ought-fallacy 有關實然、應然（is-ought）討論的謬誤，與及目的論（teleological）的論點與權利的關係。另參看 Fred Turek’s 極有幫助的 2 part column, http://townhall.com/columnists/frankturek/2013/02/28/the-case-against-equality-n1521881/page/full/ and http://townhall.com/columnists/frankturek/2013/03/01/the-case-against-equality-part-2-n1523048/page/full/. 它們處理婚姻的政治議題和不平等地應用在同性戀關係的虛假宣稱。討論這議題的聲檔，參Turek’s 在三月十六日的電台廣播：https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/feelings-or-reason-march-16/id337782458?i=136358756&mt=2

²⁰ 參看Matt Slick’s 在Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry 一篇淺談愛和同性戀婚姻的文章： http://carm.org/love-homosexual-marriage.

²¹ 參看註腳第十七點 Fred Turek 的資源列表。 Dr. Turek和這課題相關的書，對那些希望進一步研究這課題的人，無疑是很有幫助的資源：Correct, NOT Politically Correct: How Same-Sex Marriage Hurts Everyone.

²² 按在Time.com 在2012年12月的一篇文章：despite intensive investigations ，到那時為止，科學家尚未能成功找到「同性戀遺傳基因」。研究者在這篇文章中強調「它不是遺傳學、不是 DNA、不是 DNA 片段；它是表觀遺傳學。」他提出了一種新理論，同性戀和子宮裡的激素附因子（epi-marks）相關。因此在這一階段，除了沒有發現遺傳基因和沒有DNA的關連，也沒有什麼得到科學證明。不同的理論正繼續被討論，點擊網上文章http://healthland.time.com/2012/12/13/new-insight-into-the-epigenetic-roots-of-homosexuality/可連接一篇4/5/2013，這個資料當然在幾年內就會過時，然而它鄭重地重申：縱使它以某種方式遺傳，從邏輯上來說它未必是道德的。參看文章別的參考資料，可以看到更全面的討論。

Dr. Stanton Jones 在他科學研究最新的文章 “Sexual Orientation and Reason: On the Implications of False Beliefs about Homosexuality”，有一個非常有用的分析，連接他的文章，可點擊http://www.wheaton.edu/CACE/Hot-Topics （PDF檔）或點擊http://www.wheaton.edu/CACE/CACE-Print-Resources/Articles（連接4/15/2013）

²³ 說謊和遺傳是否有關無法確定，但長期說謊者的大腦中確實有一些差異。參http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/187/4/320.abstract （連接 4/16/2013）。

²⁴參 John Piper’s短文/視頻 “Why Homosexuality is sin?” 滿有恩典地提醒我們這些真理。 http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/ask-pastor-john/why-is-homosexuality-wrong

April 3, 2016

A minister noticed a group of boys standing around a small stray dog. “What are you doing, boys?” “Telling lies,” said one of the boys. “The one who tells the biggest lie gets the dog.”

The minister was shocked. “Why, when I was your age,” he said, “I never thought of telling a lie.” The boys looked at one another, a little crestfallen. Finally one of them shrugged and said, “I guess he wins the dog.”

The truth is, we all struggle with telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. In our text, Paul explains why we must be truthful:

As Christians, we must be truthful because we’re new creatures in Christ and we’re members of the same body.

Our text is parallel to, but shorter than Ephesians 4:22-25, where Paul uses the same analogy of putting off the old man and putting on the new. He follows that with (Eph. 4:25), “Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.” The concept of putting off the old man and putting on the new is not only an individual matter. It also includes a corporate sense in which we as members of Christ have put off what we were in Adam and have put on Christ, the new Adam. Since Christ is the head of His body, the church, putting on Christ means that we are now members of the same body. Thus, we must be truthful because we’re new creatures in Christ and are members of His body, the church.

1. As Christians, we must be truthful in love.

Most of us would probably be offended if someone called us a liar or questioned our truthfulness. We’d say, “I know I have some problems, but lying is not one of them.” But, be careful or you’ll join that minister in lying about your truthfulness!

The truth is, we all struggle constantly to be truthful. If you’re not struggling, then you’re not truthful, because our human default mode is to bend the truth to our own advantage. Think of some of the ways that we easily can fall into lying. There’s the half-truth. You tell the truth as far as you go, but you just don’t tell the whole truth, so that you convey a false impression. Abraham did this when he said of Sarah, “She’s my sister.” True, she was his half-sister; but he concealed the relevant point that she was also his wife. Similar to the half-truth is the lie of omission, which tempts us all at tax season. You “forget” to report extra cash income you earned. Or, a cashier gives you too much change or leaves an item off your bill, but you don’t say anything to correct the situation.

Then there’s exaggeration—you stretch the truth a bit to make yourself look better or worse than you really are. Former Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago said (in “No Matter How Thin You Slice It, It’s Still Baloney” [Quill], ed. by Jean Arbeiter p. 93), “They have vilified me, they have crucified me, yes, they have even criticized me.”

There are so-called “white lies,” little untruths that supposedly don’t hurt anyone. You could work, but you have other things to do, so you use a mild headache as an excuse to call in sick. Or, you tell your doctor that you’ve obeyed his orders when you know you didn’t. There are lies to cover for someone else, perhaps your boss or an alcoholic family member. Writing letters of recommendation for a former employee can be difficult. You want to put the person in a good light and you don’t want to say anything for which you could get sued, but you must be truthful. One guy came up with a Lexicon of Intentionally Ambiguous Recommendations—LIAR for short (Reader’s Digest [12/87], p. 110). For example, to describe an unproductive candidate, you can say, “I can assure you that no person would be better for the job.”

As Christians, we easily fall into lies of hypocrisy, where we try to make others think that we are more spiritual than we really are. You say, “The other morning in my quiet time, …” making it sound as if you have a quiet time every day, when the truth is, it was the only quiet time you’ve had in weeks. Then there are silent lies, where someone says something complimentary about you that isn’t true, but you let it go by without correcting it. There are evasive lies, where you change the subject without answering the question, but you leave a false impression. There are polite lies, where you say something nice (but untrue) to avoid hurting the other person’s feelings. A pastor whose family couldn’t stand fruitcake told the lady who gave them one, “Fruitcake like that doesn’t last long around our house!”

And, as often comes out with government officials, there are cover-up lies, where the liar rationalizes that to tell the truth would hurt people or might compromise our government’s security. The entire Watergate scandal that brought down President Nixon was a web of cover-up lies. So was the attempt to blame the Benghazi attacks that killed our ambassador and three others on an anti-Islamic movie, when the President and Secretary of State knew full well that that was not the cause.

But the entire Bible, including our text, make it plain that we must be truthful. That doesn’t mean that we must share all of our thoughts or be brutally honest. We must speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). Love covers a multitude of sins (1 Pet. 4:8), which implies that we should not broadcast everything we know about someone. And, the Bible acknowledges that there are rare ethical dilemmas, such as the Hebrew midwives lying to protect the Hebrew baby boys from Pharaoh’s murderous edict (Exod. 1:15-22), or Rahab lying to protect the Hebrew spies (Josh. 2:4-6). When the Lord told Samuel to anoint David as king, Samuel was afraid that King Saul would kill him. So the Lord told Samuel to tell David’s family that he had come to offer a sacrifice, which he did, although it wasn’t his real reason for coming (1 Sam. 16:1-5).

But those kinds of situations are infrequent. What Paul says hits us all: “Do not lie to one another.” We should not dodge the plain application of that! Our God is the God of truth; as His people, we must speak the truth in love, and be honest before God in all our behavior.

But, why must we be truthful? We must be truthful to be like our Savior, who is the truth. If we’re in Him, members of His body, then we must represent Him by being truthful.

2. As Christians, we must be truthful because we are new creatures in Christ.

In the parallel passage in Ephesians, Paul says that his readers were taught to put off the old man and to put on the new, whereas here he states that they have already put off the old and put on the new. F. F. Bruce (The Epistles to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians [Eerdmans], p. 357) explains, “This tension between the indicative and the imperative, between the ‘already’ and the ‘not yet,’ is common in the Pauline letters; it is summed up in the admonition: ‘Be what you are!’—Be in practice what the calling of God has made you.” We’re now in Christ, so we should act like it.

The old man (NASB, ESV, NIV = “self”) is what we were by nature as fallen children of Adam, ruled by sin. God doesn’t improve that old man—Paul says (Eph. 4:22) that it is “being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit.” But its power was broken through the cross, so that we do not need to yield to its influence. The picture Paul uses is that we have laid aside this old man as you would take off dirty clothes, and we have put on the new man, which refers to all that we now are in Christ.

Because Paul says (Rom. 6:6) that the old man was crucified with Christ and (Col. 3:9) that we have in fact laid it aside, some contend that believers do not have two natures, an old and a new, but only the new. As Paul says (2 Cor. 5:17), “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature.”

But clearly, even in mature Christians, there is an inclination toward sin that remains (Rom. 7:14-25). You can call it “the flesh,” or “the old nature,” or “indwelling sin,” but saying that it no longer exists is contrary both to experience and to the Scriptures. While at the point of conversion we positionally put off the old man and put on the new man, in practice we must learn to put off the old and put on the new every time we are tempted to sin. In other words, we must be in practice what we are in God’s sight by virtue of our union with the risen Savior (Col. 3:3). As Paul puts it (Rom. 6:8-11), because we died with Christ, we must now reckon ourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Paul says three things in our text about the new man:

A. The new man is created by God, not by human effort.

The new man which we have put on “is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him” (Col. 3:10). Paul is referring to Genesis 1:27, where God created Adam and Eve in His own image. But that image was marred by their fall into sin. But Christ is the new Adam (1 Cor. 15:45), creating a new people through the new birth (John 1:12-13). As Jesus told Nicodemus (John 3:6-7), “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” The flesh has no ability to resurrect itself from spiritual death. The Spirit of God must cause us to be born again (1 Pet. 1:3).

So becoming a Christian and living as a Christian is not a moral improvement project, where you resolve to turn over a new leaf. It requires nothing less than God powerfully imparting new life to you. Without that new life, you are in the flesh (or the old man), and Paul says (Rom. 8:8), “Those in the flesh cannot please God.” So if you have never repented of your sins and trusted in Christ and His death on the cross to save you, you must begin there. To put it another way, a life of truthfulness is not the result of determining to become truthful; it is the fruit of the new man.

B. The new man is in the process of being renewed.

Paul says (Col. 3:10) that the new man “is being renewed ….” This points to the process of growth, similar to what takes place in physical life. The cells of our bodies are constantly being renewed as we grow from infancy to adulthood. Of course, due to death, stemming from the fall, our physical bodies eventually stop being renewed and start falling apart. (I resemble that remark!) But Paul says (2 Cor. 4:16) that even though our physical bodies are decaying, our inner man is being renewed day by day.

This process occurs by the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2; Eph. 4:23), which happens through God’s Word, which is the truth (John 17:17). His Word sanctifies and revives us (Ps. 19:7-14; Ps. 119:25, 50, 93, 107, 149, 154, 156). As a new creature in Christ, you should crave God’s Word like a newborn baby craves its mother’s milk, so that you will grow in respect to salvation (1 Pet. 2:2). But the point is, it doesn’t happen instantly. It takes time to grow the fruit of righteousness, which includes truthfulness. But it won’t happen if you’re not feeding on God’s Word.

C. The new man is growing in the knowledge of God to become like Christ.

Paul says (Col. 3:10) that this new man which we have put on “is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.” “Knowledge” refers to the knowledge of Christ, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). This includes the academic knowledge of what the Bible teaches about God and Christ, which is also called “theology.” The fact is, you are a theologian! The only question is, “Is your theology biblically based or is it a conglomerate of the Bible combined with cultural ideas and personal preferences?” But beyond correct theology, you must grow to know God personally, just as you grow to know your mate or a good friend. You must grow to know His ways, as revealed in His Word.

God is the God of truth (Isa. 65:16). As the Creator, He is the measure of reality by which all else is measured. Jesus said that God’s word is truth (John 17:17). Titus 1:2 says that God cannot lie. Jesus claimed not merely to speak the truth and bear witness to the truth, but that He is the truth (John 8:45; 18:37; 14:6). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth (John 14:17; 15:26; 16:13; 1 John 5:7).

By way of contrast, Satan is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). When you lie, you are being satanic (scary thought)! Because of that, God hates a lying tongue and a false witness who utters lies (Prov. 6:16-19). “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord” (Prov. 12:22). So as new creatures in Christ, created by God, growing to be more like Him, we must put aside all lying and falsehood. We must be growing to become people marked by truth.

But this is more than an individual process. Paul shows that…

3. As Christians, we must be truthful because we are members of the same body.

Paul says (Col. 3:11) that in this new man there is “no Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all and in all.” While Paul makes similar statements elsewhere (Gal. 3:28; 1 Cor. 12:13), he probably uses these categories here because they related to the situation in Colossae (J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul’s Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon [Zondervan], pp. 216-219). The proud, national Judaism of the Colossian false teachers is countered by Paul’s assertion that there is “no Greek and Jew.” Their legalism is met with the words, no “circumcised and uncircumcised.” Their pride in knowledge is confronted with, no “barbarian, Scythian.” The barbarian was originally one who didn’t speak Greek, whose language sounded like “bar-bar.” It came to refer to an uneducated, uncultured foreigner. The Scythians were known as a savage, cruel people, the lowest type of barbarian. Paul probably included no “slave and freeman” because he was sending back the runaway slave, Onesimus, to his owner, Philemon, in Colossae.

Paul is saying that all such national, former religious, racial, and cultural distinctions are false for those in Christ. They are not in accordance with the truth of the one new man, which consists of Christ the head and His body, the church (see Eph. 2:15). Obviously, we can’t cease to be racially or ethnically what we are, but these differences should not matter in the church. Unless there’s a language barrier, there should not be separate ethnic churches in the same locale. In fact, the glory of the church is when people who would naturally be separated from one another in the world by race or culture come together as one body in Christ. The world can’t explain it, because it’s due to the new birth.

Sadly, this truth is being deliberately undermined by church growth advocates. They study growing churches and conclude that people like to go to churches made up of “their kind of people.” Older folks want to be with other older folks, so offer a “traditional” service that caters to their preferences. Millennials want to be around other young people in a church with loud, contemporary music. Cater to their world, speak their language, dress as they do, and you’ll see your church grow.

The problem is, while your church may grow if you market it to a certain cultural “niche,” it’s completely unbiblical because it undermines a key purpose for the church. It brings glory to Christ and is a vital part of our witness in the world when young and old and rich and poor representing every local race and culture worship and work together because of the gospel. It brings glory to Christ when an older couple comes alongside a younger couple and helps them understand how to have a Christlike marriage or to rear their children in the Lord. The younger people in the church need the older folks for their experience and wisdom, and the older folks need the young for their youthful zeal. That’s why I’ve refused to have separate “traditional” and “contemporary” services.

Paul caps it off with a brief phrase that sums up both the letter of Colossians and the entire Christian life and church: “Christ is all, and in all.” I’m going to devote the message next week to this profound statement, but for now note that Christ is the substance and the center of the Christian life: He is all. As Paul says (1 Cor. 1:30), Christ “… became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption.” Understanding that our life “is hidden with Christ in God” and that He Himself is our life (Col. 3:3-4) is the basis for all the moral commands that Paul gives in Colossians. Christ is our all-sufficient Savior (2 Pet. 1:3)!

Also, Christ is “in all,” which is the basis for true Christian unity (Eph. 2:14; 4:3). While we must grow to attain the unity of the faith which comes from knowing Christ more deeply (Eph. 4:13), if someone else truly knows Christ as Savior and Lord, we are one because we’re both members of His body (1 Cor. 12:13). I may not agree with a brother or sister in Christ about some point of doctrine, and it’s legitimate to discuss or debate these differences in a spirit of love. But I’m not free to reject or attack a person who has Christ dwelling in him, even if he needs correction. (We’ll see how Christian relationships should function in Col. 3:12-4:1.)

Conclusion

All relationships depend on the truth. You can’t know God and be rightly related to Him if you ignore the truth about who He is or the truth about who you are, as revealed in His Word. He is holy and we all have sinned. But He offers forgiveness of all our sins when we believe in Christ (Col. 1:14; 2:13). When you come to know and believe the truth about God, you enter into a personal relationship with Him.

And your relationships with others depend on the truth. Getting to know another person more deeply involves getting to know the truth about him or her and revealing the truth about yourself. If there is deception or withholding of the truth, there will be a corresponding distance in that relationship. Not every relationship, of course, can be deeply intimate. We can only be very close with a few. But there must be truth in love so that we can properly relate to one another as God’s people, helping each other to become all that God wants us to be. Truth is at the heart of being rightly related to one another.

So I ask, “Are you walking truthfully before God?” He knows everything about you, of course. But you must walk in the light with Him, opening all of your life to Him. You have to open all your dirty closets to Him for cleaning! Hiding your sin from God is a sure way to drift away from Him.

And I ask, “Are you walking truthfully with your family and with the family of God?” It’s easier to be superficial and hide behind a mask. It’s easier not to clear up relational problems by going to the person and speaking the truth in love. But if we don’t make the effort to relate truthfully, we don’t reflect the new man which we’ve put on in Christ.

Someone observed, “The most striking contradiction of our civilization is the fundamental reverence for truth which we profess and the thoroughgoing disregard for it which we practice” (Vilhjalmur Stefansson, in Laurence J. Peter, Peter’s Quotations [Bantam Books], p. 500). May that not be true of us as Christians! I encourage you to be truthful in your relationship with God and in your relationships with God’s people, because we are new creatures in Christ and we’re members of the same body.

Application Questions

1. Where do you find it the most difficult to be truthful? Is it wrong to be politely untruthful? Why/why not?
2. How should we determine how much truth about ourselves to reveal to someone else? How vulnerable should we be?
3. Where is the balance between truthfulness and maintaining proper confidences?
4. Does Colossians 3:11 prohibit denominationalism? Why/why not?

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2016, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation

April 10, 2016

In 1990, I was wrestling with a difficult matter that related to the current and future direction of my ministry. An associate pastor wanted to help believers with deep emotional problems by starting some programs based on The Twelve Steps for Christians [RPI Publishing], Henry Cloud’s When Your World Makes No Sense [Oliver Nelson], and some other materials on co-dependency that integrated psychology with the Christian faith. At first, I was open to this, since I myself had used and promoted books by James Dobson, Norm Wright, and other Christian psychologists. So I asked if I could look over the materials that he wanted to use.

The more I read, the more alarmed I became with the way that these books misused Scripture, if they even used it at all. It came to a head when I read Henry Cloud’s contention (pp. 16-17) that the “standard Christian answers,” including faith, obedience, and God’s Word, were, in his words, “worthless medicine”! He proceeds to present a “baptized” version of developmental psychology as the solution to difficult emotional problems such as depression, anxiety, panic, addictions, guilt, and other psychological maladies. I’m ashamed to admit that I was so influenced by “Christian psychology” at the time that my initial response to the book was favorable overall, although his comment about “worthless medicine” really troubled me!

Then early in 1991, I read J. C. Ryle’s classic, Holiness [James Clarke & Co.], with its profound final chapter, “Christ is All.” (I’m heavily indebted to that chapter for this message.) I followed that book with John MacArthur’s, Our Sufficiency in Christ [Word], which confronts the problems of psychology, pragmatism, and mysticism, which have infiltrated the church. He shows how Christ is all-sufficient for us as believers in dealing with life’s problems.

That same year, I read for the first time John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion [Westminster], which begins with the profound sentence (1.1.1), “Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.” He elaborates (1:1.2), “Again, it is certain that man never achieves a clear knowledge of himself unless he has first looked upon God’s face, and then descends from contemplating him to scrutinize himself.” He goes on to confront the pride that is “innate in us all.” After finishing that life-changing book, I wrote an article, “How John Calvin Led Me to Repent of Christian Psychology.”

The cumulative impact of those books was to convict me that by endorsing so-called “Christian psychology,” I had been directing people with problems to worldly “wisdom,” rather than to “the unfathomable riches of Christ” (Eph. 3:8). Although I caught a lot of flak then and since then because of my opposition to integrating psychology with the Christian faith, over the past 25 years I have grown more certain that my repenting was the right decision.

I also have realized how far short I myself am from knowing and enjoying the all-sufficiency of Jesus Christ for my every need. That realization was reinforced last year, when I read twice Tony Reinke’s wonderful, Newton on the Christian Life [Crossway], which points out (p. 51) that one of Newton’s favorite biblical phrases was that of our text: “Christ is all and in all.”

The great British preacher, C. H. Spurgeon, preached at least four sermons on this text. In one of them (Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit [Pilgrim Publications], 17:460), he cites the advice of an aged tutor to a young student not to take too magnificent a text. Spurgeon says that he was sounding that warning in his own ears as he attempted to preach on these profound words. He adds that if he were to try to give all the meaning of this boundless text, it would take all time and eternity, and even then he would fall short. So my attempt here will be woefully inadequate. I encourage you to read some of the sources I have mentioned to dig deeper than I can take you! Paul is saying:

Since Christ is all and in all, we must be Christ-centered in our personal lives and in our church life.

Paul’s words are really a summary of the entire Bible, but I’m going to limit myself mainly to Colossians (and parallels in Ephesians) as we think through its implications.

1. Since Christ is all and in all, we must be Christ-centered in our personal lives.

A. Christ is all in God’s eternal purpose.

Everything that God is doing in His eternal purpose centers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Before He created the world, Jesus shared the glory of the Father (John 17:5). Paul sums up Christ as the center of God’s eternal purpose in Ephesians 1:3-12:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.

Note six ways from Colossians in which Christ is all in God’s eternal purpose:

1) Christ is the image of the invisible God, the fullness of deity in bodily form.

Paul states (Col. 1:19), “For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him.” He adds (Col. 2:9), “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” This means that our only way to know the God who “dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see” (1 Tim. 6:16), is to know Him through Jesus Christ. As Jesus told Philip when Philip asked Him to show them the Father (John 14:9), “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” To know God, you must come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ (John 14:6; 1 Tim. 2:5).

2) Christ created all that exists.

Paul states (Col. 1:15-16),

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.

Although the Jehovah’s Witnesses blasphemously interpret “firstborn” to mean that Jesus was the first being whom God created, verse 16 refutes that. If “all things have been created through Him and for Him,” then clearly He Himself is not created. John 1:3 makes the same point: “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.” As the creator, Christ is sovereign over all that exists. He is the only rightful Lord of your life and of all that you have.

3) Christ is eternal and in Him all things hold together.

Colossians 1:17: “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” “Before” refers to priority in time. As Jesus told the Jews who were attacking Him (John 8:58), “Before Abraham was, I am.” He did not say, “I was before Abraham,” but rather, “I am.” He was referring to Exodus 3:14, where God tells Moses, “I am who I am.” The Jews understood what Jesus meant, because they picked up stones to stone Him. “In Him all things hold together” means that Christ is the power that holds every atom together. If He were to “let go,” the entire universe would disintegrate! This shows that we are totally dependent on Him for our very existence and our every need.

4) Christ is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead.

Colossians 1:18: He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead ….” In the context, “the beginning” means that Christ originated the church. As Colossians 3:10 states, He created the new man, which refers to Christ the head and His body the church. By “firstborn from the dead,” Paul means that Jesus’ resurrection was the first of its kind. Although there are other resurrections in the Bible that precede Jesus’ resurrection, the others were temporary. Those people died a second time and now await their final resurrection. Jesus alone has been raised with an indestructible resurrection body that is a type of the bodies that believers will receive at His second coming. So He Himself is our hope that we will receive new bodies that will not be subject to disease, aging, or death.

5) Christ will come to have first place in everything.

Colossians 1:18: “He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” In Ephesians 1:10, Paul says that God will sum up “all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.” Because He was willing to humble Himself and go to the cross, Paul says (Phil. 1:9-11), “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” This means that we must seek daily to put Christ in first place and exalt Him in every aspect of our lives.

6) Through Christ the entire creation will be reconciled to God.

Colossians 1:20: “And through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.” By “all things,” Paul is probably referring to the new heavens and new earth, which will be restored to the glory that the first creation had before sin entered this world (Rom. 8:18-23). So in Christ, we can look forward to that glorious future! Christ is all in God’s eternal purpose and we are in Him!

B. Christ is all in God’s plan of salvation.

As we saw (Eph. 1:3-4), God blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ and chose us in Him “before the foundation of the world.” In Colossians, Paul shows us that…

1) In Christ we have redemption, the forgiveness of all our sins.

Colossians 1:14: “in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 2:13: “When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions.” Christ is the answer to the problem of guilt! If Christ is all in the sense of forgiving us all our transgressions, then you can’t add anything of your own to what He supplies.

The Jews thought that they were superior to the Gentiles when it came to spiritual matters, but Paul says that there is “no Greek or Jew … but Christ is all, and in all.” The Jews also thought that they could be right with God by keeping the law, especially the ritual of circumcision. But Paul says that there is “no circumcised and uncircumcised … but Christ is all, and in all.” The Greeks thought that they were a superior race over the barbarians and Scythians, and the Jews thought that they were superior over the Gentiles. But Paul says that there is “no barbarian or Scythian … but Christ is all, and in all.” Those who were born free in the Roman world thought that clearly they were higher than slaves, who were viewed as property, not as humans. But Paul says that there is “no slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.”

The Puritan Jeremiah Burroughs put it (puritansermons.com/pdf/burrou1.pdf): “As far as God sees Christ in anyone He accepts them. If Christ is not there, no matter what they have, He does not regard them.” To be right with God, you can’t come through religion or rituals or race or moral improvement. You can only come through Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Make sure that you are in Him through faith in His shed blood!

2) In Christ we are complete.

Paul states (Col. 2:10), “In Him you have been made complete.” But in Colossians 1:28, he says that his aim is to “present every man complete in Christ.” This is the tension that we often see in Paul between what God has made us positionally and what we must strive to become practically as we walk with Him. We have all spiritual blessings in Christ (Eph. 1:3), but it takes all of life and all of eternity to discover what those blessings are (Eph. 2:7). But the point is, if we have Christ and are complete in Him, why do we need the world’s wisdom to deal with our problems?

3) In Christ, we have all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Colossians 2:3: “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” “Hidden treasures” implies that we need to dig and seek out these riches. They aren’t all lying on the surface. “Knowledge” refers to the knowledge of God and of ourselves, as revealed in Scripture, as Calvin states in his opening sentence of The Institutes. “Wisdom” refers to the skill of applying God’s revealed truth to our daily lives. The Bible is all about wise living, especially as it pertains to our relationships. All the commandments are summed up by “love God” and “love your neighbor.” We learn how to do both from the Lord Jesus Christ.

That all treasures of wisdom and knowledge are found in Christ means that He is all in God’s revealed Word of truth. All of the Old Testament speaks of Christ and points to Him (Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:46). All of the New Testament shows how He fulfilled all that the Old Testament prophesied of Him. As you read God’s Word over and over, ask the Spirit of Truth to reveal Christ and His treasures of wisdom to your soul.

4) In Christ, we have the hope of eternal glory.

Colossians 1:27: “to whom [the saints] God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 3:4: “When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.” If that is our eternal hope and destiny, then we must seek to make Christ our only hope in every trial and difficulty of this life. We can have His comfort in our trials, knowing that they are nothing compared to the “eternal weight of glory” (2 Cor. 4:17) that awaits us with Him throughout the ages.

Thus, since Christ is all in God’s eternal purpose and all in God’s plan of salvation …

C. Christ must be all in our personal lives.

Practically, this begins when you trust Him as your Savior and Lord. If you haven’t done that, you can’t go any farther. But then, it’s a lifelong walk of “seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1). It’s the daily discipline of setting “your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Col. 3:2). It requires “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5). It means daily casting off the dirty clothes of the old life and putting on the clean clothes of new life in Christ (Col. 3:9-10). It’s a lifelong process that happens as you look daily to Christ as your all. As Paul states (2 Cor. 3:18): “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” (See, also, Heb. 12:1-2.)

Far more could be said, but I want to consider briefly:

2. Since Christ is all and in all, we must be Christ-centered in our church life.

When Paul says that there is no Greek or Jew, barbarian, Scythian, slave or freeman, he does not mean that God obliterates our personalities or ethnicity or culture when He saves us. But he does mean that these things must no longer be a source of pride for us. Before salvation, we all took pride in things like race or background or education or in various cultural advantages. But now, none of that should matter. As Paul told the arrogant Corinthians (1 Cor. 4:7), “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?” God has freely given us everything, including salvation. The external things that divide worldly people should be set aside. Christ must be our unifying center.

As Paul has shown us (Col. 1:18), Christ is the head of His body the church. We are only members of His body because God chose us in Christ (Col. 3:12), “rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col. 1:13). If He had not done that by His grace, we’d all still be alienated from Him and His people, “having no hope and without God in the world” (Eph. 2:12).

Thus being a member of His body, the church, is a tremendous privilege! We’re now members of His family. We all serve a common Lord, under His headship. We all hope for His coming. We’re all seeking to grow to know Him better. And thus, we all need to work at Christ-centered relationships. Paul spells out what this means (Col. 3:12-14):

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.

He goes on to show how to make Christ our all in our church, our homes, and our work relationships (Col. 3:15-4:1). The fact that he exhorts us to patience, forgiveness, and bearing with one another shows that harmonious relationships are not automatic! We have to work at loving one another, making Christ central in our relationships because He dwells in all who truly know Him.

Conclusion

Some of you who are struggling with serious problems may listen to this message and think, “Steve has his head in the clouds! He doesn’t understand the deep problems that I’m wrestling with!” Like the Christian psychologist I mentioned, you may think that I’m doling out “worthless medicine.” But I hope not!

Paul said that our heads should be in the clouds: We should “keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1). We should set our minds “on the things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Col. 3:2). Problems, difficulties, and trials should cause us to seek Christ as our all-sufficient Savior even more than we do. When we’re depressed, we should seek Him as our joy. When we’re anxious, we seek Him as our peace. When we’re empty and emotionally drained, we seek Him as our fullness. When we lack wisdom, we seek Him and His Word for the insight we need. Whatever you lack, go to Christ!

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote (gracegems.org/Watson /christ_all_in_all) “If a man has sunshine, he does not complain that he lacks the light of a candle. Has he not enough, who has ‘the unsearchable riches of Christ?’” When you face problems, lean on Him, trust in Him, and know more of Him, than you ever have before. Make sure, above all else, that you have Christ and seek Christ, because when you have Him, you have all!

Application Questions

1. What problems are you now facing? How could you appropriate Christ as your all in dealing with those problems?
2. People argue: We use doctors for physical illness; why not use psychologists for emotional problems? Your response?
3. Someone says, “I tried Bible study, prayer, and obedience, but it didn’t help me overcome the emotional pain from my childhood. If psychology helps, why not use it?” Your reply?
4. Read and discuss with others my online articles: “How John Calvin Led Me to Repent of Christian Psychology” and “Christians and Psychology, Some Common Questions Answered.”

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2016, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation

I suppose that in a very technical sense, both of these terms – ‘vision’ and ‘mission’ – are more contemporary than they are biblical. That is, neither of these terms is used biblically in the same sense it is used today in Christian literature.

I must first confess to you that I’m not one who reads a whole lot of books on “the church,” “church growth,” etc. that are not deeply rooted in the Bible (though they may say they are). In saying this I’m warning you that the way I might understand these terms may differ significantly from the way some contemporary authors may use them.

Having said this, I would be inclined to view the “mission” of the church in this way:

The mission of the church is that which our Lord has commanded it to do. It is that which we see the apostles teaching, and the New Testament churches practicing. The mission of “the church” is the mission of the universal church, and of every local church, without exception. Some primary biblical texts (in my opinion) would be Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:42; and 1 Corinthians 11-14. The church should be practicing holy living, carrying on the work which Christ began in His earthly ministry (we are His body), proclaiming the gospel and making disciples, and worshipping the risen Lord as a body (e.g. Acts 2:42; 1 Corinthians 11-13; Hebrews 10:25).

The “mission of the church” as I understand it is to do those things which our Lord and His apostles have commanded the church to do. No church has the option of setting any aspect of this mission aside.

I would suppose that the term “vision” has a different focus. It would be any one particular church’s sense of calling above and beyond its mission, or in terms of how it sees God has equipped it to carry out its mission.

Let me illustrate this on an individual basis. Every Christian has clearly defined duties and obligations as a Christian. We are to gather together with other Christians and encourage one another (Hebrews 10:25); we are to show compassion to those in need; we are to forsake sin, etc. In addition to this, every Christian has unique gifts, and a unique contribution to make to the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12). I would say that the individual’s duties are his “mission,” and that his particular ministry should be his or her “vision.” I am inclined to say the same for every local church.

Our church, for example, is located in Dallas, Texas. We have a number of gifted teachers who are a part of our church body. Over the years we had a “vision” to capture some of the teaching of our church, and to preserve it for the edification of others, free of charge. When the Internet came into existence, we then made these messages available. Not every church may be able to do this, but each and every church has a unique role to play in the body of Christ. I would call each church’s definition of that role its “vision.”

I’m not sure this helps to explain these terms as they are used in contemporary Christian literature, but by whatever terms, I think we should ponder, as a church, what we are commanded to do (our mission) and what God may have uniquely gifted us to do (our vision).

I fear that the term “vision” may be used in a more limited way – in terms of size, buildings, etc. This may not be bad, but I would tend not to limit the church’s vision to such things. These also happen to be the very things that spell “success” in this world.