Defending Traditional Marriage

I have decided to address the issue of homosexual marriage now because our nation stands at a crossroads. The Supreme Court is set to issue a ruling soon. So let me point out a few facts that seem to have been lost in much of the public discourse. First let me point out that the Bible is very clear regarding the issue. Marriage is meant to be between one man and one woman for life. 1 Corinthians 6:9 clearly indicates that God’s condemnation of homosexual behavior was more than just an Old Testament legal restriction. Since the restriction is repeated in the New Testament it remains a moral law that continues into the church age. There can be no doubt that homosexual marriage is inconsistent with Christianity. It is a sin. The church therefore cannot condone such unions. Any church that performs or condones homosexual marriages has jettisoned the scriptures as their ultimate source of authority and become apostate.

The question then becomes whether the State should recognize homosexual relationships as marriage. The answer is no. The State has no compelling interest in recognizing such relationships. This would be clear had those who affirm homosexual unions not muddied the water by declaring that the government should not dictate whom we may “love.” This language has muddied the water because the State has no real interest in whom any of us love. If the issue was about love, the government would not get involved at all. Why does Washington care if I love one person more than another? The answer is that they do not care at all. So why is government involved in marriage at all?  The answer is that the State has a compelling interest in maintaining a stable and prosperous society. For this reason governments have privileged marriage above all other social arrangements. The state has historically encouraged marriage because it benefits society. The statistics are undeniable. Marriage is the single most powerful tool we have to keep women and children from falling into poverty. Marriage also has a powerful civilizing influence on men. Married men focus their energies on building the community and providing for their families. Unmarried men tend to engage in anti-social and even predatory conduct.

So what does this have to do with the issue at hand? The answer is that the compelling concerns that cause government to regulate and encourage marriage do not exist in homosexual relationships. Homosexual relationships do not produce children. Granted, homosexuals do sometimes have children, but in every case a third party must be involved. The homosexual relationship itself is not the source of procreation. As for the civilizing effect marriage has on men, homosexual men simply are not known for monogamy. Homosexual men tend to have many sexual partners, it is simply a part of the lifestyle. 78% of homosexual men report having more than 100 partners. 28% report having more than 1000 (https://carm.org/statistics-homosexual-promiscuity). This accounts for the fact that HIV and AIDs have remained a largely homosexual problem rather than spreading to the general population.

The government has no compelling interest in mandating homosexual marriage. The church has no Biblical basis for recognizing homosexual marriages. So why do so many see this as a crucial issue for our day? Because the issue has been sold as a matter of civil rights. Shouldn’t homosexuals have the same rights as heterosexuals? The answer is that they already do. Any homosexual man who wants to marry a woman can do so. The truth is that a homosexual union simply is not a marriage as it has been defined for more than 5000 years in virtually every world religion. The battle today is not about civil rights, but about redefining marriage. Defining homosexual relationships as marriage may not seem like a significant change, but such a change will inevitably open a Pandora’s box of social chaos. If we buy the argument that we should be allowed to marry anyone we want, then why can’t a man marry two women, or two men, or an animal? The very arguments advanced in favor of homosexual marriage lead inevitably to the destruction of traditional marriage as a privileged social unit. If heterosexual marriage is no longer granted special status, then governments can no longer encourage it. If government can no longer encourage heterosexual marriage, then we will see a decline in the already faltering family unit that is the foundation of a civilized society. Make no mistake about it, this is a life and death issue for our nation. If the traditional family unit continues to unravel, so will our nation. Do not think that America is invulnerable. I firmly believe that America’s ultimate destiny will depend wholly on whether we affirm the teaching of God’s word. I am not alone in that sentiment. President Ronald Reagan warned the country that “without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure. If we ever forget that we’re one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under.” He was right.