In This Corner

Sex, Liberals, Conservatives,
and the Bible

by Brian Knowles

One of the major reasons some people loath Christianity, Christians and the Bible is that we presume to tell the world how human sexuality ought not to be expressed. At least one church -- the largest -- has gone so far as to define even garden-variety marital sex as venial (minor, able to be pardoned) sin.

We’ve heard preachers of all stripes pontificate on just about aspect of human sexuality. We’ve seen liberal preachers virtually ignore Scriptural injunctions on the subject, as though they were utterly irrelevant. We’ve seen conservative preachers interpret them so strictly that they have squeezed out of passages "meaning" that simply isn’t there. Many have gone far beyond Scripture, and deeply into the realm of personal opinion, in defining what is acceptable or unacceptable sexual behavior for Christians.

Of course it isn’t so much what the Bible says that’s "the problem" -- it’s how people interpret it. Liberal Christians and Jews, for example, do not interpret the moral commandments of God as strictly as do conservative or Orthodox ones.

It’s like the old joke about the two preachers who each decided to start their own denomination, each of which would have only one commandment. The conservative preacher’s commandment was, "Thou shalt not." The liberal preacher’s commandment was, "Thou shalt." (Of course this is an exaggeration to illustrate the point. It’s not meant to paint liberal Jews or Christians with an inappropriately broad brush.)

Liberal Christians often seem to interpret Biblical commandments regarding sexual behavior as "thou shalt’s." Thou shalt commit adultery – if thou art a "consenting adult." Thou shalt perform homosexual acts, if thou art so inclined. Thou shalt kill thine unborn offspring – if thine offspring inconveniences you in any way. Thou shalt commit fornication, if thou art in love. Etc. etc. etc.

Conservative Christians often plunge headlong into the other ditch, declaring as sinful things about which the Bible is mainly silent. For example, hard line preachers can sometimes be heard prescribing acceptable and unacceptable sexual positions for marital sex. They will pontificate about which forms of birth control are permitted, and which are not. They will forbid all abortions under all circumstances, labeling them homicide across the board.

Liberal Christians interpret Scripture liberally, and conservative Christians interpret it conservatively – often either ignoring plain meaning, or going well beyond the plain meaning of Scripture to add their own proscriptions.

To interpret, for example, the Bible as permitting such things as fornication, homosexuality, adultery, gay and lesbian marriages and ordinations, etc., is to virtually do away with Scripture as a moral guide. It is to "destroy" Torah through misinterpretation (cf. Matthew 5:17).

To interpret Scripture as forbidding what it does not forbid – even "in principle" – is doing the same thing. In their zeal to "stay away from the edge of the cliff," some exegetes interpret many passages far more strictly than is appropriate – even reading into them things that aren’t there.

Bible Facts About Sex
Let’s look at some facts about what the Bible does, and does not say, about human sexual expression and related items:

If you’re a liberal, and you’ve read the above, you may be grinding your teeth with anger about what the Bible says is impermissible sexual behavior. You may be muttering something about "homophobes" or "narrow-minded religious bigots trying to impose their morality on the rest of us."

If you’re a conservative, you will probably be thinking that the above is "too liberal." The real issue is, what does the Bible actually say, and what does it intend? Furthermore, how do we correctly and appropriately use the Bible to decide on matters about which it has no direct references? This last is the gray area where many have gone astray. It’s a matter of judgment, of listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and of common sense. If we add to Scripture, we are in trouble. If we subtract from it, we are in trouble. Many have done both.

Each believer must ask himself or herself, "Within the boundaries of Scripture – that is, where Scripture speaks clearly on a subject – what may I do, or not do? And where it does provide clear guidelines, what falls within the realm of a clear conscience?"

Perhaps the most appropriate question of all to ask in this context is "What would Jesus do, or not do?" Could you, for example, picture our Lord taking out a subscription to the pornographic and often sacrilegious Hustler magazine?

In today’s world, sex, like religion, has been commercialized and politicized to such a degree that it is culturally pervasive. Sexual minorities seek political power in order to protect their chosen "lifestyle." Those who market to the full range of sexual appetites seek to protect, and enlarge, their incomes. Sex is Big Business, and much of that business is associated with organized crime – especially to the degree that it involves illegalities.

Human sexuality is a gift of the Creator. It’s ours to rejoice in and be grateful for. It is, of itself, nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed by – so long as we express it within the boundaries God has set for us.