The Righteous Shall Live by Faith

I want to address a subject that is very different from what we normally discuss on these programs, but I believe it is very important for the time in which we are living—not only here in the United States, but also throughout our countries in Latin America, and in Europe as well.

It is the subject of homosexuality and same-sex marriage, or what are also called civil unions here. I believe that, although it is a somewhat unpleasant subject and one would prefer to devote oneself to topics more concerned with edification, spiritual growth, and growth in our knowledge of God’s will for our daily lives, we nevertheless have to address it because of the urgency with which our society is confronting it right now.

That is why I have chosen a passage in Romans chapter 1 that deals precisely with this subject. And we may ask at the outset: What is the biblical stance, what is the position of Scripture concerning homosexuality and, by extension, same-sex marriage? What does the Word of the Lord tell us? There is no clearer passage in all of Scripture than the one I want to read with you and take as the starting point for this meditation.

The apostle Paul says in verse 18 of Romans chapter 1: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is plain to them, for God made it plain to them. For His invisible attributes, His eternal power and His deity, have been clearly visible since the creation of the world, being understood through the things that have been made, so that they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or give Him thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of corruptible man, of birds, of four-footed animals, and of reptiles.”

“Therefore God also,” it says here, “gave them over to uncleanness in the lusts of their hearts, so that they dishonored their own bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, honoring and worshiping created things rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever and ever. Amen.”

I do not want to spend too much time in this segment of our study reading the entire passage, for that would take a long time, but I want to begin our reflection by looking at the apostle Paul’s reasoning and the line he follows to reach his final conclusion that homosexual behavior, whether on the part of men or women, is utterly abhorrent and contrary to the will of the Lord.

But before that, it is illuminating to see how the apostle Paul follows a line of theological reasoning that leads him to that final conclusion. Before he begins the passage we have read in verse 18, he says something very important in verses 16 and 17. He says: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek, for in the gospel,” says the apostle Paul, “the righteousness of God is revealed by faith and for faith”—some translations say “from faith to faith”—“by faith and for faith, as it is written: But the righteous shall live by faith.” It is from there that he goes on to say that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven, and so forth.

So what we see here is this: Paul is saying, first of all, that the gospel shows us the righteousness of God being revealed to humanity through faith. In other words, this reminds us of something the apostle Paul says in another passage: salvation is by faith and not by works. In the gospel, Paul says, the righteousness of God, through the faith of the one who believes, is revealed in grace, mercy, forgiveness, and salvation. But when there is no faith, when there is rebellion, when there is resistance to the Word of God, then what is revealed of God is wrath. And so we see that Paul begins his meditation by speaking of the wrath of God being revealed from heaven against men, and so forth.

In other words, there are two ways one can relate to God. One is from faith to faith—that is, living a life of faith, believing the Word of God, believing the principles of the gospel, believing what God says about His Son Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world. In that case, the gospel is revealed as a means of grace and salvation for the human being who receives it obediently. But if one does not do so, then what the gospel reveals is wrath, condemnation, unmitigated justice, under which there is no justification for the human being, only the wrath of God, because the human being is resisting the plan God has devised to bring about humanity’s salvation, as He has done through Christ Jesus.

Starting from that recognition, from those two options open to human beings, you see—either resistance, which brings wrath, or faith in the Word of God, which brings salvation and grace—this determines the destiny of every human being. Later we will see how this unfolds more specifically. We will continue this meditation in our next segment. God bless you.