[UntoHim]

Originally Posted by Zezima

Homosexuality is just as much of a sin as fornication, or as drunkenness, or stealing. Why does Lee have such a strong word for this specific sin?

Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
1 Cor 6:18-20

The thing about sexual sin, be it of the heterosexual or the homosexual variety, is that it damages God's good creation. When God created man and woman, he proclaimed "it is good". Now the main feature of this goodness was that man was created in God's likeness and after his image. Intrinsic to this likeness and image was the sexual identity of the man and the woman. Only when they were paired together did they become "one flesh". And the important thing is that when they were made one flesh they still retained the image and likeness of God. (in fact, one could argue that the image and likeness was enhanced).

Both homosexuality and fornication damage man's ability to be in the image and likeness of God. A man with a man cannot be one flesh in the eyes of God. A woman with a woman cannot be one flesh in the eyes of God. It is hard enough for fallen man and fallen woman to "glorify God in your body", but according to the Word of God, it is impossible with homosexuality. In fact, homosexuality leads to the opposite - According to the apostle Paul it is "the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves" (Romans 1:24), which by extension is dishonoring God.

Lastly, a practicing homosexual is disqualifying himself/herself from the Kingdom of God. But the apostle Paul had some good news too! "And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." As sinners, as long as we are still breathing, we have a choice. We can choose to disqualify ourselves from the Kingdom, or we can fall on our knees in repentance and be washed, and be sanctified and be justified. The damaged image can be returned to the glory of God.
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