Is homosexuality “unnatural”?

Certainly. There is one way this is so, and one in which it is not. As per always, it helps if we define our terms. It is not uncommon for apologists for this particular perversion to argue that it is not unnatural since we witness similar behavior among certain animals in the wild. This is the sense in which it is not unnatural, when we define “natural” as “that which we can see in the creation.”

Such, however, has never been what we mean by “natural.” Rather natural in this kind of context refers to the nature of the thing. The nature of a man and the nature of a woman isn’t something we find simply by studying the behavior of bucks and does. You’ll never learn whether it is right or wrong to be racist by studying the habits of red ants and black ants.

“Natural,” in the context of ethics alludes to the nature of thing being considered. While a toaster makes heat, and while I person might want to warm his bathwater, it would be foolish to drop the toaster in the tub. It is against the nature of a toaster to heat water. It doesn’t matter whether the bathtub is in a high rise in Tokyo or in the middle of the Grand Canyon. In civilization or in nature, it is unnatural.

Men are designed, it is their nature, to be with women. Women, in turn are designed to be with men. This is how God made the first man and the first woman. This is why He established marriage the way He did. This is why He designed procreation the way He did. This is why He Himself says,

“For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due” (Rom. 1: 26-27).

One could argue that there is yet another way that homosexuality is “natural.” It is consistent with our fallen natures. There is a connection between this sin and our rebellion against the living God. When a man desires a woman not his wife, it is sinful, but consistent with the God given nature of man. God made men to desire women. When a man desires a man, it is not only sinful but an affront to God’s design. It is shaking one’s fist at God Himself.

There was a time not long ago that most everyone knew these truths, especially within the church. For decades now, however, the broader culture has been at war with nature, with God’s design, and with biblical thinking about these things. More is coming, not just more perverse behaviors but more cultural pressure on believers to embrace the twisted thinking of unbelievers. We would be wise to settle these matters firmly in preparation for the ongoing onslaught. Let God be true, and every man a liar.