LGBTQIA Inclusion in the Church

We believe every person is of sacred worth, created in the image of God and beloved by Jesus.

Great Commandment Fulfills the Law - God is Love
Jesus centers the Christian faith on the love of God and neighbor as the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 22:37–40); Christ’s inclusive example often got him in trouble with the religious lawyers for his ministry friendship with the wrong type of people. Following Jesus’s example, the church is called to be a place of welcome for all. Any practice that harms our neighbors fails the test of Christian love.

Paul’s Diverse and Radical Inclusion
Paul extends Christ’s gospel of radical welcome: in Jesus, no identity bars anyone from God’s grace (Gal. 3:28). The Spirit is at work in every person with gifts for the common good. The church receives people by their gifts and character— not by excluding by identity (Acts 15; Rom. 15:7; 1 Cor. 12).

The Bible is a Story of Inclusion
From creation to new creation, Scripture widens blessings and belonging. God blesses “all families” through Abraham, Jesus seats the outcast at his table, the apostles welcome Gentiles, and a diverse multitude gathers before God. (Gen. 12; Luke 14; Acts 10–15; Rev. 7).

Full Inclusion Embraces All for Faithful Christian Living
Mainline churches studied Scripture deeply and concluded that full inclusion supports fidelity, consent, and self-giving love as marks of Christian sexual ethics for all people. Scripture names exploitation & unfaithfulness as sin, not orientation or identity.

But what about those “Clobber” Texts?

Jesus was clear that love of God and love of neighbor are the basis of Christian faith. Despite Jesus never talking about sexual orientation, some Christians focus on particular verses in the Bible and use them to exclude others. Here’s a more helpful reading of these Scripture that apply to all people and invite us all to live into more loving, faithful, and caring ways.

Genesis 19 (Sodom)
Focus is violent inhospitality and attempted assault, not consensual same-gender committed relationships. Cross-references (Ezek. 16:49) stress pride, injustice, and neglect of the poor.

Leviticus 18:22; 20:13
Part of Israel’s holiness code bound to ritual purity and boundary-markers; the church discerns which laws are binding through Christ and the law of love (Acts 15; Galatians). These verses do not address lifelong, mutual same-gender marriage.

Romans 1:25–27
Paul indicts idolatry and lustful excess in Greco-Roman practice, not loving orientation or covenantal same-sex unions; the argument climaxes with “all have sinned” (Rom. 3:23).

1 Corinthians 6:9–10; 1 Timothy 1:10
The rare Greek terms μαλακός (malakoi) and ἀρσενοκοίταις (arsenokoitai) are contested; scholars note they likely refer to sexual exploitation, possibly of minors, not consensual adult same-gender marriage.

Genesis 1–2
Creation texts affirm companionship, covenant, and mutuality; they describe, but don’t limit, every holy marriage’s form. Jesus centers commitment and fidelity (Matt. 19) rather than gender complementarity as a rule of law.

Additional Resources:
Advancing an Orthodox and Affirming Church: https://reformationproject.org/
Inclusion Resources from Restore Austin: https://www.restoreaustin.org/resources/lgbtq-inclusion