Kim over at Connexions has written an article showing us that the main sin of Sodom was not homosexuality, but inhospitality. Of course, gay apologists have long claimed this, and actually, it is based on what I consider to be good hermeneutic – I find her conclusion on this matter sound. However, what do we make of the fact that the Sodomites wanted to rape Lot’s two male visitors?
I think that this type of sermon serves to restore the integrity and use of this passage in evangelical circles, but it goes too far in trying to excuse homosexuality.
As Romans 1 points out, and as John MacArthur has pointed out recently in his two fine sermons on Romans 1, when a people have reached the point of widespread practice and acceptance of homosexuality, they are at the bottom of the moral decline.
The fact that the residents of Sodom were not only wanting to rape the angels, but that they wanted homosexual rape, shows that their decline was total. Later, we will see God condemn all homosexuality in the law of Moses.
So while it is correct to say that the main sin of Sodom was inhospitality, the depth of their depravity is shown in the specific type of inhospitality they exhibited – unrestrained homosexual passions.
ADDENDUM:
As a humorous side-note, on June 8, Keith Olbermann, host of MSNBC’s Countdown, listed John MacArthur as his “Second Worst Person in the World” for the Romans 1 lecture he gave (links above). Of course, he fell second to Bill O’Reilly, the WORST person in the world. I love how liberal whackos like Olbermann make these ridiculous declarations as if they mean anything more than a child’s “I don’t like it” when they are corrected or scolded.
