What the Bible Teaches About Certain Sexual Sins

Before doing this study, I encourage you to read Do You Think You Can Pick Which Bible Verses to Believe? as in introduction.

Dear Christians, now more than ever before, we must know what the Bible teaches. And we must realize it will never be popular.

The lines are drawn, and Jesus drew them.

We have a choice: We can study God's truth and speak up for it in love, or we can become people of whom Christ is ashamed (Joshua 24:14-15; Luke 9:26). 

1. Don't be Ashamed.
We must never be ashamed of Bible commands, no matter how unpopular they become in our culture. Remember these words:

Luke 9:26: Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.  

2.  Know what the Bible says.

There are numerous passages addressing the sin of homosexuality. It's critical that we know what the Bible says! (2 Timothy 2:15)

A. God's design for sexuality is clearly established in the first book of the Bible and restated in the New Testament:*
Mark 10:6-9: “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ 7 ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, 8 and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

B. Christ confirmed God's design:
The marriage of one man and one woman is confirmed by Christ in Matthew 19:1-8 and the New Testament instructions for pastors and elders also confirm this design (1 Timothy 3).

C. The passages below confirm God's consistent, unchanging view of homosexuality as a sin.

Romans 1:24-32: Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. 26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. 

Jude 1:7: In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire. 

1 Corinthians 6:9-11: Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. 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.

The real hate crime is being silent about God's commands. We should be concerned for the spiritual destiny of those who reject God's commands and pray for their souls. Will you take a few moments right now to pray for homosexuals, especially those you know personally?

copyright 2015, Gail Burton Purath, BiteSizeBibleStudy.com, edited and updated in 2026

When Jesus Tells Professing Christians "I Never Knew You!"

Before doing this study, please read the one-minute introduction: 

Why Christ Tells Some People, “I Never Knew You.”

 

It discusses Matthew 7:21-23:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

✔ Confusion about performing miracles

What initially confused me in this passage was the fact that fake believers could perform miracles and cast out demons. Perhaps these were fake, orchestrated “performances,” but I’m also reminded of Balaam who actually heard from God and sometimes did what God said, but never fully trusted God. These passages tell different things about Balaam: Numbers 22, Deuteronomy 23:4; Joshua 13:22; Nehemiah 13:1-2; Micah 6:5; 2 Peter 2:15; Jude 11; Revelation 2:14.  

In addition, Satan can also perform miracles to deceive undiscerning people (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10; Matthew 24:24).   

✔ People who are surprised at final judgment are those who have only a form of godliness as described below:

2 Timothy 3:1-5: “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.” 

✔ Let's look at one example many people overlook: those who are “disobedient to their parents.”

Because this verse is speaking of adults, this means disobedient to God's commands to honor them, because adults are not required to obey their parents.

For example, they may neglect their parents while being involved in Christian ministry. In Matthew 15:3-9 Jesus speaks about people who do this and quotes the Old Testament verse below to describe them:

Isaiah 29:13: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught.”

✔ Another example: those who are “brutal, not lovers of the good.”

This makes me think of people who go to church and give generously to help the needy but also support pro-abortion politics. I can't think of anything more brutal than killing innocent unborn babies right up to the day of delivery. Lovers of Good seek to obey the command in Proverbs 24:11-12.

Perhaps you can think of some other relevant examples based on the list in 2 Timothy 3:1-5.

✔ Some additional insights

God tells us to “have nothing to do with such people,” which means we are sometimes able to recognize them. But some may hide their sins and mislead people for many years before they are found out. And some may even be able to hide their sins for a lifetime. 

Sadly, some preachers encourage people to believe they can be saved while living sinful lifestyles. For example, see Have We Misjudged Andy Stanley?

But Scripture is clear:

“No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.” 1 John 3:6

✔  What do you think Christ wanted us to learn from this passage?

 

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Be prepared to stand firm in our anti-Christian culture. Check out: Lies in Disguise:

✔ Chapter titles

✔ Endorsements

✔ Where to purchase

✔ Important reasons to read it

 

 

 

 

Dealing With the Stink of Bitterness!

Before doing this study, please read the 1-minute introduction Sin Looks Attractive But It Stinks. It talks about Rafflesia, a colorful parasite that stinks like rotting flesh. And it compares this flower-like growth to bitterness.

If you dealing with bitterness, I encourage you to memorize one or all of the passages below. Better yet, memorize them before you face a situation that could cause bitterness. 

There is something healing about memorizing Scripture during difficult times. It truly changes us. I encourage you to read the study "I Can't Change."  

If you've never recited Scripture to deal with a particular sin problem or difficulty, I encourage you to "experiment" -- give it a try. If you do it faithfully and seriously, I believe it will change your heart.

1. Romans 12:19-21: Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

See Romans 12:14-21 - A Crazy Idea! which talks about the message of Romans 12, a message that contradicts our natural human desires. 

2. 1 Peter 3:9: Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

God will settle accounts if someone refuses to repent. It may not happen until the judgment, but it will happen. See Galatians 6:7-9 and A Common Misunderstanding About Consequences which clarifies the meaning of reaping what we sow. 

3. Luke 6:28-30: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.'

We are called to walk in the opposite spirit of evil. If we treat unkind people as they treat us, we give Satan the victory. See The Freedom of Loving Your Enemies which tells a true story from the Iraqi war. 

4. Hebrews 12:14-15: Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.

 

See Blessed Are the Peacemakers.

Dealing with bitterness is one of the most difficult things we do as Christians. And it is also one of the most important. Bitterness can completely derail our faith if we are not careful. 

copyright 2026, Gail Burton Purath, BiteSizeBibleStudy.com 

image of Rafflesia: wiki Commons