Revoice argues that “gay Christians” do not have to forsake the sin of same-sex attraction. They do not consider same-sex attraction to be “actual sin.” They argue the opposite of this, believing that same-sex attraction is good when it is separated from same-sex sexual attraction. But the WCF contends that there is no righteousness before God in what is contrary to God and his perfect righteous law. Same-sex attraction, being a “motion” of original sin, is a “transgression of the righteous law of God,” which brings guilt upon homosexuals that they must repent from.

Introduction

The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is currently embroiled in a controversy over the doctrines presented by Revoice. This is Part 2 ( Part 1 is here ) of a multi-part series responding to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) of Revoice . I wrote my dissertation at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary arguing that Revoice theology is neither biblical nor Reformed . I hope this series of articles helps readers understand Revoice theology and provides a way forward for the PCA and Revoice. Please share these articles with your elders, deacons, teachers, and churches.

Revoice’s mission is “to support and encourage gay, lesbian, bisexual, and other same-sex attracted Christians—as well as those who love them—so that all in the Church might be empowered to live in gospel unity while observing the historic Christian doctrine of marriage and sexuality.” [1] The latter part of this statement about gospel unity, like their FAQ, sounds like something faithful Christians can affirm; however, if we look closer at the language they use and compare it with the writings of their leaders, we will see that their theology is neither biblical nor Reformed.

Revoice’s Frequently Asked Questions

In their FAQ, Revoice writes,

“How does God bring about change and sanctification in the lives of Christians attracted to their own sex?

For much of recent evangelical history, Christians’ perception of God’s transforming and sanctifying work in those attracted to their own sex has focused on orientation change, that is, how God is or is not turning them from experiencing sexual attraction toward the same sex to experiencing sexual desire for the opposite sex. This was often the church’s public perception of the work of ex-gay ministries like Exodus International, for example. We believe God can do anything that he pleases, yet we also believe that it is important to recognize how God typically works. While it seems clear that some people experience a degree of spontaneous fluidity in their orientation, none of the methods of pursuing a change in orientation which we know of, whether psychological or spiritual, have proven effective. Thus, while there is nothing wrong with desiring or praying for such a transformation, we instead want to highlight the sorts of change and sanctification which do seem to be part of how God regularly works in the lives of gay/same-sex-attracted believers who surrender their sexuality to Him. We believe it is better and wiser for gay/same-sex attracted Christians—and for the churches that support them—to focus on these kinds of change, rather than fixing hope on possible, but relatively unlikely changes in a way that tends to produce discouragement and despair [All emphasis is mine].

First, in the underlined section, they claim it is rare for sexual fluidity among those attracted to the same-sex; however, this is not true. The norm is sexual fluidity according to Psychological studies. For example, Lisa Diamond, Professor of Developmental Psychology, Health Psychology, and Gender Studies at the University of Utah, in a presentation at Cornell University argued that of 13,000 same-sex attracted people surveyed in the “National Survey of Family Growth” (2002), only 21% of homosexual men and 5% of homosexual women were exclusively attracted to the same-sex. [2] The rest were sexually-fluid to varying degrees, meaning that 79% of homosexual men and 95% of homosexual women were not exclusively attracted to the same-sex. The National Survey asked the same questions in 2008 and found almost identical results. Diamond also found very similar results in many other studies as well, spanning over 18 years:

National Health and Social Life Survey, sample size of 3200 in year 1992

• • Australian Twin Registry, sample size of 3782 in year 1992
  • New Zealand Birth Cohort, Wave 1, sample size of 1000 in year 1993
  • Add Health, Wave 1, sample size of 20,000 in year 1994
  • Add Health, Wave 2, sample size of 20,000 in 1996
  • New Zealand Birth Cohort, Wave 2, sample size 1,000 in year 1999
  • National Survey of Family Growth, sample size of 13,000 in year 2002
  • Add Health, Wave 3, sample size of 13,000 in year 2002
  • New Zealand Birth Cohort, Wave 3, sample size of 800 in year 2005
  • National Survey of Family Growth, sample size of 13,500 in year 2008
  • Add Health, Wave 4, sample size of 13,000 in year 2008
  • New Zealand Birth Cohort, Wave 4, sample size of 800 in year 2010. [3]

Diamond notes, “I’ve plotted these graphs for almost all of these studies. They all look the same. In every single one of them, the mostly heterosexual category is the single largest group of same-sex attracted individuals.” [4] Revoice is not accurately representing the data; however, this is what happens when people define “how God typically works” (Revoice’s words) arbitrarily by taking a vote.

Furthermore, why are we even looking at the personal experience of anyone when defining sin and holiness? “Taking a vote” does not define sin or holiness. To prove it, let’s take a vote right now. Reader, what is your personal experience with sin? Can you ever remember a time when you did not desire sin? Of course not. Does this reality absolve you of responsibility before God to be holy as He is holy? No. Should we try to turn our sin into holiness? Of course not. We should repent of all sin continually and pursue being holy as God is holy as we trust in Christ alone to save and sanctify us. We are dead in our sins from conception. The original sin in us that was inherited from Adam, desires of the flesh, cannot become a desire of the Spirit (James 1:13-15). We need God to regenerate and save us and to produce in us desires of the Spirit. We do not define sin or holiness based on the experience of individuals, a theology from below, but based on the inerrant infallible word of God, a theology from above. Again, Revoice is not presenting a Reformed view of sin. Sin is not defined based on one’s capability, but that’s exactly how Revoice defines it. Sin and holiness are defined by God alone in His inerrant and infallible Bible. The same is true of repentance.

Repentance is not defined based on our capability. We repent from everything sinful—thought, desire, inclination, actions, etc.—because they are contrary to God, not because our repentance “works” in that we cease to battle these indwelling fleshly desires in this life. “What works” is irrelevant because sin and holiness are not defined by polling homosexuals. God’s word is what matters because it has authority over our personal experience. And God demands that we be holy as He is holy (Lev 19:2; 1 Pet. 1:13-21; 1 Thess. 4:1-8). Anything less than God’s design is sin; anything less than the image of Christ is sin.

Revoice continues,

True sanctification and change require repentance from actual sin, where that has been engaged in, whether in sexual acts, inappropriate relationships, or willfully entertained lust or fantasy. We believe that God calls His children to turn from all such sin and that He will give them the power to do so. We exhort gay/same-sex attracted Christians to take all sin seriously and get the support and accountability they need to resist and overcome. We hope to help in this endeavor, whether through teaching and workshops at our events, through recommended resources, or through helping connect individuals with churches or ministries in their local area that can provide needed care and discipleship. Scripture is clear about the spiritual dangers of being complacent towards sin, or presumptively resting upon the grace of God to cover it, “sinning that grace may abound” [All emphasis is mine].

First, they only call people to repent from “actual sin,” that is “mindfully willful or chosen sin.” Contrary to the Bible and the Westminster Standards, they ground sin and guilt entirely in one’s will, which is Pelagian.

Read More

[1] Revoice, “Our Mission and Vision,” Revoice, Accessed August 8, 2019, https://revoice.us/about/our-mission-and-vision/ .

[2] Lisa Diamond, “Lisa Diamond on Sexual Fluidity of Men and Women,” presentation, Cornell University, October 17, 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2rTHDOuUBw , (11:30 – 44:26).

[3] Diamond, “Lisa Diamond on Sexual Fluidity of Men and Women,” (16:02).

[4] Diamond, “Lisa Diamond on Sexual Fluidity of Men and Women,” (16:04 – 16:16).

https://www.monergism.com/blog/dear-pca-don’t-let-revoice-fool-you-response-revoice’s-frequently-asked-questions-part-2