Dr. Richard Hays is a very influential New Testament scholar. In 1996 he wrote a book called the Moral Vision of the New Testament, in which he argued that a faithful reading of scripture naturally leads to the conclusion that the Bible not only prohibited same-sex relationships for the early church, but still does for Christians today.
I just finished a book co-authored by himself and his son, Dr. Christopher Hays, an Old Testament scholar at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. In the book, The Widening of God’s Mercy, they state that the entire narrative of scripture has pointed to a reality that is now upon us, and the new conviction for Christians needs to be “…that sexual minorities who seek to follow Jesus should be welcomed gladly in the church and offered full access to the means of grace available to all God’s people: baptism, the Lord’s Supper, ordination, and the blessings of covenanted unions, with the same expectations as for heterosexuals.” (217, Kindle Edition) In other words, all sincere Christians should be fully affirming and fully inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community in our churches.
They are certainly not the first ones to land here. The thing that makes them more significant is that they have not changed their view of the scriptures on homosexuality, but have simply changed their minds. Why? Because they claim we serve a God who regularly changes his mind. In fact, they suggest the picture of God in scripture is one of a person “learning on the job.” (56, Kindle Edition)
It is wild to claim God has changed His mind about a moral issue that seems so clear in scripture, but are they correct? I believe they are not, but instead have exposed for us another example of dangerous progressive theology we need to pay attention to.
I’d like to explain why I believe that, but first I want to take a moment and commend them…
first things first
I believe we can find something positive in just about anything we disagree with, so it seems important to commend both Hays’ for writing a book that encourage us as Christians to lean into the feelings, experiences and burdens of those who struggle with same-sex attraction, or who are actively living within an LGBTQ+ lifestyle.
For so many in the LGBTQ+ community, it is daunting to think about reading the Bible, sitting down and discussing spiritual things with Christians, or walking through the front doors of a church. There is a long history of condemnation and judgment, and often they are not met with grace and mercy, but with a feeling that they are living in the worst imaginable sin. Christians need to faithfully resist this, and partner together in writing a new story about church for those who struggle within a gay lifestyle.
As a Christian pastor, I want everyone to feel loved, accepted and included when they walk into my congregation, something myself and our leadership team are actively committed to working on. So, while I commend the authors for writing a compassionate and sensitive book, I could not disagree more with their conclusions.
Loving people in the LGBTQ+ community well does not have to mean we abandon or change the scriptures. In fact, loving them well means we uphold the scriptures as they plainly speak on the subject.
trajectory hermeneutics
I have purposely decided not to analyze the scriptural or exegetical details of this book, or offer a defense against many of the conclusions they draw from both the Old and New Testaments. Others have done a really good job of this - there are some good links at the end of this article for further study.
For instance, when the authors suggest there is a parallel between the Gentiles’ inclusion in the early church and full inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community, Rebecca McLaughlin reminds us that that “the inclusion of the Gentiles is anticipated in the Old Testament and established by multiple New Testament texts. Paul was especially emphatic about this. But he was also emphatic about the need for Gentile Christians to repent of sexual immorality, including same-sex (see Rom. 1:26-28; 1 Cor. 6:9-11; 1 Tim. 1:10).” [i]
She goes on to explain how beautiful the gospel theology is around those who submit their sexual desires to the lordship of Jesus, and she consistently claims this kind of true repentance is the only path to real and lasting joy.
John Whitaker points out something that surprised me when I read it – the Hays’ refuse to engage the scriptures that lay out the Bible’s teaching on marriage or sexuality, they just don’t tackle them.[ii] Why not? They claim the exegetical critique has been done so many times, the whole thing represents “repetitive arguments about the same set of verses that are superficial and boring.” (12, Kindle Edition)
Interestingly, they still believe the scriptures around homosexuality prove it was not allowed in the Old or New Testaments, but since God has “changed His mind,” there is no need to keep going over them. Think about that for a minute…we can have a hermeneutic that allows us to disregard chunks of scripture around morality, simply because we have decided God doesn’t think that way anymore! Yikes.
When the authors claim Jesus never said anything about homosexuality, John Stonestreet reminds us it is just not true, saying this: “Porneia (from which we get the word “pornography”) is, as Hays himself admits, ‘a non-specific umbrella term for any kind of sexual immorality – presumably including all forms of illicit sexual relations elaborated in Leviticus 18.’ That would, of course, include homosexual activity. So, by Hays’ own reasoning, Jesus did speak about same-sex relationships in the Gospels.”[iii]
Finally, Preston Sprinkle wrote a very good review of the book, specifically challenging the whole notion of “trajectory hermeneutics,” which is essentially trying our best to follow the “trajectory” of a topic within scripture, then extrapolating it out to today, where the Holy Spirit then “redeems” that topic, making it acceptable. Sprinkle says this, and it’s a VERY good point:
“In fact, if a biblical trajectory does exist for sexual ethics, it would move towards greater strictness, not greater openness. Polygamy, for instance, is treated more leniently in the Old Testament, but we see the New Testament moving back toward the creational ideal of one man and one woman (Matt 19:4-6). Divorce too was allowed in the Old Testament (Deut. 24:1-5), but Jesus explicitly tightened Deuteronomy’s looser divorce laws (Matt 5:31-32; 19:1-10). Adultery is condemned across both Testaments. But in the New, Jesus says that even lust is adultery (Matt 5:27-30). When the Bible revisits its vision for marriage and sexuality, it moves towards a stricter ethic, not a more permissive one.”[iv]
There are some really good reviews that analyze in detail the arguments the Hays’ offer for the decision to become fully inclusive and affirming. To a person, they commend them for caring so much, but find their Biblical exposition thin and based too much in emotion and theological pandering to one of the most sensitive topics of our day.
After reading it, I have a couple other, pretty significant issues with this book.
typical progressive theology
One of the issues with dangerous Progressive Theology is its appeal. Scholar Michael Kruger reminds us that the danger of Progressive Christianity lies in the fact that it is a “masterclass in half-truths,” reminding us of the Benjamin Franklin’s words – “half the truth is often a great lie.”[v]
There is no topic today in North America where people hunger for an appealing alternative to a historic reading of scripture more than around sexual identity and orientation.
Let me give you a couple of examples that illustrate my concerns.
Progressive = growth?
In the Introduction, the authors claim that religious leaders who stay stuck in the past, stubbornly adhering to traditional Biblical ethics of sexuality are missing a tremendous opportunity to grow, stating “…any religious tradition that fails to grow and respond to the ongoing work of the Spirit will stagnate or die.” (15, Kindle Edition)
First, I don’t know of many ministers who refuse to listen to the Spirit and discern what He is saying. But I don’t think that is what they are suggesting. Instead, the authors seem to be bolstering their position by pointing to their “change of mind” on sexual ethics as an example of engaging a radical new frontier for the church in areas of growth. The LGBTQ+ community is too large to ignore, and as more and more exhibit obvious fruits of the Spirit, they represent a constituency that can provide the modern church with more growth, so the authors suggest.
In my experience and research, it is just not true.
First, most churches that move from a Biblical, more strict sexual ethic to fully inclusive and affirming tend to shrink, many even end up closing their doors. In my book Wildfire, I discuss the example of Eastlake Church in Seattle, whose lead pastor and his team moved his church from an historic and traditional view of sexual ethics to fully gay affirming. Overnight, hundreds left the church, and it eventually dissolved, and that in a strongly progressive North American city.
There are more stories like this, a lot more. The truth is, most people converting to Christianity, have lost faith in a secular view of life. They crave transcendence, even if it means being counter-cultural. They are inspired by the scriptures that call them out of their old life and into a new, inspiring vision, one that speaks deeply to their soul as the Bible does. They see progressive renderings of sexual ethics like the Hays’ are offering and find them shallow, empty, feeling they are developed more in a university classroom than in faithful and careful interaction with the holy, ancient scriptures.
And in my opinion, most people certainly aren’t inspired by a God who changes His mind about morality based on the feelings of a mainly Western sexual movement.
Second, people like Hays seem to feel that a shrinking or stagnating church is a worldwide reality. It is not. It is in North America, Canada and Western Europe, places that have given into a postmodern vision of life and truth. However, in other regions of the world the Gospel is growing, often rapidly.
In a 2024 report released by the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, we see in Africa and Asia Christianity is rapidly expanding, while North America has experienced negative growth. Currently, just over half the world’s Christians live in mainly “Christian” countries, but by 2050 it is projected that most Christians will reside in countries not known to be places of faith. Global Atheism is shrinking – in 1970 there were a reported 165 million atheists, down to 146 million in 2024. Missions giving is up, and more missionaries are being sent out than ever.[vi]
The point? Most church growth is happening outside of the Western world, where people continue to hold a high view of scripture and believe God has not “changed his mind” about Biblical sexual ethics. If you ask Christians in these other countries, I think they may tell you we all haven’t changed our minds, but lost them!
One last thing on church growth. Consider for a minute how arrogant it is for us in North America to massively alter theology around morality, expecting our international brothers and sisters to do the same, especially if they are the ones growing!
where is the line drawn and who gets to choose?
The other huge issue I have with the Hays’ book is how they pick and choose topics. Consider how they conclude their argument at the end of their book:
“To say it one more time, our vision is this: The biblical narratives throughout the Old Testament and the New trace a trajectory of mercy that leads us to welcome sexual minorities no longer as 'strangers and aliens' but as 'fellow citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God.' Full stop.” (209, Kindle Edition)
They have concluded, full stop, that we should all become same-sex affirming, which affects morality and the sanctity/definition of marriage. That is no small thing! But I guess, why stop there? It’s a serious question.
For example, MANY people consider it normal to see baptism as an outmoded, non-essential aspect of salvation, so should we conclude God changed His mind about it? In my experience, I have found that a lot of people today in North America are traumatized by being called to confess sins and repent, it’s just too emotional and hard. In an effort to be hospitable to those who claim repentance is bad for their mental health, should we declare God has changed his mind about Biblical repentance, despite the multitude of scriptures that speak to it? Many people claim evangelism is too bold, and pushes our beliefs on people in a harmful way. Perhaps God has changed his mind about sharing our faith? So many other examples…
Speaking of ethical topics, I happen to know there is quite a developed theology around using psychedelic drugs to help Christians enter into a more spiritually robust space. In fact, in some parts of the country it is normalized. Same around the topic of marijuana, a lot of seemingly Spirit-filled people smoke a lot of weed, claiming it enhances their spiritual experience. Using the Hays’ logic and progressive hermeneutic, I am confident scholars could find a way to conclude God doesn’t care much about us getting high, if it is normal and helps us be more spiritual and in touch with Him!
I could go on, but I’ll wrap this up with one last thought…
idol-makers
John Calvin famously said that “Man’s nature is a perpetual idol-factory,” and goes on to say this:
“Man’s mind, full as it is of pride and boldness, dares to imagine a god according to its own capacity; as it sluggishly plods, indeed is overwhelmed with the crassest ignorance, it conceives an unreality and an empty appearance as God. (Institutes, 1:108)
Unfortunately too many in the Western world have made sexual identity and orientation an idol, causing them to revise portions of scripture to adapt to our modern sensibilities.
We really have to be careful, we find ourselves at a crossroads, especially in North America. We love God’s word and deeply care for the topics that ail us. We do care about marginalized people and their story, we should. But we should NOT imagine God the way we feel He should be.
That is idolatry.
We simply must trust in the power of God’s word, and if we are going to declare that something today needs to be rethought around theology, be sure that it is a decision that emerges from a healthy collaboration between the ancient and holy scriptures, the collective decisions reached by the historic church, and a plain reading of the Bible, especially around moral issues. Sincere Christians have been wresting with this stuff for a long time.
To me, this is where so much Progressive Theology falls flat, and why I choose to adhere to a common-sense, plain reading of scripture.
Daren Overstreet
Daren Overstreet is a Senior Leader at
Anchor Point Church in Tampa, Florida. He has
Been in ministry for nearly 30 years, and holds a Master’s Degree in Missional Theology
You can contact him at
[i] Article called “Richard Hays Thinks God Changed His Mind About Same-Sex Sex. Is He Right?” by Rebeccar Mclaughlin, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/reviews/widening-gods-mercy/
[ii] Article called “Review of Richard and Christopher Hays’s The Widening of God’s Mercy,” by John Whittaker, https://renew.org/review-of-the-widening-of-gods-mercy/
[iii] Article called “Why God’s Moral Standards on Sexuality Are Unchanging,” by John Stonestreet and Shane Morris, https://www.christianity.com/newsletters/breakpoint/why-gods-moral-standards-on-sexuality-are-unchanging.html
[iv] Article called “Review of The Widening of God’s Mercy by Christopher B. Hays and Richard B. Hays,” https://www.centerforfaith.com/blog/review-of-the-widening-of-god-s-mercy-by-christopher-b-hays-and-richard-b-hays#fn9
[v] Michael J. Kruger, The Ten Commandments of Progressive Christianity (Cruciform Press, 2019), 6.
[vi] Taken from a comprehensive study done by Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary, https://www.gordonconwell.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2024/01/Status-of-Global-Christianity-2024.pdf. There is also a good summary review of it done by Lifeway Research, https://research.lifeway.com/2024/01/22/8-encouraging-trends-in-global-christianity-for-2024/
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