Tim Keller stumped on THIS question!!! | Sam Alberry Scandal, Tim Keller on Homosexuality

Added: 2026-05-09

[00:00:00]And I see other Christian churches taking very seriously what the Bible says about homosexuality but in a very self-righteous way. So they actually do single out gay people. I really don't think there is any excuse for that.

[00:00:12]Therefore, I have to take some responsibility of being a member of the Christian church for the oppression of homos.

[00:00:17]>> Are committing homosexual sexual acts a sin against God?

[00:00:21]>> Uh what do you mean by sin?

[00:00:23]>> What do you mean by sin? That's Tim Culler when he's asked about homosexuality. Is homosexuality a sin?

[00:00:31]And uh you'll see more of what he has to say. He's speaking in 2008 at Columbia University at a Veritus forum and he's having an opportunity to share the gospel. He's having an opportunity to defend the faith. The title of the lecture, I think he gave a lecture and then there's a Q&A.

[00:00:54]reason for God, belief in an age of skepticism, and then they get into homosexuality, being asked of if homosexuality is going to send someone to hell, being asked if homosexuality is a sin. See what he has to say on that. We'll give the full response. Also, I've got a montage for you, including some other influential figures around this topic. And we'll close it out with Sam Alberry, who recently resigned because of disqualifying sin. See the previous video, it's linked below. What he has to say about um reaching those with this sin. I'll play that at the end of the video. Let's go ahead and get started.

[00:01:47]Welcome to Truth Transforms. My name is Adam Markley and we are going to dive right into this Tim Keller on the topic of homosexuality. This is directly related to Sam Alberry and the recent stepping down of Sam Alberry due to this inappropriate relationship um and disqualifying sin that he agrees is disqualifying. We're going to be talking about the doctrine behind that. the doctrine behind what he had been pushing and uh many others including I don't know if Tim Tim Keller seems to have been pushing it as well but he certainly that Sam Albury was part of the Keller Association uh he was part of the gospel coalition they served together as part of the gospel coalition and so there was much joining together and and basically seemingly similar beliefs on this issue. But Sam Alberry was definitely the um the man that they were pushing out to propagate this doctrine. And now the Gospel Coalition have scrubbed everything of his.

[00:03:07]Desiring God has scrubbed everything of his. Someone commented about some other organization that I'm not familiar with has scrubbed everything of his. So, all of these organizations that have Sam Alber's teaching have scrubbed his teaching. And uh I don't know if that's an acknowledgement of not believing in that teaching. I don't think so. I think that's just, you know, they're doing that as a way to try and distance from him. But let's go ahead and get into this. Before we do, want to let you know, uh, if you're new here, I've got a gift for you. It's an overview of the book of Philippians. I It walks through 10 lessons in Philippians. You can pick that up at preaching forgods.org/gift.

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[00:04:38]Uh, well, yeah, we're this is uh actually I I'll be uh reacting to this whole thing. This is 6 and a half minutes or so. So, let's work our way through this.

[00:04:49]This is Tim Keller being asked. This is the meat of the whole thing. So, let's get to this. I wrote a book about the gay rights movement because I was appalled by the oppression and the discrimination against homosexuals in my America.

[00:05:05]>> Um, and this questioner asks, "What do so many of the churches have against homosexuals? And what about your church's approach to homosexuality? Is it a sin? Are they going to hell?"

[00:05:21]Um, let's talk with my about my church first, which will be a little easier than than try to answer for all the other churches of the world, but I'll try.

[00:05:29]I mean, I'm representing all the churches of the world. All right? You know, yeah, but Christianity, I mean, yeah, I know. I mean, let's start with you. You you you go to the Bible quite often and there are many >> evangelicals who will say it is listed as a sin in the Bible and these people are going to hell, >> right?

[00:05:48]I have to pause it as we work our way throughout and I'm trying to to decide the best times to pause it, but it's absolutely ridiculous that Tim Keller can't just go straight to scripture and that the unbeliever has to go to scripture for him.

[00:06:10]That's the job of the Christian. How do you speak universally for all Christians? How do you be a representative for all Christians? Well, you say this is what the Bible has to say. But instead, the unbeliever is the one saying, well, the Bible says this.

[00:06:28]Now, what you first uh let's talk about my church again. Let's go back here.

[00:06:34]What we would say is I think it's unavoidable. I think most Protestant and Catholic and Orthodox Christians over the years have said you read the Bible and the Bible has reservations. The Bible says homosexuality is not God's original design for homos for sexuality.

[00:06:47]Okay.

[00:06:48]>> Okay. There's there's a problem with that. We'll come back to it.

[00:06:51]>> There we have it. The Bible also says love your neighbor. The Bible also in fact the good Samaritan parable which is how Jesus tells us to love our neighbor.

[00:07:01]You put a Jew and a Samaritan there. So what Jesus is trying to say is everybody is your neighbor. Gay people are your neighbors. Uh people who are of other faiths are your neighbors. people other other uh uh races are your neighbors and it's the job of a Christian to do what Jesus did on the cross which was to give himself for people who were opposing him and people who were diff believe didn't believe in him even and so a Christian is supposed to say I serve the needs and interests of all of my neighbors in the city whether gay or straight whether they're Hindu or Muslim I mean Hindus for example don't believe in the trinity it's a different view than what the Bible says. Gay people have a different view of sexuality than generally what you see in the New Testament. I'm supposed to love my neighbors. So, what I don't see is at this point I see some churches that are basically ignoring the places in the Bible that talk about homosexuality in order to love their gay neighbor. And I see other Christian churches taking very seriously what the Bible says about homosexuality, but in a very self-righteous way. So they actually do single out gay people. I mean there are a number of conservative churches that will love their Hindu neighbors and will love their Muslim neighbors and not their gay neighbors.

[00:08:20]And I really don't think there is any excuse for that. So that's what's it I mean I I I therefore I have to take some responsibility being a member of the Christian church for the oppression of homos >> are committing homosexual.

[00:08:34]>> Okay. Is I'll back it up a little bit.

[00:08:37]is going to um come back and say ask about is homosexuality a sin? But there's a lot there is trying to jot some things down too. Talking about it not being God's original design is a real massive downplay regarding what God actually says about homosexuality. God calls it an abomin an abomination. Uh it does not call everything an abomination, but he calls it an abomination. Tim Keller here tries to create a moral equivalence between loving your neighbor and going against God's design, homosexuality.

[00:09:16]I Yes, loving your neighbor is an important thing to do. Another thing that he has there though that he throws in as he as he throws these wrenches in all, you know, really quickly, we'll call them false teaching wrenches. False teaching wrenches that he throws in. Gay people are your neighbors. So now it's not about um homosexuality as a sin.

[00:09:43]It's gay people as an identity group. So now we've all of a sudden made them an an identity group the same as uh he says gay or straight, Hindu or Muslim were a few of the examples that he gave.

[00:10:02]So the examples that he gave were religious groups, Hindu, Muslim, you should love your Hindu neighbor, you should love your Muslim neighbor. Oh, you should love your gay neighbor, too.

[00:10:14]Um, I understand that if someone's identifying as that, then that's kind of language that starts to get used. But the moment you start to speak of homosexuality as an identity, it becomes really problematic.

[00:10:37]And and these are the things that someone like Tim Keller trying to be very particular in how he's speaking should make that clear should should not be uh should make it clear it's not an identity that this is a choice. But I don't know that he believes that. I I don't know that he actually believes that which is part of the problem. So, it's not very far off from Joe Lostein saying that, you know, it's not God's best. Not God's best. I mean, what's what's the difference between this and it's not God's best? Maybe it gets better. Let's just continue.

[00:11:20]How you're like, how could it get better?

[00:11:24]Okay. Well, we'll see. May May I just I'm trying to give some hope. church for the oppression of homos.

[00:11:30]>> Are committing homosexual act sexual acts a sin against God?

[00:11:34]>> Uh what do you mean by sin? The answer is yes.

[00:11:37]>> Yes.

[00:11:37]>> Now the reason see here's the problem.

[00:11:39]>> Oh that's better. See that's better.

[00:11:41]When things get very very bad uh it's possible to get better. So okay so he did answer that it is a sin. We'll hear that again.

[00:11:49]>> Acts a sin against God.

[00:11:51]>> So are homosexual acts a sin against God? That's what he asked.

[00:11:54]>> Uh what do you mean by sin? The answer is yes.

[00:11:57]>> Yes. Now, the reason, see, here's the problem with that. No, you don't go to hell for being a homosexual, >> but committing homosexual acts will go get you get to go to hell.

[00:12:06]>> No, wait a minute. Wait, wait, wait.

[00:12:08]>> Right.

[00:12:09]>> No, because you know, some people will say, well, it's not the homosexuality or being gay. It's being doing gay stuff with the problem.

[00:12:17]>> No, no, >> no. He's saying no to all of those things, by the way. Uh even if he's just trying to be like, "No, no, no. Let me let me let me finish my my point. He functionally is still saying no to all of those things that the man is saying.

[00:12:34]First of all, heterosexuality does not get you to heaven. I happen to know this.

[00:12:41]Right. So, how in the world could homosexuality send you to hell? I just >> And the crowd sure loved that. But the reality is, is anyone actually saying that?

[00:12:51]>> No.

[00:12:52]it and actually uh the Bible listen this is this is true Jesus talks about greed 10 times more than he talks about adultery for example now one of the problems Christians have here is partly let's be nice to Christians you let's be nice to Christians notice how much he's evading the point notice how far away he is from the original question the original question is homosexuality a sin and will homosexuality send you to hell?

[00:13:27]Now, you could answer this very simply.

[00:13:31]Uh they're like, "Yes, it's a sin and yes, it will send you to hell. You must repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ." Pretty simple, you know, and then you can flesh out whatever like additional details you want to give people. Uh I mean, scriptur is very clear. Calls it an abomination. You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. You go right to Leviticus. You can go right to uh Galatians 5. Talk about the works of the flesh. Now the works of the flesh are evident. Sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, emnity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkennessies, and things like these.

[00:14:09]And it's so it's included in there with the sensuality and and uh all of that.

[00:14:15]Uh, I warn you as I warned you before that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. Okay, that's pretty clear. And then you go to like the clearest passage of of all here in 1 Corinthians 6. Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolattors, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. pretty clear. Seems pretty clear to me. You just state that and you use that and you get to the gospel too like Paul did here verse 11 while speaking to Christians and such were some of you.

[00:15:00]You were washed, you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and the by the spirit of our God. This is an excellent passage to go to because even with a hostile crowd, are you willing to tell the truth, Tim Keller? With this is 2008.

[00:15:19]Goodness. I mean, so with a hostile hostile crowd, uh, or I don't know if they're that hostile or not, but, you know, it's a a secular university crowd.

[00:15:31]You go to scripture, you point out that it's sinful. You point out that those who walk in that sin are worthy of death. And then, of course, you can say, "Well, we're all worthy of death, and we're all, you know, we're all uh deserving of that punishment, but Jesus came and died for our sin." And those who put their faith in Christ can be redeemed.

[00:15:55]Repent and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will give you new desires and all of those things. and and you preach the gospel and you go and Paul was dealing this wi with this when he's writing to Corinth and he's telling them and such were some of you.

[00:16:11]It it's a it's a it's a it's an excellent redemptive passage. But does he do that? No, he doesn't do that. So, let's continue this clip.

[00:16:22]>> 10 times more than he talks about adultery, for example.

[00:16:25]>> Okay. He talks about greed 10 times than he more than he talks about adultery. He had said, >> "Now, one of the problems Christians have here is partly, let's be nice to Christians. You know, when you're committing adultery, I mean, you don't say, "Oh, you're not my wife." I mean, you know, you're committing, but but almost nobody knows when they're greed. I nobody admit thinks they're greedy, you know, because everybody is comparing yourself to other people, and so it's a frog in the kettle kind of thing. Uh, however, the fact of the matter is the Bible is much harder on greed, materialism. It's a horrible sin, terrible sin. Well, will greed send you to hell? No. What sends you to hell is self-righteousness, thinking that you can be your own savior and lord?

[00:17:07]>> Wrong answers.

[00:17:09]Yes, greed will send you to hell. Yes, homosexuality will send you to hell.

[00:17:14]Yes, lusting after uh desiring to rob the bank will send you to hell. Yes. Desiring, lusting after anyone will send you to hell. Lusting for power will send you.

[00:17:29]Yes, all of those things. Apart from Christ.

[00:17:34]Apart from Christ.

[00:17:37]Yes. Self-righteousness will send you to hell. Like sitting there and saying, "I know better than God. I'm not even going to go to the Bible. I am going to try to present this differently than how it's presented so clearly in scripture as a self-righteous man. I'm going to do that.

[00:17:59]Yes, those things apart from Christ will send someone to hell.

[00:18:05]It's Christ is the answer. Obviously, unrepentant sin of any sort will send someone to hell. The answer is very clear. Yes. Yes. And yes, all of those things. What sends you to heaven is getting a connection with Christ because you realize you're a sinner and you and you and you need intervention from outside. That's why it's a it's very misleading actually to say even to say homosexuality is a sin because most people yes of course homosexuality is a sin because greed is a sin because all kinds of things are sins but what most Christians mean when they say that and certainly what non-Christians think they hear when they hear that is if you're gay you're going to hell for being gay.

[00:18:48]It's just not true. Absolutely not true.

[00:18:50]So then what's the how is homosexuality a sin? I'm not well homos >> Yeah. Watch just how confused he This is a This is like a an apologetic strategy basically that he doesn't want to make it about that particular sin.

[00:19:10]But he wants to make it about all sins.

[00:19:13]But even if you're going to do that, then just make it clear. All have fallen short of the glory of God. We've all sinned. We're all worthy of death. We're all worthy of eternal damnation.

[00:19:25]But Christ, you were dead in your sins and transgressions.

[00:19:32]But God, you know, these are but because I he's not going to scripture, it causes much much confusion. And this guy's sitting there like, "Yeah, I I know a little bit about the Bible. I know about what it says.

[00:19:52]you're not properly representing what the Bible teaches. So, let me correct you and now you're just really really confusing me and the audience. So, let me ask you another question >> for being gay. It's just not true.

[00:20:08]Absolutely not true. So, then what's the how is homosexuality a sin? I'm not >> Well, homos greed's a sin. In other words, it's not doesn't help human flourishing. Basically, Christianity has an account of what we think human beings were built to do and what will therefore help human flourishing. So, we would say if you spend all your money on yourself, that's bad. Not only for your own soul, but for everybody else's. We would say homosexuality is not the original design for sexuality. Therefore, it's not good for human flourishing. We want people to do things that are good for human flourishing, but that's not what sends you to heaven or hell. Now, there maybe we ought to talk about that.

[00:20:44]uh what sends you to heaven or hell really has to do with your faith in the gospel which is that you can't uh be your own savior through your performance and your good works. Now here I'm I'm coming at this at a pro like a Protestant. Now you know um everybody's got to be a particular kind of Christian and there's difference of opinion within Christianity about this but uh no being gay doesn't send you to hell and and and sin doesn't send you to hell like that.

[00:21:11]Uh the sin underneath the sin is I am my own savior and my lord. And that's the reason why phariseism, moralism, bibleelving people who are proud and think God's going to take them to heaven because they're good. That's sending them to hell. I mean, I know this is a lot to take in at once.

[00:21:28]>> It's a lot.

[00:21:28]>> It's a lot because it's confusing as can be. Uh was there some gospel truth in there? Like if you know how to spot it, you know how to spot it. It some of it was there. But uh for clarity, just for simply speaking what scripture says, no. No. Like it it's so the guy's responding. It's a lot.

[00:21:59]>> Well, yeah. I mean, >> but inside our church there, therefore, there's just not going to be this disdain of homosexuals. It just can't be. Not when I'm teaching the gospel like that.

[00:22:12]>> So, it's all about, you know, be nice to to someone. The uh it's not about preaching the gospel. It's not about um basically don't offend don't offend your enemies. Don't don't offend your uh those who hate Christianity rather than actually telling them the truth. Let's not tell them the truth. If you get some truth truths in there, uh make sure you disguise them as much as possible.

[00:22:48]Disguise them with a million qualifications. or a million distractions so that any truth that's actually in there like getting a connection with God or I don't even know if I heard the word Christ maybe maybe he said that getting a connection with Christ okay how do you get that connection with Christ you know the these are all things that are that are completely avoided and evaded in his answer I and I understand Tim Keller is a certain way. I mean, there are people that that have that I don't know have read a lot of his books and like I like him. I I don't I've never understood why because he's just so he doesn't speak clearly, but uh and and he can't anything that I've seen of his he he's like this, but it's much much worse on this college campus where he just can't simply answer a question.

[00:23:56]He's He's got to He's got to do all these distractions. And by doing all these distractions, we got to do anything you can to subvert the gospel.

[00:24:06]Anything you can to subvert the the clear truth of what the Bible says about sin and sinfulness. Subvert, subvert, subvert. That seems to be what he would do an awful lot of. Well, so here, let's try not to make this video too long, but here's a montage put together by uh they include Sim Keller and someone else by I think it was Dr. Watchd Dog where I found it. So, let's watch this. And I see other Christian churches taking very seriously what the Bible says about homosexuality, but in a very self-righteous way. So, they actually do single out gay people. I mean there are a number of conservative churches that will love their Hindu neighbors and will love their Muslim neighbors and not their gay neighbors. And I really don't think there is any excuse for that. So that's what's it I mean I I I therefore I have to take some responsibility of being a member of the Christian church for the oppression of homos.

[00:25:06]>> Are committing homosexual sexual acts a sin against God?

[00:25:11]>> Uh what do you mean by sin? committing homosexual acts will go get you to go to hell. No, >> I do want to apologize to the gay and lesbian community on behalf of my community.

[00:25:25]>> I have to take some responsibility being a member of the Christian church for the oppression of homos.

[00:25:30]>> Jesus representing churches will be known as the friends of the LGBTQ community.

[00:25:37]>> It's very misleading actually to say even to say homosexuality is a sin.

[00:25:41]Stand up and be among the fiercest advocates for the preservation of the dignity and the rights of LGBT people.

[00:25:53]>> Yes, I agree. Flee from these men.

[00:25:56]Absolutely. Let's review a few things here. Um few things from scripting that JD Greer says, "I do want to apologize to the gay and lesbian community on behalf of my community." So this is the problem when you turn it into a community. Might as well say a community of sinners. It could be name pick your sin. I do want to apologize to the greed community. I do want to apologize to the adultering community. I I would like to apologize to the community of idolattors for the way in which I have treated idolattors. I think that we should be friends of idolattors and that we should uh make our denomination, our church, the primary church that is making sure that we're friends to idoltors and treating idolattors well. We're treating drunkards well. We're treating the covetous well. Uh the community of idolattors, a community of fornicators, the community of drunkards, and a community of revilers. And let's not forget the community of extortioners. I think we should have a special ministry to the community of extortioners. You see how ridiculous that is, but turn them into a community. And um LGBT activism, of course, they you might argue they have become a community, but still we shouldn't be talking in that way.

[00:27:28]Well, he he says uh he wants to apologize to them for for what exactly?

[00:27:34]Uh for for Christians being faithful and calling out sin. Are there those that um there there are those that do not believe in the such were some of you.

[00:27:52]That's that's true. There's a a small super small group uh that would not be in like mainline denominations that would not be in SBC that JD Greer was uh uh president of. So he JD Greer also says Jesus representing churches will be known as the friends of the LGBTQ community.

[00:28:24]No, Jesus representing churches should be known as those evangelizing those in those sins.

[00:28:35]Uh Tim Mckeler in that clip. It's very misleading actually to say even to say homosexuality is a sin. Was Paul misleading?

[00:28:46]Uh no it's not misleading at all. And JD Greer also says in there, I'm not sure where. I don't know if that was at an SBC convention or at his church, we need to stand up and be among the fiercest advocates for the preservation of the dignity and the rights of the LGBT people. You see the problem here?

[00:29:08]Leftist ideology, LGBT rights.

[00:29:14]So that is standing up for the rights for people to continue in sin and even to make vows same-sex marriage to make vows that they will continue in unrepentant sin for the rest of their life and never repent and come to Christ. That is a vow that they're making. That vow can be broken and they can always come to Christ. But that that but it's much more unlikely to happen when they join together with a partner uh in an unnatural order against God's design. So lots of problems with that. We will close with one last thing and that is Sam Albury and what he has to say in this clip regarding who should be the ones who are talking about this topic.

[00:30:08]>> I had trained with at seminary were beginning to to change in their convictions.

[00:30:14]um you were feeling the cultural pressure that we were going through our own national conversation about gay marriage at that stage and I just had this burden on my heart that I and and typically what you'd hear is some very lovely sounding gay rights activist presenting the case for for samesex marriage and then some cranky conservative saying why it's all wrong, >> right? And I just thought we need someone from inside this topic to speak to it.

[00:30:46]>> We need someone from inside this topic to speak to it. There he's saying basically we need a same-sex attracted individual who believes that samesex attraction is not a sin. That'd be him.

[00:31:02]And uh we need those people talking about this issue. Yeah. How well did that do? uh that that has led this issue to take over this nation to take over the churches. It has been a serious serious problem. The gospel is the answer to all of this. One who is in sin uh in that sin or another sin has fallen short of the glory of God. We all have.

[00:31:28]But Jesus sent God sent his son to this earth. And Jesus lived that perfect life for to die for you and for me for our sins. And if you just repent of your sins, trust in Christ, you will be born again. You'll have a new heart with new desires, a desire to serve the Lord.

[00:31:48]That is the truth that I hope you know.

[00:31:50]If you don't know that truth, repent and trust in Christ today, and he will give you a new heart and new desires. You will be born again and those desires are changed. You will then uh no longer have those desires. You will struggle with sin. But uh there is a change that occurs from faith in Christ. We need the gospel preached. That is the answer to all of these things. And we do not need empty philosophy being spread around the church. That is the very last thing that we need. Thanks for watching. Truth transforms. My name is Adam Markley. If uh uh if you like this, go ahead and hit like, hit subscribe, do all that good stuff. And uh the goal of Truth Transforms is to transform hearts, to transform minds through the truth, God's word. Take a look at the pinned comment below for related videos like the last episode. God bless you and I will see you next time.