Question: Can a person with same-sex attraction change his or her orientation? If so, how?

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Question: Can a person with same-sex attraction change his or her orientation? If so, how?

At one level we must answer this question with affirmative conviction. Yes, a person with same-sex attraction can change. Christians must proclaim that rebellious sinners, whether heterosexual or homosexual, can be redeemed by Christ and conformed to his image by the Holy Spirit. 

We can affirm this without hesitation because of God's promises in Scripture and because of the gospel's transformative power. At the same time, the process of sanctification and the radical change from sexual sinner to a life of purity and holiness is never simple. 

The redemption of someone with same-sex attraction does not instantaneously produce a heterosexual orientation. The New Testament displays the difficulty of escaping patterns of temptation and sin. In Romans 7, Paul demonstrates the tension Christians experience between new life in Christ and indwelling sin. There is simply no easy way to escape the lingering effects of our sin even after conversion to Christ. 

We must honestly state that it is humanly impossible to reverse our sexual orientation by force of will. In light of this, all Christians, especially those tempted by sexual sin, must lean into the truth of justification by faith alone and a sanctification progressively worked out in us by the Holy Spirit through the ministry of the Word. Christians must trust that our bodies and sexual orientations will be fully redeemed when Christ returns and consummates his redemptive work.

Many Christians struggling with a same-sex sexual attraction indicate that the struggle is lifelong. Some have testified of great gains and some have testified of a reversal of sexual attraction, though this seems to be given to a minority of believers in this struggle. Regrettably, Christians have often sinned against those who struggle with same-sex orientation by suggesting that their patterns of sexual attraction can be easily altered. 

The effects of sin are so devastating, pervasive, and situated in us, however, that change is never easily accomplished. While Christians should be thankful that Romans 7 reveals the nature of indwelling sin in the believer, we must also maintain a genuine hope about the potential for growth in godliness. 

The same Paul who cried out in despair, "Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" also cried out, "Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!" (Rom. 7:24-25). Even in our body of death, we are being freed from the power of sin. Ultimately, someone with a homosexual orientation can change. 

Behavior will be the first area to change. When we come to Christ, our first responsibility is to align our behavior, including our sexual acts, with the clear revelation of God in Scripture. Then, by pursuing the means of grace, the Holy Spirit can increasingly bring our sexual orientations into obedience to the Word of God. We cannot promise that this will be complete in this life, but we can be fully confident that he who began a good work in us will complete it in the end (Phil. 1:6).

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