By Editorial Board, Presbyterian Plumb Line
The Evangelical Presbyterian Church has long held that ordination is not a right, but a calling that must meet the highest biblical and spiritual standards. As the Book of Government states:
“According to Scripture, those who bear office in the Church should exhibit certain characteristics of life. This includes being above reproach, sound in the faith, wise in the things of God, and discreet in all things. Persons who fill this office should exhibit a lifestyle that is an example to all, both in and outside the Church” (BoG 9-3).
This language reflects a deep biblical conviction: those entrusted with spiritual leadership in Christ’s church must not only affirm sound doctrine but also embody it. Their lives are to be shaped by increasing conformity to Christ and maturity in godliness (1 Timothy 3; Titus 1). In light of this call, we must be clear: a person who self-identifies as a “gay Christian,” even while claiming celibacy or continuing to experience ongoing, same-sex attraction, must not be considered a qualified candidate for ordination in the EPC.
This stance is not a denial of the gospel’s power to forgive sin, nor is it a rejection of the real and complex struggles that accompany same-sex attraction. We acknowledge that believers come from many backgrounds, including sexual brokenness, and we rejoice in the sanctifying work of the Spirit that brings genuine healing over time. However, ordination demands evidence of progress in sanctification and the ability to serve as a model for the flock.
We are not setting a red line to create a class of untouchables or to despise those who battle SSA. Rather, we seek to maintain both pastoral compassion and doctrinal integrity — truth and love. The church should minister to those who struggle with same-sex attraction with gentleness, patience, and hope, calling them to die to self, take up their cross, and follow Jesus. But ordination must be reserved for those who have borne fruit in keeping with repentance and who exhibit maturity in sexual holiness. This includes those who, if they once struggled with SSA, now enjoy marked freedom from its power and no longer claim it as part of their identity or experience.
In short, the high calling of ordination is incompatible with a settled identification as a “gay Christian” or with ongoing patterns of same-sex attraction. We affirm that God can and does deliver His people from every form of sin and disordered desire, including those of a sexual nature. And we expect that those who lead His church will be living testimonies to that redeeming and renewing grace.
To allow ordination of SSA believers in the EPC will undermine the purity and peace of the church. All the mainline denominations have taken unbiblical positions on SSA ordination which brought division and theological shipwreck to those denominations. We must not set one foot on the path of unfaithfulness to Christ in this matter. The plumb line of Scripture is our standard.
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