The Seoul Statement, released at the start of the fourth Lausanne Congress, affirmed that according to God’s design, marriage is a unique and exclusive covenant-relationship between one man and one woman, with the key purpose of procreation, and that sex should only take place within the bounds of marriage. 

Both married and single believers can be equally complete in Christ, it added.

The Fourth Lausanne Congress, which started on Sunday, September 22, 2024 in South Korea, marks the 50th anniversary of a movement committed to global mission. Each Congress has been marked by the release of a key statement meant to guide the global church on how the proclaim the Gospel with “a sense of clarity in a world of theological and missional confusion”.

On marriage and parenting, the authors (E D Burns, Michael Oh, David Bennett and Ivor Poobalan) noted that the Christian marriage is modelled on the relationship of Christ and the church, every marriage is a unique means of witness to the outworking of the Gospel. 

“Therefore, Christians who choose to marry must invest the necessary effort to care for their marital relationship and for the upbringing of children who may be born to them or adopted by them (Ephesians 5:22-31),” wrote the authors.

“The biblical vision of marriage includes the fulfilment of the Creator’s mandate to procreate, and simultaneously provides companionship and pleasure for the couple. 

“We are saddened that the pursuit of sexual freedom as a perceived personal and social good has downplayed the procreational aspect of marital sex, which has often led to the devaluing of children and the dramatic increase in abortions globally.”

On singles, the authors called on Christian communities to equally support singles and married couples in their respective journeys without discrimination.

“While marriage has been the assumed ideal for adults in all societies, and in marriage husband and wife complement each other, marriage is not an essential step to make a person complete. 

“Both married and single persons are fully able to fulfil the Creator’s will and bear witness to Jesus Christ. Each individual, created in the image of God, is a complete person with maximum potential within the context of other human relationships,” wrote the authors, citing Jesus himself as an examplar.

“We call all local churches to support both singles and married couples within the community of Christian believers through teaching, mentoring, and networks of mutual encouragement and practical support.”

The biblical insistence that Christians must resist temptation and so maintain sexual holiness, applies equally to heterosexually attracted individuals as it does to same-sex attracted persons, write the authors.

On sexual identity, the Seoul Statement said that according to the Bible, “humans are created as sexual beings with clearly identifiable physical characteristics as male and female and relational characteristics as man and woman”.

Wrote the authors: “We lament any distortion of sexuality. We reject the notion that individuals may determine their gender without regard to our createdness. Although biological sex and gender may be distinguished, they are inseparable. Maleness and femaleness are an inherent fact of human createdness—a fact to which cultures give expression in distinguishing between men and women. We also reject the notion of gender fluidity (the claim to fluctuating gender identity or gender expression, depending on situation and experience).”

On same-sex marriages, citing Old and New Testament passages (Genesis 19:1-3; Leviticus 18:20; 20:13; Romans 1:24-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; 1 Timothy 1:9-11), the authors wrote that “all the biblical references to sex between persons of the same sex lead us to the inescapable conclusion that God considers such acts as a violation of his intention for sex and a distortion of the Creator’s good design, and therefore, sinful.”

They added: “We lament all attempts in the church to define same-sex partnerships as biblically valid marriages. We grieve that some Christian denominations and local congregations have acquiesced to the demands of culture and claim to consecrate such relationships as marriages.”

However, the authors recognised that same-sex attracted Christians have often faced prejudice from the church.

“We recognise that a number of people, both within and outside the church, experience same-sex attraction, and that for some, this is the only or dominant attraction. The biblical insistence that Christians must resist temptation and so maintain sexual holiness, in both desire and behaviour, applies equally to heterosexually attracted individuals as it does to same-sex attracted persons. 

“We acknowledge, however, that Christians who are same-sex attracted face challenges in many local churches due to ignorance and prejudice, and have consequently suffered discrimination and injustice within Christian communities. 

“We repent of our failures and lament the harm this has done to our brothers and sisters in the body of Christ.

“We urge Christian leaders and local churches to recognise within our communities the presence of faithful believers who experience same-sex attraction, and to support them in their discipleship by pastoral care and by developing healthy communities of love and friendship.”