So, God created man in His own image; in the image of God, He created him; male and female He created them. - Genesis 1:27
INTRODUCTION: We have been created in the image of God - which includes both male and female! This sermon will be an exploration of human sexuality from the standpoint of God’s creation. The Biblical account of creation has timeless lessons. Notice the words from our keynote scripture:
So, God created man in His own image; in the image of God, He created him; male and female He created them. - Genesis 1:27
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. - Psalm 139:14
If we desire to know God, and to know ourselves, we cannot diminish the reality that male and female are different - physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Both sexes are equally important, and yet are created differently. We complement each other!
I. GENDER CONFUSION PRESENT IN OUR CULTURE
A. Our culture is very confused about the issue of gender. Examples of gender confusion.
Al Mohler writes, “In some European countries, preschools now prohibit the use of gendered pronouns. Similar prohibitions are being attempted in North America.”
University of Tennessee encouraged use of “ze” and not “he.”
The University of Kansas Student Senate bans use of gender pronouns when writing legislation.
University of California has six gender options: male, female, trans female, trans male, gender queer and different identity.
The state of Minnesota wants to eliminate all gender distinctions for high school sports. One reporter writes, “In this scheme, there would be no accounting for sex differences in high school sports on the field or in locker rooms, bathrooms, and hotel rooms.” (The Federalist.com) This spells the end of high school athletics, college is next, then the Olympics??
Riley Gaines is suing Lia Thomas a transgender woman who is a biological male and won the NCAA women’s championship in swimming.
Adidas now has a transgender woman modeling their swimwear and other companies are promoting the transgender ideology into their marketing and promotions.
Matt Walsh, a political commentator, produced a documentary titled, What is a Woman? This documentary exposed the falsehoods behind the transgender movement.
During Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's confirmation hearing, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., asked the Supreme Court nominee: “Can you provide a definition for the word ‘woman’?” Jackson, appearing confused, responded, "I’m not a biologist.” Blackburn chided Jackson, claiming that "the fact that you can’t give me a straight answer about something as fundamental as what a woman is underscores the dangers of the kind of progressive education that we are hearing about."
Fred Rogers sang a song “Everybody’s Fancy” that was sung on his Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. If that song were sung on PBS today, I would say that Fred Rogers would be branded a transphobic bigot by the media and social media outles.
The transgendered movement will not stop until everyone bows to their agenda of eliminating all gender distinctions in every sphere of life. And make no mistake, the transgendered agenda and religious liberty are on a collision course.
B. Reasons for gender confusion
Why are we so confused as a culture? It was not always this way.
The answer: Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophy movement characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, or relativism; a general suspicion of reason; and an acute sensitivity to the role of ideology in asserting and maintaining political and economic power. Simply stated, postmodernism says that there is no such thing as truth.
Truth is what we call reality. So, if you can determine your own reality, why not your own gender? If you are a male who wants to be a female, you can adopt a female gender even though you’re biologically a male. Postmodernism says, we should not let our biological sex determine our gender. In fact, a key concept in the transgendered movement is this very idea and is a problem in our culture.
According to Romans 1 our culture’s gender confusion is the result of God’s judgment.
“Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.” Romans 1:28
And He answered and said, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? 6 “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” - Matthew 19:4-6
But it goes so much deeper. Every cell in your body is either male (XY) or female (XX). No matter how many sex change operations one has and no matter how many hormones one takes, males will always have XY chromosomes and females will always have XX chromosomes. Arguments are made about a baby born with both genitalia and people ask, “which sex is the baby?” Just check the chromosomes. Nothing can change this... This is God’s good design at the genetic level.
C. Professor Denny Burk quoting on Genesis 1 writes, 1. “We dare not miss that God created sexual differentiation. The terms male and female are not social constructs. They are not social roles put upon us by culture and tradition. Male and Female designate the fundamental distinction that God has embedded in the very biology of the race.”
Whenever we try to tamper with God’s Good and Perfect gifts, it leads to:
CONFUSION - So many people don’t know where to go? Who am I?
"The tendency today is to stress the equality of men and women by minimizing the unique significance of our maleness or femaleness. But this depreciation of male and female person-hood is a great loss. It is taking a tremendous toll on generations of young men and women who do not know what it means to be a man or a woman. Confusion over the meaning of sexual person-hood today is epidemic. The consequence of this confusion is not a free and happy harmony among gender-free persons relating on the basis of abstract competencies. The consequence rather is more divorce, more homosexuality, more sexual abuse, more promiscuity, more social awkwardness, and more emotional distress and suicide that come with the loss of God-given identity. It is a remarkable and telling observation that contemporary Christian feminists devote little attention to the definition of femininity and masculinity. Little help is being given to a son’s question, “Dad, what does it mean to be a man and not a woman?” Or a daughter’s question, “Mom, what does it mean to be woman and not a man?” A lot of energy is being expended today minimizing the distinctions of manhood and womanhood. But we do not hear very often what manhood and womanhood should incline us to do. We are adrift in a sea of confusion over sexual roles.
CHAOS, - when the only answer to be found are in society, we are in trouble. Everybody becomes an expert.... People look for answers to TV – people start listening to Oprah Winfrey or Bill Maher or some other well-known celebrity for answers and information; this is chaos.
This leads to...
CORRUPTION - we can’t tell truth from a lie!
It doesn’t matter what “side” you are on in the debate of human sexuality - be it liberal or conservative - if it’s not centered fully in the Scripture - it’s not helpful! We need to be careful that we recognize the ways the church has been more hurtful, than helpful in the past. But that doesn’t mean that we ignore God’s Word or blame God’s Word! Instead, it should draw us back into God’s Word more fully!
“So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ - Matthew 23:28-30
Even in the Church there seems to be a growing sense of corruption when it comes to understanding God’s created order. Rather than look at the source of the corruption - sin, we seem to be blaming the Word - as though it’s flawed or untrustworthy.
2. GOD CREATED THEM MALE AND FEMALE
God did so, and established marriage in this context. Sexual relationships are to be only in the context of marriage. If we don’t believe that Male and Female are important, than neither is marriage. If marriage isn’t important, than neither is the context in which we express ourselves sexually! This is corruption!
he solution to this problem is Creation!
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” - Genesis 1:26
We are made in God’s Image
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day when God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female, and He blessed them and named them Man in the day when they were created. - Genesis 5:1-2
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. - 1 Corinthians 3:18
Male and Female - each gender bearing aspects of God that the other doesn’t - we need each other to know God’s plan fully.
However, in the Lord, neither is woman independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.12 For as the woman originates from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God. - 1 Corinthians 11:11-12
So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; 29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 because we are members of His body. 31 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. 32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband. - Ephesians 5:28-33
Deviant forms of sexuality diminish not only our view of who we are, but also of who God is!
For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. Romans 1:25-27
In beginning God created Male and Female - there must be a reason! Why would we seek to diminish what God has created! We must remember, that just because man has messed up God’s creation - we shouldn’t look to man to fix it! We can only look to God for setting things right!
For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 47 “But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” - John 5:46-47
“Differentiated roles were corrupted, not created, by the fall!” John Piper.
CONCLUSION: As human beings, we are created in the image of God and there is no other person who will ever be like you and me. Our culture is corrupting the minds of adults, children and families with an ideology that says people can change who they were created to be by the hand of God. God made us male and female with distinct characteristics that set us apart and make us unique. Let us stand against this godless and unholy mindset of our culture that has brought so much confusion regarding gender and glorify our creator who had made us in His image.
