Gender Confusion

November 14, 2021

Randy Hageman

A Profound Mystery: God’s Design (Part 1)
A Profound Mystery: Sin’s Damage (Part 2)
A Profound Mystery: Same Sex Attraction (Part 3)

Regardless of what aspect of gender or sexuality we’re talking about, we are absolutely clear that every one of us was created in the image of God, that He

us, and that He ultimately wants only the best for us.

DEFINING TERMS:

• Sex – a person’s

sex – the physical and biological aspects of being male and female

• Gender – the psychological, social and cultural aspects of being

or

Reveal Answer

• Gender Roles – the

and

Reveal Answer

aspects of being male or female, how males and females are expected to act in any culture; sometimes referred to as the stereotypes of masculinity or femininity

• Gender Identity – the

aspects of being male or female; one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither

• Transgender – an umbrella term for the various ways some people experience and live out a

between their biological sex and their gender identity

• Transvestite – someone who

in the clothes of the opposite sex, but it doesn’t necessarily mean they identify with the other sex

• Gender Dysphoria – a psychological term for the

some people feel when their internal sense of self doesn’t match their biological sex

• Nonbinary – a wide

of gender identities used in our culture that are not exclusively male or female, or masculine or feminine; other similar terms include genderqueer, genderfluid, and pangender

• Transsexual – someone who has pursued or is pursuing

treatment – either surgery or hormone therapy – to align their biological sex with their gender identity

• Intersex – someone who is born with

characteristics in their sexual anatomy and/or chromosomes; 99% of cases of intersex people experience little or no ambiguity about their biological sex, but 1% of cases experience significant ambiguity

• Cisgender – someone who experiences

between their biological sex and gender identity

Transgender people are

all the same – no two experiences are exactly alike.

If you have met one transgender person, you have met one transgender person. —Dr. Mark Yarhouse

The numbers seem to indicate that many people identify as transgender who aren’t experiencing gender

.

Some teens who experience Rapid-Onset Gender Dysphoria (ROGD) appear to have been influenced by their

environment.

The person is navigating gender identity concerns. These concerns are real and often quite confusing and isolating. The person worries about who would believe them, what people would think about them, and so forth. This is tremendously isolating and often associated with other concerns, such as depression and anxiety. —Dr. Mark Yarhouse

Across all ages of transgenders,

% have attempted suicide, vs. under 5% of U.S. population, so this is important and requires our attention and compassion.

It is crucial to understand that this is a genuine experience. People with gender dysphoria experience the feeling that their biological body is lying. A person in this situation really thinks that he or she is, should be, or would feel better as, the gender that is opposite to their biological sex, or no gender at all. —Andrew T. Walker

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 (ESV)

From the beginning, God created human beings to be

sexes – “male and female.”

Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.’ —Genesis 2:18 (ESV)

A more literal translation of the Hebrew word that many English translations have shown as “helper” would be “a helper like

him.”

Jesus: “…‘Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”?’” —Matthew 19:4-5 (ESV)

We are embodied beings, so that our bodies, including our

, are integral to who we are.

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. —1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (ESV)

We were created as a

of body, mind and spirit – we are not a soul trapped inside a body but an embodied being.

From the appearances of Jesus in his resurrected body, it would appear that we retain our

differences when we are resurrected.

Our Fallen bodies are not what God intended, but God promises to

us to His intended design in the resurrection for all who put their faith in Jesus Christ.

I find it more helpful to say that such persons [born as intersex]—beautiful persons created in God’s image and are worthy of respect, value, and admiration—are a blend of the two biological sexes rather than a third sex completely different from male or female … Theologically, it makes sense to say that through the Fall, some people are born with a blend of male and female sex characteristics. If we believe that the Fall has the potential to touch every aspect of human nature, then what would it look like for the Fall to touch our sexual anatomy or sex chromosomes? I suggest that it would look like intersex conditions. —Preston Sprinkle

Over the longer term, sex reassignment surgery can often lead to

risks of experiencing poor mental health outcomes.

As more people are transitioning to the opposite sex today, more and more are doing what’s called detransitioning, seeking to be restored to their

state.

There are few studies behind detransition rates, but I can tell you there are thousands of us—our voices are hidden because we are seen by the queer community as an inconvenient consequence of their movement. We are just collateral damage for the ‘greater good’.… This generation are guinea pigs, and the fact that scientists and doctors are staying quiet about this is criminal. —Charlie Evans, founder of the Detransition Advocacy Network

I would say that the Bible and science offer much more evidence to support the view that our biological sex determines who we are. Our sexed bodies determine whether we are male, female, or both; and our embodiment is an essential part of how we image God in the world. I don’t think the Bible or science offers enough evidence to suggest that our gender (identity or role) overrules our sexed identity, even if we experience incongruence. —Preston Sprinkle

Gender confusion feelings are very difficult feelings, and so we can be on the right side of the story but the wrong side of the results if we don’t offer these folks the

of Christ.

Regarding pronouns, Christians are called to bend on things that don’t

matter, as far as salvation goes, if it helps us befriend and walk alongside others.

We need less outrage and more outrageous love. —Preston Sprinkle

Jesus always hung out with the outcasts and sinners, and the religious elite got on to him for doing that, but he said he’d leave the 99 in order to save the

.

Too often Christians are known for what we’re against and not who we’re

.

Submit a Question at
g8waycom.org/mystery.

View additional resources.