One of the foundational messages of
Scripture is given in Genesis 1:27, which says, "God created man in His own
image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."This message is essential to our identity.First, it distinguishes us from the rest of
creation, for only man was created in the image of God.Second, it distinguishes us into two specific
biological and social roles, which are male and female.These two facts are the underpinning of all
that God intended for man in His creation.Without a proper grasp of these concepts, men and women cannot fulfill
God's purpose for them.
The opponents of God have worked to
destroy the concepts of Genesis 1:27 with alarming success.For many years, Charles Darwin's theory of
evolution has been used to counter and contradict the Bible's account of
creation.As a result, many people
believe that macroevolution (large scale molecules-to-man evolution) is an
established fact of science and that the Bible's creation account is symbolism
or mythology.This means that the most
crucial part of our identity has been erased from the minds of those who accept
evolution as a fact.They do not believe
that man was created in the image of God or that man was created at all or that
there is even a God.They think that we
are the products of random, chance events of nature with no design or purpose.
As Darwin's theory has progressively
convinced men and women to stop identifying with God's image, the distinctions
between men and women have also been eroded.Over several decades, the roles of men and women, husbands and wives,
and fathers and mother have been blurred and confused.This has combined with a steady
disintegration of marriage and the home.The sexual functions of men and women have also been perverted so that
homosexuality is regarded as a normal, natural, and healthy behavior.Now, even gender identity is considered not
to be a biological fact but a personal preference and choice.Yes, the most obvious and undeniable fact of
nature, which is that "male and female He created them," is now denied.Moreover, those who choose to defy this fact
by surgically and medicinally altering their bodies are celebrated as
courageous heroes and role models (see Bruce Jenner).
As these dark clouds of confusion and
chaos are stirred by the opponents of God, we who are Christians must keep our
vision clear by the light of God's truth.According to His word, we know that the original creation of man by God
still governs our existence in this world.Man is still the "image and glory of God" (1Cor. 11:7), and God still
makes us as male and female.The answer
for those who create confusion about these identity issues is found in the
question of our Lord Jesus in Matthew 19:4: "Have you not read that He who
created them from the beginning made them male and female...?"Obviously, they have not read, or else if
they have, they do not believe Jesus and wish to deny the plain teachings of
Scripture.Not only that, but they also close
their eyes to the clear truth of nature.This is not a matter of faith, but rather it is an issue of plain sight.Let us not be influenced by those who deny
the undeniable, but instead we must shine the light of truth on their deceit
and expose "the unfruitful deeds of darkness" (Eph. 5:11-13).
While some of the methods have changed in
modern times, the process of spiritual descent is the same one that existed for
centuries.Scripture describes this
process in Roman 1:18-32 as a progression from the denial of God to the utter
corruption of man.In this process, man
exchanges "the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of
corruptible man" (v. 23).In other
words, man ceases to identify himself as a creation in the image of God and
instead turns to himself.As man makes
this choice, God gives him over to impurity for the dishonoring of his body (v.
24), to the "degrading passions" of homosexuality (vv. 26-27), and to a
depraved mind for the doing of improper things (vv. 28-32). The Scripture even addresses so-called
"transgender" persons in 1Corinthians 6:9-11.These are described as "effeminate" in verse 9, which is a term that
specifically designates men who play the role of a woman in a homosexual
relationship.The only difference
between the effeminate of New Testament times and men who identify themselves
as "transgender" today is that technology now exists to alter their bodies into
conformity with their perverted desires.One fact that has not changed is that such persons shall not inherit the
kingdom of God unless they are washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of
the Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, let us recognize that in these
matters and all others "there is nothing new under the sun" (Eccl. 1:9).We are still made in the image of God and
exist from conception as either male or female according to Genesis 1:27.We still have God-given roles according to
our genders, and these cannot be changed by the will of man.The opponents of God will continue to deny
Him in exchange for their own preferences for corruption.They will also oppose those of us who remain
in identification with God and compliance with His will for males and
females.Regardless of man's will or
efforts, the principle of Galatians 6:3 still governs: "For if anyone thinks he
is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself."While there are many badly self-deceived
persons in the world, we must not be drawn into their deceit, but rather we
must continue to abide in God's unchangeable truth.
