Gender Identity

Genesis 1:26-27 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (NKJV) 

 

What do Americans think about Jesus Christ, the Bible, truth, morality and ethics? Ligonier Ministries has partnered with LifeWay Research to survey the beliefs of Americans on a number of theological and ethical issues. Like past surveys, the 2020 State of Theology survey reveals some encouraging results, but it also reveals modern-day confusion and a lack of theological knowledge among evangelicals. 

 

The twenty-ninth survey question inquires of people’s belief that gender identity is a choice. The survey commentary states that to understand the meaning of this statement, we have to have some grasp of the claims of the transgender movement. Over the last several decades, this movement has become very prominent and very vocal. Transgenderism separates the concepts of sex and gender. According to transgender ideology, sex has to do with biological and physical aspects of a human being (including DNA and sexual anatomy). Gender, on the other hand, has to do with a person’s subjective feelings of being masculine or feminine. The transgender person, generally speaking, is one who identifies himself or herself with a gender that does not correspond to his or her biological sex. Transgenderism, thus, rejects what it refers to as the “gender binary,” the idea that there are only two genders. Instead, gender exists as a spectrum with an almost limitless number of possibilities.

 

Transgender ideology stands in direct contrast with Holy Scripture, which teaches that human beings are created in the image of God and are created male and female (Genesis 1:27). There are no other options. Scripture also teaches that our behavior is to correspond with our biological sex. The word “gender” comes from "geno", Greek - to beget, or to be born; English - kind. Gender is defined as 1. Properly, kind; sort. 2. A sex, male or female. Hence, 3. In grammar, a difference in words to express distinction of sex; usually a difference of termination in nouns, adjectives and participles, to express the distinction of male and female. 

 

We cannot choose our biological sex any more than we can choose to be a bird rather than a human. If our subjective experience does not correspond to the real world, for whatever reason, our feelings have to be conformed to reality because reality will never change to match our feelings. If I claim to be a bird trapped in a human body, I can put on a bird mask, say I’m a bird, and even pass laws making everyone else say I’m a bird, but if I leap off the top of a high-rise in an attempt to fly, I am going to die regardless of my feelings. 

 

If the cause of the dissonance between my feelings and the real world is a disorder in the brain like those that cause delusions, hallucinations, and psychoses, then the disorder should be treated appropriately. If the cause of the dissonance is willful rebellion against God’s created order and law, then what is called for is repentance. Those psychiatrists, psychologists, doctors, legislators, and others who are pushing everyone to affirm that the dissonance is resolved only by denying the real world may be doing so out of fear of the liberal mob. But, whatever the reason may be, they are exacerbating the problem exactly as they would be if they told the man who thinks he is a bird that he really can fly. 

 

The Family Research Council reports that men and women have -- at a minimum -- 6,500 genetic differences between us. And this impacts every cell of our bodies -- our organ systems, how diseases manifest, how we diagnose, and even treat [them] in some cases. Biological gender, as Dr. Michelle Cretella of the American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds) explains, is crucial to accurately treating and diagnosing patients. This is what the science says. But, science only benefits us if we follow it. Nevertheless, this new ideology claims people can change their sex if they feel like they belong to the other gender, relying on the unscientific assumption that differences between the sexes is purely superficial.

 

Because scientists cannot afford to ignore critical differences, ACPeds pointed out that the National Institutes of Health do recognize "sex as a binary biological variable in research and medical practice." Men and women sometimes manifest different symptoms for the same disease. They require different diagnoses, and even different treatments. For instance, certain drugs that treat heart disease pose greater risks to women. A doctor would be irresponsible to prescribe them to a biological female, even if that appeared as a male. For the medical community to focus on someone's "feelings" about their gender is harmful, even deadly. 

In God We Trust