Okay, Genesis chapter 1 verse 26.
Then God said,
Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.
So God created man in his own image.
In the image of God, he created him.
Male and female, he created them.
And then chapter 2 verse 15.
The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
And the Lord God commanded the man,
You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
For when you eat of it, you will surely die.
The Lord God said,
It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a helper suitable for him.
Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air.
He brought them to the man to see what he would name them.
And whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.
So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air, and all the beasts of the field.
But for Adam, no suitable helper was found.
So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep.
And while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh.
Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
The man said,
This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.
She should be called woman.
For she was taken out of man.
For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.
He said to the woman,
Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?
The woman said to the serpent,
We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,
but God did say you must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden.
You must not touch it, or you will die.
You will not surely die, the serpent said to the woman,
for God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be opened,
and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye,
and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.
She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked,
so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
Thanks very much, Kim.
So we're on our fourth talk on our series,
God's Good Design for Life.
The first talk, all these talks, by the way, are on the church website.
You can look them up there,
and other resources relating to the same theme are up there as well.
The first talk that we looked at was just setting a foundation.
We looked at Genesis as well, Genesis chapter 1,
and looked at God's design and order in creation.
Then we looked at God's design for marriage.
Last week we looked at God's design for family.
And this week we're looking at God's design for sexuality,
and in particular the issue of transgender.
And we're looking at these issues, these subjects or topics,
in the light of the discussions that will be taking place this year
with the referendum to come in 2015 on marriage,
the redefinition of marriage and the effects that may have on family and children.
So we're just trying to get a big idea of God's design for life
in terms of all of these things.
Again, in preparation for this talk,
I was challenged by it.
It's something that I don't necessarily know a huge amount about,
so please don't stone me during the talk
if I say something completely out of hand,
but do talk to me afterwards,
or if you have any further questions,
please do that afterwards.
So let's pray and ask for God's help.
Father, we thank you that you are a creator God,
and not only are you a creator God,
but you are a God who has spoken to us your creation.
You have sought to communicate to us
and to reveal something of who you are.
To tell us about your plans for life
and to tell us about our lives
and the world in which we live.
We thank you that your words,
that your spoken words have been recorded for us
in the Bible,
and we thank you that we can trust it,
and yet we ask for the power of your Holy Spirit
to speak to us through it
so that what we read in these verses
would challenge us and shape us
to live according to your good design
and your good order for life.
Please help us, Father.
We want to be sensitive and careful,
and yet we want to know your truth.
So we pray, Father,
that the word spoken will be spoken with grace
and with compassion.
And we ask for your help in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Well, what if your daughter came to you and said,
I don't want to be a girl anymore.
I want to be a boy.
Or what if your teenage son came to you and said,
I don't want to be called James.
I want to be called Mandy.
Maybe you've had that discussion with somebody else.
Well, this was a recent issue discussed on Drive Time.
That's the RTE radio program around tea time.
Three young people were interviewed.
These three young people were born with a female body
and now identify themselves as male.
All three now have boys' names
and all three have begun to transition,
which simply means they dress like boys
and are beginning to take hormone treatment
so that they look like boys.
Here is how Tyler, who was born female,
described it.
For me, it was at a very young age.
I was about five at the time.
I tried to tell my parents,
but they said it was just a phase.
I told them I was in the wrong body,
that I'm a boy
and I don't have the right parts.
Well, this is what is now called gender dysphoria
or GDI, gender disorder identity.
It's the term used to describe someone
who's born as a male
but now feels like a female
or is born as a female
and wants to be treated as a male.
And presently, those who have gender dysphoria
do not have their preferred gender recognised by the state,
which means that their official documents
such as birth certs, passports,
can't be altered to reflect their preferred gender status.
But change has been promised.
When the Gender Recognition Bill comes into law,
it will allow transgender people who are over 18,
they're trying to reduce that down to 16
so that they can have their preferred gender
legally recognised by the state.
So, for example, somebody who is born,
a boy is called James,
but in later years wants to be called Mandy,
can have that then changed on their birth cert
or on their passport.
And if all this goes into law
and if the referendum on the same-sex marriage is passed,
then what that will mean in terms for children,
it means that they can be raised
not just by two men or two women,
but by two men,
one of whom was perhaps born as a woman.
So it's a very complex issue,
to say the least.
But yet these are very real issues
and there's no point in trying to stick our head in the sand
and pretend that they aren't there.
It's what young people are trying to cope with
within our schools.
It's what parents are trying to understand
as their children ask the questions.
So we need to be aware,
but we also need to know
what the Bible has to say on this issue
so that we can be people
who can communicate God's truth,
but to do so with grace and compassion,
with sensitivity and understanding.
So with all that in mind,
let me just go through a few definitions first.
So as we go through the talk,
you'll understand what we're talking about.
So the first one there,
transgender,
is simply a person whose gender expression
or identity
is different from the sex they were born with.
transvestite
or transvestite
is a person,
male or female,
who wears clothing
not usually associated
with their birth sex.
Transsexual
is a person
who feels trapped
in the wrong body
or will describe themselves
as being trapped in the wrong body
and who changes their gender identity
physically
through hormone treatment
or through an operation.
And then there's transitioning.
Transitioning is the process undertaken
to change their gender identity
in three different ways.
Legally,
as they change their name
on their passport or birth cert.
Physically,
as they undergo hormone treatment
and surgery.
And socially,
as they come out
to their friends and family.
So these are the issues.
These are some of the understandings
of what we're looking at this morning.
And with all this in mind,
we want to hear
what God has to say
about sexuality
and in particular
those with gender dysphoria.
We're going to look at three things.
First,
created by God.
Look at chapter 1,
verse 1.
Chapter 1,
verse 1 of Genesis.
So we're going to be looking
at Genesis 1 to 3
over these first few points.
Genesis 1,
verse 1.
It reads,
In the beginning,
God.
So before there was anything else,
before there were any planets,
or before there was any people,
we were told there was God.
So in the beginning,
God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was formless
and empty.
Darkness was over the surface
of the deep.
The picture here
is one of chaos
and disorder
at the very beginning.
These words,
formless,
empty,
and darkness
give the sense of chaos
and disorder.
But then God
spoke into that
and he began to create
and out of the disorder
he brought about order
and out of the chaos
he brought about design.
And we can read through chapter 1
and see how that all happened.
Now the pinnacle
of that good order
and that good design
was the creation
of a man and a woman.
So in chapter 1,
verse 26,
we read,
Then God said,
Let us make man
in our image,
in our likeness.
Verse 27,
So God created man
in his own image,
in the image of God
he created him.
Male and female
he created them.
So while every person
is created unique
and every person here
is different,
we are created,
God tells us,
as either a male
or a female.
We are not created
gender neutral.
We're not created
half man
or half woman
so that in the course of life
we have to somehow
choose
which one
we would like to be.
No, God in his design
and in his order
has created us
male and female.
And when God made us,
look at verse 31,
God saw all that
he had made
and it was very good.
He wasn't looking
at his creation
and thinking,
oh, I've made a mistake
or I'm not quite sure
how this one
is going to work out.
He looked at his creation
and he looked at man
and woman
and he said,
this is very good.
Now maybe you struggle
with your sexuality
and I think we all struggle
with our sexuality.
perhaps you identify
with this gender dysphoria
or maybe you know somebody
who struggles with it.
But here's the wonderful truth
that whatever we may think
about ourselves,
whatever the world
may tell us about ourselves,
God says,
our creator says this about us,
you are very good.
The way in which you've been made
is very good.
Keep your finger there
in Genesis
and jump to Psalm 139.
Psalm 139,
it's almost smack bang
in the middle of your Bible.
Psalm 139
and verse 13.
Here the psalmist is reflecting
that he is not just a nobody
but he is somebody
who has been created
wonderfully by God.
Psalm 139 verse 13.
Listen to these wonderful words.
For you created
my inmost being.
You knit me together
in my mother's womb.
I praise you
because I am fearfully
and wonderfully made.
Your works are wonderful.
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made
in the secret place.
When I was woven together
in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw
my unformed body.
All the days
ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them
came to be.
They're some of the most
beautiful verses
in the Bible
because they are reminding us
and telling us
that God's creation of us
is wonderful.
We are not mistakes.
We are not here by chance.
We are made male or female
and it's all part of God's
amazing good design.
And as part of God's
good design,
men and women
are different.
Socially,
we're different.
We act in different ways.
And men are created
physically and sexually
different.
Men are created
with a penis.
They have the ability
to produce sperm.
Women are created
with a vagina
and have the ability
to produce an egg.
So physically,
we're different.
Sexually,
we're different.
And part of that
amazing order
and design of God
is that the male
and female
come together.
So in verse 28
of Genesis chapter 1,
sorry,
go back to Genesis chapter 1.
In verse 28,
having made
man and woman,
God says to them,
verse 28,
he blessed them
and said to them,
be fruitful
and increase in number.
So the context
for this sexual union
or this relationship
is man and woman
coming together,
but the context
for that is marriage.
So chapter 2,
verse 24.
Well, let's read
from verse 23.
The man said,
this is one of these
great impassioned
romantic verses.
Maybe you could change
it a little bit
to make it a little bit
more contemporary.
So here we are.
The man said,
this is now bone
of my bones
and flesh of my flesh.
She shall be called woman
for she was taken
out of man.
For this reason,
a man will leave
his father and mother
and be united
to his wife
and they will become
one flesh.
They will become
one.
And the man
and his wife
were both naked
and they felt
no shame.
Do you see that last verse,
verse 25?
They were both naked
and felt
no shame.
There is no hiding
of their identity.
There is no embarrassment
in their nakedness.
There is no unease.
There is no struggle.
There is no striving
for a need to change.
It is completely open
and transparent.
This is good
and beautiful.
God bringing man
and woman together
was a good design,
a good purpose.
No wonder
Eden means
delight.
It's good.
So,
we are created
by God.
Second,
we are also created
in God's image.
So,
chapter 1,
verse 27.
God created man
in his own image.
In the image of God,
he created him
male and female.
So,
it's telling us there
that something
of God's likeness,
something of God's image
is reflected in us.
We reflect something
of who God is.
but not physically.
It's not as people
look at us,
they kind of physically,
this is,
I physically look like God.
No,
it's not that.
But relationally,
we reflect something
of God relationally.
And the clue for this
comes in verse 26.
Look at the beginning
of verse 26.
Then God said,
let us
make man
in our image,
in our likeness.
So,
do you see that?
God is describing himself
as an us.
Let us
make man
in our image.
And as we read
through the Bible,
it becomes clear
that this God
who was presented
at the beginning
is three persons,
but yet just one God.
It's what theologians
have come to call
the Trinity.
God the Father,
God the Son,
God the Holy Spirit.
That's the us,
that's the our,
that created man
in his image.
So,
before anything else
or anyone else
was created,
there was God.
But get this,
God was not alone.
God was in
a relationship
with himself.
He existed
in a complete
and perfect community
of Father,
Son,
and Spirit.
Each expressing love
one to another.
Each communicating
one to another.
Each serving,
each giving.
So,
God didn't create people
because God was
somehow lonely
and he needed
somebody else.
No,
God was in
a complete
relationship
with himself.
So,
when God
created us,
he created us
to be a part
of that community.
He created us
in his image
and in his likeness
so that we could
relate to him,
so that we could
know him,
enjoy him,
and love him.
He created us
so that we
could be complete
in him.
So,
let's work
this out.
Let's see
how this is
true.
So,
when God
made the man
and the woman,
what was the
first thing
he did?
After he had
made man
and woman,
what does he
do?
Well,
look at
chapter 1,
verse 28.
God blessed
them
and said
to them.
God begins
to talk
to them.
He begins
to relate
to them
because God
is a relational
God and
we're made
in his image
and in his
likeness and
so we can
relate to him.
And God
doesn't do this
with any other
part of his
creation.
Animals aren't
talking to God.
Plants aren't
talking to God.
They do not
have that capacity
to relate to God.
We are unique
in the created
order to have
a relationship
with God,
to talk to him.
And so God
has designed
us as a male
and a female
so that we
might be in
a relationship
with him.
To join
the Father
and the Son
and the Spirit
in that
complete community.
That's what
we were made
for.
Being in
relationship
with God
is what
fulfills us
and satisfies
us.
Our relationship
with God
makes us
complete.
And that
means then
that we don't
need to
change our
gender
or our
sexuality
to find
contentment
and fulfilment.
That means
we don't need
to change
who we were
born to be
to fit in
or to be
accepted by
other people.
Those who
struggle with
gender dysphoria
will often
describe themselves
in this way.
They say that
I'm trapped
inside the
wrong body.
Which usually
leads to
perhaps living
as a
transvestite
or taking
action to
become a
transsexual.
In other
words,
the only way
to relate
to themselves
and to be
able to
relate to
other people
is to
change
their gender
identity.
But God
has created
us to join
the ultimate
relationship.
He has
created us
to be in
this complete
perfect
relationship.
So we
don't need
to be
tampering
or changing
God's
design and
order.
God has
designed each
one of us
as we are,
male and
female.
And it's in
relationship with
our creator,
God primarily,
not with each
other,
but primarily
in our
relationship with
God,
that we find
our joy
and happiness.
So whether
we're single
or whether
we're married
or whatever
our struggle
in life
may be,
it is in
relationship
with that
perfect
community,
Father,
Son and
Spirit,
that we
find our
joy and
happiness.
That is
where we're
complete.
So we're
created by
God,
we're created
in the image
of God,
and then
third,
we are
created new
in Christ.
Now the
fact that
we're having
to talk
about the
subject of
transgender
means that
God's created
order and
design has
somehow fallen
apart.
The cogs in
the wheel have
become twisted,
they're grinding
against each
other rather
than going
in the right
way.
And our
experience of
life,
perhaps even
for ourselves
and within
the communities
in which we
live,
our experience
today is so
different to
the original
creation that
we have
just read.
It's not
like that
anymore.
It's
different.
So why is
it different?
Well,
Genesis chapter
three tells
us what
happened.
We read
from those
verses in
chapter three
where the
first man
and the
first woman
rejected God's
design for
life.
They rebelled
against his
good order
and they
began to
replace the
ultimate
relationship
with God
for which
they had
and replace
that relationship
with God
with other
things and
other people.
They began
to look to
other places
for their
joy and
their hope,
their satisfaction
and look at
the consequences
of when the
first man and
first woman
rejected and
rebelled.
Look at
verse seven
of chapter
three.
it tells
us there
that the
eyes of
both of
them were
opened and
they realised
that they
were naked
and with
the realisation
they sewed
fig leaves
together and
made coverings
for themselves.
It's the
complete opposite.
If you compare
chapter three
verse seven
with chapter
two verse
twenty-five,
it's the
complete opposite.
In verse
twenty-five,
they were
naked and
they felt
no shame.
In chapter
three verse
seven,
upon
rebelling,
they were
naked and
now they're
hiding and
covering.
They're no
longer open
and transparent
with one
another.
Instead of
accepting one
another,
instead of
the pleasure
of one
another,
they are now
filled with
guilt and
shame,
covering,
hiding,
trying to
cover up.
Their freedom
has now
been replaced
with fear
of one
another.
You see,
because we
have turned
away from
God,
our whole
life,
the whole
world,
the whole
universe,
has become
flawed,
including
our sexuality.
It has
become
disordered.
So,
you and I,
we don't
function in
a way that
fits in with
God's order
and God's
design.
that's why
we have
gender
dysphoria,
that's why
we have
same-sex
attraction,
that's why
we have
dysfunctional
marriages,
that's why
heterosexual
people struggle
with all
kinds of
issues.
So,
whoever we
are,
and however
we would
describe our
sexuality,
whether it's
transsexual,
homosexual,
or heterosexual,
we are all
of us,
we're no
different,
we are all
sexually flawed
and broken
people,
we don't
live and
behave and
act as
we should
do.
That's why
there is
the disorder,
but thankfully
God has made
it possible
for this
to be made
new.
Look at
2 Corinthians
in the New
Testament,
2 Corinthians
chapter 5.
2 Corinthians
chapter 5.
2 Corinthians
chapter 5.
You see,
God didn't
want to
leave us
as we
were,
living life
the way
that we
do,
breaking
our own
lives and
breaking
the lives
of one
another.
God
intervened,
the whole
story,
the whole
plan,
the whole
picture of
the Bible
is about
God coming
to us
through Jesus
Christ to
renew us
and to
restore us,
to bring
us back
to that
new
creation.
So in
2 Corinthians
chapter 5
verse 15
we read
this,
it's talking
about Jesus
and he,
that's Jesus
died for
all,
people like
you and
me,
people who
are broken
sexually,
he died
for all,
that those
who live
should no
longer live
for themselves,
for their
own desires,
their own
wants,
but for
him to
live for
Jesus who
died for
them and
was raised
again for
them.
Verse 17,
therefore,
if anyone
is in
Christ,
they are
a new
creation,
the old
has gone
and the
new
has come.
Jesus
Christ,
when he
walked on
the earth,
was the
perfect
human being.
He was
the one
who lived
all of
life as
it should
be.
He was
perfect and
pure in
his sexuality.
There was
no flaw
in his
sexuality.
And so
he came,
he was the
only one
who could
come to
deal with
our sexually
flawed and
broken
lives.
And part,
or the
way in
which he
ultimately
did that,
was to
take our
sin,
to take
our
failures,
our mess
ups,
our
brokenness
on
himself,
to
forgive us
of the
past,
to deal
with the
past,
and to
give us
a brand
new
beginning,
a new
way to
live life.
Verse 17
of chapter
5,
therefore,
if anyone
is in
Christ,
they are
a new
creation,
the old
has gone,
the new
has come.
You see,
no matter
what our
sexual
orientation
may be,
all of
us,
all of
us in
this room
are called
to come
to Christ
because
Jesus is
the one
who's come
to redeem
our lives.
He's come
to bring
about a
new
creation
in our
lives,
to bring
order out
of the
disorder,
to bring
design out
of the
chaos,
to deal
with our
old life
and to
give us
a new
life.
I want
to finish
by sharing
a testimony.
This is
the story
of Mandy.
She explains
her old
life and
her new
creation.
Listen
carefully to
this story.
She describes
it like
this.
Growing
up as a
boy,
feeling I
was in
the wrong
body,
fascinated
with
women's
clothes,
the relief
of discovering
others who
felt the
same way,
increasing
cross-dressing
and joining
the transvestite
community,
a growing
sense that
perfect
fulfilment
could never
be achieved
without the
operation,
the counselling
which encouraged
this course
of action,
eventually
undergoing the
operation,
and the
triumphant
sense of
having arrived
with a
new identity
and a
new gender.
She goes
on having
been introduced
to Christ
and meeting
a Christian
community.
Mandy explains
how she was
now beginning
to regret
what she
had done.
She had
believed a
lie about
her identity.
She now
realised that
what she
had done
had been
an act
of rebellion
against
her creator.
She had
now confessed
her sin
to God
and was
beginning
to renounce
in her
heart
all that
it involved.
Her
pastor
counselled
her and
spoke to
her.
He said
to her,
whatever
your past,
whatever
you are
now,
male or
female,
what matters
is who
you are
in Christ.
As far
as I am
concerned,
God has
intervened in
your life
and he
has placed
you in
Christ.
He now
gives you
your identity.
This is
who you
are.
This is
therefore
how I
regard you.
If God
has accepted
you,
so do
I.
Her
pastor
continues
the story.
He says
we began
to notice
changes.
The
makeup
became
less
obvious.
Feminine
dresses
were making
way for
trousers
and loose
jumpers.
Hesitantly,
I began
to pray
that Mandy
might consider
a change
back to
the male
lifestyle.
It was
such a
huge step.
Did I
dare to
suggest to
Mandy that
I was
thinking this
way?
Well,
true to
form,
at our
next
meeting,
Mandy
herself
raised
the subject.
Just
18 months
after her
baptism,
Mandy
became
James,
reverting
to the
name
his
parents
given
him
at
birth.
In
the
following
month,
she
made
preparations
at the
hospital,
and 15
months
after that,
James
met a
young lady
and got
married.
Therefore,
if anyone
is in
Christ,
they are a
new creation.
The old
has gone,
the new
has come.
that story
may finish
well,
but the
wonderful
news is
that even
though that
process,
that
transformation
may take
time,
listen to
these words,
for those
who come
to Christ,
for those
who are
the Lord's
glory,
are being
transformed
into
his
likeness.
We are
being
transformed
into
Christ's
likeness
every
day.
as God
does
his
work.
All
those
who are
in
Christ
are
a
new
creation.
Let's
pray.
Father,
we stand
back amazed
at your
created
order,
and your
design of
this
universe,
but
especially
we are
amazed at
the way
in which
you have
created
us as
human
beings,
so unique,
so different,
and you
look down
on each
one and
say you
are very
good,
fearfully
and
wonderfully
made.
God
and
we
have
God
and
we
have
followed
your
order
or
design,
and
therefore
we are
people who
need
Christ.
We
thank you
that through
Jesus
we find
that new
creation,
that new
beginning,
the past
being dealt
with,
the future
being made
bright.
we
thank you
that those
who trust
in you
are now
treated
as God's
own child,
and even
with all
our struggles,
and even
with all
of our
issues,
you are
continually
gracious
to us,
day by
day,
transforming
us to
be more
like
Christ.
We
thank you
too that
one day
we will
be in
the new
creation,
where we
will no
longer
struggle
with any
gender
issues,
we will
no longer
struggle
with our
sexuality,
we will
no longer
struggle
with anything,
for we
will be
as you
intend
us to
be.
We
look forward
to that,
and we
thank you
that you
have made
it all
possible
through
Jesus.
We
praise you
in Jesus'
name.
Amen.
words
that I
think
pick up
on that
verse
has gone,
the new
has come.
I once
was lost
in darkness
night,
yet thought
I was
lost.
I was
lost.
I was
lost.
I was
lost.
I was
lost.
I was
lost.
I was
lost.
I was
lost.