Dealing with your Sexual Identity
Who are you? What has God made you? Man or Woman?
Who are you? What has God made you? Man or Woman?
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There has never been a time when so many young people and adults have struggled with their sexual identity. Some are asking, "Who am I sexually? Am I a man? Am I a woman? Who am I on the inside, a man or a woman? We believe the Bible has the answer for those who struggle with their sexual identity. We believe you can learn how to deal with your struggles by turning to God and giving your life to Him.To begin, let's understand the history of this struggle, at least from the historical background of United States. If we were to go back in time 200 years or even 100 years, we'd find very few people in society struggling with their sexual identity. They would realize that if they were born a male, then their identiy was male and they should pursue the life of a male and all that that involves. If someone was born a woman the same would be true. No one confused the issues back then. They just accepted their sexual identity as God had created them. The Society of 100 and 200 years ago was certainly more sensitive to Biblical teachings than our present society and that sensitivity had an impact on "how" individuals dealt with sexual identity questions. People 100 and 200 years ago where not saying, "although I was born female, perhaps I'm really a male on the inside" or "although I was born a male, perhaps I'm really a female on the inside. The kind of questioning just mentioned had to be introduced to society and it was, especially in the 1970's and 1980's. During this time some began to introduce young minds to a thought process that went against the grain of what was factual and normal. Some were beginning to say, "it's normal for some men to have sexual feelings for other men" Or "for women to have sexual feelings toward other women." Once this kind of mind set and questioning was introduced to society it was not long before people were "coming out of the closet" as they used to say. The question we need to ask is, "Is this thinking normal?" and "Is this kind of thinking natural?" For instance, it's normal for mothers to love and nurture their babies. It's been that way for thousands of years. But then some in this society introduced a way that mothers could abort their healthy babies before they were born. This practice of aborting children has become normal today, but 100 years ago it would have been considered murder and many Christians today still believe it's murder. Even 50 to 100 years ago, mothers would have given their lives to save their babies, but now, many mothers take their babies lives so they will not interfere with the mother's selfish life style and people in society think this is "NORMAL". What was unthinkable and unnatural has become normal. The problem is, abortion is still not acceptable and normal according to God's Word. The masses of society can be moved to do Unnatural things by the philosophies it receives. Perhaps the reign of Adolph Hilter during the 2nd World proves to illustrate that point. Millions of Germans were convinced that they must rid the world of Millions of Jews and that this was the best choice for the human race. The majority of the German population was swept up in this horrorible event and the rest is history. My point is, people believed things that were not true, not natural and not normal and acted accordingly. Today, children and teens in grade school, middle school and high school are being taught that a percentage of all american males and females "will be" homosexual. They are then taught to have tolerance for this homosexual life style. Certainly the Bible would advocate that Christians are patient with the sinner, but we are never told to tolerate the sin. There's a big difference between the two. When a society begins to tolerate what is not normal and what is not natural, the not normal will become normal and the unnatural will become natural, at least from the societies view point. Before we even get into the Bible let's understand that God has given us many warnings even in the natural world when mankind steps outside God given parametters. Take for instance sex outside of marriage. This thinking became acceptable during the late 1960's and 1970's. The result of our nation embracing this philosophy is the destruction of the Family. Now people are trying to re-invent what the family actually is, but the fact remains that the True family (according to God's Word) in the United states is in big trouble and declining. Our society is reaping the negative influence of the break down of the family. Crime is up, suicide is up, murder and mass murder is up. People this is not normal, but when society abandons the natural and the normal family, that society will "reap what is sows". Another warning that God has given us in the natural world is the AIDS epidemic. Sexually transmitted diseases are NOT normal from God's perspective. If every man had his own wife and every wife had her own husband as God tells us to in 1Cor. 7:1-3, then we would hardly ever hear of sexually transmitted diseases, in fact, many of these diseases would be eradicated from the face of the earth if every person stayed with just their marriage partner. But our society is taught that these diseases can be dealt with by practicing safe sex and that sex outside of marriage is normal. Thanks for enduring a long, but necessary introduction. We need to know where we've come from and why before we can really understand where our society is today and how we got here.
Jesus was quite clear concerning marriage and sexual union in Mark 10: 6,
Two biblical truths are seen here. First, God clearly makes us either male or female (understanding since the fall that the corrupted genetic code of humans has brought about abnormalities in rare cases). Your maleness or femaleness is determined by you sexual identity at birth and not by your thought process or by philosophies or teachings that persuade you otherwise. Second, Jesus is quite clear as to who can cleave to each other or have sexual relationships with one another. On this issue Jesus gives two parametters: 1. Only heterosexual relationships are permitted. 2. Only heterosexual relationships between married men and women are permitted. Geneis chapter one also gives us another very important biblical truth that we must understand:
Notice that the God given plan for sexual union involves reproduction. Again, we understand that some women are not able to bear children and some men are sterile. However, the normal situation in marriage can produce offspring. Once again, this plan of God can only take place through heterosexual relationships.
The Word of God speaks clearly to the fact that homosexuality is an abomination, not natural, shameful, unrighteous and against sound doctrine. Homosexuality is not normal from the Creator's perspective and it never will be, because God created them Male and Female for a purpose - heterosexual relationships within marriage. Now let's look at some other issues that some folks struggle with when they struggle with their sexual identity. Look at Deuteronomy 22:5, "A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman's garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God." Some men want to dress or do dress like women and some women want to dress or do dress like men. They do this because of perverted thinking or confused thinking. Please understand that God does not want males entertaining thoughts of being like or dressing like a female and God also does not want females entertaining thoughts of being like or dressing like males. God has Created Men and Women distinct from one another and He Commands that we maintain that distinction.
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Now let's get to the question of who you are sexually? I'm assuming that because you've come to this page, you either want to learn about sexual identity problems or you have a sexual identity problem yourself. Let me say right from the beginning that I understand that some people are born with actual chromosome issues that cause them to be born both male and female (to some degree) or born with genetic problems that do not allow them to function in the same way as a male or female with out those genetic problems. These also are people for whom Jesus Christ died and we need to love them and share our Christian Faith with them. As with any genetic abnormality, these folks did not choose to be born this way. It is not the intent of this article to deal with genetic or chromosomal disorders. Rather, the intent of this article is to focus on those that are CLEARLY born male or female and yet they struggle with their sexual identity.
But from the beginning of the creation, God made them male and female. 7, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8, and the two shall become one flesh; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9, Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."
Now let's look at other passages that explain God's prohibition against certain behaviors that some are trying to call normal today.