What is a Human: God's View on Transgenderism

What is a human?

Transgender politics are at an all time high, and the topic brings up a wealth of controversy no matter which side you take. We know, as children of God, we don't simply take up the world's viewpoint. Whatever it happens to be today will be different tomorrow, anyway, which should be one sign that it's not the Truth as the Truth doesn't change with the opinions of the crowd. So, what is the Truth, and how should we look at transgenderism and the souls involved in it? What is God's view on transgenderism?

One thing is to remember they are souls, just like us, and God yearns to bring them to His loving fold.

Now, let us go onward to the scriptures, God's love letter to us. It will give us the framework to understand our role in this topic.

He created them male and female and blessed them. And he named them "Mankind" when they were created. - Genesis 5:2

God created us with two biological sexes. Of course there are those who are born as both or neither, upon external expression. However, the sex genes of X and Y determine whether you're a woman (all X) or male (at least one Y).

But, most people supporting transgenderism view sex (biology/genetics) as separate from gender (mindset/internal view of oneself). So, what does the Bible say about that?

It's certainly not a cut-and-dry topic, but when Hebrews thought of our essence of spirit, it was connected intrinsically with the physical body. When God "breathed" into mankind in Genesis 2:7 to bring us to life, it was a dual symbol of the literal breath of life and His Life and Holy Spirit being breathed into us.

Let's give an example of this. Jesus was crucified, proven dead, buried in a tomb. He rose from the grave and met up with his disciples upon the road.

While they were describing these events, Jesus Himself stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” But they were startled and frightened, thinking they had seen a spirit.

“Why are you troubled,” Jesus asked, “and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at My hands and My feet. It is I Myself. Touch Me and see—for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and feet.

While they were still in disbelief because of their joy and amazement, He asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” So they gave Him a piece of broiled fish, and He took it and ate it in front of them. - Luke 24:36-43

Remember that Jesus was not dead when His friends saw Him again, and perhaps that's what He is referring to: the idea of dead spirits, a belief that originated with pagans and Greek philosophers (that body is separate from soul). Every time ghosts are brought up in the Bible (see Deuteronomy 18:11 or 1 Samuel 28:3-19) they are associated with demons or those forbidden occult practitioners where demons could pretend to be loved ones. Most other places in ancient Hebrew tradition, they looked at death as "dust to dust," "a deep sleep," etc.

This is what made Jesus' resurrection that much more amazing. He was showing how, when God raises us from the dead, we are still us. We may be healed and whole, but we are still the physical self we identified with while alive before. We are not a soul planted into another body. We are our body, and God not only pieces us back together from the dust but endows us with the same personality, possibly even retaining our memories. Did you notice Jesus ate (to show His physicality) and remembered his friends and their times together? This was all done on purpose.

However, as we are mediators of Earth and Spiritual realms in the image of God, we are both physical and spiritual in a sense. We sit on the edge of both worlds without being fully either, much like Jesus.

Check out the Wisdom of Solomon, which is from the Apocrypha.

Short and sorrowful is our life, and there is no remedy when a man comes to his end, and no one has been known to return from Hades. Because we were born by mere chance, and hereafter we shall be as though we had never been; because the breath in our nostrils is smoke, and reason is a spark kindled by the beating of our hearts. When it is extinguished, the body will turn to ashes, and the spirit will dissolve like empty air. Our name will be forgotten in time, and no one will remember our works. (2:1-4)

But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. (3:14)

There's a lot yet to peruse in order to fully understand what the Hebrews believed concerning the soul. We can't fully know, until we die, what exists beyond this life or where our essence or breath of life takes us, other than the fact that we are always with God.

If the soul and body are fully intertwined, I would say that our biological sex is the only concrete part of our gender that exists beyond feelings, cultural norms, and expectations of society.

Some might say our brains are made differently, and some people of one sex has the brain of another sex (which is a highly controversial thing to assume each sex has a different brain). Scientists are currently studying this subject with nothing concrete that I've found in my research. There's no question that science backs up what the Bible says: biologically, there are only two sexes. So, since science is unsure about brain genders, let's go further.

Society has a lot of nonsensical gender role expectations, which we can be dismissed outright. What about Biblical ones? We've taken a close look at those in other posts, such as in the ones about feminism, marriage, and submission.

There were several times taking on the role of the other sex/gender (remember these are the same in ancient Hebrew eyes) were forbidden.

Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, - 1 Corinthians 11:14

This is because in the culture Paul was speaking to, men wore long hair to express homosexuality, as if they were taking the role of a woman, and this is forbidden, too.

You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination. - Leviticus 18:22

We can't even try to dress as the other gender as if we were taking on their role. What that gender wears, however, is determined by the culture in which you reside.

A woman shall not wear a man's garment, nor shall a man put on a woman's cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God. - Deuteronomy 22:5

There is a hierarchy of authority, and if you have a problem with this, again, read this post. Submission has become a horrible word that conjures up worldly, power-hungry men. This is not the type of hierarchy that God desires. Look at what He actually wants, not what the world assumes He wants. His ways are not Humanity's ways.

But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. - 1 Corinthian 11:3

If men can be women and women can be men, all the above is nonsense. Yet, that's exactly the way of the world. It's confusion masked as truth.

Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who turn darkness to light
and light to darkness,
who replace bitter with sweet
and sweet with bitter.
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes
and clever in their own sight. - Isaiah 5: 20-21

Let me back up now and clarify something. There are many people in the world who honestly believe they are truly another gender than their sex. It is my personal opinion that they have a mental illness: gender dysmorphia. Yes, if you look up the term, you'll find that people believe this condition to not be a mental illness. With any dysmorphia, there is a disconnect between the reality of your body and your perceptions. For example, body dysmorphia can cause anorexia if the person believes their body to be more overweight than they actually are. Yet, strangely, you'll find those same sources both wishing medical treatment for an anorexic person's delusions while wanting everyone to agree with and support the gender dysmorphic person's delusions. This is obvious confusion.

People who are transgender need love, compassion, and understanding.

Jesus healed countless people as He walked around spreading the Word. It'd be good to pay attention to just how He did that. He listened, spoke the Truth (always), and Loved.

So, what is a human, according to God? We are body and soul, intertwined, one reflecting the reality of the other. Our roles in life are different but complementary in a Biblical-type-of-hierarchy system. We, as Christians, should never call out an unbeliever on their actions and words, as they are simply acting as unbelievers do. However, if they ask, we are called to Truth, always the Truth and always in Love.

God bless!


https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevin-deyoung/what-does-the-bible-say-about-transgenderism/
https://erlc.com/resource-library/articles/5-things-every-christian-must-know-about-the-transgender-debate
https://evangelicalbible.com/the-transgender-delusion/
https://pages.uncc.edu/james-tabor/ancient-judaism/death-afterlife-future
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/whats-up-with-the-witch-of-endor/
http://www.beki.org/dvartorah/crossdressing/
https://drmsh.com/the-mind-body-problem-summarizing-the-tough-issues/

Marriage Part II: Let's Talk About...

In my first blog about marriage and how it reflects the Trinity, it didn't really capture the multi-layered relationship that exists between couples. Ideally, marriage isn't just a symbol, and it isn't a two-dimensional, stale institution devoid of emotion. If it is for you, your relationship doesn't exactly live up to its potential as created by God. Let's return to the idea that God created an equal companion to man. He'd been busy creating and then declaring his creations good repeatedly until this moment. Suddenly, after creating man he broke this pattern and stated it "wasn't good that man should be alone." It wasn't until He created a female counterpart that He said his creation of humanity was good.

Of course, us women are amazing.

However, it wasn't just because of our general awesomeness that He declared humanity good and complete. It was because, now, man had a friend, a helper, a lover, and a person whose strengths matched his weaknesses. If you focus on the "help-meet" part, you miss the point. Animals can be excellent helpers in many ways for riding long distances, carrying heavy things, and even delivering messages (carrier pigeons are pretty cool). Yet, despite their ability to snuggle, they would never carry the same mental and emotional support another person would. Enter: women. We're all about that mental and emotional support... generally speaking.

Passion: It isn't always sexual. It's part of the drive for connection between a couple. It can come out in many ways through various emotions. Marriage can be like a rollercoaster; love, passion, and trust are what forms the safety bars and belts to keep us inside the ride.

We can't speak on passion without mentioning the Song of Solomon, the book of the Bible most likely to make you blush. We won't go into all the breasts like towers or gazelle necks (I'm sure it sounds more poetic in the original language). Song of Solomon has been interpreted to signify everything from romance to politics to the relationship between God and Israel. If you read it as a layperson, however, you'll agree it seems like a simple love song, meant to be sung as a duet. When you were a teen, did you ever write about a crush in your diary or journal? Bet it sounded like this.

"Strengthen me with raisins, refresh me with apples, for I am faint with love." Song of Solomon 2:5

Gotta love the spirit of young love in this book, but it illustrates perfectly the passion and joy a married couple is meant to experience.

"Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste." Song of Solomon 2:3

After all, God created both pious love and romance, friendship and lovers. There's nothing scandalous in it.

"Let him kiss me with kisses of his mouth - for your love is more delightful than wine." Song of Solomon 1:2

That's probably because, in my opinion, wine tastes disgusting, but the point is that the two are drunk off their love for each other. The point is: marriage is about all of this. Of course, there's a point in life when we are all just a little older and a little less likely to scamper for each other's embrace.

"Listen! My beloved! Here he comes, leaping across the mountains, bounding over the hills." Song of Solomon 2:8

We shouldn't lose that joy for each other even in mature love. Our marriage may be less showy leaves and overhanging branches and more deep-reaching roots, like two trees that tangle one to the another until they are in essence one.

Yes, romance and lust are holy. I know this concept may push against all things you've been taught, at least by the world. In fact, in the past, religion, especially Christianity, became crossed with worldly confusion to the point passion and sex were considered a taboo topic, even within matrimony. It still is an uncomfortable subject for many. This is why I'm writing this today. They are but a reflection of the passion and joy that lies within the unity of the Trinity.

Here's a good place to discuss actual sexual immorality. I'm not going to describe what that encompasses for the sake of propriety (You can look that up easily in the Bible). However, I will state that immorality and sin are actions that cause harm, even if you can't see it immediately. Sexual immorality is mainly harmful to the soul.

There is confusion concerning a separation between body and soul. That, actually, is a Greek philosophy, not a God idea, despite the fact that some churches have adopted the concept. Either the body was typically seen as the evil that the soul was fighting against or the body's actions was seen as separate and, therefore, not affecting the soul. Both of those ideas are wrong.

As described by the Bible, there exists no duality in our being. We are a being of clay infused with God's breath and spirit. When Jesus was resurrected, they didn't find His body and then come across His soul in the street. His body was gone from the grave. Then, Jesus showed back up WITH His body when the disciples ran into Him later. This makes the idea of coming back to life even wilder. You see what you get, guys.

When you commit sexual immorality, you are committing it with your soul, your entire being. Likewise, when it says to treat your body as a temple for the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19), that's because treating your body well is also treating your soul well. Consider this: If you and your spouse "become one" (Mark 10:8) and you sin, aren't you also sinning against your spouse? Interesting.

Aside from immorality, passion and romance is holy and an act of unity between two souls in love. It is what God intended for us to experience in marriage.

I wrote a poem while back that I'll share with you today because it wraps this subject up well. Whether you take it to mean romantic passion or holy fervor is up to you. (Disclaimer: I write poetry for fun not perfection.)

**

I, your flame

I burn
I burn, a kindled fire
Out of control
Flames lick my arms
Travel up my legs
Escape from the top of my head
Like a torch, lighting up the dark night
This dark night
Our grim life
Yet I burn
and You, a wind, fuel my inner flame
You, a hurricane, sweep my inferno into the skies
The stars dim in the passion
I am utterly without shame now
You are my storm
I am your blaze
Caught up in the fury of your joy

**