Culture Wars - Gender Identity
“Who am I?”
(Genesis 1-2)
Sermon Recap
Your true identity isn’t shaped by culture or
personal choice. Instead, your true identity is created and redeemed by God as
His unique image-bearer.
Our culture is increasingly confused about
identity. Culture forces us to ask questions like “Who am I? and What defines
me?”
Genesis 1:26-28 reminds us that identity is
not something we invent or discover within ourselves, but it’s something we
receive from God.
From the beginning, God intentionally created
humanity in His image as male and female. This design is not accidental,
outdated, or oppressive. His design is good, purposeful, and reflective of
God’s wisdom and goodness. Though sin has distorted how we see ourselves and
others, the gospel offers hope. In Christ, the image of God is being restored,
and our truest identity is redeemed, secured, and made whole in Him.
1. We are Created by God - Genesis 1:26
Human identity begins with God, not with
self. We are not accidents or autonomous beings. We are also not the final
authority. We are intentionally created by a personal Creator. Being made in
God’s image gives every human inherent dignity, worth, and purpose.
Identity is received, not achieved.
2. We are Defined by God - Genesis 1:27
God created humanity as male and female. This
distinction is not a cultural invention but a divine design. Both men and women
reflect God’s image equally in value and dignity, while expressing that image
in distinct and complementary ways. In a culture that treats gender as fluid
and self-defined, Scripture calls us to trust God’s wisdom over our feelings or
societal pressure.
Gender is not something we construct. Gender
is a gift God defines.
3. We are Redeemed by God
Sin has distorted our understanding of
identity, but it has not erased God’s image. Through Jesus, what was broken can
be restored. Redemption means that through Jesus we can experience forgiveness,
healing, renewal, and transformation. Our ultimate identity is not found in
gender, success, sexuality, or self. Our true and ultimately identity is being
made new in Christ.
Genesis 1:26-28
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our
image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea
and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth
and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So, God created man
in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he
created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and
multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of
the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that
moves on the earth.”
The
Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001
by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Genesis
1:26-28
Discussion Questions
- Why do you think identity has become such a central and confusing issue in our culture?
- What does it mean to believe that identity is something we receive rather than construct or achieve?
- How does Genesis 1 challenge the idea that gender is self-defined or fluid?
- How can Christians hold biblical conviction while still leading with compassion and grace in this conversation?
- Where are you most tempted to find identity apart from who God says you are?
Closing Thoughts
Speak Truth with Grace
As followers of Jesus, we are called to be
both clear and compassionate. This means holding firmly to God’s design while
loving people who are confused, hurting, or struggling with identity.
Live from Your Identity in Christ
When our identity is anchored in God’s Word
and redeemed by Christ, we are freed from the pressure to define ourselves or
seek validation from culture.
END
Teacher Notes:
Today we’re going to talk about an identity
struggle that’s not a cartoon character… We’re going to talk about real people.
What fears drive Christians in this identity
conversation?
What fears might drive those who disagree
with us?
Engaging Gender Identity
without losing the person
Genesis 1:26–27, 31
This is not a political issue; it’s a discipleship
issue.
The goal is not to win an argument.
The goal is to speak truth in such a way that
we don’t lose someone
Christ loves.
Genesis 1:26-27, 31
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image,
after Our likeness…
So, God created man in His Own image, in the
image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
And God saw everything that He had made, and
behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the
sixth day.
Why do you think identity has become such a
central and confusing issue in our culture?
Identity feels central today because we’ve
moved from receiving identity from God and community to constructing it
ourselves. That gives people freedom — but it also gives them enormous
pressure.
If your grandchild came to you with confusion
about their identity, what tone would you want them to experience from you?
The issue here for many isn’t Who created us, it’s
how He created us.
What does Genesis emphasize by stating “male
and female”?
Two Distinct Genders
Genesis presents male and female as:
- Created and defined categories
- Embodied realities and declared “very good”
- Both reflect God’s image equally in value and dignity.
Biblical Truth
Genesis presents sexual differentiation as
design, not as an expandable spectrum. The distinction is not restrictive. It
is purposeful.
How do we answer the belief among the
gay/lesbian community that God made them this way?
Start With Dignity
Before addressing the claim, affirm what is
true:
- Every person is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27).
- No one is a mistake.
- No one’s existence is accidental.
- God’s love is not reserved for the heterosexual.
Explain Creation and the Fall
Genesis 1–2 describes God’s original design.
Genesis 3 introduces distortion into every
part of human experience.
The Bible teaches: We are created good. We
are also fallen, in that every part of our mind, body, and desires are affected
by sin’s corruption.
This means not every desire we experience
reflects God’s original design. This applies to anger, pride, greed, envy, and
lust (heterosexual or homosexual).
We can say, I believe God created you intentionally and
loves you deeply. But I also believe all of us experience desires that don’t
fully reflect His original design.
Identity in Christ
The deeper issue is identity.
Scripture does not define us by our strongest desire.
It defines us by our relationship to
Christ.
The culture says: “Your sexuality is your
core identity.”
The gospel says: “Your core identity is Who
you belong to.”
This applies equally to the straight man
tempted by pornography and the gay man experiencing same-sex attraction.
We tend to think “we” have to “transform
their thinking” instead of God?
The Harder Question
What do we say to someone who identifies as
gay, transgender, or bisexual, comes to Christ sincerely, seeks to follow Him,
but continues living within that identity?
Would we say they are not saved?
How can we avoid acting like spiritual
inspectors of someone’s
salvation?
We do not Determine Someone’s Salvation
We should tell them that salvation rests on
faith in Christ alone.
At the same time:
- Following Jesus always involves surrender in every area of life for every believer.
- The call is not to fix yourself and then come.
- The call is come to Christ and walk with Him as He reshapes you. Sanctification and transformation are lifelong journeys - for us all.
No one is outside God’s design or beyond His
love. We all experience desires shaped by a fallen world. The question isn’t
simply, ‘How was I made?’ but ‘How does Jesus call me to live now that I belong
to Him?’
And that question applies to all of us.
If someone identifies as LGBTQ+ and sincerely
follows Christ, how should we respond relationally?
- We treat them the same way we treat every other believer — with love, patience, accountability, and encouragement.
- We walk with them toward Jesus. None of us arrived finished.
We are all being shaped by grace, and Jesus said, “My grace is sufficient for you”
“The Family Table”
Now imagine the same conversation but with
listening, calmness, and genuine care. The disagreement is still there, but the
relationship is still there too.
This is what the church must decide:
Will we be a courtroom… or a family table?
Genesis 1–2 gives us conviction.
The character of Christ shapes how we carry it.
Make the Church a Safe Place for Honest
Struggle
A church should be the safest place to say,
“I’m tempted, confused, struggling with something, but I’m trying to obey
Jesus.”
If people fear rejection, they will hide or
leave.
Hidden struggles don’t disappear — they only
grow.
Just as I am, was Billy Graham’s Signature
Hymn. For him, it all came down to the “invitation,” at the end of his crusades
after he had spoken God’s Word, he invited people to leave their seats and
“make a decision for Christ.”
It was a moment of surrender and it still is.
You don’t clean yourself up first. You don’t
earn your salvation. You come just as you are and Christ will do the saving and
the transformation.
Conclusion
We are not called to win culture wars.
We are called to make disciples.
Truth without love pushes people away.
Love without truth leaves people unchanged.
The gospel calls us to both.
