Nurturing Faith in a Gender-Confused World

In today’s rapidly changing world, gender confusion is a topic that many families and churches are navigating. In our pursuit of understanding and providing guidance, we must remember the importance of addressing these issues with care, empathy, and biblical wisdom.

A concerned reader recently shared a situation within their local church: A young couple allows their son to wear dresses and make many of his own choices. This parenting style has caused concern among the congregation and even led to the family being asked to leave a previous church. How can we approach these parents with scripture and offer support?

First, it’s crucial to recognize that we cannot shy away from addressing these issues. Our culture is increasingly challenging God’s created order of manhood and womanhood, and as such, we must be equipped to provide counsel and guidance to those around us.

In every culture and age, there have been cultural symbols in hairstyles, clothing, and adornment that signal the differences between masculinity and femininity. We must help each other, particularly parents, to raise the next generation with a wise and faithful understanding of these symbols.

When counseling parents who may not fully grasp the importance of raising children to embrace their God-given sex, we can remind them of six biblical realities:

  1. God created man, male, and female (Genesis 1:26-28). Children should be taught from an early age to celebrate and embrace their God-given gender.
  2. God created male and female for a beautiful and fruitful complementarity in marriage (Genesis 2:24). Children should be raised with the understanding that their gender differences are designed for this beautiful outcome.
  3. God takes these sexual differences seriously, assigning leadership roles based on gender (1 Timothy 2:12, Ephesians 5:22-24, Colossians 3:18-19, 1 Peter 3:7). Children should understand that their sexuality matters.
  4. Parents should encourage their children to avoid embracing effeminate or masculine ways of dressing or acting that are not in line with their God-given gender. The Bible warns against effeminacy (1 Corinthians 6:9), confusing hairstyles (1 Corinthians 11:14), and cross-dressing (Deuteronomy 22:5).
  5. Parenting should take into account these realities as part of raising children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4).
  6. We must help parents understand the urgency of these matters in today’s world. If they don’t guide their children to embrace their God-given gender, they may inadvertently contribute to a cultural rebellion against God’s design.

Approaching parents with questions and seeking understanding before offering counsel is essential. We must approach these conversations with prayer and humility, aware of our own imperfections. It takes wisdom and courage to navigate these delicate situations, but God has promised grace for every good work, and helping families in this area is certainly one of them.