Biblical View on Transgender Identity: A Primer for Parents and Strugglers

Your story and experiences are important and worthy of being heard and respected as you bravely share them, but they’re also no doubt challenging. Don’t go this alone or under the sickening burden of shame that the enemy of our souls tries to heap on us (John 10:10). Find a safe place to slowly and patiently unwind your story. Know the truth that you are loved deeply and unconditionally even as you face your feelings and questions. Christ is a redeemer and healer of our bodies, minds, and spirits.

As you obediently embark on this path with Jesus, you will need a support team with resources at each of these three levels:

• Body: a trustworthy, Christian physician who can address any physical problems such as brain chemistry, depression, anxiety, or endocrine problems.
• Mind: a professional Christian counselor who can help you find healing from any trauma you may have experienced.
• Spirit: a pastor and several spiritual friendships who can mentor and walk with you into deeper friendship with God.

Remember that your body was purposefully designed.

The human body is the home of our behaviors, appearance, mannerisms, and habits. Consider some things the Bible says about the human body:

We reflect the image of our Creator. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27 ESV) Being made in His image separates us and the purpose of human sexuality from all other creatures, elevating our status and imprinting us with His likeness.

Our bodies are not our own. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) Imagine receiving an original, priceless painting. Would you even consider getting your paints out and changing it? Not only did God create you, but He also sacrificed His Son to purchase you back from sin and death. To alter healthy sexual organs denies that you are God’s masterpiece and embraces the lie that your value and identity come from your appearance, preferences, and sexuality.

Sexual sin is spiritually devastating. (1 Corinthians 6:18) Changing appearance, genitalia, or hormones doesn’t actually change a person’s sex. It also doesn’t change God’s standards or His original design for your life. The biological sex God granted is coded into our DNA and every cell of our God-ordained bodies. It’s a harmful denial of Him and this reality to reject our body in this fundamental way.

Your body was created to be a temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 6:19) Just as God gave Solomon specific instructions for every detail of the temple’s construction, He also purposefully designed every detail of our bodies. Some of His purposes we understand now and others we will learn about in heaven — but all of them are for our good and His glory. He is our God. We are not our own gods to do with ourselves as we wish.

Saturate your mind with the truth.

Your mind is the home of your thoughts, emotions, memories, and imagination. Modern brain science confirms what the Bible has always said: Renewing your mind transforms you over time and as you grow in Christ.  To begin to willingly open yourself to God’s intent for your sexuality, embrace these key tenets:

A high view of Scripture.

God’s Word provides principles and precepts for instruction in everything believers might encounter. It explains His purposes in creation, including the human body and its two distinct sexes. Creationism is foundational to the other truths of Scripture. When you believe a loving Father created you with care and purpose, your identity has a more secure foundation.

A high view of God’s purposeful design for creation.

The creation account in the Bible (Genesis 1:1-27) is a story of God separating many things:

• He separated the darkness from light.
• He separated the waters above from the waters below.
• He separated the dry land from the waters below.
• He separated the day from the night.
• He separated humankind into two biological sexes.

A high view of the sacred and intentional design for sex.

God separated male from female, among other reasons, so that they could be purposefully joined. Once He formed Eve, He immediately declared that her and Adam’s union was to occur within the bond of marriage. Marriage was important from the beginning because God uses it as a metaphor throughout the Bible.

In the Old Testament God repeatedly describes Israel’s unfaithfulness to Him in terms of sexual infidelity. The two gender roles are essential to His message, with the husband’s role symbolizing God’s initiative of choosing a people for Himself and the wife’s role depicting Israel’s response.

The New Testament further unpacks the metaphor. Our marriage to Christ creates within us new spiritual life, just as the marital act of joining sexually creates new physical life. Transgender-identified sexuality distorts the picture of Christ’s initiating, self-sacrificing love for us and our gratefully receiving Him into ourselves as the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Nurture an intimate friendship with God.

The human spirit is the seat of your desires, inclinations, affections, and identity. It is the deep well from which recovery springs. Many people get stuck at the level of the mind, asking “Why?” This prevents them from going deeper, repenting, and uniting with Christ. You don’t have to fully understand your inner conflict in order to surrender it to God. If you are a Christian who struggles with gender identity, we encourage you to start with these important steps:

• Lean into God’s presence right where you are instead of trying to fix your behaviors first. Even if you can’t find rest in your sexuality yet, will you dare to find rest in God’s love?
• Find a church home with a high view of Scripture. Live in community with other Christians who will come to know and care for you.
• Ask the Holy Spirit to convince you that God intentionally made you male or female and that your body at birth is His blessing and work.
• Consider what it means that God’s ways and thoughts are higher than yours. Ask Him to help you cooperate with His good purposes for your life. Cultivate the truth in your heart that God has restored others with sexual identity issues, and He not only can, but He desires to do the same for you.
• Take heart in the fact that your pain does not have to go to waste. By definition, Christians are called to live a life of sacrifice. But Christ’s completed work on the cross makes your pain redemptive too. He invites you to join in the fellowship of His sufferings.
• When thinking of God, make sure it’s about relationship instead of just behaviors. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” The relationship is what creates the obedience, not the other way around.

Be patient with yourself and others.

Finally, please bear with well-meaning people who don’t yet understand your journey. When you reflect on discussions with family members and friends about your gender identity or about your child’s journey, keep in mind that you have been dealing with this issue for a while, but they may have only learned of it a few minutes earlier. Someone is likely to have hurt or disappointed you, but it doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t love you or have your best interests at heart. That’s why articles and brief education like this exist — to help bridge that gap. This is not an easy topic for anyone, but learning to love fully and help practically is so worth the effort!

What Jesus did in leaving God’s side and coming to earth wasn’t “easy” for Him either, but deep saving grace and love compelled Him! We hope the small steps and ideas of this article will contribute to compassionately and biblically encouraging anyone who needs support and direction on this topic.

For more testimonials, resources, and related articles visit www.FocusontheFamily.com/TransgenderResouces

^[1] “How the definition of a ‘sexual orientation’ is shifting under our feet … and why that’s a problem.” Glenn Stanton, PRC Meeting, October 9, 2020.