It is hard to comprehend how mixed up society is today. A major point of controversy is being battled over one’s gender. It has even gotten to the point that some “experts” claim that one’s sex is biological but one’s gender is a choice. One’s gender is determined by one’s feelings. In fact, some parents have even chosen not to identify the gender of a newborn baby because they want the child to be able to choose whatever gender he/she wants to be. Again, the issue at the bottom of all this craziness is determined by what it means to be a human being.
We have been looking at various distinctives that a person possesses because that person has been created in the image of God. In the previous two weeks we have seen that every person has been created to reflect and to relate. This week’s post is all about the fact that God created man in His image to reproduce.
When we go back to the beginning of human history, we find that God created man distinctively different than any other living being. God’s Word is very specific when it comes to how God created humans.
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 (NKJV)
God didn’t leave it up to choice when it comes to gender. He specifically created man as either male or female. How He created me determines my gender not how I feel. There is a specific reason why God created man as male and female. That reason is that God wanted man to reproduce. After God created Adam, He stated that everything was very good. However, He then stated that it is not good that man should be alone. So God created woman from Adam’s side.
The first command that God gave to man after He created them is found in Genesis 1:28.
God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth.
It wasn’t that God simply wanted to have a lot of children being born and filling the earth. He wanted man to replicate God’s image and fill the earth with image bearers of Him. Even after the Fall and the Flood, God tells us what one of our created purposes is.
And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. Genesis 9:1 (NKJV)
God created man as males and females. He did this so that they could reproduce and fill the earth with His image bearers. Listen to how Dr. Tony Evans puts it.
Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth with children – why? Because man was created in the image of God. So the goal of having children is the replication of God’s image, not just the replication of your image…so the purpose of children was the replication of God and the advancement of God’s kingdom in history.
Another important passage of Scripture that makes it clear that man was created in God’s image so that man would reproduce is found in the book of Malachi. God is telling His people why He isn’t paying attention to all of their religious sacrifices. The reason He states is that their homes were a mess. Infidelity and divorce were rampant. Then God says something very interesting.
But did He not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Malachi 2:15 (NKJV)
God not only created man to reproduce but He also wants man to reproduce a certain kind of offspring. God wants the earth filled with godly seed.
One of the main reasons there is so much gender confusion is that the education children receive no longer explains to them that they are created in the image of God. Instead they have been taught that they are merely products of time and chance. Because of this, they are taught that they can choose to be whatever gender they feel like they are — and the choices are not limited to merely two. In fact, I was recently reading that a person had the option to choose over 70 different gender preferences by which the person can identify oneself on Facebook.
We must get back to teaching our children that God created them as either being male or female. He did this so that they can reflect, relate and reproduce. We must also make sure that the schooling they receive will teach these same truths from the earliest of ages to adulthood.
Great!!!
Glen, what a word! Grace and peace upon you, my brother. Thank you for all these reflections.
About REPRODUCTION. If a couple argues they can reproduce by artificial conception, how can we answer the couple?
I have an idea, but I would like to “ear” you! Stay blessed!
As Francis Schaeffer pointed out in his book “How Shall we Then Live”, the values of a society are like the structural material for a bridge that upholds people as they move from the present to the future. Well constructed foundations allow positive advancement and a degree of safety. The biblical foundations of our society have done just that – given us blessings unknown to cultures with other core values. Removal and replacement of those foundations, especially in the areas of sexuality and the family, will take away a key component of support for our society and can only lead to self destruction. We need a revival in biblical thinking and as well as a change in the affections of our hearts.
Thanks for these words, Glen. It is so true that public education has abandoned the truth of the bible. Personally, an additional concern for me is when I attempt to engage in a dialogue of some sort regarding gender, those that are not Christian won’t listen to the truth as told from scripture because they don’t view the Bible as truth. Therefore, they end up making “truth” relative to their own understanding or feelings. This scripture usually comes to mind: “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” 2 Cor. 4:4.