A Bible lesson by Ivor Jefferies
Psychiatrists define gender dysphoria or -confusion as the feeling of disconnect between your biological sex assigned at birth (male or female), and your own inner sense of what gender you really are.1 For instance, someone born male may feel that he is actually a woman trapped in a man’s body. His sex is male, but his gender is female.2 In reality he can take his pick between 72 different genders.
1. God created human beings, and invented the idea of sex and gender. What does He say about this?
Read Gen. 1:27, 5:2, Deut. 22:5.
2. Many unbelievers cannot tell us what a woman is, or if men can get pregnant. How does the Bible and science define male and female?
Read Gen. 2:21-24, 1:27-28.3
3. Apart from biological differences, how are men and women different?
Read Gen. 2:7, 22, 23-24, 18, 15-17, 3:1-6, 9-11, 17-19.
4. What do these differences look like in marriage and parenting?
Read 1 Pet. 3:1-7, Eph. 6:4, Gen. 18:19, Prov. 31:10-31, 1 Tim. 5:14.
According to some preachers Eph. 5:21 requires mutual submission in marriage. Actually, Paul is making a general statement which he applies to marriage, parenting, and the work place. If we take his words to mean that husbands and wives should submit to each other, then the same goes for parents and children, for masters and slaves.
5. Is male headship perhaps a result of the Fall? Why or why not?
Compare the language in Gen. 3:16b with 4:7c, and read 1 Cor. 11:3, 8-9.
6. How did Christ’s death restore the role of men and women in marriage?
Read Eph. 5:22-33.
7. What does God say about the role of men and women in the church?
Read Acts 9:36, Rom. 16:1, 1 Cor. 14:34-35, 1 Tim. 2:8-15, Tit. 2:3-4.4
8. In what ways are men and women equal before God?
Read Gen. 1:27-28, 2:18, 21-23, 1 Cor. 11:11-12, Gal. 3:26-28, 1 Pet. 3:7.
1 https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/gender-dysphoria/what-is-gender-dysphoria
2 https://www.psychologytoday.com/za/blog/the-philosopher-is-in/202503/how-many-genders-are-there-really
3 According to the National Library of Medicine 0.018% of people are born with male and female chromosomes, hormones, or body parts. This does not disprove the Bible. In fact, it proves the reality of genetic disorders as a result of the Fall.
4 Statistics show that churches who appoint female pastors, appoint homosexual pastors within one generation later. The reason for this is that they started blurring the lines between male and female when they ordained women into leadership. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_On1WAQfTq8&t=875s at 21:45 minutes.