Shownotes
Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy
Welcome to Day 806 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
I am Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
Accept Whom God Made You – Loving Yourself – Wisdom Wednesday
Thank you for joining us for our five days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. Today is Day 806 of our trek, and it is Wisdom Wednesday. We continue this Wednesday to explore our trek of interpreting life through a Biblical Worldview. As a Christ follower, it is important to view all situations and events in life through the lens of the Bible. That is a view of the world that is aligned with what the Bible teaches us.
We are exploring current issues that impact our world and society and comparing them through the lens of the Bible, instead of the lens of our society, culture, modern media, or social media. I do not desire to tell you what to think, but teach you how to think so that you may be able to filter current issues and events through your Biblical Worldview. I may explore opposing views and challenge you to think. You may not always agree with my view, and that is okay. I am open to any comments that you may have on the subjects that we explore.
We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. On today’s trek, we will return to our discussion from two weeks ago. The information we are exploring is from a web interview in The Christian Post with Nancy Pearcey, a former agnostic who teaches at Houston Baptist University.
Nancy recently published a book titled Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality. I will continue to share some of the insights from this interview as it closely aligns with my Biblical worldview on the core concept about the sanctity of life. If you would like an in-depth analysis of this topic, I recommend that you purchase Nancy Pearcey’s book I mentioned earlier.
So our topic today is…
Accept Whom God Made You – Loving Yourself
Today’s topic is a controversial one for some, even within the Christian community, as we discuss same-sex relationships and transgenderism. This is particularly close to my heart because I have close family members who have chosen a same-sex lifestyle, including marriage. They are Christ followers with sincere beliefs that God’s Word does allow for or permits this choice.
With years of in-depth study of God’s Word, I have come to two conclusions within my Biblical worldview about sexuality and marriage. First is that sex outside your own marriage, regardless of gender preference, is not in line with God’s precepts. Secondly, that marriage should only be between a man and a woman for life.
My relationship with these family members or with anyone who has made choices contrary to my Biblical Worldview does not impact my love for them. My love is unconditional, just as God’s love is for all of us. Yes, from a Biblical perspective, I do not agree with their choices, but it is their choice. And I will not condemn or judge their choices. They alone must answer to God for their choices, just as I must answer for all the choices that I make. I am sure there are choices that I make which, according to others, would not be in agreement with their worldview.
Before we explore a few thoughts that Nancy Pearcey shares in her interview and book Love Thy Body, I will share some of the basis for my Biblical worldview on this topic.
First, every reference to marriage in God’s Word is always between a man and a woman, there are no exceptions. Marriage was established in Genesis from the very beginning of creation.
“This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one,” Genesis 2:24. This phrase is also repeated in Matthew 19:5, Mark 10:7, and Ephesians [5:31].
Secondly, as Pearcey writes, which I agree with “After all, no one really denies that on the level of biology, physiology, and anatomy, males and females are counterparts to one another. That’s the way the human sexual and reproductive system is designed. So when someone adopts a same-sex identity or transgenderism, they are contradicting their own biological design. Implicitly they are saying, ‘Why should my body inform my psychological identity? Why should my biological sex as male or female have any say in my moral choices?’”
Because of my Biblical Worldview, I don’t agree with family members or others who have chosen a same-sex identity and lifestyle. Although, after many hours of in-depth discussion and study, I am convinced and understand that certain men and women are physically, psychologically, and emotionally drawn towards persons of their own sex. It is built into their genetic makeup.
That being understood, we are all prone to certain attractions and preferences which may or may not be in aligned with God’s Word. To act on that preference is still a choice, which is made by those individuals. We all have predilections towards certain types of individuals which we are attracted to, but it is not always Biblical or wise to act on those desires with our choices.
So the questions for us as Christ-followers is “Should those who make those lifestyle choices, which we may not agree with, be treated unfairly or with biases?” Certainly not. We all violate God’s precepts in certain areas of our lives. We need to be very careful when we become judgmental of others because their sins are different than our own. We would all do well to consider the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:1-5, “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.”
My third point of contention covers both same-sex attractions and especially transgenderism. God created each of us as either male or female, and we are designed to complement and mutually assist each other physically, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually. This is God’s design from the beginning of His creation of humans. Genesis 2:18 says, “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.'” God made each of us either male or female by design for His purpose. To make choices that are contrary to the way God created us, as I see it through my Biblical Worldview, is to say that God made a mistake. As the Prophet, Isaiah told the nation of Israel in Isaiah [29:16]…
How foolish can you be?
He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay!
Should the created thing say of the one who made it,
“He didn’t make me”?
Does a jar ever say,
“The potter who made me is stupid”?
To change the way God has designed you is to say that you are not pleased with God’s plan for you. This is discontentment because you desire to change who God made you to be.
To put this into a context of another scenario, let me use a personal example. I am 5’ 4”, which is quite short for a man, especially in today’s western societies. Would it be nice to be 6’ or 6’ 6” in height? I believe most men would think so. In our culture, tallness equates to being manlier. When I was going through puberty, I could have been injected with growth hormones, but that is not how God designed me. I am completely content with who I am because God made me as I am for His distinct and unique purpose. We should be content with how God designed our physical bodies and our gender, so we can fulfill our God-given potential. 1 Timothy 6:6-7, “Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it.”
Nancy Pearcy has this to say in her interview, “Ultimately our view of the body and sexuality rests on our view of nature. The secular worldview starts with a Darwinian assumption that nature is the product of blind, undirected forces. We tend to think of materialism as a philosophy that places a high value on the material world because it claims that matter is all that exists. Yet in reality, it places a low value on the material world as purely particles in motion with no higher purpose or meaning. In other words, if our bodies are products of blind, undirected forces, then they convey no moral message, give no clue to our identity, have no inherent purpose that we are obligated to respect.”
“By contrast, a Christian ethic respects nature as a good gift from God. That’s why it always takes into account the facts of biology, whether addressing abortion (the scientific facts about when life begins) or sexuality (the facts about sexual differentiation and reproduction).”
To craft an effective message for the secular world today, Christ-followers need to discover that the biblical view of the body is actually more appealing, more attractive, more affirming, than the secular ethics.
I realize that today’s podcast and journal only scratches the surface of a Biblical Worldview on some very controversial subjects. It is my prayer that you will study and learn more on your own. Above all else, let us put into practice Ephesians 4:2, “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.”
Tomorrow we will continue with our 3-minute wisdom nugget that will provide you with a bit of wisdom that, if followed will allow you to grow healthier, wealthier, and wiser each day. So encourage your friends and family to join us and then come along with us tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.
That will finish our trek for today. If you would like to listen to any of our past 805 treks or read the Wisdom Journal, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. You can also subscribe to iTunes or Google Play so that each day’s trek will be downloaded automatically.
Thank you for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most of all your friend as I serve you through the Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal.
As we take this trek together, let us always:
- Live Abundantly (Fully)
- Love Unconditionally
- Listen Intentionally
- Learn Continuously
- Lend to others Generously
- Lead with Integrity
- Leave a Living Legacy Each Day
I am Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Everyday! See you tomorrow!