Sunday, May 26, 2024 PM

The Shame of Gender Confusion and Child Abuse

Often this is done by parents and by doctors in our current culture who are leading children that should be there to say, this is man and woman, God made us this way. And a child is confused and looking for answers and rather than give the true answer, a parent confuses the child more and say, you can be whatever you want to be and that brings further shame and doesn't leave them out.

And then the doctor says, yeah, we'll do a surgery that'll help them feel more comfortable in their body or doctors who will shame the parents and say, if you don't do this surgery, they might have suicidal thoughts and it's just the opposite, right?

That's a form of child abuse. And so there's this shame that they're bearing, that they're not meant to bear. And then lastly, sin in general. Sin in general is something that happened because of the fall.

The Unrighteous Will Not Inherit the Kingdom of God

Let me read this. Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.

Now, that's a long list. I'm guilty of many of those things. The unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. So this is not a pet sin that we want to call out. We were all guilty and sin brings shame.

Now, at this point, what I just read, there's a few words. It says, do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. There is deception in this, not just with homosexuality, but in sin, in sin, accepting sin as normative or as fine, there's nothing wrong with it.

Do not be deceived. And I'd say to professing Christians who say that this is okay, you're being deceived. It lists it right here. Now, it's one of many. Are there anything in our lives that we are being deceived by?

Is there anything in our life that we're saying, this is acceptable, this is okay, I don't have to address it? No, it needs to be addressed and it's only addressed through Jesus Christ. The rest of that goes like this.

And such were some of you, but you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God. There is hope, there is hope for any sin, including homosexuality, there is hope.

Such were some of you. What is that were some of you referring to? That list of sins that he just lists of which homosexuality is a part of. Such were some of you, but you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the spirit of our God.

Jesus Christ is the one who can bear all of those things, right? It's not pride for God to be glorified and enthroned in rainbow and fire and brilliant colors. That's who he is, he can bear that. He can bear the shame.

I think many of you will know this verse. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

He can bear that, he can bear the weight of sin. He bore our sins in his body on the cross that we might die to sins and live for righteousness. By his wounds, we have been healed. There is healing in Christ Jesus because of what he's done, because he is able to bear it.

We don't have to bear our sins. We don't have to bear our shame, right? That's pride, that's prideful. I'm going to do it, I'm gonna say what's right and wrong. Even though I feel shameful about it, I'm going to continue in this way.

Do not continue in that way. Turn to Jesus, trust in Jesus. He is a good savior. I'll leave us with this. This last passage is from 1 Peter 1 .16 -19. For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

For he received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to him from the excellent glory. This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. And we heard this voice which came from heaven and we were with him on the holy mountain.

And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Jesus Christ is there in the darkness and he's the light.

When darkness and light meet, it's in Jesus. There in the covenant promise he made with Noah that he would never destroy the entire world in the flood. You have clouds of darkness and in the clouds of darkness, he sets his rainbow, his son.

And there at the cross, darkness descended upon the land and Jesus took up our sins and day shines forth. The dawn came and we're all here because of that. And judgment does not fall on the entire world because of the sins of man.

We've been forgiven. We are evidence of that. And so we should use that as we go forth to say you can be forgiven too, just as I've been forgiven. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for your son. Lord, as we think about the blessing that you've given us in your son and what he's done, may we see him rightly reigning now, not just on the thrones of our heart, but in this world with our family members and our friends and our coworkers.

Lord, we know that it is you who draws people. And so we trust in you. You are a good shepherd. You are merciful. Father, you sent your son not to condemn the world, but the world stands condemned already.

Lord, we pray that they would turn to you, give up their burden of pride, give up the burden that they carry, the shame that they carry. Let all of us repent from our sins. Lord, we know that your yoke is easy and your burden is light.

So let us turn to you. We thank you, God, for your word. We pray that you would stir us to be in it constantly so that we would share this bread with others. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.