Created by God: A Biblical Response to Gender and Identity Confusion

Show: Equipping You in Grace with Dave Jenkins
Series: Created by God – Foundations for a Biblical Worldview
Episode: Gender, Identity, and the Image of God
Speaker: Dave Jenkins

Episode Summary

The conversation around gender and identity is one of the most pressing discipleship issues facing the church today. Our culture insists that identity is self-created, fluid, and rooted in feelings. Scripture, however, gives us something far better—a clear, beautiful, and life-giving design from the Creator Himself.

In this episode of Equipping You in Grace, Dave Jenkins walks through what the Bible teaches about gender,
the image of God, and the human body. He explains how gender is created by God, how sin distorts identity, why the body matters, and how modern gender ideology directly contradicts God’s design. Throughout, Dave calls Christians to hold together both conviction and compassion as we minister to those who are confused, hurting, or struggling.

This episode is meant to help parents, pastors, ministry leaders, and all Christians think biblically about gender and
identity, and to respond with truth, grace, and confidence in the power of the gospel.

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Key Scriptures

• Genesis 1:26–27; 2:7
• Genesis 3
• Genesis 1:31
• Psalm 139:13–14
• Matthew 19:4–5
• Isaiah 45:9
• Jeremiah 17:9
• Romans 1; Romans 8:22
• 1 Corinthians 6:19–20
• 2 Corinthians 5:17
• Philippians 3:21

Episode Outline

1. Gender Is Created by God: The Foundation of Identity

• Identity begins with the Creator, not with feelings, culture, or psychology.
• Genesis 1:27 – God created humanity in His image, male and female.
• Gender is not a social construct but a divine gift and part of God’s wise design.
• Masculinity and femininity are good, intentional, and together reflect the image of God.

2. How Sin Distorts Identity

• The fall in Genesis 3 fractured our relationship with God, ourselves, and one another.
• Sin distorts desires, perceptions, and the harmony between body and soul.
• The heart is deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9); feelings cannot be the foundation of identity.
• Satan attacks identity because identity belongs to God.
• Confusion is not the unforgivable sin—God meets people in their pain with truth and grace.

3. Why the Body Matters for Identity

• We are a unity of body and soul, not disembodied selves trapped in flesh (Genesis 2:7).
• Biological sex is a revelation of God’s design, not an accident to overcome.
• The Incarnation and the resurrection affirm the goodness and lasting significance of the body.
• Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19–20); we are stewards, not owners.

4. How Gender Ideology Contradicts God’s Design

• Gender is not a spectrum; Scripture presents humanity as male and female.
• The inner self does not have final authority over identity—God does.
• Scripture never separates biological sex and gender; personhood is embodied.
• Children need discipleship, not deconstruction; God knits them together in the womb (Psalm 139).
• Transitioning cannot resolve spiritual brokenness; only Christ can give true identity and peace.
• Autonomy (“my body, my choice”) collides with the reality that we belong to God.
• Gender ideology ultimately denies the doctrine of creation and the authority of God.

5. Responding with Truth and Compassion

• See the person, not just the controversy—image-bearers with real pain and real questions.
• Speak the truth with grace; combine conviction and kindness (John 1:14; Ephesians 4:15).
• Listen patiently and ask good questions; listening is not compromise, it’s love.
• Affirm dignity without affirming deception.
• Invite strugglers into the local church, not away from it.
• Pray for and with those wrestling with identity and confusion.

6. Living Faithfully in a Culture Confused About Gender

• Anchor your heart in God’s Word before engaging the culture.
• Love the people God brings into your life more than you love winning arguments.
• Model a joyful embrace of God’s design in your own life and relationships.
• Be a safe, truthful presence for those who are hurting.
• Trust the power of the gospel to renew minds, heal identity wounds, and transform lives.

Key Takeaway

Faithfulness today looks like conviction anchored in the Word of God, compassion shaped by Christ, and confidence in the gospel’s power to redeem.

The world is deeply confused about gender and identity, but Christians must not be. God does not make mistakes.
His design is good, His wisdom is perfect, and His Word gives clarity in a confused age. Our identity is not
self-made but God-given, and in Christ, broken sinners can find forgiveness, healing, and lasting hope.

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