“A woman must not put on men’s clothing, and a man must not wear women’s clothing. Anyone who does this is detestable in the sight of the Lord your God.”
Pastor Jack Hibbs, the founder of Calvary Chapel in Chino Hills, opens this sermon with that verse, Deuteronomy 22:5. Then he continues, “God’s not into fashion design. God is into protecting a person’s gender.”
After some amen’s from his congregation, he paraphrases a verse from Proverbs, “The Bible says to train up your child in the way that they should go.” He explains further, “It means that when a baby boy is born, you treat that baby like a baby boy. You have to guide them and steer them. You don’t leave them to themselves. The Bible says, ‘A child left to themselves brings reproach to their parents.'”
Then he gets specific. “When the little boy puts on mommy’s bra, you say, ‘Honey, you take that off, sweetie. That’s for mommy. That’s not for you. Put on my cowboy boots or put on my work gloves, pal.’ They need to be taught. They’re not gender confused. They think it’s a funny-looking piece of clothing. It’s doesn’t mean anything more than that.”
Hibbs takes a brief pause, then impersonates what someone who disagrees might say, “Well, we’re not going to announce its gender. We’re going to let it figure it out for itself.” Hibbs responds to his impersonation, “That’s child abuse.”
After reading through Galatians 5:19-21 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, he says, “Okay. Here’s where it gets practical. You might say, ‘But, Pastor Jack, weren’t they born that way?’ The answer is that they were not born that way. God says, ‘I made humans, male and female,’ but remember, Romans 1:25 says, ‘They decided to trade or to exchange or to switch the truth about God.’ So they say, ‘God made me this way.’ No, He did not do that.”
Hibbs references a previous sermon by saying, “Many kids, many people today are sexually confused because of two reasons, according to the scientists in psychiatry. Molestation as a child and/or images of extreme pornography cause a child to become sexually disconnected in their thinking. And they’re radically confused by that.”
He then offers a healing message for parents and loved ones of someone who is confused about his gender or sexuality, “It doesn’t mean they can’t be healed and blessed and restored. It means it’s going to take love, not more confusion.”
He adds, “We need men to be men and to show young people what it is to be a man. And we need women to be women to show young people what it is to be a woman. By doing so you’ll bless that child’s life, and you’ll honor God.”
Hibbs ends with a thought on the subject, “If you’re going to raise your kids, as a parent, you’re going to tell them the truth, and you’re going to tell them the truth in love. There are going to be times when you are to encourage them. Then there are times when you need to admonish them.” {eoa}
To hear his full teaching and more practical advice on how to treat homosexual friends with love, please watch this video.
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