There is a spirit of deception sweeping through churches and culture, pulling millions away from God’s design and biblical truth. While society celebrates self-reinvention, Scripture warns that confusion over identity is not liberation but bondage. It is one more symptom of a world exchanging truth for lies.
A Methodist pastor in New York recently announced plans to transition into a woman during a Nov. 23 service, as reported by Fox News. Rev. Phillip Phaneuf of North Chili United Methodist Church publicly declared, “I am transitioning. I am affirming to all of you that I am transgender. The best way to put this is that I am not becoming a woman, I am giving up pretending to be a man.”
This claim directly contradicts what the Bible teaches about creation and identity. God declares in Genesis that He made humanity male and female. Identity is bestowed by the Creator, not self-constructed through feelings or medical intervention. When Phaneuf claims to be “giving up pretending to be a man,” it assumes that God erred in assigning biological sex. Scripture denies that possibility. Psalm 139 says people are “fearfully and wonderfully made,” a truth ignored in the pastor’s announcement.
Phaneuf also claimed to be asexual, saying, “I am in the category of what they call asexual. I have been that way since we have all been together, in that I am not living my life in a way that involves looking for romance.”
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The pastor told Fox News Digital that the congregation has been “overwhelmingly affirming” and that the bishop and church leadership fully support the transition. This exposes how deeply mainline Protestantism has surrendered biblical authority. Instead of calling people to repentance, leaders now bless rebellion. Truth is determined by affirmation, not revelation.
Phaneuf acknowledged that his parents do not support this decision, saying from the pulpit, “They asked me to tell you all that they do not support me.” Ironically, the rebuke from family aligns with biblical teaching far more than applause from denominational leadership.
Fox News noted that the United Methodist Church recently reversed policies condemning LGBTQ identities and now claims sexuality is a “sacred gift” for all, regardless of orientation or gender identity. This is not compassion but compromise. Love does not confirm confusion. It confronts deception with truth.
The Bible teaches that Satan masquerades as an angel of light, offering counterfeits that feel affirming but destroy. A pastor standing in a pulpit, declaring, “I am not becoming a woman, I am giving up pretending to be a man,” is a public example of this deception. It is the fruit of a church that has abandoned Scripture and replaced holiness with applause.
God does not make mistakes. Men are not women in disguise. Identity is not fluid. Followers of Jesus must speak truth with clarity. The tragedy is not merely one pastor’s confusion, but the silence of pulpits that should be calling people back to the Word of God instead of applauding self-reinvention.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a background in journalism from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine.
