Bible Stories

‘God created mankind in his own image: male and female he created them,’ says the writer of Genesis. In Greek legend Zeus first created a sexless being. Later, in a fit of divine anger, he split this into man and woman. The division of humankind into two sexes is thus understood to be an imperfect state, a weakening of mankind’s power, because the two sexes pull in different directions. But Genesis speaks out against this idea and says that humankind, male and female, was God’s original and creative intention. It was no after-thought that we were created sexual beings, but an essential part of being human, of carrying the image of God.

Christians largely agree that God’s nature lies beyond sexuality. God bears neither male nor female sexuality. However, in its attempts to describe God, the Bible frequently uses both masculine images (father, shepherd, king) and feminine images (mother, hen). And so it affirms that both sexes have the task of reflecting the image of God. This insight has sometimes eluded the Christian church and a male-oriented understanding of God has often taken over. But the Bible is quite clear that God’s image is not unique to one sex, rather male and female together bear that responsibility.

Men and women are intended to live in God’s world in such a way that we show the stamp of his nature. How does our sexuality help us to do this?

To live as man or woman

Our sexuality expresses that we are people, not animals. Animals share with us the biological differences between male and female; human sexuality penetrates every corner of our being. It affects our instincts, our psyche, our identity. The human sciences tell us that we acquire our sexuality in a complex way, partly through our physical make-up and partly through the roles we expect of our children.

Christian teaching agrees with this. In one sense, our sexuality is indelible, given to us. On the other hand, our sexuality is a journey, discovering what it means for us to be God’s pattern of a man or woman. It is God’s calling to each human being to explore what he has made us. Each person’s response to that call will depend on his or her personality and background, society and culture.

It may be, as some Christians believe, that our physical differences are a visible sign of more ultimate psychical and spiritual differences, but the Bible does not explicitly teach that. What is very clear in biblical teaching is that sexuality is good. It is given by God for us to enjoy. The Old Testament Song of Songs is a beautiful expression of erotic love without guilt or shame, and it echoes the creation picture of Adam and Eve who ‘were naked, and were not ashamed’.

Some Christians emphasize that the primary purpose of our sexuality is to bear children. But the biblical creation stories do not teach this. The reason they give for sexuality is that it calls us into relationship with one another.

To live in relationship

Eve was not taken from the feet of Adam to be his slave, nor from his head to be his lord, but from his side to be hispartner.

God himself is personal: he gives himself to us in relationship. And that is how he wants us to live. He did not want Adam to be alone.

Without dependency on one another we can never be whole people. Relationship must be founded on self-giving love, complementariness, mutual respect, acceptance and growth. This is seen in a special way in the marriage bond, but is by no means limited to that. However, the Christian believes that the appropriate expression of our sexual nature is always within relationship.

The basis of that relationship is partnership. God commissioned Adam and Eve as partners. Jesus treated male and female alike as his partners in mission. It was men and women together who first spread the news of the gospel.

Where one sex is oppressed by the other it reflects a marred humanity. Conflict between the sexes is the fruit of humankind’s separation from God. But in Jesus Christ the male/female relationship has the potential to be restored to God’s original ideal. ‘There is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus,’ wrote Paul, in words which have been called the ‘magna carta of humanity’.

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