{"id":32281,"date":"2022-09-10T16:03:22","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/4-ways-the-church-should-respond-to-gender-reveal-parties\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T16:03:22","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:03:22","slug":"4-ways-the-church-should-respond-to-gender-reveal-parties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/4-ways-the-church-should-respond-to-gender-reveal-parties\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Ways the Church Should Respond to Gender-Reveal Parties"},"content":{"rendered":"
Josh Kahen photo – Unsplash <\/p>\n

By Aaron Wilson<\/em><\/p>\n

Photo- and video-documented gender-reveal parties and announcements have become a commonplace occurrence on social media over the last five years\u2014to the chagrin of some.<\/p>\n

In a world where \u201cpromposals\u201d\u2014an elaborate way high schoolers mimic a marriage proposal in asking someone to prom\u2014are now a thing, it\u2019s easy to regard such celebrations as sappy and self-indulgent excuses to make much of one\u2019s self on social media.<\/p>\n

But beyond the unveiling of pink or blue cake and confetti, gender-reveal celebrations actually reveal significant truths about God\u2019s design for humanity\u2014truths the world desperately needs to hear as it clamors to understand what it means to be a boy or girl\u2014a man or woman.<\/p>\n

Christians can embrace the cultural phenomenon of gender-reveal parties to the glory of God. And more than just giving permission to participate, I think the Church should lead the world in finding ways to celebrate gender.<\/p>\n

Here are four reasons why:<\/p>\n

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1. Gender is good.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

God is glorified when we make merry around gifts He calls excellent. And from the beginning, gender has always been part of God\u2019s good creation.<\/p>\n

The Lord formed woman with the confident proclamation, \u201cIt is not good for man to be alone\u201d (Genesis 2:18). In other words, it is<\/em> good that gender exists among humanity.<\/p>\n

One goal of the enemy is to disavow diversity among sexes\u2014to pervert the created order by causing people to doubt God\u2019s intentions in the categories of gender.<\/p>\n

Christians rightly argue against this worldly perspective, but what if instead of just writing dissertations about the sovereign differences of sexuality, we threw parties to celebrate the goodness of gender distinction?<\/p>\n

What if we showed truth and grace to those with different worldviews by inviting them to attend such a celebration? In such an instance, the light of truth might be better revealed through the ambient glow of cake candles at a gender-reveal party than a hastily written hot take on social media.<\/p>\n

Such celebrations give a contemporary framework and hospitable environment to express truth about gender and God\u2019s glory.<\/p>\n

2. The revelation of gender is an invitation to prayer.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Before birth, parents don\u2019t know much about their children. Our kid\u2019s hair color, favorite flavors, and the sound of their cry are all mysteries.<\/p>\n

We don\u2019t know what our children\u2019s dreams and passions will be or what talents God will choose to bestow on them. But in God\u2019s sovereignty, many parents in the Western world are afforded the technology to discover their child\u2019s gender before knowing anything else about them.<\/p>\n

Could there be greater implications to this knowledge than just getting a leg up on buying baby clothes?<\/p>\n

What if we started using gender-reveal parties and announcements to craft more specific prayers for children? What if we went to war for our kids by praying about common temptations they will encounter and praying passages of Scripture over them that apply specifically to men or to women?<\/p>\n

How might the Kingdom of God grow if we started praying for kids just a little earlier and with more specificity? Gender-reveal parties and announcements can be a launching pad for Christian parents to invite the Church into this kind of spiritual warfare.<\/p>\n

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3. Gender is a sovereign gift from God.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Contrary to the teaching of our culture, individuals do not bear responsibility for choosing their gender. Rather, gender is presented as a predetermined gift from God.<\/p>\n

While Darwin may attribute a person\u2019s sex to chance, the Bible assigns this creative prerogative to a divine Father caring for His children.<\/p>\n

And since all things created by God are for His glory and for the good of those that love Him, the discovery of a child\u2019s gender carries greater implications than simply what color to paint the nursery.<\/p>\n

We should celebrate God\u2019s glory as we anticipate the unveiling announcement of a boy or girl. God intentionally predestines gender, so we should celebrate with awe and excitement as we watch His creative design at work.<\/p>\n

4. Gender-reveal parties are teaching opportunities for children (and adults).<\/strong><\/h3>\n

God likes to pique the curiosity of young hearts. The pages of Scripture often initiate spiritual customs to invoke questions from children (Joshua 4:6).<\/p>\n

Although you won\u2019t find gender reveal parties prescribed anywhere in Scripture, they can serve as object lessons to get others asking the biblical question, \u201cWhat does this ceremony mean to you?\u201d (Exodus 12:26).<\/p>\n

When it comes to teaching kids about sexuality, too often we stop at body parts. We owe it to our children to instill a biblical understanding of what differentiates a boy growing up to be a man from a girl growing up to be a woman.<\/p>\n

Gender-reveal parties offer a context to start these crucial conversations. Of course, having a bunch of kids running around might ruin the picturesque quality of a party, but Instagram\u2019s loss is our kids\u2019 gain.<\/p>\n

And that brings us to one word of warning:<\/p>\n

What are we celebrating?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Gender-reveal parties offer opportunities for us to engage our culture for the glory of Christ. In doing so, however, we have to caution ourselves against the opposite: forming occasions to seek our own glory.<\/p>\n

Gender-reveal celebrations shouldn\u2019t be about bolstering the image of parents, getting additional presents, or attracting more Instagram followers. These events should exist to celebrate God\u2019s blessings and to make much of Him.<\/p>\n

So as you plan to host, attend, or surf through pictures of the next gender-reveal celebration, ask how you can do so to the glory of Jesus.<\/p>\n

After all, God is planning a party for the entire Church to reveal His glory (Revelation 19: 7-9). Let\u2019s engage our celebrations for the same cause and commemorate the bestowal of gender to the glory of the God.<\/p>\n

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Aaron Wilson<\/h2>\n

@AaronBWilson26<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Aaron is associate editor\u00a0for LifewayResearch.com.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n