Written by Evi Idoghor
Today's world is one-of-a-kind. For the past few years, I've been following the cultural news out of the United States as it relates to women's sports and the controversy surrounding it. I recently commented on a post that featured a former female US college swimmer who went to speak at a university. Her talk's premise was centered on men who identified as women competing in women's sports. She was able to speak about this topic first-hand because it was her lived experience.
Those who disagreed with her narrative attacked her; they hurled insults at her, and she asserted that a man dressed as a woman and part of the protesters hit her twice. Before she could safely exit the building, police had to protect her. Now, back to my comment. "Can't people have differing opinions without resorting to violence?" I asked after watching the video. A few minutes later, I felt convicted. This wasn't a difference of opinion. For example, I dislike action movies, but someone else may have valid reasons why they are the best thing to happen to modern society since sliced bread. Seeing this scenario unfold wasn't a mere difference of opinion, or even an attack on the female swimmer per se, it was an attack on truth.
When the transgender movement began to gain traction in recent times, it was marketed to the world as people who simply wanted to live in their "truth." They wanted to be happy, love who they chose, and to have the same rights as everyone else. However, as time passed, some of them, particularly men to "women" transitioners who play professional sports, began to infiltrate women's sports, locker rooms and bathrooms.
It baffles me that so-called feminists whose voices were once heard loudly fighting for women's rights have gone radio silent on the issue. The men they once fought against, the patriarchal system they vowed to demolish, have seemed to rebrand themselves - men are now crowned as beauty queens. They model women's sportswear (including sports bras) and are rewarded with brand sponsorships by organizations that manufacture feminine products like tampons - Men, deluded men, are taking more opportunities away from women, and our feminists are nowhere to be found.
There is more to this than meets the eye
The ferocity with which the young female swimmer (Riley Gaines) and others have been attacked, both verbally and physically, reveals that this battle is more than just a physical one. Ephesians 6:10-12 says, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
We can infer from this passage of scripture that what is currently happening in the Western world in terms of transgenderism is a scheme of the devil. Beyond sports where the goal is to win a fleeting crown, there is an attack on nuclear family dynamics, procreation, and children's innocence. This is why, as custodians of truth, we cannot win such battles with our human intellect.
Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2, “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” Yes, you can give an excellent speech that will get you an applause from rational thinking people, but if we desire true transformation of society, we must fight back with the truth in God's word against the evil perpetuated by the authorities and rulers mentioned in Ephesians 6.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 provides a similar perspective as Ephesians 6:10-12 - “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ…” Again, we see that this transcends the physical. Any ideology that seeks to distort God's truth is not perpetuated by a physical force or agenda.
God's tactic for combating lies has not changed since the beginning of time, nor has the enemy's for perpetuating it. When the enemy first encountered Eve in the book of Genesis, he questioned God's commandment to her and her husband. What Eve failed to do was to fight back and stick to God's truth. If she had insisted on God's truth, the serpent would have left her alone, as demonstrated by Jesus' encounter with the same deceiver in Luke 4. "It is written," Jesus continued to say to the enemy. The truth that you do not know cannot defend you.
The enemy still continues to seek to destroy God's truth. It's no surprise that Jesus referred to him as the father of lies in John 8:44. He infiltrates people's minds and asks them the same question he asked Eve and Jesus: did God really say (in the beginning, he created them male and female) ... if you are the son of God, (then do such and such) ...In the face of such questions and attacks from the devil, God's word remains the weapon with which you fight.
We must learn to esteem the truth of God's word higher than affirming people's feelings and going along with their delusion, out of fear of offending them. We are only hurting them by acting in this manner. This, however, is not an invitation to be brash or harsh with our words; rather, Ephesians 4:15 encourages us to speak the truth in love.
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