Male and Female Created He Them

[Chief]

Consider the verses below:

1. Mathew 19:4-6 (NKJV): And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
2. Genesis 1:26-26 (ESV): 26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
3. Genesis 5:2 (ESV): 2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created.

God created humanity and assigned two genders: Male and Female. God blessed humanity after creating it. The blessing of fertility and reproduction is included in this pronouncement.

I believe everyone is valuable before God and each one deserves God's grace. By God's grace and community support, one can live in accordance with God's Word. The position of the SDA Church on sexual intimacy is reserved for marriage between a man and a woman, as established by God at creation, and supported by Scripture (Gen 2:24). Heterosexual marriage is affirmed throughout the Bible, with no support for homosexual activity (Lev 18:5-23, Rom 1:24-27, 1 Cor 6:9-11). Jesus reiterated this intention (Matt 19:4-6). Thus, the Church opposes homosexual practices and relationships. Jesus valued all people, showing compassion while distinguishing love for individuals from his teachings on sinful actions. Seventh-day Adventists aim to emulate Christ's compassion and faithfulness.

The Biblical Research Institute suggests corrective surgery for ambiguous genitalia but regards sex-change surgery as contrary to biblical principles. The 2014 guidelines reserve the church's right to employ individuals based on its teachings on sexual behaviour, advocating for faith-based hiring practices. The church does not ordain openly LGBTQ+ individuals nor offer them membership. In 2015, it voted against women's ordination, although some U.S. conferences have proceeded with ordaining women.