She again responded with, “Yes.” Therefore, Begg suggested that she not only attend the wedding but also bring a gift.
“Well then, okay,” Begg said. “As long as he knows that, then I suggest that you do go to the ceremony. And I suggest that you buy them a gift.”
Begg informed Lepine that his response caught the grandmother “off guard,” so he explained to her why he thought it was important she attend.
“Well, here’s the thing: Your love for them may catch them off guard, but your absence will simply reinforce the fact that they said, ‘These people are what I always thought: judgmental, critical, unprepared to countenance anything,’” Begg said.
Begg admitted that his response to the grandmother’s situation is a “fine line,” but he believes that Christians need to start taking risks to build bridges for the gospel.
“And it is a fine line, isn’t it? It really is,” Begg added. “And people need to work out their ‘own salvation with fear and trembling’ (Philippians 2:12).”
“But I think we’re going to have to take that risk,” he continued. “We’re going to have to take that risk a lot more if we want to build bridges into the hearts and lives of those who don’t understand Jesus and don’t understand that he is a King.”
Lepine interjected, “John tells us, ‘He was full of grace and truth’ (John 1:14), and we have to figure out how we can be full of grace and truth at the same time, don’t we?”
“Yeah. Yeah, our words should be ‘full of grace’ and ‘seasoned with salt’ (Colossians 4:6),” Begg concluded. “It’s so easy to get that upside down. And when a pastor does, then that will take on a role in a congregation as well and flavor it. And so, you know, ‘Let not many of you become teachers’ (James 3:1).”
Christian Leaders Criticize Begg
Begg’s words drew considerable criticism. Owen Strachan, Provost and Research Professor of Theology at Grace Bible Theological Seminary, believes Begg’s position is “unsound” and in “error.”
Although the Bible doesn’t specifically address “transgender wedding” ceremonies, Strachan said, “I believe that Begg’s counsel is unsound. Christians should not attend ’transgender’ ceremonies.'”
The theology professor provided eight reasons as to why he believes so.
