Alistair Begg: You should go to a transsexual wedding

[ken_sylvania]

Would you all go to a Muslim or Hindu wedding? Or a purely secular wedding between two secular people?

None of those are Biblical either.

For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be in one flesh.

Seems Biblical to me...

[Valerie]

Isn’t it on every day on WCRF at lunchtime? It’s hard to miss when you’re in a “Christian” establishment tuned into that station…

Yes. How fortunate - Mt establishment plays everything but Christian

[Ken]

Would you all go to a Muslim or Hindu wedding? Or a purely secular wedding between two secular people?

None of those are Biblical either.

For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be in one flesh.

Seems Biblical to me...

Finish the verse. You cut off the important part.

So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.

Do you think if two Hindus marry or if two atheists marry, that "God has joined them together?"

[Josh]

God instituted male and female and he instituted marriage.

[ken_sylvania]

Would you all go to a Muslim or Hindu wedding? Or a purely secular wedding between two secular people?

None of those are Biblical either.

For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be in one flesh.

Seems Biblical to me...

Finish the verse. You cut off the important part.

So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.

Do you think if two Hindus marry or if two atheists marry, that "God has joined them together?"

Yes, I do. I have never seen any indication in the Bible that God ordained marriage to be reserved for Christians only. To the contrary, he instituted it thousands of years before there was such a thing as a Christian.

[RZehr]

Would you all go to a Muslim or Hindu wedding? Or a purely secular wedding between two secular people?

None of those are Biblical either.

For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be in one flesh.

Seems Biblical to me...

Finish the verse. You cut off the important part.

So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.

Do you think if two Hindus marry or if two atheists marry, that "God has joined them together?"

I think so. And if these two Hindus became Christian and joined my church, we would not suggest that they have another marriage ceremony. Of course this is providing that they were unmarried male and female prior to their wedding.

[ken_sylvania]

Seems Biblical to me...

Finish the verse. You cut off the important part.

So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.

Do you think if two Hindus marry or if two atheists marry, that "God has joined them together?"

I think so. And if these two Hindus became Christian and joined my church, we would not suggest that they have another marriage ceremony. Of course this is providing that they were unmarried male and female prior to their wedding.

Are you saying that, if they had not been unmarried male and female prior to their wedding, you would suggest another marriage ceremony?

[RZehr]

I meant that we would not accept their marriage if they weren’t unmarried prior to their wedding.

[temporal1]

God instituted male and female and he instituted marriage.

It’s interesting how marriage has been historically respected across geography, cultures and religions.

i’m not suggesting there have been no exceptions, no disrespect. (no need to prove otherwise!)
By+large, as people groups found each other innhistory, language differences+all, they would acknowledge the sanctity of each others’ marriages.

i see no other explanation than, “God instituted male and female and He instituted marriage.”

[Sudsy]

Valerie, your thoughts on your pastor's stand in this area ?

I have to say that caught both my husband and & I off guard- I asked my husband before listening what he thought Pastor Begg would advise - and he believed that Pastor Begg would advise "not" to go. I mean, as the interviewer pointed out, Pastor Begg just took us through Romans 1, Psalm 139 & Jude late Summer I think it was. So we knew he was stressing the firm Biblical position on homosexuality as sin. We felt glad he was again making his position unwavering regardless of culture.

So that surprised us. I have been asked the same question & advised not to attend- to "me" attending means affirming. To Pastor Begg, he stressed making sure the grandson knew his Grandmother was clear in .NOT affirming so in his view, attending didn't mean affirming.

My conviction would be not to go. It may be Sudsy he sees it like you have example of Jesus attending a wedding and people already having had much to drink but then obeying His mother by providing more wine.

I'd still have to say, I know HOW Hard these decisions are for people, In my own heart, I'd have to disagree with his counsel- His feeling was by doing that we are seen as those self righteous judgemental Christians. I think there is a way to lovingly not attend. I imagine many in our congregation that ",know him" may be surprised,-

Thanks Valerie. When it comes to 'hanging out with sinners', Jesus was often accused by the Pharisees for His 'hanging out with sinners' as they thought this was sinful behaviour. And when He asked Zacchaeus, a sinner in everyone's mind, if He could go to his house, the crowd also thought it was the wrong thing to do. It is interesting to me how often Jesus went against the practises of the religious expectations in His day. When Zacchaeus repented and was saved, Jesus said that He has come 'to seek and to save that which was lost'. Jesus would not let people's religious expectations of Him stop Him from doing His Father's will.

So this makes me question if we are really following Jesus example when we withdraw ourselves from reaching out to sinners or are we being more like the Pharisees and concerned more about our own views and reputation of being sanctified. Did Jesus allow the views of sanctification held by others get in His way of reaching the lost ? It appears to me, He did not. One of the big issues amongst the religious people in that day was Jesus wanting to 'hang out' with sinners. I think the 'come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord' has been mis-understood by many as it does not reflect how Jesus lived nor what He said we should do to bring people to salvation. Jesus showed by example that we can be very engaged with sinners and yet not be sinning, regardless of what other religious people are thinking.

Any 'push back' on this ?