John MacArthur rejects Alistair Begg’s advice for LGBT marriages

Pastor John MacArthur recently dismissed comments from Pastor Alistair Begg suggesting Christians should attend LGBT weddings.

Responding to a congregant who asked his views on the controversy during a question-and-answer period at his Grace Community Church in Los Angeles last weekend, MacArthur also suggested that Begg’s advice would tarnish the 40 years of otherwise faithful ministry from the Christian radio personality.

John MacArthur’s first public comment (to my knowledge) regarding Alistair Begg’s advice to his grandmother to attend her grandchild’s transgender wedding.

Questions and Answers, Grace Church, February 18, 2024https://t.co/E5MZZfkgwL via @Youtubepic.twitter.com/iHcY4Cl0Q4

– The Christian Worldview (@ThChrstnWrldvw) February 19, 2024

Begg, who serves as senior pastor of Parkside Church in Cleveland, Ohio, drew backlash when comments he did last September on his popular “Truth For Life” podcast reappeared on social media and went viral last month.

When discussing his book The Christian ManifestoBegg mentioned on the podcast how a grandmother asked her if she should attend the wedding of her grandson, who she said was marrying someone who identifies as transgender.

Begg said he advised the woman to attend the wedding and buy a gift to avoid reinforcing “judgmental” stereotypes about Christians.

“Well, here’s the thing: Your love for them may catch them off guard, but your absence will only reinforce the fact that they said, ‘These people are what I always thought they were: judgmental, are critical, are not ready to accept anything,’” he said. said.

“And there’s a fine line, right? It really is,” he continued. “And people have to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling. But I think we’re going to take that risk. We’re going to have to take that risk a lot more if we want to build bridges in the hearts and lives of those who don’t understand Jesus and do not understand that He is King.”

Days after his remarks caused a sensation, American Family Radio (AFR) announcement he would no longer broadcast “Truth For Life” after more than a decade. Begg was also kicked out of website of the Shepherd’s Conference, which is a ministry of MacArthur’s Grace Community Church.

MacArthur emphasized last weekend that while he had “great affection” for Begg and their friendship dates back 45 years, he disagreed with her advice.

“I also want to say that you shouldn’t judge a man by his weakest moment,” MacArthur said. “We will all have a moment of weakness. That said, I do not agree with the answer he gave to the question.”

MacArthur explained that he believed there were “many reasons” why a Christian should refuse to attend a gay or trans wedding, and rejected Begg’s argument that attending would be an act of compassion .

“My response to that is the most loving thing you could do would be to not go there and condemn the relationship; that’s loving,” he said. “It is not loving to help someone celebrate their entry into the fury of God’s judgment.”

“Now is not the time to party thinking that your affection for someone is the means to their salvation,” he continued. “They will come to salvation when the Lord exposes their sin. Therefore the Holy Spirit – John 16 – convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment. And what you should say to someone is: ‘It’s wrong, it’s against God’s order, it’s not marriage.'”

MacArthur went on to assert that same-sex marriage is “not marriage at all” because it goes against God’s design for the institution.

“It is blasphemy against God, just like transgender life and homosexuality,” he said. “This is the message to be given with love.”

MacArthur doubted that he personally had the ability to “survive” a wedding ceremony that he considered sinful while appearing to support it. To do so, he said, would be to “aid and abet the celebration of something that defies God’s design and (is) the very tip of the spear, right now, of the corruption of this entire culture.”

MacArthur also said he was perplexed as to why Begg would pursue this issue, given the potential risk of harming his department and reputation.

“In particular, if I were inclined to suggest that (attending an LGBT wedding) might be acceptable, I would never say that, because you would have to calculate the cost,” he said. “And how do you calculate that? The price is truly epic. It’s truly epic.”

“And there’s so much more about (Begg) who is wonderful and faithful – and his ministry, he just spent 40 years of pastoral ministry in this church. It was a great celebration. And now he’s going to be defined by that.” , did he declare. added.

Begg, who has been in pastoral ministry since 1975 and became senior pastor at Parkside in 1983, said in a statement sermon last month, he doesn’t feel the need to repent of his advice. In the message based on Luke 15 and titled “Compassion versus Condemnation,” he warns against the “leaning toward self-righteousness” that is “alive and well in all our hearts.”

He also pointed out how little attention is given to his decades of teaching on biblical marriage compared to a single podcast episode.

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