Sex Change Saved?

Dear Victorious,

I saw your response the other day about trans gendered people being confused or deceived. Are you saying that if someone has a sex change he or she isn't saved? What would you advise someone to do in that situation then?

Robert O. - Santa Fe, NM

Dear Robert,

No, I'm not saying that at all. Living a trans gendered life is sin. But God is willing to forgive sin.

Someone who is truly walking with Christ would never pursue a trans gendered lifestyle - including the surgery, hormone treatment and other aspects of it. The Christ in them simply wouldn't allow it.

Someone who has already pursued a trans gendered lifestyle and becomes a Christian afterward should simply do the same thing that other sinners do --- repent. He or she would repent of that sin, agree with God that it was wrong, and seek God's will regarding if or how it should be rectified.

(For someone who already pursued a trans gendered lifestyle and thought they were a Christian, or did not realize doing so would be inconsistent with Christianity, the advice about repentance would also apply.)

Depending on the situation, I imagine that it's entirely possible God would not require them to, for example, have surgery to reverse their gender. He may allow them to go on living in their new gender - and they would be as forgiven and saved as you and I are of our sins.

I would advise someone who is considering a sex change, or someone who has already changed their sex, to get on their knees, get in the Word and seek God's will. And I would love them enough to make that journey with them.