"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them" Genesis 1.27

On Monday and Tuesday this week I found myself in court, in central London. This was an appeal against a former ruling, by an employment tribunal, that I had been lawfully sacked for refusing to use transgender pronouns.

I'm not used to being in court. I might have thought that there would be the cut and thrust of battle between opposing lawyers, with a disgruntled judge hitting a board with a wooden hammer and shouting "Order! Order!. That is not how it was,

In fact it was a rather quiet affair. I was ably represented by the Christian Legal Centre who spoke for the sense, reasonableness, and rationality of being allowed to believe that we are made in the image of God, both male and female, and that we ought also to be allowed to live according to this belief.

Lawyers for the other side, on the other hand, argued that my beliefs were on a level with Nazism and racism and should not be worthy of consideration in a democratic society. I found sitting through this quite galling. It is hard when you have been a Christian doctor for so many years, caring for your patients, to find that you are beIng portrayed publicly as a monster, who is looking for people to harm, This was never ever the case, but in an appeal court you don't get the opportunity to respond.

I have absolutely no regrets about taking this stand. I see this as an essential matter of serving the Lord Jesus Christ, in my case. Efforts were made to argue that the issue of pronouns and Genesis 1.27 were right out on the periphy of Christian teaching and therefore not important to the Christian faith. Again I felt very deeply about hearing this and being unable to respond.

The Christian faith begins with the doctrines of God and of man. Genesis 1.27 has a good deal to say about these doctrines, and so this is a core issue with respect to what we believe. We are also not at liberty to lie, and to say that a person can change sex or be a member of the oppostie sex, when both the Bible and science show that this is not the case. To use transgender pronouns is to lie, and therefore to become guilty before God. It helps no-one.

The appeal ruling has been delayed for consideration, and it may be some time before we know the outcome. Clearly whatever the outcome, it will affect the working lives of all healthcare professionals including doctors and nurses. More importantly it will affect the freedom of all people to believe and act according to conscience, and, particularly, freedom to believe and be a Christian in the UK at this time. Please pray for the outcome, and for the three judges who must come to a decision. We pray that righteousness would prevail.