A Christian man in Malta who was repeatedly dragged into court over three years for giving his testimony about leaving the homosexual lifestyle urged his fellow Christians to stand boldly for Jesus Christ amid rising cultural hostility.
Matthew Grech, 36, told The Christian Post in a recent interview that he believes the Lord was with him throughout his legal ordeal, which drew international attention and ultimately led to his acquittal last month.
Grech first fell afoul of Malta's ban on so-called "conversion therapy" in 2022, when he was slapped with criminal charges for allegedly discussing and promoting conversion practices in violation of Article 3 of Malta's Affirmation of Sexual Orientation, Gender and Gender Expression Act.
The charges stemmed from an interview he gave that April with PMnews Malta, an independent outlet that invited him on to discuss his views on conversion therapy bans.
In 2016, Malta became the first European nation to criminalize practices endeavoring to "change, repress or eliminate a person's sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression," and similar legislation has since proliferated throughout the Western world.
Shortly after offering his personal testimony to PMNews Malta, police showed up at Grech's home on a Sunday to serve him with a prosecution order summoning him to court. He appeared in court 17 times over the charges, which carried €5,000 (more than $5,700) in fines or up to five months in prison.
Grech told CP that while his journey of repentance has cost him and not been easy, it has brought spiritual freedom.
Grech said he never fell into a "hardcore" homosexual lifestyle and was more interested in "a loving and faithful relationship," but he became spiritually convicted when he became a Christian that even his desire for meaningful sexual partnership with another man was against God's design.
"I had an encounter with Jesus when I was 19 years old, and He took center stage in my life, and the Word of God took center stage," he said. "I discovered Paul's verses about homosexuality, and I was convicted, and I prayed and I asked God, because it was very personal."
Grech said he came to understand God's love for him, and that it was out of love that God prohibits sexual immorality and demands repentance. Since leaving homosexuality behind, he said he has been able to develop a healthier understanding of his masculine identity.
"God helped me understand that He loves me but hates my sin, because it does bring a perversion to His sacred design for humanity. So I repented. I stopped the relationship that I was in. I was with a partner for just over a year-and-a-half.
"It was so amazing to feel free to discover my manhood, my masculinity; God's purpose for my life," he said. "It hasn't been an easy journey navigating same-sex feelings and understanding the depth of that, the roots of that I think mainstream culture hides from us."
"But it's been the best journey to be the man that I always wanted to be," he continued, adding that the Word of God has given him hope, joy and peace that he would not otherwise have.
Grech said the Maltese government has been working with gay rights activists in the country to silence the testimonies of Christians who repent of homosexuality, which he suggested is the end goal of conversion therapy ban legislation, even if its proponents claim otherwise.
After leaving the lifestyle, Grech became involved with the U.K.-based International Federation for Therapeutic and Counseling Choice (IFTCC), a nonprofit organization that aims "to promote a caring, nonjudgmental environment where people who choose to move away from their unwanted feelings and behaviors can find the support they're seeking," according to its website.
Grech, who noted his previous public interviews about his personal choices never led to prosecution, speculated that his interview with PMNews Malta was targeted because he mentioned IFTCC.
"What I did differently this time was that I mentioned an organization that apparently was a threat to them and their false, unscientific ideology, and so they organized themselves," he said of the activists who reported him to the police.
PMNews Malta, whose journalists were also charged for their role in conducting the interview, discovered that the police complaint against Grech was filed by Silvan Agius, an LGBT activist from Malta who helped draft the conversion therapy ban legislation; Christian Attard, a founding member of the Malta LGTBIQ Rights Movement; and Cynthia Chircop, who co-chaired the organization.
Grech said the potential five months of prison time he faced for a conversation was "ridiculous" and indicates a worrying trend for the freedom of speech in the West. Despite his legal victory, he said the chilling effect of his case has been successful.
"I used to be invited on TV every month ... sometimes more than once a month in Malta," he said. "And ever since this court case came about, I've been completely silenced. Nobody interviews me anymore around the subject."
"I probably think that TV hosts have orders from the top to not mention the other side of the story, and so this law has been really used to monopolize the culture and conversation around sexuality and gender."
Grech said such a development is "very sad," and that his generation deserves to have robust and open debate about such important topics. He expressed optimism that the tide seems to be turning in the United States, where the U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned a Colorado state law banning therapy for minors that does not endorse homosexuality and transgenderism.
"I admire Christians who are standing up in the U.S., and I want that to happen in Europe and in Malta, as well," he said.
Regarding what he would say to Christians who might feel crippled by fear amid growing cultural animosity toward Christian faith and morality in the Western world, Grech urged them to remember the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.
"Jesus said, 'Rejoice when you are persecuted for the Kingdom of Heaven, because great is your reward.' You wouldn't be afraid of something that brings you joy. So when we have a revelation as Christians, we should dive straight into preaching the Gospel and sharing our testimonies and trust in the Lord in the process," he said.
While his three-year legal battle felt at times like a punishment, Grech said he remains thankful for it because God used it for His glory. He exhorted Christians to resist sin and the devil while taking courage in the Lord's faithfulness, even if they are called to suffer for His sake.
"I didn't endure this as a criminal," he said. "I endured this as a Bible-believing Christian. So, let us rejoice together and let us not submit to Jezebel. Jezebel is a loser. The devil is a loser. We love Jesus and we hate the devil. We're here to destroy the works of the devil."
"And so, we can't allow fear to take hold, because the Lord will be with us. Just as God told Paul, 'I have many people in this city, so do not be afraid.' And I want to tell you, wherever you are in the world watching right now, there are many people in your city that are meant to come to the Kingdom."
"So therefore, be bold, because if we are ashamed of the words of Jesus, if we are ashamed of His testimony, Jesus will be ashamed of us at His appearing. So we can do this, let's come together," he added.
