Let That Baby Live
I didn’t think much about abortion in my younger years. I believe the reason for this is that it was never really discussed, except occasionally in vague terms. It seems to me that the “culture wars” were not really discussed in the church that I attended. I don’t remember a lot of discussion about current events. That could be because I was a teenager and was plotting my next attack…my friends and I messed with each other a lot…or, they weren’t covered in much detail. Whatever the case may be, I didn’t leave my time in High School and early college years having a grasp of things going on in the culture.
I do remember when that changed for me. It was a long time ago and I was in my first years as a seminary student. Getting my MDiv took a long time because I was travelling to Springdale on Mondays to accomplish this. Between doing it part time and multiple breaks around pregnancies and finances, it took a long time to do this. So, I was a seminary student who was leadership in a church, a student pastor at Crow Mountain Baptist Church, and hadn’t given this topic any real thought.
I was driving to Springdale, in the middle of terrible traffic. If I didn’t leave at a certain time, I would hit standstill traffic on my way there. And I was in standstill traffic. I had flipped to Christian Family Radio and they were playing a speech that took place in Congress. The speech was basically a description of what happens in a late term abortion. I don’t cry very often, but I did that day when I was driving down the road. It hit me that day. I had a baby son at home and had been through that process.
In his comments over Exodus 21:22, John Calvin, the man who is called the greatest theologian of the Reformation era had this to say about abortion.
“If it seems more horrible to kill a man in his own house than in a field, because a man’s house is his place of most secure refuge, it ought surely to be deemed more atrocious to destroy a fetus in the womb before it has come to light.”[1]
These words were penned around 1560. And after having gone through that process with my wife, I couldn’t agree more.
To the modern person, that may strike you as odd, but this has always been a Christian issue. Despite what you’ve likely been told by a few friends, Christians did not begin discussing this issue for political power. The people who think so are very ignorant of the history of the church.
Abortion was practiced in many ancient cultures and Ancient Hebrews and then Early Christians stood against it. Notice here the words from the Didache, the oldest known Christian writing outside of the New Testament, written around the year 100.
“But the second part of the teaching is this; “Thou shalt not do murder; thou shalt not commit adultery”; thou shalt not commit sodomy; thou shalt not commit fornication; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not use magic; thou shalt not use philtres; thou shalt not procure abortion, nor commit infanticide;…”[2]
This attitude even led the early church to rather famously give alternatives to killing children. Christians were known to adopt children who would have otherwise been killed by these abortions. Simply put, Christians have always seen this as an important issue.
And so, in that tradition, a few of us went to the March For Life event last week. For me, it was a joy to see other fellow Arkansans walking up to the State Capital to boldly declare that we stand for life.
This is an important topic for us to turn our attention to today. This is Sanctity of Life Sunday and churches across the United States are hearing a sermon about this very topic.
Why is this done every year?
Sanctity of Life Sunday is when it is because this is when the Roe V. Wade case was decided in 1973. Christians have had a long history of caring for and protecting the life of infants and children in the womb, but for some reason were silent for a number of years after 1973. For some reason there was not an emphasis at that time on the sanctity of human life.
The tide changed, however. There were three very influential Christians helped push this back into the forefront of Christian thinking. The first was a historian and theologian, Harold O.J. Brown. The second was Francis Schaeffer, who was a theologian, pastor, and philosopher. Francis Schaeffer’s film and lecture series called “How Shall We Then Live”, that you can now watch on YouTube, began to turn the ship in 1976. But it wasn’t until C. Everett Coop came on board that big things began to happen. C. Everett Coop was a pediatric surgeon of tremendous renown. Together Koop and Schaeffer made the film “Whatever Happened To The Human Race” and this sounded an alarm that people began to pay attention to. The entire film can be watched on YouTube today. The cause was picked up and carried on by people like Jerry Falwell and James Dobson.
In the year 1984, Ronald Reagan declared the Sunday nearest that anniversary date of January 22nd, to be “Sanctity of Human Life Day”. But why?
On January 18th, the number of abortions in America for this year is estimated to be 41,150. The running counter states that, since Roe v. Wade there have been 63, 392, 308 abortions in the United States. Those are not just numbers, those are lives taken in their mother’s womb. That is mass murder on a scale unheard of in history, and in our country it is legal.
This is a heinous evil that must be stood against. And it is a heinous evil that God’s people have stood against throughout the ages.
“Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.” (Proverbs 31:8-9 ESV)
And who is more defenseless and needy than a child in the womb?
What we will see today is that God is the giver of life and has created humanity in His Image, therefore we should speak up for those who cannot speak for their selves.
Much like last week’s sermon, this is going to be a look at the entirety of Scripture. And we will see that God is the giver of life and has created humanity in His image, therefore we should speak up in defense of the unborn.
God Is the Giver of Life (Genesis 1-2, Job 1:21, Acts 17:24-25)
A few months back we were in Genesis 1-2 and one of the more obvious things from that text is that God is the giver of life. God created life and God gave life to humanity. No life existed outside of the Triune God. In eternity past, God was there. But there was no other life on Earth or anywhere else. Then God created, and there was life.
God didn’t have to create. There was nothing within Him that necessitated the creation of anything. God simply created.
Paul speaks of this very thing in the Book of Acts,
“The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.” (Acts 17:24-25 ESV)
God wasn’t lacking anything in Himself. He didn’t owe life to anyone. He simply gave the gift of life to everything that exists.
God is the giver of life.
And so, we understand that every life is a gift from God. Your neighbor’s kids may not seem like much of a gift, but they are (Psalm 127:3). And this was the case, even before their birthday.
Over and over in Scripture we see that this gift of life begins at fertilization. It is not that Scripture outright states that this is the case, it is just assumed throughout. Adam laid with his wife and she “conceived” (Genesis 4:1), Cain did the same with his wife and she “conceived” (Genesis 4:17). Abraham did the same with Hagar and she “conceived” (Genesis 16:4). We see this happen with both Rebecca and Leah in Genesis 29:32-35. And even the promise of the Messiah was given to Mary with the understanding that the gift of life was given at fertilization,
“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.” (Luke 1:31 ESV)
When, according to Scripture, does life begin? It begins at conception.
That is why David would write,
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” (Psalm 139:13-14 ESV)
The gift of life is seen even in the earliest days of pregnancy. And this has application for our thinking on this topic.
Any attempt to take away this life is a rejection of the gift of life and an assault upon those given the gift.
When a woman drives up to Planned Parenthood to have an abortion, we understand what is about to happen. A baby in the womb is about to lose their life. Their life has already begun. God has already given to that child the gift of life, and someone decided to take that away.
But you see the same thing happening with things like the “morning after pill”.
These things are wrong. And for those who believe that pastors should not preach about such things, I have a question to ask.
Do you believe that it was wrong for pastors to remain silent about Nazi German?
The United States is killing far more people today than Hitler ever did. Stop being a coward and speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves.
And here is the craziest part of this discussion. Science is on our side. Check out this video created by the Pro-Life group Live Action that depicts the stages of life in womb. It simply depicts in a video what biology textbooks have taught for years. It shows us what we already knew. Life begins at conception. And most everyone knows this. Therefore, the argument has changed over the years. The argument for abortion is no longer that the baby in the womb is not alive. Rather than changing their stance, the argument is now that the baby’s life is worth less. And the mother gets to decide what happens to that baby in the womb.
All People Are Created In The Image Of God (Genesis 1:27, Genesis 9:6)
For the Christian, there is no room for that sort of thinking. One life is not worth more than another just because of the size or utility of that life. The worth of a human life is not measured by its usefulness, but by its being created in the image of God.
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27 ESV)
People are the special creation of God and because of that they possess dignity and are owed respect. A human being, no matter their size or their age, has been created in the image of God.
And just as one would expect, killing a person created in the image of God is a horrific act.
“Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” (Genesis 9:6 ESV)
Now, our sermon today is specifically about abortion, but this has application in many other things.
Is a person with a disability to be treated with dignity and respect? Yes, why? Because they were created in the image of God.
What about the elderly person? Some countries have begun trying to figure out how to kill off those who inhabit nursing homes because they don’t see the value in these people. Are they to be treated with dignity and respect? Yes, why? Because they were created in the image of God and owed dignity and respect.
Well, what does this tell us about the child in the womb?
It tells us that “a person is a person no matter how small” and that their life is not valued less than the mother. A human being does not have the right to just decide that life would be easier without this child so they can kill him or her. That human being is owed dignity and respect. We do not have the right to take away the gift of life.
God Forbids the Taking of Human Life (Deuteronomy 32:39, 1 Samuel 2:6, Exodus 20:13, Exodus 21:22-25)
God is the Creator and Lord over all. There is only being in the entire Universe that has the right to give and take away life and that is Him. We may be forced to make tough decisions concerning the protection of human life. But it is not ours to just choose to take life so that our can be easier in some way.
God says this quite plainly in Deuteronomy 32.
“‘See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.” (Deuteronomy 32:39 ESV)
And we see the very same thing stated again in 1 Samuel.
“The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up.” (1Samuel 2:6 ESV)
God is the giver of life. He determines the ending and beginning of that life. He determined your traits, your abilities, your disabilities. And it is for Him to decide the beginning and ending. Not you. Therefore, Scripture teaches over and over again that murder is an act of incredible evil.
“You shall not murder.” (Exodus 20:13 ESV)
This command extended to the life of the baby in the womb.
“When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.” (Exodus 21:22-25 ESV)
If two men were fighting and one man accidentally hit a woman who was pregnant, there was to be retribution for any damage that was done. The retribution was to be “life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe”.
Some people do contend that this is not about the life of the baby, but that is completely ludicrous. The reason that “pregnant woman” and not just “woman” is mentioned here is because the life of the mother and baby are to be protected. If the command had nothing to say about pregnancy, then the pregnancy would not have been mentioned. This means that if the mother or baby were injured in this event then there would be a stiff penalty.
An abortion is not a small act. It’s not as it has been advertised to so many people today. Abortion is the taking of a human life. And we don’t treat it as anything less than that.
When a woman or a couple are considering an abortion today it is most likely a decision being made out of convenience. It is believed that if they only stopped this pregnancy life would be easier somehow. Bills would be easier to pay. It would be easier to finish college. It would be easier to climb up the corporate ladder. But we would never dream of saying that killing your coworker was acceptable if it would get you a pay raise. Nor do we say that about a child just because he or she is smaller than you are.
We understand that might does not make right. And we also understand that convenience does not make right. And we also understand that no life is to be taken, especially out of convenience. Abortion is the murder of another human being. We understand that from biology, and we also see it plainly in God’s Word.
Rather than allowing this to just happen, Christians should do what they can to protect the life of these most vulnerable people.
We Should Protect Life (Psalm 82:3-4, Proverbs 24:11-12, Proverbs 31:8-9)
As we look through the pages of Scripture, we see that Christians are not just supposed to sit on the sidelines when these sorts of things take place. Christians are to be people who protect life.
For some reason we have this idea in our minds that it is okay to just believe the right thing and not act upon it. But that is not the case. The Christian is to do what they can to ensure that this evil is wiped out of our great country.
“Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” (Psalm 82:3-4 ESV)
Who is more weak than a baby in the womb? Who has the rights trampled upon more than a baby in the womb?
“Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it, and will he not repay man according to his work?” (Proverbs 24:11-12 ESV)
How are we to rescue those who are “being taken away to death”?
We speak out. We vote for pro-life candidates. And when they underperform, we vote for a different pro-life candidate. We go to rallies and stand in defense of the unborn, letting everyone know the truth about abortion and letting elected officials know that they must get rid of this incredible evil if they expect to keep their job. And we give money and resources to pro-life organizations, something that this church has been doing for years.
“Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.” (Proverbs 31:8-9 ESV)
And we pray. We pray that God would put an end to this terrible evil.
A Message of Forgiveness for the Offender
It is very possible that someone in this room has had an abortion, been part of helping someone get an abortion, or talked someone into getting an abortion. No one is helped by being indirect here. The message today has quite simply stated from God’s Word that this was wrong. It was sinful. But I want to end today by saying that there is real and true forgiveness for all who have done these things.
The central message that we as Christians proclaim is the good news of the gospel.
Yes, being involved in abortion is a horrible act of evil. But the good news is that you can be forgiven.
God created the world perfect, completely without sin and death. And man rebelled against God. Sin and death entered the world through the sin of Adam. Everyone everywhere is now in rebellion against God and in dire need of forgiveness.
God the Son took on human flesh and dwelt among us. The Second Person of the Trinity became man so that He could both accomplish everything necessary for our salvation, on our behalf. And so that He could become killable so that He could take our sins upon Himself and die in our place. Our response to this message is that we turn from ruling our own lives and trust in the Savior who made a way for us to have forgiveness and fellowship with God.
The good news for those who have participated in an abortion is that complete forgiveness has been made possible for you through the finished work of Christ. Trust in the Savior and be forgiven.
Conclusion
Last Sunday I was in the crowd listening to the speeches from the steps of the capital. Those speeches were from men who had encouraged and paid for abortions in year’s past. They had undergone years of torment from remembrance of their past sin. Eventually they found forgiveness in Christ. And year’s later they were standing on the steps of the capital speaking out on behalf of the unborn.
That encompasses everything that I want to say today. Those who have sinned in this area have forgiveness available to them in Christ. Those who are forgiven, those who are in Christ, have a responsibility to speak up for the helpless.
Our church has prioritized giving to an organization here in Conway for that very reason. That is also why the Arkansas Baptist State Convention gives to organizations like that. We were represented in Little Rock just last Sunday together. And I am praying, I know some of you are as well, that abortion will be a thing of the past.
Continue to speak up for those who cannot speak for their selves.
R. Dwain Minor
[1] John Calvin, Calvin’s Commentaries, Commentary on the Four Last Books of Moses, from Exodus 21:22.
[2] Kirsopp Lake, The Apostolic Fathers, with an English translation by Kirsopp Lake, Harvard University Press, 1959.