Calvary Bible Church of Kalamazoo, Michigan

Many churches across the country are celebrating today as Sanctity of Life Sunday – a day to address the devaluing of human life that we see in our culture, particularly in the practice of abortion.

The number of abortions each year is overwhelming. According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, the research arm of Planned Parenthood, approximately 1.21 million induced abortions took place in the United States in 2005. That is an average of 3,315 per day or 138 per hour. This means in effect that every 28 seconds an unborn child is aborted somewhere in this country. It’s estimated that for every five pregnancies, one will end in an abortion.

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, 80 percent of these abortions are performed on unmarried women. But it may surprise you to know that only half of the women who have abortions are under 25 years of age. We tend to picture in our minds pregnant teenagers, but only seventeen percent of the women who have abortions are in their teens. Almost half of the women who have an abortion have already had one previously.

Sadly, it is minority groups that turn to abortion most often. For every abortion performed on a white woman, 2.7 are performed on Hispanic women and 4.8 are performed on Black women. Yet the people in these groups often seem to be the least concerned about the issue. Hitler himself couldn’t have thought of a better scheme to attack and destroy other races.

I would like to take this opportunity to speak to this issue.  First, I want to share with you a biblical perspective on abortion. Then, I would like to suggest how we should respond.

A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE ON ABORTION

How do we assess this from a biblical perspective?

1. Abortion is murder.

The question often debated is when life truly begins. Does life begin at birth or at the moment of conception? If we say at birth, then we have to ask at what point is a baby able to survive outside the womb. Of course, advancements in medical care keep pushing that time frame earlier and earlier.

Biblically, I think we have to say that life begins at conception. Two passages of Scripture lead me to this conclusion. The first is found in Psalm 139. David was speaking of how God is always present wherever we go, even in our mother’s wombs. He said, “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them” (Psalm 139:13-16).

The conception of a baby is not merely a function of biology. God is present and at work in the conception of a child. David says that even at that moment and before God has written out the life story of that child. For millions of unborn children, their life story ended before they were even born.

The second passage of Scripture that supports this view is Luke’s narrative of the birth of John the Baptist. When the angel Gabriel revealed to Zacharias that his wife, Elizabeth, would give birth to a child, he said, “For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb” (Luke 1:15). This tells us that even in the womb a child has a soul, and the ability to have spiritual life.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, came to visit Elizabeth when she was six months pregnant. Luke describes the encounter: “When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud voice and said, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy’” (Luke 1:41-44). Even in the womb, John the Baptist experienced joy.

Both of these passages suggest to us that life does indeed begin at conception. If we believe this, then we cannot conclude that the act of inducing an abortion is anything but murder. It is a violation of the sixth commandment: “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13). We could stop at this point and proceed to discussing how we should respond, but I think it may help us to consider what leads people to such a point that they would participate in such an act.

2. Abortion is usually a result of sexual immorality.

We already noted that 80 percent of the women who have abortions are unmarried. We shouldn’t let this fact escape us. Murder is not the only sin. Most abortions are the desperate response of women who are reaping the consequences of sexual immorality.

Of course, women do not bear this responsibility alone. For ever instance of abortion somewhere there is a man who pursued this sexual relationship and yet is unwilling to bear the responsibility of being a husband or father.

A biblical understanding of the abortion issue has to include this. In most cases, there is a violation of the seventh commandment: “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14). This is a good reminder of why God designed sex to take place in the confines of marriage.

3. Abortion is always a result of the idolatry of self.

If 80 percent of abortions are performed on unmarried women, then 20 percent are performed on married women. This is truly frightening. It means that thousands of married couples every year choose to murder their unborn child for their own convenience. The same could be said for single women.

Of course, couples aren’t the only ones involved. There are also the medical personnel who know full well that they are taking a life, yet they do it anyway. Why? It’s their job. It’s how they earn a living.

At the root of every sin that any of us commit is selfishness. We place our own desires, whatever they are, above God and His commands. The first commandment says, “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3), yet that is exactly what we do. We make ourselves god.

This connection with idolatry is also taught in Colossians 3:5-7 where Paul wrote, “Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.”

Selfishness drives so much of what we do. You may have never had any personal involvement with abortion, but each of us have faced that same root of selfishness in our hearts. It has just manifested itself in different ways. The selfishness that prompts the greed of the abortion doctor is the same sin that prompts some of us to respond in anger and frustration when things don’t go our way. It’s the same sin that makes us want to show off for people’s applause and leaves us dejected when people don’t notice us.

Abortion is certainly a sin, but so too are so many other deeds. We tend to think that some sins must be worse than others, and perhaps they are. But wouldn’t you think that this idolatry of self would be one of the worst?

A BIBLICAL RESPONSE TO ABORTION

How should we respond to this issue? What should we do about it? What is a biblical response to abortion?

Many Christians think that our primary response should be political action. We live in a Democratic country that allows all of us as citizens to voice our opinion and to vote. Those who have argued for the legalization of abortion have fought hard to influence the government. Thus some argue that Christians should combat their influence, seeking to influence our government to conform to God’s standards.

There’s no question that abortion is a very important issue that we should take into account when we vote, but I don’t think that political action should be our primary response. Instead, we have to go back to our discussion last week. Last week we began our study of the book of Acts by looking at the mission of the church. We saw that Jesus has called each us to actively testify to people throughout the world about the saving, life transforming power of Jesus Christ. How does that mission intersect with the issue of abortion? I want to suggest two ways that we should respond.

1. Proclaim repentance for forgiveness of sins.

Jesus said it so clearly in Luke 24:46-48: “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.”

This issue is so intensely emotional, that it’s easy for us as Christians to begin to view those on the other side as our enemies. And this is true not just of abortion, but other issues such as gay rights. We begin to see ourselves as the moral conscience of our society, called to confront and convict. But that’s not the mission Jesus has given us.

Do not misunderstand me. We must speak about what is good and what is evil, including abortion. But that is only part of our mission. When we expose sin, we do so for the purpose of offering people God’s forgiveness. All too often, Christians seem to pick one or the other. Some condemn sinful behavior but fail to speak of the good news of forgiveness in Christ. Others speak of hope and eternal life, but never explain why people need to be saved. Jesus calls us to do both.

Paul explains what our tone should be in 2 Timothy 2:24-26: “The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”

Our disposition toward those who have any past or present connection with abortion should be one of kindness. They are not the enemy; Satan is. They are his captives. Our calling as Christians is to humbly communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Scripture tells us that God does not want anyone to perish, but for all to come to repentance. Do you believe that? Do you believe that God will forgive any sin? That thought must be the lens through which we look at people and their actions. It should affect how we speak about people. It should affect how we speak to them. It should affect how we pray. When you hear drive by Planned Parenthood or hear something about the organization on the news, pray that God would grant the people in that organization repentance.

Our primary message always must be one of repentance for forgiveness of sins.

2. Display the transforming power of eternal life.

I love Jesus’ words in John 10:10. He said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” As we said last week eternal life is not just about living for eternity, it’s also about a change of life that takes place within us now. Once we are saved, then our lives should begin to change. We should begin to emulate the character of Jesus—His love and His servanthood.

I think the best way that we can display Christ in relation to the abortion issue is to help provide alternatives. Right across the street from Planned Parenthood in Kalamazoo is the Alternatives Women’s Center, a Christian organization committed to supporting women who might otherwise pursue an abortion. They provide pregnancy tests, counseling, clothing and even a home for pregnant women who have no other support system. Every month Calvary contributes $500 from our missions fund to the ministry at Alternatives.

You may want to consider donating money to Alternatives. There are also opportunities for people to serve in the ministry. Several people from Calvary volunteer regularly at Alternatives. You may want to consider doing so too. They need volunteers to help in a number of ways from answering phones to counseling women.

Another way to serve is through adoption.  We need to support those women who choose to give birth. If a woman is unable to care and provide for her child, would you be willing to step forward and take that child into your home?

CONCLUSION

Maintaining our mission as witnesses to God’s saving grace requires great balance. We can so easily get pulled aside into other things. Let’s commit ourselves to spreading the message of Christ’s forgiveness and calling people to repentance. Let’s commit ourselves to displaying His love and forgiveness in our lives. When we maintain that balance, that is when we are truly being the church.