Abortion

What Are You Doing About The Children Who Are Killed?

Next week my church hosts its annual Vacation Bible School, one week of kids bouncing off our walls, inhaling our fruit punch by the gallon, and learning life-changing truths about the God who created them.

Yet I can't help but thinking ... what if?

 What if these children were never born?

 What if, before their birth, they were deemed unworthy and unwanted?

 What if their mothers had killed them?

 And what if their little body parts - their beating hearts and expanding lungs and moving limbs - were harvested and sold?

 What evil.

What murder.

What desecration.

And while these children were not killed, while they are very much beautifully alive, millions are not.

Millions of babies are murdered every year before they have the chance to live, the chance to see the sunshine, to taste fruit punch, to hear the story of Jesus proclaimed at a church VBS.

So what are we doing about it?

I hope we're praying.

I hope we're speaking up.

I hope we're not voting for those who support this.

I hope we're getting educated.

I hope we're heart-broken.

I hope we're celebrating life.

I hope we're loving children.

I hope we're trusting God.

I hope we're hating evil.

Photo Courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons and Tom Conger.

Remember

Yesterday was an important Sunday for two different reasons. Both involved remembering. Both involved suffering. And both involved life.

Remembered annually in churches all across the globe, it was Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. This Sunday fell just two days before the 41st anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the court case that legalized abortion in the U.S., paving the way for its legality worldwide. We remembered that abortion goes on every day. Children are thoughtlessly murdered, removed from the womb like they're simply an unwanted growth. It is a horrible tragedy, this crime of murder, where approximately 42 million little lives will be taken from us this year. Forty-two million little ones will never see the light and never have a chance to grow, to live, to play soccer or eat ice cream or do algebra or be given a hug or see a Christmas tree. And our governments will kill them. We need to celebrate the sanctity of human life. It is a gift, never a curse. We must remember.

The second thing we remembered was a Sunday annually recognized in November. But because of Dad's vacation time, our church remembers it in January. It was the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. Again, we remembered those suffering - not unborn babies, but moms and dads and kids and grandpas and grandmas who live far away from our North American affluence. They are those who are persecuted for their Christian faith. In Sunday School we looked specifically at China and Iran, two countries who brutally oppose anyone who believes anything besides their government-sanctioned religion. In China, that's a secular sort of "faith," and in Iran it's Islam (98.6% of the population). Christians can be thrown in jail, beaten, exiled, refused or fired from jobs, have their churches destroyed, and even be tortured and killed - all because they profess faith in Jesus. We remember that they suffer for the same cause that we live for. And we remembered that God is sovereign over all, but we must pray. We must remember.

In the closing of his Colossian letter, Paul said,

Remember my imprisonment. Grace be with you.

And Hebrews 13:3:

Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.

We should not be surprised that the cause of Christ incurs suffering. We should not be surprised that evil flourishes in a society that commits idolatry every day - worship of self. We should not be surprised at sin, but we should never grow accustomed to it. Let it never feel natural. We can't get comfortable. And we can't forget suffering. Remembering in prayer is the greatest thing we can do for both of those causes - persecution and abortion. The Sovereign One has the whole world in His hands. He will judge with fairness and with equity. But that doesn't mean we don't have any responsibility. It means we have more responsibility. We must remember, and we must not keep silent.

Resources on Abortion:
Abort73 - This is a website I link to every year. It is an especially thorough resource, including practical facts, stories from women who've had abortions, videos, and more.
9 Things You Should Know About Planned Parenthood - This article coincided with President Obama's keynote address at the 75th Planned Parenthood gala.
Questions for our Pro-Abortion Friends, Church Leaders, and Politicians - This is a moving article by Kevin DeYoung on the reality of life.
Five Things We Can Do for the Unborn - John Piper is purely practical here.

Resources on the Persecuted Church:
9 Things You Should Know About the Persecuted Church - This chronicles extremely important facts that happened in just 2013.
Voice of the Martyrs - This is a non-profit organization that seeks to assist the persecuted church worldwide. You'll find many excellent resources on this website, like how to pray, how to give, overviews of different nations, and more.
Open Doors - This is also an important ministry helping the persecuted church.

Growing in Grace: January 2014

Some Thoughts on Reading Books - Dr. Mohler: "I cannot really remember when I did not love to read books. I do know that I was very eager to learn to read, and that I quickly found myself immersed in the world of books and literature. It may have been a seduction of sorts, and the Christian disciple must always be on guard to guide the eyes to books worthy of a disciple’s attention—and there are so many."

Actively Engaged in the Abortion Battle - An excerpt from Matt Chandler's sermon on abortion. This is especially noteworthy with the 41st anniversary of Roe v. Wade coming up on January 22.

When Women Lust - This article was not what I expected. "We all know that men struggle with lust. But what about women? While it's becoming more common to hear of women's struggles with pornography use, many women still perceive that they have the moral high ground over men. Such comparisons don't help because men and women often struggle in different ways."

Isaiah 9:2 - A neat illustration of a powerful verse.

The First Council of Constantinople - Challies has a weekly series going "on the seven ecumenical councils of the early church." If we think this history unimportant, we ought to change our thinking. The history of the church is extremely important, for as the saying goes, "if we don't know history, we're doomed to repeat it."

Jesus Must Increase: A Prayer for the New Year - What a beautiful, powerful prayer that I hope we all do pray this upcoming year.

The Ten Commandments of Twitter - If you're on Twitter, this is a must-read!

Change is in the Oatmeal - "Last week, the girltalkers met at Janelle’s house. We brought Chick-fil-a, sent the kids to play with Christmas toys, and set our laptops, notepads, and colored pens on the kitchen table. It was time to plan."

Reading the Bible - Lisa Spence has some excellent thoughts on Bible reading plans.

CROSScon - I was incredibly blessed to livestream the CROSS conference the last weekend of December. All the video sessions are online now, and I highly commend them to you.

Let's Talk About Kermit Gosnell

It seems nobody much wants to talk about Kermit Gosnell these days. In fact, if you're like I was a few weeks ago, you haven't even heard of Kermit Gosnell. And that's just the way abortionists, pro-choice advocates and secular newspapers all over the world would like to keep it. That's why nothing much has been said about one of the biggest abortion trials in American history.

But it's time to talk about Kermit Gosnell.

Gosnell is a 72 year old abortionist from Pennsylvania who has run a horrifying and hideous little abortion clinic for over thirty years, making millions of dollars through both murder and infanticide. He is on trial right now for eight counts of murder, a woman who came to him for an abortion and seven newborn babies.

My dad rounded up a collection of well-written, thought-provoking and heart-breaking articles by well-known Christians on the subject of Gosnell and the horrors surrounding him. I'd encourage you to check it out here and realize the need to stand up for life in these dark days ahead.

"You [God] are the only safe place for the suffering. You are the helper of the fatherless, children dashed to pieces on the bloodstained table of terror at the Women’s Society in West Philadelphia. You are the helper of the helpless marathon watchers wounded without cause or reason. You are the helper of people all over the globe helpless to understand or explain these massacres. We can’t explain this now, and we’ll never be able to change it, but you, our God, are a God who demands justice and executes it perfectly. You are a safe place for all the sorrowful, confused, and slain, whoever will trust you, even while we can’t see you in the midst of these scary scenes." - Marshall Segal

Love Lets Live

It was forty years ago today that the decision was made. On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court ruled its famous decision in a 7-2 win that an American woman had the legal right to abort her child before the start of the third trimester. A single, pregnant young woman, "Jane Roe," from Texas, wanted to have an abortion, not because her life was in danger, but because ... well, she just didn't want her child. So she sued Henry Wade, the Dallas County attorney, for enforcing the Texas abortion prohibition laws. And after much controversy, exactly forty years ago today, in the Supreme Court courtroom, "Roe" won, and abortion has been legal in the States ever since. And what was the reason given by these judges for this murderous law? Justice Harry Blackmun's excuse was that,
"At this point in the development of man's knowledge," we can "not resolve the difficult question of when life begins." He further states that “if this suggestion of (fetal) personhood is established, the [case in support of legal abortion] collapses, for the fetus' right to life would then be guaranteed specifically by the (14th) Amendment." 
Yet this is where it gets just plain ridiculous. Here is what Abort73.com, an amazing Christian pro-life education resource, says about Justice Blackmun's words:
"While this claim of, "we just don't know when life begins," was demonstrably false in 1973, it is even more nonsensical today. We do know when life begins. We are "at the point in the development of man's knowledge" where we can "resolve [this] difficult question." Nevertheless, the law remains the same, abortion has become entrenched in American life, and the institution which was hoisted upon us without public debate has become a force to be reckoned with. Like slavery before it, abortion is now central to the lives of many Americans, but no matter what the social cost may be, when laws victimize the weak and vulnerable (rather than protecting them), it is time for those laws to change."
Here Abort73 makes a clear, logical point. Science has proven that life begins at conception (check out the link in the quote - "we do know when life begins.") Now, forty years after this court ruling was made, it's even more clear that life begins from the moment it starts to form in the womb. And then Abort73 brings up a point you may have never thought about - today, abortion is like slavery.

Slavery forces people to give all control of their own life into the hands of someone else, someone who could abuse them or take their life at will. Slaves were completely helpless; the value of their life was determined by their master. And just like slavery is completely evil and immoral, so is abortion. Today we say that a baby's value is determined by its mother. If a mother thinks that her child's life is not worth living (whether it's for a reason they think is valid or biblical or not), she can terminate that life. But it is only God who decides the value of a person. Only He sets the standard for life. And His standard is that all life is beautiful. Every baby deserves to be born, every life deserves to live. (Psalm 139:13-16)

Just a few days ago, we celebrated Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. Russel Moore (a noted theologian and professor and dean at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) wrote an article last week called, "Why I Hate Sanctity of Human Life Sunday." Here's why:
"I don't hate Sanctity of Human Life Sunday because I think it, somehow, unbiblical. No, indeed. The entire canon throbs with God's commitment to the fatherless and to the widows, his wrath at the shedding of innocent blood. I don't hate it because I think it's inappropriate. ... I hate Sanctity of Human Life Sunday because I'm reminded that we have to say things to one another that human beings shouldn't have to say.
  • >>Mothers shouldn't kill their children.
  • >>Fathers shouldn't abandon their babies.
  • >>No human life is worthless, regardless of skin color, age, disability, economic status.
The very fact that these things must be proclaimed is a reminder of the horrors of this present darkness."
So join with me today in praying for the unborn, for the abortive mothers, for the abortion clinics, for the pro-choice protesters and for those women who are pregnant and even now contemplating an abortion. Let's pray for God's glory to be manifested in the midst of such tragedy that goes on every day. As an abortion is committed every 26 seconds, let's commit to stand up for the right of the unborn. Let's stand up for life. And let's pray that this murderous practice will be condemned and stopped. For, as Russell Moore concluded his article,
"We'll always need Christmas. We'll always need Easter. But I hope, please Lord, someday soon, that Sanctity of Human Life Day is unnecessary."

A Few Resources on Abortion

Sanctity of Life Sunday


Today is a day unlike any other. It's a "holiday" of sorts, hated and not celebrated by millions, yet unknown to millions more. It is Sanctity of Life Sunday, and on this day, January 22, we solemnly remember the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the United States and celebrate the sanctity of life.

Below, I've pasted several resources on abortion that I strongly encourage you to look into. I don't know how much you know about abortion or where you stand, but I hope that the people who have taken the time to craft these posts and resources on abortion, the gospel, and the sanctity of human life will open your eyes to the horror of this legalized murder of unborn babies. 

Before you read these, here's a quote by John Piper I encourage you to keep in mind:

"Let’s be like Jesus. In every social issue from abortion to alcoholism, from AIDS to unemployment, from hunger to homelessness, let’s give the help that we would like to receive if it were us. And at every moment in that love, let us feel an even greater urgency to pray and speak and work to rescue people from everlasting suffering through the gospel of Jesus. And to that end, may we rest and rejoice that we have a Father in heaven who hears our cry and will get us home."

  • Abort73.com - "Abort73.com is an online resource designed to creatively and comprehensively educate students about the injustice of abortion, and provide them with simple tools to help pass that education along to others."
  • A Month for Life - This post by Kathleen Nielson from the Gospel Coalition blog links the child's right to life with receiving gifts from God.
  • What Does Roe v. Wade Actually Say? - This short post from the Desiring God blog overviews what the 1973 Roe v. Wade case actually accomplished.
  • Abortion is as American as Apple Pie - This article from Dr. Albert Mohler looks at abortion and one of the leading pro-choicers, Merle Hoffman.
  • Sanctity of Life, Gendercide, and Science - This well-written abortion blog is by Carolyn McCulley.
  • Please, God, No! - This is the story of Maryann Loveing, who as a teenager aborted her baby. After a period of grief and despair, she found freedom in Christ.
  • Five Things We Can Do for the Unborn - This article from John Piper is very applicable! 

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