On Life and Unborn Children

If the issue is abortion, I confess that I am a one-issue voter. The fact of the matter is that I do not believe the issue to be a political one — the morality of abortion isn’t something which should be decided by debating politicians, lobbyist money, or the protester’s cry.

From where I stand, abortion is nothing short of murder. The corollary of that those who perform abortions are murderers, those parents who get abortions are accomplices to the murder, and all parties involved should do nothing short but repent before the God against which they have sinned.

Don’t tell me that’s harsh; I know it’s harsh. In the sea of moral relativism that America is becoming, my views are radical. I accept that with confidence because I know that insofar as I am agreeing with the Scriptures, I am believing truth and not a lie.

There are those out there who reject the Bible’s teachings yet think they know it better than those who spiritually thirst for its words. They tell us that the Bible doesn’t teach that abortion is wrong, that Christians who take a stand for the issue are simply close-minded. Fair enough; after all, their “let’s all get together and tolerate one another” mentality works exceedingly well, so long as the Bible or those who believe it aren’t invited.

The world hates truth like that. True story.

So what does the Bible say about the unborn? Quite a bit actually, and while I’m not going to share a lot of commentary — this post will hopefully serve as a reference for believers on the subject, myself included — there are a number of relevant verses which reveal God’s mind toward the unborn.

I encourage everyone — Christian believers in particular — to give due consideration to each of these verses, asking yourself with each one, “Do I view the unborn in this way, or are my views at odds with the Almighty’s?”

And Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, because she was barren. And the Lord granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived. ²²The children struggled together within her, and she said, “If it is thus, why is this happening to me?” The First Book of Moses, called Genesis 25:21–22

Note carefully two things:

• The unborn twins were not the “parasitic masses of flesh” within Rebekah; they were not the “fetuses with potential to become humans” within her. No, the unborn twins were children within her. That is how God viewed them. What about you?
• The actions of the unborn children were significant. Their struggling had prophetic implications and was not merely the instinctual writhing of a fetus.

They said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, This is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to bring them forth. The Second Book of Kings 19:3

Again, the unborn are explicitly called children; their humanity is not doubted in the slightest.

But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? The Book of Ruth 1:11

While Naomi wasn’t pregnant at this time, she unambiguously makes it clear that if she were pregnant with a male, then she would be pregnant with a son, not a mass of parasitic flesh.

“Let the day perish on which I was born, and the night that said, ‘A man is conceived.’ The Book of Job 3:3

A man was conceived… Not an embryo, not a fetus, not a potential human… A man.

And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? The Gospel According to Luke 1:43

This verse is taken from the account of when Mary visited Elizabeth; Elizabeth is taken aback by this and wonders just how it is that the mother of her Lord would visit her. Now, there’s nothing out of the ordinary about that, but wait… Jesus had yet to be born yet! Still, Mary is referred to as mother in reference to Him!

Again, this does not sound like the Scriptures teach anything less than that true humanity — and just about everything that goes along with it! — begins at conception.

And not only so, but also when Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, The Epistle of Paul to the Romans 9:10

Again we see that according to Scripture, children are conceived. Do not let the pro-choice crowd bewitch you: a fetus is no mere lump of flesh. It is not a parasite to be excised at a person’s discretion.

And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. The Gospel According to Luke 1:36

Again, “son” and not “fleshy lump.” She was pregnant with a son, and she bore a son (Luke 1:57).

Many more such verses could be shared. The point is, in the eyes of Yahweh, an unborn child is still a child.

The humanity of a child is not debatable, at least not if the Scriptures are authoritative on the matter.

And that ought to settle the minds of the 75% of Americans who identify themselves as some form of “Christian” (Roman Catholic and “other” categories included).

Sadly, the vast majority of that overwhelming majority seems to, if I may say so, take the Lord’s name vainly. “Christian” on a census sheet means nothing if one doesn’t submit to the Scriptures and the God who inspired them.

Abortion would be a non-issue if we could get grow some spines and stand up for the name by which we have been called.

Still, you may be thinking that maybe referring to the unborn as “child” or “son” or whatever else doesn’t really prove anything, doesn’t really establish the value of the unborn. Perhaps you’ve been told that there are Bible verses which actually support the idea of abortion.

Fair enough, and I hope in time to discuss them here. In the meantime, I hope we can all agree that when the Bible speaks of the unborn, it speaks of them as children. The Bible teaches that a pregnant woman is a mother to her unborn child.

If we can agree on that, we can hopefully build on that.