Posts Tagged ‘Christian’
Wow, well people, I got a call last night from a fellow pastor. He wanted to unload a little frustration. He was telling me that while at a bible study that he was asked to lead, a participant decided to assert that ‘not all Christians oppose abortion.’ I agreed with her. Not all Christians oppose abortion. However, I would also assert that those Christians who support abortion (or just don’t oppose it), either do not know their Bible, or they do not believe it.
First, the Bible says plainly not to kill. That is a standard that we can all agree on. Don’t kill is a pretty simple starting point.
Second, unborn babies are still alive. Heart, mind, soul; they feel, they think, they move…. Just because they don’t breath on their own doesn’t make them less alive. (Ex. We don’t consider a person on a ventilator to cease to be human.) For a bible reference on a person being a person prior to birth, see Jeremiah 1:5.
My thought here is two fold. First, It is very biblical to oppose abortion. In fact I don’t believe that you can be a thinking person who knows and believes the Bible and still support abortion. Life is sacred. And as a Bible believer, I know that we are created in the very image of God. How could it be possible for us to decide that we can end a life? The second part of this thought is this: This is far more than a political stance. Shame on every Christian who says that the church should not get involved politically, and then tries to tie issues of right and wrong to politics, therefore taking it out of the Churches sphere of influence. In short, if the Bible addresses the issue, we are well within our rights to address it publicly. And that is our RESPONSIBILITY. We have fallen well short on it over the years. Lets not drop the ball this time.
Now, I must say that it is possible that a true believer, who does not yet understand the Bible, may still support abortion. We must bear with these people and have patience with them and continue to focus on what the Bible says, not our personal feelings. BUT…. If you have a person who knows and understands the word of God, and still chooses to support abortion, this is the same as intentional, willful, deceit. This is the same as having a member in your congregation who knowingly sell drugs or guns for purposes of harming other people. This is definitively what the church stands against. So do not fail to take action. First, establish the Biblical precedent. Teach it to the church (members, teach your pastor if you must.) Then allow those who refuse to conform to the teachings of the Bible to speak. (You have to let them either decide to get on board, or get out, their choice.) You as a leader may have to ask those around you to make a choice; will they support the Bible, or will they support the world’s view of abortion? Don’t let people straddle the fence. Jesus said plainly in Luke 11:23, “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.” Where will you stand? Your politics are not a part of this. Leave them behind. Will you look at this from Jesus point of view or not? He died for the unwanted. He died for the unloved. He died for you. Now, do you really believe that he doesn’t care what we do with these children that are unwanted by the parent? I think he cares very much.
More to come on this, I am sure.
Todays Bible reading: Psalm 46