Another Year, Another Million: Roe v. Wade
It’s that time of year again… 41 years ago tomorrow [January 22, 2014] our nation will see another anniversary of the most grievous ruling our nation, and arguably any nation in history, has ever seen. Roe v. Wade opened the doors for nationwide legalized abortion, and we’ve never turned back since. Sure, we’ve won a few battles from state to state or nationally with regards to late-term abortions, and that’s good, but viewing the issue as a whole we’ve been largely ineffective at changing anything. Christians have been far too silent for far too long. Sure, we might share a pro-life message on Facebook or vote for the right candidates, but we’ve done very little to turn hearts and minds and work towards bringing an end to this mass infanticide.
How far are you willing to go to declare what is an abomination to God? How much of a sacrifice are you willing to make? Willing to boycott a favorite travel destination like New York? During a radio interview last week New York Mayor Andrew Cuomo indicated those who are “pro-life” are not really welcome in New York. In talking about conservatives he declared: “Their problem is not me and the Democrats; their problem is themselves,” he said. “Who are they? Are they these extreme conservatives who are right-to-life, pro-assault-weapon, anti-gay? Is that who they are? Because if that’s who they are and they’re the extreme conservatives, they have no place in the state of New York, because that’s not who New Yorkers are” (see http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/01/20/governor-andrew-cuomo-pro-life-people-not-welcome-in-new-york/). My point to Mr. Cuomo would be this: the real problem is not conservatives or political parties. The real problem is people who have stiffened their neck against God and His commands. Is that who New Yorkers are?
Adolf Hitler’s Holocaust against the Jews brutally ended 6,000,000 lives. For comparison, imagine the metropolitan area of Houston being wiped out, with no survivors. Since our Supreme Court’s ruling on abortion in 1973, 55,000,000 have been slaughtered, with really no end in sight. For comparison, imagine every single person in Los Angeles being killed. And San Francisco. And Oakland. And Seattle. And everyone else on our entire west coast (California, Oregon, and Washington), along with the state of Arizona. To sum these statistics up in a word – horrifying.
While some statistics are showing a positive turn, millions still hold to the belief that “I would never get an abortion, but I could see why some might need to and I can’t take their rights away.” Even a number Christians think that abortion is acceptable in certain situations. Either one of those should cause us to shudder, because both of those belief sets forget the basic point, the reason why anyone is against abortion in the first place: it’s murder. Beyond that, though, we still face the problem of our stance on life in the church. We’re not pro-life, we’re just anti-death. Don’t believe me? Watch the heads turn and listen in on the words that are said when a family with more than four or five children walk into your congregation. Pay attention to the scorn cast on newly married Christian couples that are “too young” and “have no business” having children. You’ll see that while we don’t want children to be killed, we only accept them in certain situations and in certain numbers. If we are to be people with a Christian worldview, we must be in favor of all life and view ALL children as a blessing from God (Psalm 127).
As in every battle that we have with the culture, there are dozens of compromises we can make between the extreme humanistic view and what the Bible says, or we can start with the Bible and build a Christian worldview based on what it teaches. There can be no compromise when it comes to the protection and celebration of life. God makes it clear in the Scriptures that He knows us and forms us long before we are born, and that we were souls created by His love back to our beginnings in the womb. That goes for everyone.
As a whole, this debate is just another one in the larger discussion of whether or not we can be a Christian nation, a country that holds the values and morals of Jesus Christ. We shouldn’t expect a country filled with people who have no regard for the Bible’s teachings to come around on abortion, homosexuality, or any other moral issue facing us today, and we shouldn’t expect a church that has only a conditional respect for life to succeed as a standard-bearer. Therefore, in addition to legislative efforts, we have to start with informing. We can’t just inform people that abortion is wrong. We have to tell them why it’s wrong, why life is important in God’s eyes, and why it matters to stand up and speak out. As much as ever before, the world needs the love of Christ, and we can’t be satisfied with trying to legislate morality without changing hearts (including our own). Get involved in the pro-life movement, help save lives, and keep the command to make disciples at the heart of it all (Matthew 28:18-20).