by Brian Fisher
There are numerous mainstream Christian denominations supported by
thousands of congregants who identify themselves as Christian and
pro-abortion. I
defined what it means to be a Christian and then listed the main
arguments that pro-abortion Christians typically cite to support their
pro-abortion position.
I believe Scripture is abundantly clear on this topic and that it’s a
serious contradiction to claim to be a follower of Christ and also be in
favor of abortion. However, let me once again stress a key point: As
Christians we are to correct each other in light of what the Bible says,
and do so with grace, gentleness, and truth. In the Church today, it is
far too easy to cast stones at each other over various issues. So we
must let Scripture speak plainly to us and allow the Holy Spirit to do
His work.
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In this email I will unpack what the Bible says about the sanctity of
life in the hope that these biblical truths will open the hearts and
minds of all who claim Christ as their Savior.
(Once again I am indebted to Reverend Jamie Peterson for his thoughtful and generous collaboration on this article.)
Throughout the centuries, true Protestant Christians have taught and
believed that the Bible is indeed the Word of God, as it’s contained in
the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, and that it’s the
only inerrant and infallible rule of faith and practice. (Our Catholic friends also rely on extra-biblical texts, although the Catholic Church remains unflinchingly pro-life.)
Inerrant means “without error,” and
infallible
means “steadfastly true.” Therefore, the Bible is the guide for
Christians in that it teaches us what is true concerning Christ and how
we are to live for Him.
Man Is Uniquely Created
First, we must consider the uniqueness of God’s relationship with humans.
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The Bible tells us that both male and female are created in the image
of God (Genesis 1:26-27). Generally speaking, this means that in some
sense all human beings are like Him. This is not to say that we are
divine in any way. However, we do have some characteristics in common
with God, such as personality, the capacity to love, consciousness, and
so on.
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Being created in God’s image also means that we have the capacity to
relate to Him and, likewise, He relates to us. From the part in Genesis
where we read how God created the first man and throughout the rest of
Scripture, we see God relating to humans in a way that He does not do
with any other part of His creation. He created us to have a unique,
special, and intimate relationship with Himself. No other created being
has this privilege.
So while it is clear from Scripture that God—through Jesus
Christ—pursues and maintains a relationship with His people who are
outside the womb, what does Scripture say about those who are still
inside the womb, yet to be born?
Old Testament
The Bible makes no distinction between the life of an unborn child and
the life of one who’s been born. Yeled is the most commonly used Hebrew
term in the Old Testament, and it refers to a child or a boy. Genesis
25:22 mentions yeladim (children) struggling inside the womb of Rebekah.
And Moses recites a law (Exodus 21:22-25) that covers what should
happen if a pregnant woman is struck during a fight and a yeled (child,
boy) comes forth from the woman (is born prematurely).
Regarding whether or not an unborn child bears God’s image, in Psalm
139:13-16 (ESV) we see God relating to an unborn child through the
intimate knowledge that He has of the child:
For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
And in Jeremiah 1:5, we see that God acknowledged Jeremiah before he was
conceived, and then God set Jeremiah aside for a special work before he
was even born:
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
New Testament
The same principle that claims unborn children are image bearers of God
is maintained in the New Testament as well. The Greek term
brephos
is used to refer to the young Hebrew males who were slaughtered at
Pharaoh’s command in Acts 7:17-19, as well as to an unborn John the
Baptist who leapt at the presence of Jesus while they were both still in
their mothers’ wombs (Luke 1:41-44).
Clearly the biblical position is that unborn children are indeed human
beings, created in the image of God and with the capacity to relate to
Him. And while our society is filled with “unplanned pregnancies,”
Christians rely on the sovereignty of God. In other words, no child—a
unique and special creation of God—is truly unplanned in the mysterious
and unsearchable plan of God. After all, from a purely human standpoint
we could argue persuasively that Jesus was the result of an unplanned
pregnancy. However, with God there are no mistakes. He alone is the Lord
and Giver of life.
In the next installment of this series, I will address the most
common scriptural references cited by pro-abortion Christians and reveal
the fallacies in each argument.
Brian Fisher
President, Online for Life
