I believe that God has created me and all creatures.He has given me my body and life…
In these words from Luther’s Small Catechism we state our belief that God the Father used His almighty power to bring all things into existence. The crowning stage of His creative handiwork happened on day six when He fashioned the first man, Adam, from the dust of the ground and the first woman, Eve, from a rib of Adam, blessing them with the ability to produce offspring, saying: “Be fruitful and increase in number…” (Genesis 1:28).
The unbelieving world rejects the teaching of creation as a myth. It accepts the notion that the universe came into being through chance processes of evolution over eons of time.
The doctrine of evolution has spawned many evils in our society. One of these is that the sanctity of human life has, to a large extent, been devalued. This, in turn, has brought about the fact that the lives of countless thousands of unborn children have been tragically snuffed out through abortion.
We are not expecting the spiritual condition of our culture to improve anytime soon. Jesus foretold that in the latter days the moral climate of the world would grow steadily worse, not better. The Savior does encourage us to use opportunities He gives for sharing His life-giving Word for the spiritual benefit of individuals whom we meet along life’s road.
As we share Christ’s Word of life, we can also be confident He will use it to lead many to a saving knowledge of Him and, at the same time, to a proper appreciation of the sanctity of human life (which He, the Son of God, came down from heaven to redeem).
Here is a sampling of Bible truths related to the abortion issue that can be shared as witnessing opportunities come our way:
• The Bible reveals that the span of a person’s life in the world is “a time of grace.”
Our lifespan is a time which the Lord gives to individuals so they can learn about Him, come to believe in Him, and finally be saved. We are told in Acts 17:24-25: “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth … he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else … He has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him.”
Since each person’s life is a time of grace, we will want to regard it as precious. We will want to view also the lives of unborn children as precious and after they are born do all we can to teach them about their Savior.
•According to Holy Scripture God has intimate knowledge of each person from the time of conception.
In Psalm 139:13-15 we are told: “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb … My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place … Your eyes saw my
unformed body.”
How amazing that all through the term of a mother’s pregnancy the Creator is at work “behind the scenes,” weaving the body of the little one together, cell by cell!
Since the fetus growing in the mother’s body is a precious life formed by the hand of God (a person beloved of the Lord!), we want to safeguard its well-being till the day arrives for the baby to be born.
• “My times are in Your hands” (Psalm 31:15).
This Bible verse encourages us to keep in mind that God is the loving caretaker of our moments and days, of our entire span of years on the Earth. He is the originator of our life and He reserves for Himself the right to end that life at a time when He, in His divine wisdom, chooses.
It has been estimated that over 50 million abortions have been performed in the United States since the Roe vs. Wade decision was handed down by the Supreme Court in 1973.
Perhaps you know someone who has made the wrong choice in this matter and is experiencing the guilt-feelings that come from transgressing God’s will.
If so, what a wonderful opportunity the Savior is providing so that you might apply to such a wounded heart the healing medicine of the gospel.
You and I can share the good news that where sin abounds, God’s grace—His undeserved love—abounds more; that there is pardon for every repentant sinner in Christ Jesus, the Redeemer of all—who came that we might have life and have it to the full!