What Does God Say About Abortion?

Miscarriage may be planned, accidental, or natural. Pregnancy is interrupted and the unborn baby dies. Planned miscarriage is called abortion and ranges from destruction of the fertilized egg to the dismemberment and forced ejection of the full-term baby. A great controversy rages today concerning abortion, focusing on the issue of whether the unborn baby (or fetus) is truly a person and at what stage of development that fetus becomes a viable human being. The issue centers on the sacredness of human life. Does human life begin at conception, at birth, or at some point between the two? Who would argue that at birth the baby is fully a human being? The argument is whether the unborn child is fully a human being. The other part of the controversy is whether there are justifiable reasons for abortion. Most Christians would argue against abortion as a means of birth control. Some would argue that abortion is acceptable if it will save the life of the mother, or in the case of rape or incest, or if the unborn child is known to be brain damaged or deformed. Ultimately the core question is: In the process of conception and birth, when does human life begin? But a second question is parallel to the first, and may be equally important: What value do we place on the developing unborn child?

WHEN DOES LIFE BEGIN?Psalm 51:5 . . . I was born a sinner--yes, from the moment my mother conceived me. The Bible makes it clear that life begins at conception, not merely at birth.

DOES THE BIBLE SAY ANYTHING ABOUT HUMAN QUALITIES IN THE UNBORN CHILD?Psalm 51:5 . . . I was born a sinner--yes, from the moment my mother conceived me. Sinfulness--perhaps the most unmistakable human quality--was present not only at birth but even as far back as conception.

GOD IS ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN OUR DEVELOPMENT BEFORE BIRTH.Psalm 139:13-16 . . . You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--and how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, . . . You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. God is present continuously during the nine months of pregnancy--forming, watching, creating, and even scheduling each day of the unborn baby's life. The value of an unborn child is priceless.

DOES GOD HAVE ANY PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH THE UNBORN CHILD?Jeremiah 1:5 . . . "I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world." God knew us each as persons before we developed in our mother's womb. He establishes a purpose for us before we are even born.

SOME PEOPLE CALL ABORTION MURDER. IF IT IS MURDER, WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES?Genesis 9:5-6 . . . Murder is forbidden. Animals that kill people must die, and any person who murders must be killed . . . for to kill a person is to kill a living being made in God's image. If the unborn child, at any stage of pregnancy, is a person, then terminating that pregnancy is murder. God sees all human beings, regardless of age, as special creations with eternal value. God also makes it clear that killing another human being is punishable by death. Capital punishment originated with God's commandments, and in the Old Testament it was the penalty for murder.

DID GOD REALLY WANT ME TO BE BORN? DOES HE HAVE A PLAN FOR ME?Jeremiah 1:5 . . . "I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world."Psalm 139:13-16 . . . "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--and how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed." God not only knew all about you before you were born, he wanted you to be born and he has a plan for your life.

DON'T I HAVE THE FINAL SAY OVER WHAT HAPPENS TO MY BODY?1 Corinthians 6:12-13 . . . You may say, "I am allowed to do anything." But I reply, "Not everything is good for you." And even though "I am allowed to do anything," I must not become a slave to anything. But our bodies were not made for sexual immorality. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 . . . Don't you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will bring ruin upon anyone who ruins this temple. For God's temple is holy, and you Christians are that temple. Our bodies are God's temple; his Spirit lives within us. Body, mind, and heart must do what is honoring and pleasing to him.

IS ABORTION ABSOLUTELY WRONG?Genesis 9:5-6 . . . Murder is forbidden.Proverbs 24:11-12 . . . Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don't stand back and let them die. Don't try to avoid responsibility by saying you didn't know about it. For God knows all hearts, and he sees you. He keeps watch over your soul, and he knows you knew! And he will judge all people according to what they have done. Every child needs a champion, even the unborn child. If abortion is taking the life of an unborn human being, then it is murder and it is absolutely wrong.

CAN GOD FORGIVE ME FOR HAVING AN ABORTION?Psalm 51 . . . I recognize my shameful deeds--they haunt me day and night . . . Create in me a clean heart, O God . . . Restore to me again the joy of your salvation. Just as King David experienced the joy of total forgiveness after committing adultery and murder, so we can know God's forgiveness--for any sin--if we confess our sin to him.Isaiah 1:18 . . . No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can remove it. I can make you as clean as freshly fallen snow. Even if you are stained as red as crimson, I can make you as white as wool.Psalm 103:3 . . . He forgives all my sins.1 John 1:9 . . . If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.Ephesians 3:18 . . . May you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. God can cleanse and heal us from any and all sin, no matter how big or terrible it might be. No sin is beyond God's forgiveness. No matter what you may have done in the past, let God restore you to wholeness.

PROMISES FROM GOD:Jeremiah 1:5 . . . I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb.

Credited to Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. from iLumina Encyclopedia Content