Why a Christian has no choice but to oppose abortion
This isn't a Republican/Democrat thing
There was a time not that long ago that I regret to admit it would have been a fair and accurate indictment of me to say that I filtered everything through a political lens. My first allegiance was to a political movement that I advocated for daily, brashly, and boldly on my regional radio show and regular written column. Conservative politics was unquestionably an idol to me, even if I would have vehemently denied it at the time.
A combination of things, including a spiritual maturity that thankfully has been taking place in the intervening decade, has largely cured me of that misplaced focus. That’s not to say that I don’t still have conservative politics. Anyone who reads my work knows that’s the case. But conservatism isn’t Lord. Jesus is. And there are times that I find elements within my ideological preferences that conflict with the principles of my faith.
Through uncomfortable conviction of the Holy Spirit I’ve come to recognize the reality that if my political preferences are always fitting nicely within the faith I espouse, it’s far more likely that the former is informing the latter rather than vice versa. That’s not good.
I thought about that a lot this week as the American political universe was transfixed by oral arguments in the first real, fundamental, constitutional challenge to Roe v. Wade abortion law in almost 3 decades. By most accounts, the hearing has left pro-life activists feeling more than just a little bullish about the possibility that the days of federally-imposed abortion-on-demand in the United States may be numbered.
That growing consensus among commentators on both sides of the political aisle has left activists plotting, planning, preparing, and strategizing for what comes next. On the left, that meant hysteria:
Meanwhile, I read more than a few right-leaning commentators who were postulating and predicting potential political ramifications for Republicans in the Congressional midterms of 2022 if the Court removed its judicially fabricated “right to abort.” The calculation and scheming went so far as to see conservatives wrangling over whether the Republican Party would be better off with the ruling coming down this year or next, once the elections have concluded.
The bipartisan turmoil reminded me how thankful I am for the spiritual conviction that has continued to lead me further away from the tribalism that far too often determined and defined what I “believed.”
Today, I don’t think anyone would ever question where I stand on the issue of life. But I wonder how many of them know why.
The reason I’m against abortion, euthanasia, doctor-assisted suicide, infanticide – all of it – has nothing to do with Republican/Democrat. Not anymore. It has nothing to do with the next election or the long-term prognosis I think engaging the issue will have for my preferred party. It honestly has nothing to do with conservative/liberal either. Ideology matters, but not for its own sake.
No, my opposition to those things has everything to do with the fact that I have surrendered – intellectually, philosophically, spiritually, ethically, totally – to the Lordship of Christ. I have taken captive every thought and made it obedient to Him (2 Corinthians 10:5).
Biblically speaking, my Christian theology must provide the framework for all my actions and ideas. And on something as fundamental as human life, there is no escape:
We are told that every human being has been created by a God who knows our name and has ordained before the beginning of all things our time to live (Acts 17).
We are told that we are known by God even before we were fully formed in the womb (Psalm 139).
We are told that human life is of special divine worth, set intentionally above all other living things (Genesis 1).
We are told that every human being is endowed with Imago Dei – meaning our worth comes not from the things we do, but from the fact that we bear the inviolable image of the Creator in our unique, unduplicated soul (1 Corinthians 15).
There’s no wiggle room there. I’m bound by those truths as surely as I am a joint heir with Christ (Romans 8:17). I have no desire within me to deny those truths, given that doing so would testify to my disbelief in Christ’s supremacy and Lordship. It would publicly disgrace His name by conveying to an already-skeptical world that His moral authority was insufficient – that my own judgment, preferences, and political alliances were, as most of them already suspect, more important than the eternal deity I claim to serve. Not much of a deity if that’s the case.
Of course, there several folks who acknowledge my Christian convictions, but argue,
“Just because that’s what you believe, Peter, you shouldn’t seek to legislate such personal political beliefs onto others who don’t share them.”
Every time I hear that, I’m reminded of the incredibly stunted view of God and His sovereignty that they possess. And I’m reminded that liberating them from that grievous error has to be my highest priority.
ICYMI
Here are a couple stories I wrote recently that you might find worthwhile:
I also put together this video in response to Bill Kristol’s recent claim that liberals are the ones who are grateful for America:
Thank you for articulating so well how following Christ differs from pure political affiliation.
AMEN!