It may surprise some to learn that there are a significant number of professing believers who would call themselves pro-choice. Not surprisingly, the group has rather weak biblical support for this position.
When teaching, it is often helpful to point out a counterexample and show why that example is wrong. In this article, we will look at several statements made by those who claim to be both Christian and pro-choice. Ultimately, answering the question "what does the Bible say about abortion?"
These statements must be evaluated in the light of the Scriptures. Why? Because Scripture is the standard against which all claims must be measured.
An End to Abortion now stands firmly on the Scriptures as the basis for the belief that all abortion must end immediately. The Bible is the authoritative and sufficient standard of life and godliness; therefore, the Bible is the source for determining correct ethics and morality.
The last biblical text that condemns the practice of abortion is the Sixth Commandment: "Thou shalt not kill" (Exodus 20:13).
The central question of the debate between anti-abortion and pro-choice positions is simply this: Is abortion murder? The abortion country says yes. The choice party says no.
The Bible unequivocally states that real life begins at conception. Look no further than Psalm 139:
For You created my innermost being; Knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are Your works, and I know this very well. My frame was not hidden from Thee when I was created in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Thy book and appointed for me before one of them appeared.
— Psalm 139:13-16
With that in mind, here are some common arguments used by pro-choice Christians to make their case.
The first general argument
I'm for autonomy. I am for independence. I'm pro-choice. I am also of the opinion that my religion, or anyone else's religion, has no place in other people's affairs. I don't like Christ being used as a political cudgel, but here we are in 2016 talking about the very personal decisions women make, and so I feel compelled to write this.
– Charles Clymer, HuffPost
Among religious groups, the pro-choice position is nuanced, acknowledging that most people believe that abortions — like childbearing — are matters of individual conscience, not government or religious mandate.
— BeliefNet
The first common argument found among the Christian pro-choice movement is that religious preferences should not control the behavior of those who do not subscribe to that religion. To be clear, this argument applies to any woman who is pregnant, whether she claims Christ or not.
What does the Bible say about the first common argument
What is happening in this argument is doctrinal sleight of hand. The sin of abortion has been relegated to the status of a "tertiary" doctrine. Those who adhere to this argument do not believe that the Church has the authority to refer the issue of abortion to any individual.
The dilemma of whether or not to kill an unborn child is therefore seen from this position as a matter of "conscience", akin to the choice to use tobacco or get a tattoo.
It is impossible to faithfully read Scripture and believe that God does not command obedience to His law in all aspects of life, including sexual and reproductive. Believers in Jesus Christ are subject to church oversight because they are loyal to Christ as Head of the Church.
The church is called to confront sin. The idea that the Church should not speak authoritatively in the lives of its members clearly contradicts the teachings of the New Testament.
In Matthew 18, for example, Jesus instructs the apostles about church discipline, preparing them for the event when a member is found to be engaged in public sin. He gives the church authority to excommunicate the unrepentant.
Paul repeats the practice in his first letter to the Corinthian church, ordering them to excommunicate a member found guilty of unrepentant sexual immorality. Regarding Clymer's reluctance to see Christ used as a "staff," we must not forget that Jesus informed His disciples that He did not come to bring peace, but a sword (Matthew 10:34).
The Doctrine of Christian Liberty
Christian freedom is real, but it cannot be applied to blatantly sinful behavior. In his letter to the Romans, Paul explains that Christian freedom exists with respect to practices that are not forbidden by God in His Word, but may nevertheless offend the believer's conscience.
A common example of this is drinking alcohol. Enjoying a glass of wine or beer does not violate God's commandments. However, drunkenness is clearly forbidden by God (Romans 13:13, Ephesians 5:18). A Christian recovering from alcoholism may be offended by drinking and therefore should stay away from alcohol.
To confuse the killing of a baby with a problem of conscience on this level, however, is absurd at first glance. Murder is not a matter of conscience. It is a plain and very simple law of God, which has neither been abrogated nor abrogated since the coming of Christ.
God despises murder, because he is the author of life; he is the Judge of all the earth and He knows every baby from its mother's womb because His creative work brings that baby into the world.
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I sanctified you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.
— Jeremiah 1:5
Romans 13 defines the purpose of government.
Let every man be subject to the rulers. For there is no authority but from God, and those that exist are established by God. Therefore, whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will be condemned. Because rulers are not a terror to good behavior, but to bad. Will you not fear him who is in power? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is God's servant, an avenger who brings God's wrath upon the sinner.
— Romans 13:1-4
It is the responsibility of the civil magistrate to punish the miscreants justly. To restrain human depravity, God orders government to enforce the laws of civil society.
In the case of abortion, the notion that the government is unduly interfering in private business is inaccurate, given that the government's job is to protect citizens from assault and murder. Surely it is in God's definition of government that civil magistrates protect unborn babies and punish those who shed innocent blood.
Exit 21
The book of Exodus makes it clear that a fetus does not have the same legal status as a person (Chapter 21:22-23). This verse indicates that if a man pushes a pregnant woman and she then miscarries, he is only required to pay a fine. If the fetus was considered a full person, it would be punished more severely as if it had taken a life.
— BeliefNet
This is not a correct reading of the passage. The smaller problem with this argument is that, by its own admission, BeliefNet admits that God's Word recognizes that there is a penalty for negligently causing a miscarriage by striking a pregnant woman. This means that God really considers the unborn person to be a sacrifice. The bigger problem is that the verses do not say what is communicated in the quote above:
When men quarrel and strike a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, he who strikes her shall surely be fined, as the woman's husband shall impose upon him, and he shall pay according to the judges. But if there is evil, then you will pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
— Exodus 21:22-24
In the above case, fighting men recklessly hit a pregnant woman, causing a premature birth. However, the caveat "if no harm" exists to distinguish between a fine and a more severe punishment.
Thus, this text affirms the personhood of the unborn baby, as it does not distinguish between punishment for harming the mother or the baby. The consistent application of this statute would cause the Israelites to take great care in the presence of expectant mothers.
The second general argument
Those who oppose abortion are often accused of focusing on abortion to an undue degree in light of the many social problems in the world today.
My takeaway from the pro-life message, aside from the obvious autonomy problem, is that I've very rarely seen my pro-life friends argue so passionately about children's health care or universal health care or refugees or against the death penalty or poverty or advocating for mental health or homeless advocacy, etc.
– Charles Clymer, HuffPost
This argument asks how a believer can meaningfully claim to care about the rights of the unborn when he does not care about other issues.
What does the Bible say about the second common argument
Skipping over the "autonomy problem" that Clymer mentions, the thrust of this argument is that his opponents are hypocritical for getting excited about abortion while supposedly not caring enough about his favored causes.
When making ethical judgments, the Christian's first and only source of truth is God's Word. Psalm 19 says that the Lord's law is perfect. Clymer's opinion about what the church should prioritize counts for nothing compared to God's revealed will.
Some concerns mentioned here are matters with which believers are seriously concerned. Others, such as "universal health care," stem from political agendas that Christians generally oppose.
The idea that Christians should be equally enthusiastic about all social ills is absurd. This means that evils are homogeneous. If one is faced with a dilemma between saving someone from being hit by a train and feeding someone who hasn't eaten in days, there is an obvious difference in the urgency of these two situations.
Caring for the poor is a top priority for the Church. They actually do it a lot. The fact that babies are being deliberately killed by the thousands every day is a far more urgent and grave evil than the gradual starvation of the poor. While American Christians must address both issues, the former must be opposed much more vigorously.
Abortion gets a lot of attention from many conservative Christians because most Americans now agree that poverty, mental health and other social issues need to be addressed. Abortion, on the other hand, is an act with questionable morality.
Many non-believers do not believe that abortion is wrong. Many professing Christians are confused about this. Therefore, the struggle is not only to stop abortion, but also to make it clear that the practice of abortion is sinful and will be judged by God. Once this truth is universally recognized, a ban on abortion will immediately follow.
Whoever sheds man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed, for God created man in His own image.
— Genesis 9:6
The third general argument
I'm sure there is a real and serious concern for the "unborn," but I feel that what really separates this issue from all other life and death issues—"what causes such anger"—is an implicit, religious need to controls and shames women. sexuality.
– Charles Clymer, Huffington Post
Because we believe in the sanctity of human life, we believe that the child has the right to enter the world, wanted and loved. Because we believe in the sanctity of human life, we are sensitive to the effects of unwanted pregnancy on individual women, their loved ones and their families, and recognize that they, not us, must determine what is best for those directly affected and involved .
This argument asserts that the mother should have autonomy because she must bear the physical burden of pregnancy and raising the child. Since the fetus is growing in her body, she also has the right to make the final decision about carrying the baby to term and deciding whether she will love the baby or not.
What does the Bible say about the third common argument?
Clymer's claim that Christians have a pathological need to control women's sexuality is offered without any evidence. Also, notice the scare quotes around the word "unborn."
This means that such a concept exists only in the minds of his opponents because he does not agree that the concept is real. He apparently considers the existence of the anti-abortion movement as sufficient evidence to conclude that the Church simply wants to impose its will on everyone.
This is an incorrect statement. After all, it is God who determines the sexuality and reproduction of human beings. The Church seeks to act in a way that is in accordance with God's commandments; therefore, it agrees with His plain word on any given subject, including sexuality.
Biblical sexual ethics restrict intercourse to married heterosexual couples (Matthew 19:4-6) who conceive and care for babies as a blessing from God (Psalm 127:3). Parents have no right to withhold love and care from their babies. Such a position is not popular in modern American culture.
Fornication is a sin; being a victim of a sexual crime is not a sin. For this reason, some believers are comfortable making exceptions in the case of rape and incest to allow abortion. However, the baseline does not change.
A baby, innocent of any willful sin, nevertheless dies. The baby did not rape anyone. The baby did not irresponsibly choose consensual sex. God requires all people of both sexes to exercise self-control and keep sex within the limits that God has wisely established.
For this is God's will, your sanctification: to abstain from fornication; that each of you knows how to rule his own body in holiness and honor, and not in the passion of lust like the heathen who do not know God.
Sexual sin is not unique to women. Apart from the atoning work of Christ, anyone who commits sexual sin should be ashamed. A man who is the father of a child and leaves is still the father of that child. He will be judged not only for his sexual sin, but also for abandoning the child and the mother.
What does the Bible say about abortion?
The Bible strongly condemns the practice of abortion
This has been the clear position of the Church since the days of Christ's earthly ministry. For a handful of professing believers to suddenly "discover" that the Bible does not condemn abortion is a ridiculous claim. Claiming allegiance to God and yet supporting the practice of abortion is untenable.
The only right choice left for such people is to repent and seek God's forgiveness. God is able to forgive the sin of abortion. He is able to forgive the sin of supporting abortion.
He will even forgive support for abortions performed in His name. But He is also a perfect judge, and the blood of the innocent cries out to Him for justice.
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the gospel.
— Mark 1:15
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