Out of the stump
of David’s family will grow a shoot—yes, a new Branch bearing fruit
from the old root. And the
Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the
Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. He will delight in obeying the Lord. He will not judge by appearance nor make a
decision based on hearsay. He
will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of his
word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked. He will wear righteousness like a belt and
truth like an undergarment. In
that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down
with the baby goat. The calf and the
yearling will be safe with the lion, and a little child will lead them all. The cow will graze near the bear. The cub and the calf will lie down together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. The baby will play safely near the hole
of a cobra. Yes, a little child will put
its hand in a nest of deadly snakes without harm. Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my
holy mountain, for as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled
with people who know the Lord. In
that day the heir to David’s throne will be a banner of salvation to all the
world. The nations will rally to him, and
the land where he lives will be a glorious place. Isaiah 11:1-10
“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 prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5
So far in our series we have seen three lies:
Lie #1 is false teaching itself, false ideas and doctrines
that can destroy us, or which can be destroyed by a pure
heart when God forgives sin, and clears our conscience, and helps us be
committed to a genuine faith in Jesus Christ.
Lie #2 is found in a currently popular saying: I’ve gotta love me first. Jesus says in response: listen to the commandments of God and
love Him first, others also, and don’t worry about yourself so much; God will
take care of you.
Lie #3 is that the only way you can find fulfillment in life
is by breaking-away from any restraints that God (or anyone else) tries to
place on you. To that Jesus says: Go ahead and dig your heels in against
me; what you’ll find is more emptiness than you ever imagined.
Lie #4 is what we’re exploring today – the legal
assassination of the womb. Many people
hold strongly opposing views on this, as they do on most controversial
issues. My personal view is
Biblically-based, and not founded in what is legal or accepted as normal
in our culture. The fourth lie is a
literal killer of the unborn.
The lie is It’s
just a fetus; Truth declares:
Abortion is murder.
On September
11, 2001 evil doers killed over 4,000 people. They were future
leaders of this nation, doctors who could have saved many, perhaps a scientist
who may have found a cure for cancer, evangelists who may have lead thousands
to the Lord. These people were loved. Yes on September 11, 2001, evil doers killed
over 4,000 people. A day later, on
September 12, 2001 evil doers killed over 4,000 people…and, again on September
13, and 14, and 15. Every day evil doers
are killing over 4,000 unborn babies; 4,000 each day; 28,000 each week; 112,000
each month and 1,460,000 each year.
We are Being Pulled Apart
The Russians have a word, translated agitation in English.
The word applies to old peasant log houses. These log houses are constructed around a key
beam, running under the center of the house.
To pull the house down a tractor simply had to jerk back and forth on
this key log until the entire structure collapses. Literally, the word means, to shake to pieces from underneath.
American society is being shaken by forces pulling at our key
logs. One of these forces is a lack of
respect for life. The sixth commandment
informs us that Life is sacred, and we are to preserve it, not find ways to justify
ending it!
In our culture some forms of murder are never prosecuted; abortion
is one of those forms, lauded as a right in this country, but ripening judgment
in heaven.
Despite the controversial nature of this subject, as well as
the socio-economic views on either side – the fact is that the Bible
states it is wrong. Somewhere in this
country yesterday, a woman found out she was pregnant. The chances that baby will ever be born are
no better than 50/50. For varied reasons
and circumstances, nearly 1/3 of all pregnancies terminate by choice of the
adult.
Only 1% of abortions performed are for the medical safety of
the mother. The year Jesus was born
Herod tried to kill all the Jewish babies in Palestine. He had heard about a possible ruler who would
take his place. Like Hitler, Herod tried
to abort all challenges to his power.
Eugenics is the science of engineering new births. A 1993 poll of couples in New England
revealed that 11 percent would abort a child predisposed to obesity.[2]
Infanticide is a term that means killing infants. Peter Singer, an Australian bioethicist maintains,
When the death of a disabled infant will lead to the birth of another
infant with better prospects of a happy life, the total amount of happiness
will be greater if the disabled infant is killed.[3]
Killing is killing; homicide takes place, no matter the
location, in or out of the mother’s womb.
To show you how far this can go, there are even some abortion
rights proponents who claim that children aren’t fully human until around the
age of two. Therefore we should be able
to terminate them up to that age if they don’t suit us. When will it end?[4]
The Bible tells us that all of life is God’s. He made it, and therefore it is subject to
His will.
Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the
mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand
the activity of God, who does all things.
Ecclesiastes 11:5
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me
together in my mother’s womb. Psalm
139:13
How Can We Overcome the Crisis?
While abortion has been legal in this country for nearly 50
years it is still a crisis that is pushing the envelope on the judgment God
will bring on this nation.
To be certain God has given us the exercise of free
will. However, to go along with free
will, God has shown us that we should walk with Him, not strive against Him.
He has told you, O man, what is good; And what
does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk
humbly with your God? Micah 6:8
The way for America to overcome the moral and spiritual
turning away we have done is to turn back to God in repentance. Repenting of sin is always on the table and
should be a hallmark of God’s people’s lives.
And this spawns two other questions:
Where and How Must Repentance Begin?
For it is time for judgment to begin with
the household of God; 1 Peter 4:17a
Judgment, confession and restoration always begins with God’s
people getting their house in order.
Those of us who name Jesus Christ as our Master are responsible to lead (by
example) those who are blinded out of the darkness.
It begins with a decision to stop going-along to
get-along. Too long the
church has attempted to see just how comfortably we can co-exist with the
darkness. Jesus told us we don’t have
any business participating with evil. We
don’t need to curse the darkness, but we do need to start driving it out with
some light!
Here are a few ways you can hold up a candle:
· Vote. If you are a
believer, and you don’t do the simplest legal thing you can do, vote for people
who will honor the Lord with the way they govern, there is little hope for you
in the day of final judgment to receive anything close to a well-done
good and faithful servant. A
simple non-partisan rule for me is to never vote for someone who approves of
abortion.
· Speak-up. Hold your elected
officials accountable for preserving and protecting life. When you contact a U.S. Senator or
Congressman by letter, email or phone they count your effort as representing
100 constituents. Say a word for
preserving life and 99 other voices say amen.
Remember what’s at stake:
‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor
hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. ‘So
because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My
mouth. Revelation 3:15-16
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…Amen!
[2] Joel Smith, SermonCentral.com, The Utne Reader, quoted in Signs of the Times, January, 1993, p. 6
[3] James Emery White, You
Can Experience an Authentic Life, p. 79
[4] Joel Smith, Respecting
Life, SermonCentral.com
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