O Hold Them Back
In one of the most egregious examples of doublespeak ever, New York State has passed the Reproductive Health Act, a law that allows abortion up to the moment of birth, allegedly only to sustain the health of the mother. Allowing late-term abortions of this sort has nothing to do with reproductive health—it is essentially reproductive death to a full term baby. Multiple physicians have stated a caesarean delivery would provide for the health of a mom far better than any late-term abortion. And worse, to avoid the federal ban on partial birth abortion, abortion providers would need to “induce fetal demise” prior to removing the baby—this is nothing but infanticide. This new law has nothing to do with health but rather it is all about ideology. It is part of the radical attempt to guarantee all abortions on demand.
Although every abortion kills a living pre-born baby, somehow it seems far worse to take a viable, healthy child and murder it moments before birth. This is even contrary to the Roe V. Wade ruling which only allowed abortion for babies that were not yet viable outside the womb. This new law seems so horrific, that when I told a mom about it yesterday, she burst into tears. She understood the feeling of holding a newborn baby in her arms and to her, this law merely legalizes the murder of the most precious and helpless of all. God spare us.
A dear friend of both Eva and I wrote to me yesterday, saying she had been weeping all day after hearing the news of the New York law and asking if I would address this today. I encouraged her to go back and listen online to the Opening Word from last week, in which I laid out the biblical reasons for preserving life. But in light of this horrifying new law, I want to focus on another issue—why we need to act and what to do.
The reason we can’t ignore this law is found in Proverbs 24:11-12: “Rescue those being taken off to death, and save those stumbling toward slaughter.If you say, ‘But we didn’t know about this,’ won’t He who weighs hearts consider it? Won’t He who protects your life know? Won’t He repay a person according to his work?” We can’t sit by passively and just bemoan the degenerating state of the world. We must stand up and act in defense of life, doing all that we can within the law to preserve these precious unborn children.
So what can we do? Foremost, we should use our rights as citizens to oppose this law. When the apostle Paul was facing false charges and a corrupt trial, he used his rights as a Roman citizen, to appeal to Caesar (Acts 25:10-11). As citizens, we can push Congress, in both the house and the Senate, to pass laws banning late-term abortion. Federal law takes precedence over state law, and a federal ban on late-term abortion would not violate Roe V. Wade but would supersede this atrocious New York State law.
Also, we need to pray for the people of New York State, to do what is morally right even if the abortion of a late-term child is legally permissible. I am praying that God would work in the hearts of all pregnant women there, that He would strengthen their maternal instinct and convict them of their need to preserve the precious life growing in them. I’m asking God to work so that whatever inconvenience or difficulty a mom may be facing, she would still prioritize caring for her yet unborn but beloved baby.
Beyond these steps, we need to use our money to support Crisis Pregnancy Centers, in our local areas, but now also, in New York State. These centers are at the front lines of helping pregnant moms find the financial help and emotional support they need to protect their unborn children. We need to give so they can work in the lives of moms who need guidance and help. We are living in a challenging time in the United States. There is a growing disillusionment with faith and God. Militant atheism is on the rise and morality is decreasing. Believers seem less loving of those who need the Lord the most. So I’m praying for revival here. I’m asking God to make Jesus followers into salt and light so that we can impact our culture for the gospel. May we proclaim the good news of Jesus with love and tact but also fearlessly and boldly. I’m praying that God will open hearts to the message of Messiah Jesus and that people will trust in Him. It seems to me that’s the best way to preserve the lives of unborn children.