Part III
When Does Human Life Begin?
What Does the Bible Say?
1.
When does the Bible say that human life begins?
Answer:
The Bible clearly views humans as persons from conception onward. The
noted theologian and attorney, Dr. John Warwick Montgomery, cites Psalm
51:5, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother
conceived me,” as solid proof that David considered himself as a “me,”
not an it, even at conception. He concluded, “For the biblical
writers, personhood in the most genuine sense begins no later than
conception; subsequent human acts illustrate this personhood, they do not
create it” (Christianity Today, June 5, 1970). Again the Psalmist
stated, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my
mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:13). J. R. Dummelow said that, within
this context, David is alluding to the “mysterious origin of a human
personality in the womb” (One Volume Bible Commentary, p. 376).
And certainly the Holy Spirit considered Jeremiah more than a “blob of
flesh” when he said: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the
nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5).
2.
Does the New Testament say anything about unborn babies?
Answer:
The Greek word “brephos” is found several times in the New Testament.
Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the NT. p. 105, defines “brephos”
as “an unborn child, embryo, fetus...new born child, infant, babe.”
John the Baptist, as a brephos, leaped in his mother's womb (Luke 1:41).
Baby Jesus, as a brephos, was laid in a manger (Luke 2:12,16). Now if one
might justify destroying a brephos (fetus), as in the case of John the
Baptist, why could not one with the same propriety destroy a brephos
(babe), as in the case of baby Jesus? The same word “brephos” is used
in both verbally inspired statements. According to the New Testament, the
difference between the preborn baby (fetus) and new born baby is clearly a
matter of time and different places of residence.
3.
Who is the author and giver of life?
Answer:
Humanist philosophy justifies abortion on demand on the grounds that man
is the author and giver of life and therefore, if one desires, humans can
terminate life at will. Several Bible passages clearly indicate that the
only true God, the Triune God of the Bible, is the Author and Giver of
life. He was the Author of human life in the very beginning (Genesis
1:26-27, 2:7, 2:22). God then told Adam and Eve to “be fruitful and
multiply” setting into motion a biological process for procreation.
However, God did not remove Himself from this creative process. He remains
the Author of life (Genesis 30:2, 22, Job 12:10, Psalm 139:13, Isaiah
49:5, Acts 17:28). We leave the wonder of this mystery in God’s hands
(Ecclesiastes 11:5).
4.
What about those Christian men who condone abortion and Christian women
who have induced abortions?
Answer:
Where willful sin or a mistake in judgment has been made, the repentant
Christian can continue to live and serve in full assurance of forgiveness.
However, the availability of divine forgiveness suffers flagrant abuse
whenever it is taken for granted and freely used as a basis for violating
clear moral principles related to the sanctity of human life. However,
flaunting God’s will and abusing His grace are forgiven to those
Christians who repent of such sins and accept the pardon offered from our
loving Savior, Jesus Christ.
For Part IV click
here.
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