The Sanctity of Life
Every Human, Including an unborn baby
is a unique, special creation of God:
The Bible tells us that of all God's creations on Earth, mankind alone is created in the image of God. That is, each man or woman has the unique essence of God- an eternal spirit, or soul. We should tremble at the prospect of killing- or advocating the killing of- another person made in God's image.
Genesis 1:1, 26a-28a:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness…." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female, he created them. God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number…."
Genesis 2:7, 22:
The LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
Malachi 2:10a:
Have we not all one Father? Did not one God create us?
Acts 17:25b:
Paul said "…for he himself [God] gives all men life and breath and everything else."
Acts 17:28-29a:
For in God we live and move and have our being. As some of your own poets have said, "We are his offspring." Therefore since we are God's offspring….
1 John 3:1a, 2a:
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God…. Dear friends, now we are the children of God….
Matthew 10:29-31:
Jesus said "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."
Life, a gift from God, is in His hands.
It is God Who gives and Who takes life.
Man should not attempt to interfere with God's plan.
Job 12:10:
In God's hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.
Psalm 24:1:
The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.
Life is a Gift from God.
Life is one of God's greatest gift to man.
Life is to be cherished and celebrated not desroyed lightly.
Isaiah 42:5:
Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein….
Acts 17:25b:
God himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.
A Child is a Gift from God.
God gives a child to parents for a reason a reason only fully known to Him. Parents should be thankful for the gift, seeking God's guidance in how to rear the child to be a blessing to the parents and community and a credit to and servant of the Lord.
Genesis 4:25b: …and Eve gave birth to a son abd named him Seth, saying, "God has granted me another child in the place of Abel…."
Genesis 30:6a: Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; he has listened to my plea and given me a son.":
Genesis 33:5b: …Jacob answered, "They who are with me are the children God has graciously given your servant."
Ruth 4:13: So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. Then he went to her, and the LORD enabled her to conceive.
Psalm 127:3: Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children are a reward from him.
God knows and loves each person before birth:
What an awesome and loving God we have, that He chooses to know every detail about every person He has created. If we are special enough to be known in intimate detail by the Creator, we have no right to destroy each other.
Job 3:3: Job said "Let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night in which it was said, 'There is a man child conceived.'"
Job 10:2: 8-9, 11-12: I Job will say to God: …. "Your hands shaped me and made me…. Remember that you molded me like clay…. Did you not clothe me with skin and flesh and knit me together with bones and sinews? You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit."
Job 31:15: Did not he [God] who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one God form us both within our mothers?
Psalm 139:13-16: For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
Jeremiah 1:4-5a: The word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart…."
Isaiah 49:1b, 5a: …Before I was born the LORD called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. And now the LORD says he who formed me in the womb to be his servant….
Each person is important to God as His child:
And He has plans for each person, even before birth.
Not only does God know each person to whom He grants life, He has plans for that person. Each person has a purpose and tasks waiting to be performed for God's Kingdom. We have no right to attempt to alter God's plans.
Genesis 25:22-23a: The babies jostled each other within Rebekah, and she said, "Why is this happening to me?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated…."
Judges 13:3,5:The angel of the LORD appeared to her [Manoah's wife] and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. You will conceive and give birth to a son and the boy is to be set apart to God from birth…."
Romans 9:11-12: Yet, before Rebekah's twins were born or had done anything good or bad she was told, "The older will serve the younger."
Matthew 1:18b,22-23: but before Joseph and Mary came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through his prophet, "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" which means, "God with us."
Luke 1:36a: The angel answered Mary: "Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age…."
Luke 1:44: "As soon as the sound of your [Mary's] greeting reached my [Elizabeth's] ears, the baby [John] in my womb leaped for joy."
Luke 2:21: On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.
Galatians 1:15a: But when God, who set me [Paul] apart from birth….
God prohibits shedding innocent blood, and the unforgiven sin of the taking of Human life
may jeopardize the receiving of the reward of Heaven.
The Bible is crystal clear: Man shall not kill another person, except under sanctioned actions of governments such as just wars. Before Christ, a murderer was to be put to death- death of the body (the first death). If abortion is murder in God's eyes, the penalty may be "death" of the soul (the second death). If a person dies with the unforgiven sin of murder charged against him or her, The Bible seemingly indicates that he or she will be denied entrance into Heaven. However, a loving God provides a way for any man or woman to be forgiven of any sin- including murder- if he or she accepts Jesus Christ as Savior, confesses the sin and asks God's forgiveness, and repents of the sin.
Genesis 9:5c-6 (part of the Noahic Covenant): God said to Noah and his sons "…And from each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man."
Exodus 20:1, 13: And God spoke all these words: "You shall not murder*." (*COMMENT: Murder may be also be translated "dash in pieces," which is an accurate description of the fate of an unborn baby during an abortion. [See Strong number Hebrew 7523.])
Exodus 21:12: The LORD said "Anyone who strikes a man and kills him shall surely be put to death."
Exodus 21:22-23: The LORD said to Moses "If men who are fighting hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined…. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life…."
Exodus 23:7b: The LORD said to Moses "…do not put an innocent or honest person to death, for I will not acquit the guilty."
Leviticus 24:17: The LORD said "If anyone takes the life of a human being, he must be put to death."
Deuteronomy 27:24a, 25a: "Cursed is the man who kills his neighbor secretly…. Cursed in the man who accepts a bribe* to kill an innocent person…." (*COMMENT: Is acceptance of a bribe to kill an innocent person the same as a fee for service accepted by an abortionist and an abortion clinic to kill the most innocent of us all- an unborn child? The original language can support this interpretation. The Hebrew word- shakh'-ad- here translated &147:bribe"- may also be translated "reward." [See Strong number Hebrew 7810.])
Proverbs 6:16-17c: There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: one of which is hands that shed innocent blood….
Psalm 9:12: For he who avenges blood remembers; he does not ignore the cry of the afflicted.
Psalm 10:2: In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.
Psalm 94:3, 6b: How long will the wicked, O LORD, how long will the wicked be jubilant? they murder the fatherless.
Colossians 3:25: Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.
Hebrews 4:13: Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
Revelation 22:14-15: (14) Jesus said, through an angel "Blessed are those who wash their robes that they might have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. (15) Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood." (EXPLANATION: In this passage, Jesus summarizes sin- each person's responsibility to have his or her sins forgiven and the penalty for not receiving forgiveness. Wash their robes indicates that each person wears a robe stained by the sins he or she commits. Each person can enter Heaven only if his or her robe is sparkling white and clean- washed free of all earthly sins. A person can wash away these stains of sin only by the blood of Jesus, mankind's Passover Lamb, who died on the cross for the sins of all persons. In other words, accepting Jesus Christ as Savior gives a person the right to cleanse the stain of sin from his or her life. Tree of life is a symbol Jesus used for eternal life in Heaven. The city refers to New Jerusalem, or Heaven, prepared by God for our eternal life and enjoyment and brought from the heavens to Earth. Outside [the city] indicates that those who do not accept Jesus Christ as Savior still have sin-stained robes and cannot enter Heaven. In a similar passage [Revelation 21:8], Jesus taught that a person not admitted to Heaven will experience the second death- death of the spirit [soul]- and will spend eternity in "the fiery lake of burning sulfur" [Hell]. If you accept Jesus Christ as Savior and follow Him as Lord of your life, if you confess your sins to God, and if you repent of your sins [turn away from your sins], you can avoid Hell and receive the reward of Heaven.
If you have had an abortion or if you work in the abortion industry, there is GOOD NEWS! A loving God stands ready to forgive you of any sin. How? Accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord of your life. Forgive others of sins they have committed against you. Confess your sins to God in prayer and to a Priest who is the representative of Christ on earth in the sacrament of Confession. Ask God to forgive you. Repent, that is, turn away from- sin. God promises to forgive and not even to remember your sin. You do not need to have any sin charged against you. You do not need to experience guilt. God wants you to have joy in this life on Earth and in your eternal life in Heaven. Past mistakes should be in the past and no longer remembered, if you become a born-again Christian who seeks from this moment forward to follow only God's Will for your life. Ask a Priest or a Christian who is strong in the faith- a minister or lay person- to help you better understand the great love and peace God has in store for you, if you will love and follow Him and remove the burden of sin from your life.
The Writings of Pope John Paul II, on the Sanctity of Human Life.
Evangelium Vitae
The encyclical, issued by Pope Paul VI on Human Life.
Humanae Vitae
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