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This edition of Ask the Pastor features Pastors Ben Poole and Gary Schick.
Ben Poole
All right, so if you are not aware, January in the Christian world, more so, is known as, "Sanctity of human life month." There's a particular Sunday where we celebrate it in churches. This year's January 23rd. So be aware of that, just something that we can celebrate, and share the truth of God's love for all people. So this morning we got some questions that came through on this topic and I'm sure to some degree, it's a touchy topic for many people and probably some would disagree, but we want to do something a little bit different this morning. But in leading up to what we're gonna do, I just wanted to share a couple of, or a few of these questions that came out and then, have a little bit of discussion time. And we're gonna read some scripture as well. So first, "Does the Bible say anything about abortion?" And secondly, since we just celebrated Christmas, consider where we would be, if Mary had aborted the savior. And then thirdly, "Is God pro-life or pro-abortion? So obviously, some pretty, pretty deep questions, if we really start to consider them. And we're gonna get into some discussion, but first we wanted to, as we come to the close of this year and the beginning of a new year, we thought of a scripture fitting kind of around this, but also maybe a breath of fresh air.
Gary Schick
Yeah, we both turned to it together. I'm like, "I'm thinking let's read Psalm 1:39," and you're like, "I just opened to that." Which is really, if you're talking the life question. You know, the sanctity, the holiness, the preciousness of life from the womb. This is the chapters. But it's also a great place to end the year and begin the year.
Ben Poole
Yes, I agree. So Gary, why don't you start us off?
Gary Schick
Yeah, I'll take the first half, and then you take the second. Psalm 139, for the director of music of David, a Psalm, "Oh Lord, you have searched me and you know me, you know, when I sit and when I rise, you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down, you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely oh Lord. You hem me in behind and before, you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, to lofty for me to attain, where can I go from your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there. If I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the Dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there, your hand will guide me. Your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, surely the darkness will hide me, and the light become night around me, even the darkness will not be dark to you. The night will shine like the day for darkness is as light to you."
Ben Poole
Man, that first half is beautiful. Just amazing. So we're gonna start in verse 13 and close out this chapter, "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. How precious to me are your thoughts oh God. How vast is the sum of them? Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I wake, I am still with you. If only you would slay the wicked, oh God. Away from me you blood thirsty men. They speak of you with evil intent, your adversaries misuse your name. Do I not hate those who hate you oh Lord, and abhor those who rise up against you? I have nothing but hatred for them, I count them my enemies. Search me oh God and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there's any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting." That's a beautiful Psalm and really listening to David's heart here is just so pure and raw. And I remember actually just reading this, we actually talked about kind of that last bit of that chapter a while ago, addressing that issue. But what you see is this, I mean, David was called a man after God's own heart. Even in his sinfulness, even in his struggles, he had this amazing relationship with God. And he talks about this idea of life and creation of life. And it's not simply science that builds a human in a womb, it's God knitting us together. It is knowing our life from beginning to end before the beginning happens. And so we see this really beautiful picture, I see, of a God who loves life.
Gary Schick
Yeah, and God's connection to life from beginning to end. I mean, the beautiful part of the beginning about, "You know, no matter where I am. You know, I could go to the far side of the sea, no matter where I go you're there, you are with me. Your eye is on me and was with me and on me from the time you were putting me together in the womb Lord." And I think that these are verses that, for the pro life movement, have been significant in our understanding of what life is, where it begins and how precious each of us are. And what makes it great for this moment at the end of this year, as we move into the next is just to say to our listeners, "Hey, don't know where this year has brought you in your personal life, but just know this, you are under a watchful and loving eye. The Lord who formed you in the womb, you are precious to Him. And He's there, He's carrying us through."
Ben Poole
Yeah, you know, we were talking before this. There's a lot of talk, especially now, even in the last years about abortion. And almost this fight between pro-life and pro-choice, and it's easy to get into a fight, it's easy when you believe your right to argue your point. I've struggled with this myself, cause I believe we should be pro-life and I enjoy arguing, but I've also learned that, we're not gonna lead people to Christ by arguing with them. We're gonna lead them to Christ by loving them. I met a guy who was part of a Christian organization, and was leading this huge event. And he was talking about his wife who worked at a pregnancy center that was pro-life, and it was right down the street from an abortion clinic. And a lot of people were picketing and standing outside and yelling at the women that were going in, and really claiming to be Christians, but not really showing the love of Christ. And this guy's wife decided one day, she had this heart for these women. She bought dozens of roses and she walked over there and just started handing out flowers to these women that were there. Telling them that she loved them, that God loves them, and not preaching at them, not beating them over with scripture or telling them their sinning or anything like that. She just wanted to love them, and through that women came over to the pregnancy center and made different decisions to have their children. And so I believe simply from what we just read. Among all the other things, God is absolutely pro life, He creates life.
Gary Schick
Life is what He does.
Ben Poole
That's what He does, that's who He is, He is light and life. And so I think we can come to that conclusion, but that does not mean that He's absolutely against those who are making decisions, because guess what I make sinful decisions too. And He's not against me, He is for me. And so I think that needs to be the heart of the Christian. As we come to this time of year, as we close out this year, we are people of life and light because we are followers of Christ. And Jesus didn't come just for the good people. He didn't come for the people who were righteous and holy already. He came for the sick and the needy and to call sinners to repentance. And that should be our heart's desire as Christians, is to love these people, no matter what they're going through. You know, we're talking about abortion okay, but that's a broad stroke that we can cast, is we are to love people, period. That's who we are, it's not our job to judge the world, that's already taken place. They're living in judgment, it's our obligation and our privilege to love the lost. And this is a month where we celebrate life. Maybe we can do that in a way where we take steps that may be different than what we've ever done before. By loving people in the mess they're in and sharing the gospel of Jesus.
Gary Schick
I one hundred percent agree. You know, it's been a grimier in certain ways. I think we're coming up on, who knows maybe by the time this broadcast will have crossed it, a million people having died of COVID. But you know, many more than that die of abortion. Abortion's the leading killer in this country, and if only that got the airplay that COVID has, right? So it's a tough subject, life is precious and of course it stirs deep feelings. And of course we understand that those who feel motivated to move toward abortion are, just by definition, they're in a tough place. But truly, God's love has a power to change minds, to move decisions in a new direction. And in fact, as we close out the year, as precious as biological life is, it is absolutely, Jesus came that we might have eternal life. And listeners, you are alive, you were born and you've made some terrible mistakes and you've gotten some things right. But you are like all of us, a sinner who Jesus died to save. You know, and you mentioned, Jesus, didn't just come for the good people. Good thing, cause we're not, we are all sinners in God's eyes. He is the good one, He is the one who is good. And yet He in His goodness, loves us right where we are regardless. That's the other side of it. We need to let people know, who are on the other side of this debate, that they are loved too and that their lives matter too. And it seems so obvious to me, to those of us on the pro-life side, "Hey, if I'm in a body, I know how precious that is. How could I ever take it on myself to deny another living person?" As Dr. Seuss would say, "No matter how small, a person's a person, no matter how small." But obviously there's a lot of blindness and darkness in this world, and God's love is what starts to open us up to even be able to hear His truth.
Ben Poole
Yeah, one hundred percent. We know that there's probably listeners that maybe have had an abortion. Maybe even considering it, or maybe you're in a situation where you ended up pregnant and you, from whatever happened, we want you to know that we love you. And God loves you no matter what, even if you've made that choice, you are not so far from God that you cannot be loved and given grace and mercy. And so we're actually gonna continue this conversation a little bit next week. Cause there's some other questions that come up that I think are really great questions. And maybe something that some of you, or you know someone that's struggling with this about, "Can I be saved after making this decision? Where do I stand with God?" So we want to give you some hope and some reason for joy, even in this situation and even in this topic. We know that sometimes we say things that we don't mean or are heard a different way. And so if you ever have questions about this or where we stand on this, feel free to reach out to us and just ask those questions. You can call into the radio station, you can ask the questions it's completely anonymous and we would love to answer those questions.