New York, New York, Oh how you will fall…
On the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the state of New York passed one of the most aggressive Pro-Choice/Abortion provisions to date. It legalized abortion on demand through the third trimester, even into the delivery. Weeks before this bill was passed, Governor Andrew Cuomo could be seen begging, if not insisting, that the state legislature bring him a bill that would legalize the most progressive provisions for abortion in the state’s history. The state legislature acted posthaste. They quickly brought a bill to his desk and the Governor signed it without hesitation!
To say that we live in a sick and twisted world goes without saying. But it must be said clearly & plainly by the church of Jesus Christ that abortion in any form is a clear violation of God’s Law and God will not stand idly by and watch wicked magistrates abrogate their God-given role to protect ALL life. We don’t have to advocate for a “Christian” nation to say these things. We have clear teaching from God’s Word about murder and the value of life, in all its forms. We also have clear teaching from Romans 13 on the role of the magistrate. When we speak up on issues of morality and ethics in our world, let’s not presume that we are talking about politics. By and large, politics is bankrupt in most forms in our nation today. It seems that politics has devolved into a game played among elected men and women who want to protect their office. They pander to our bases rather than do what is right.
Sadly, I fear that New York State is but one of several states that will offer up this sacrificial offering to the god of the “what’s best for me” culture that the American Dream has evolved into as a nation. My own home state of Virginia, a once fairly conservative state on matters of both fiscal and ethical importance, put a bill of even more progressive nature on the floor of the legislature. Thankfully, that measure was defeated but by only one vote. [My heart breaks even writing that sentence.] In defense of the measure, the self-proclaimed moderate Democratic Governor of Virginia [a former trained medical doctor] described the gruesome reality of third-trimester abortions and what would happen if the abortion was botched and the child serviced. His description is nothing short of infanticide.
So what why do I bring this to your attention? Is there anything new here? Is this is just another politically conservative diatribe by an elitist white middle-class evangelical? No! It’s a desire to help us wake up as a church to the real issues that we are facing and call us to bring the Gospel to bear on them.
So here are three pastoral challenges that I hope you will join me in prayerfully considering.
LET’S REPENT…
Yes, that’s right. I believe we need to repent. Now repentance here is not merely to call unbelievers to repent. We need to consider the ongoing call to daily repentance and belief that Martin Luther said was central to the Christian life. Here are a couple areas that I am seeking repentance in lately
- Repent of our indifference to Abortion. I am decidedly pro-life and I am convinced that being pro-life in every biblical sense extends to more than just abortion. But in saying that, I recognize that I, too, have fallen into a kind of “avoidance” or “apathy” in regards to speaking about the issue of Abortion. Why? Because I, along with many other conservative evangelicals have been disillusioned with the way that many in the Republican Party have played fast and loose with this topic only to get the majority of the “evangelical vote.” The issue of Abortion stands on a mountain of complex issues such as poverty, opportunity, and education for many in minority communities. These are realities the church cannot ignore and in so doing, we might subvert the wickedness of the abortion industry in more ways than just politics. Yet, it must be clearly stated that the founding efforts for communal sterilization and legalization abortion were initially aimed at controlling the population of impoverished Black communities. I am not sure if this stat is true, but today more black people are killed in the womb
than are born in the state of New York each year. We must fight abortion on all fronts. We must address poverty and equal opportunity in our nation where possible. On the other hand, we must speak up when our magistrates are acting wickedly no matter the cost to our wallets and our livelihood. This does mean, in my opinion, taking this value to the voting booth where possible. We face real issues regarding race, poverty, and education but we have real laws of the land that endorse murder that contradict the Laws of God. These wicked laws feed on the poor and oppressed to justify the ‘rights’ of other women to end the life of a child that is simply unwanted because he/she is an inconvenience to them. Infanticide is not driven by inconvenience. Infanticide is driven by a culture of radical autonomy and narcissism. The essence of narcissism is hate. Jesus was clear. “If you hate your brother, you committed murder.” Join me in repenting of our indifference to this disheartening reality that threatens the real freedom of us all. - Repent for our prayerlessness. If there was ever a time in the life of our nation to pray, it has to be now. This is not meant to be hyperbolic nor to incite anger and discord. This call is meant to incite us to petition our God to hear our cries and the cries of these innocent children whose lives are being taken simply because of deception and wickedness selfishness. Let these statistics sink in. (1.) Since 1970, there have been more than 61 million abortions performed. Currently, the U.S. population is around 325 Million. This means we have killed nearly 20% of our population since 1970. (2.) Since 1970, over 18 million black babies have been aborted, mostly through strategically placed and federally funded abortion clinics in poorer communities. The current population of African Americans in the U.S. is 47.5 Million. This means we have effectively killed off 27% of the black community due to abortion since 1970. (3.) Lastly, since its inception, Planned Parenthood has performed 8.8 million abortions. As noted above, Planned Parenthood primarily operates in poor inner city communities. If the reasoning behind abortion is a mother’s right and to primarily prevent young poor single women from throwing their life away, then riddle this. Why do the abortions of Planned Parenthood only represent only 13% of all abortions performed? The truth is that abortion is convenient and we use the poor and oppressed to justify our sick narcissistic endeavors. We need to pray diligently that God will bring swift justice for these babies and the innocent women who are preyed upon by elites disguised as friends.
LET’S PREACH…
Secondly, we need to preach the Good News of Jesus. He is the true King and Righteous Ruler of the World. When our magistrates fail to do what God has assigned them to do, God will be their judge. The Greek word Euangelion what originally used by riders who would sweep the kingdom countryside announcing the triumph of a new King and the Good News of his Reign. We may have small wins from time to time in American politics, but our God in heaven has established Jesus as the One True King of all things. Jesus wins!
We must announce this Good News regardless of how people respond to its message. We must implore people everywhere that Salvation is here and they must repent and believe in order to be part of the Jesus’ Kingdom. There is no other way. Yes, we must speak up about injustice in ALL its forms. Yes, we must call our magistrates to account for their wicked leadership, regardless of the cost. But above all, we must proclaim the Kingdom of Jesus and invite all who will enter to come and have true life. We call them to forsake their Kingdom of death and self-service. We announce that God’s grace is sufficient for all who will repent and believe!
Preaching the Gospel is the means of a Kingdom people to invoke change. The Spirit is active in our preaching of the Gospel and He will awaken the hearts of sinners of all stripes. Yes, at this time, many in our government are enemies of God, as were we all! But our heart is not to condemn them. They are condemned already. Our heart is to bring the power of the Good News to them that will bring resurrection to them.
LET’S HOPE…
Lastly, we long for Jesus’ coming. As we live in this world broken by sin, we know that none of God’s plans will fail! His true church will prevail and that none of the sufferings we face will be for naught. We have read the end of the good Book. Jesus is coming and He will come swiftly.
Why hope?
1.) It emboldens us to stand up and make known the ways of the Lord.
2.) It wakes us from our slumber of indifference.
3.) It grounds us in humility until Jesus returns!
4.) It calms our fears when life seems to be spinning off its axis.
COME, LORD JESUS, COME!
