Does Human Life Begin At First Breath?

Exceptions To Abortion

In very rare circumstances (Less than .2%) where a mother might die as a result of pregnancy, both parents may have to decide whether to end the pregnancy rather than lose the lives of both mother and child. It must be emphasized that taking a human life for any reason other than saving a life is wrong.

Abortion is simply not an 'instrument of compassion' for victims of rape or incest. The Bible does not justify punishing an unborn child with death because of the sins of the father. The mother must be given compassionate care and assistance throughout the pregnancy to help her decide whether she wants to keep or place the child for adoption.

There are extremely rare cases that directly affect the mother. Some examples are when a pregnancy occurs outside of the uterus (ectopic), most often as a result of an issue in the fallopian tubes, and also where the developing life in the embryonic stage is somehow released from the ovary but misses the fimbriae and never get into the fallopian tube, which could result in life-threatening rupturing, bleeding, and infection.

Another rare case is when aggressive maternal cancer is identified in early pregnancy, and the challenge is to treat the cancer, which could deform or kill the developing baby, or hope the mother survives the pregnancy as the cancer spreads slowly enough to give her a chance with treatment after delivery.

There are also cases in which the unborn child is carrying cancerous cells as well, which questions the potential for survival even if left to full gestation. If there is a preexisting condition that affects the mother's health, such as COPD, a doctor could advise her not to get pregnant because it will place severe strain on the heart.

Where Do Babies Go When They Die?

The Bible says a person has to 'believe' in Jesus to be saved, which can't be done if they haven't heard the Gospel message (Romans 10:14). The Bible does not say anywhere that God holds people responsible for things they were never directly given the moral ability to respond to. At the heart of Christianity are the beliefs that God is love, omniscient, sovereign, merciful, righteous, patient, good, and kind. He only does what is just, right, impartial, and fair.

"The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made." (Psalm 145:8-9 ESV)

God gives light to each person in the world to enable them to seek and find Him (Job 33:14-30, John 1:4-13, Acts 17:26-30, Romans 1,2,11:32). He has given humanity two types of revelation about Himself, general and special. He continuously makes Himself known generally through the natural world and moral conscience. He has made Himself known through special revelation, which is His Word, the Bible, and through the promised Messiah, Jesus. God does not hold a baby/infant responsible for responding to all His revelation and their guilt for sin.