“Life is God’s choice”
Jeremiah 1:4-5
This is a Delicate topic:
- My intention is to be both truthful and loving
- But also I don’t plan to tip toe around the subject.
- I hope you will pray for me during this message
People ought to know:
? Mothers shouldn’t kill their children.
? Fathers shouldn’t abandon their babies.
? No human life is worthless
The whole Bible is full of God’s commitment:
- to the fatherless and to the widows,
- his wrath at the shedding of innocent blood.
It is SHAMEFUL that some people will:
- be more offended that I would say “don’t kill babies”
- than they are offended by the actual killing of babies.
People will kill babies and be violently angry someone says “That’s wrong”:
We are living in twisted and morally bankrupt days…
“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who turn darkness to light and light to darkness, who replace bitter with sweet and sweet with bitter. 21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.” Isaiah 5:20-21
Today America looks a lot like the nations God DESTROYED in the Old Testament:
- For their wickedness, their idolatry and
- For sacrificing babies to the false God Molech
- We need a National repentance, that starts in the Church
I’m reminded that as I’m preaching:
- there are babies warmly nestled in wombs who won’t be there tomorrow.
- Every 2 minutes in America a baby is aborted.
- 1.3 million a year
- 62 Million since 1973
Some have said that a fetus is not alive:
- It’s a clump of cells - whatever that means.
Anyone who’s been pregnant can tell you:
- mother’s know that is not a clump of random cells
- It kicks, it bounces, it’s alive
- Babies are more than some sort of parasite cellular blob!
Photographer Michael Clancy – FETUS SLIDE
? was once “pro-choice” advocate, but
? he quickly changed over to being pro-life
? when he filmed the operation of 14 week old “fetus” – named Samuel Armas.
Samuel was being operated on in his mother’s womb
? to correct a condition known as spina bifida.
? But just as the doctor was closing the womb,
? the little child’s hand reached out and grabbed the doctor’s finger.
Clancy said that it was this action by a 14 week old “fetus”:
made him realize that this was indeed a child. (Chuck Colson, on Breakpoint 4/2000)
The Bible repeatedly emphasizes that…
? Every child has value
? Every child has potential
? Every child is created in the image of God and is filled with possibilities.
This sermon is topical, and I want to tell you 3 observations
that I believe God planted in my heart this week as I studied this subject.
No mortal is given the authority to make life, or take life (X2)
1. God is the giver of life (Jeremiah 1:4-5)
God vs The Scientist
God was sitting in heaven one day when a scientist said to Him, “God, we don’t need you anymore. Science has finally figured out a way to create life out of nothing – in other words, we can now do what you did in the beginning.”
“Oh, is that so? Explain…” replies God. “Well,” says the scientist, “we can take dirt and form it into the likeness of you and breathe life into it, thus creating man.”
“Well, that’s very interesting… show Me.”
So the scientist bends down to the earth and starts to mold the soil into the shape of a man. “No, no, no…” interrupts God, “Get your own dirt.” (https://www.funnyandjokes.com/god-vs-the-scientist.html)
God GAVE life In the garden AND made man and woman:
“ Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” Genesis 2:7
“But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.” Genesis 2:20b-22
When Cain killed Abel, the ground cried out;
The LORD said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”
God is keeping track of shedding of innocent blood and will demand an accounting:
- Can you imagine what sort of curse America is under for the killing
- Of 61 million babies since 1973?
God supplied everything for life to exist:
- It is always wrong to kill the innocent
- What could be more innocent than a baby in it’s mother’s womb?
What makes us think that
Exodus 20:13 KJV “Thou shalt not kill”
? Applies to all life
? Except babies in the womb?
“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you before you were born I set you apart.” Jeremiah 1:4-5
“For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;read more.” Psalm 139:13-16
Since God is the giver of life, we will protect life.
2. Children are a blessing from God ( x2) (Psalm 127:3)
“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.”
Psalm 127:3 (NKJV)
Not everyone can have children:
- There is a line of people who would love to have a baby, but they can’t
- Arms that would reach out and care for a baby, love a baby
- Gallons of tears are shed out for babies that never come
That child in your womb, that baby in your belly is a blessing from God:
- You are bringing a gift from God into the world
- That baby is a way God is bringing you joy
- Remember that the Lord is God and He is giving you a gift
- Should let you know God loves you
- God has good plans for you and that baby
Since children are a blessing from God, we will cherish life.
3. If we want others to choose life, then we must choose love (x2) (Matthew 18:6-7)
All day long we Christians oppose Abortion:
- Rightly so, it’s a sin, a forgivable sin,
- We’d like a post about not killing babies
- We might put a sticker on our car
But I don’t think Christianity is supposed to be all about what we are against:
- What are we for?
- Are we for encouraging young women to keep their babies
- Are we willing to go through this struggle with them?
- To celebrate their pregnancy, to get excited about the birth of their child
Our Theme for this year is “Serving as Jesus served”
- How are we serving the young women who are scared to death?
- How are we supporting those women who decide to carry that baby to term?
- Not knowing where they will live
- Not knowing how to care for a baby, or themselves
- How are they going to survive when they have to take off work
- Who is going to help them?
- Are you and I willing to stand up and say
- “I’m here and I’ll do whatever I can to walk through this with you”
- “You are not alone, God’s here and so am I”
“Jesus loves the little children, ALL the children of the world…..”
I can think of no greater stumling block, that of us sitting back and letting babies die
When we could be serving the mothers, loving them with word and deed
Removing anything that might prevent the mother from choosing life:
“If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7 Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come!” Matthew 18:6-7 (NIV)
Let us show the love of Jesus to those who are on the edge of an irreversible decision:
- Their is forgiveness for sin, their is forgiveness for abortion
- God can forgive and heal, and restore hope
- But there is no bringing that baby back
- Often mothers decide to have an abortion out of desperation
- And later come to regret their decision and it haunts them
We ought to love the baby and the mother!!
? then we also need to be pro woman,
? pro meeting the needs of those scared women.
? We need to be HELP women do the right thing.
Praise the women who carry a baby to birth under trying circumstances.
Pro woman for those women brave enough to give their baby up for adoption,
because she is not mature/ready/etc... enough to take care of the baby.
Pro life is also men being men and not abandoning the mother of our children:
- Pro life is pro woman or it's not really pro life…
Where are the men who ought to stand up and take responsibility
Only Jesus was born of a virgin...
Premarital sex is wrong, but it’s not new:
- It used to that when an unmarried couple got pregnant
- They got married
- They grew up and took responsibility for their actions
Now we have men shaped boys who are too weak to be fathers to their own children:
- Why does all this get dropped at the feet of the ladies
- Men rise up and be men
- Get a job, get married, pay the bills, love your family
- Go to bed and do it again
- No one said it was easy, it's actually hard, but it is simple
- be a man when the chips are down and take care of you child
This week one of our ladies said in Bible study:
“if you don’t want a baby, don’t do things that make babies.”
Most of us want women to keep their babies, but:
- We’ve never donated a dollar to one of the CRISIS PREGNANCY CENTERS
- Never sweat a drop, or spent an hour to move the obstacles that stand in the way
- Of women, who I believe would really like to keep their babies but they don’t see hope
There is a crisis pregnancy center 20 minutes away in Shelbyville:
- They give away clothes, diapers, classes on how to take care of mothers
- They give a baby beds, cribs, car seats
- They are putting their hand to the plow…..
Life or death are not realms that we control.
- That is God’s domain
- God’s in charge of who lives and dies….
God is in charge of Life and death!
- No one should demand the death penalty for a baby
- Because the pregnancy is awkward, or the timing is bad for you
REVIEW:
1. God is the giver of life
2. Children are a blessing from God
3. If we want others to choose life, then we must choose love
God is the giver of life:
- YOU are walking the earth because God wanted one of “YOU”
- God wanted a “YOU”, so God made a you
- And God has a plan for “YOU”
God’s plan for “YOU” is that you would come a right relationship with HIM:
? At some point, and at many points we have rejected God
? We have done things God can’t be around
? God is Holy and cannot be around sin,
? And our sin became a WALL between us and God.
BEFORE YOU WERE BORN, BEFORE YOU SINNED:
- Jesus came from heaven and lived a perfect life
- Jesus is sinless, something that none of us are
- And Jesus took our debt of sin, and paid
- For our sin with His death on the cross
- He paid our debt in full with His blood
God wanted a YOU, so He made a You:
then He made a way for YOU to be with HIM
To have your sins forgiven, to recieve the gift of the Holy Spirit
To go to Heaven and not Hell
All that is a free Gift to YOU:
- But you have to accept the gift
- A gift by definition is not something you earned
- What we have earned is death, Hell and the grave
The Bible says that we must respond to the offer of salvation:
- We must believe that Jesus is who He says He is
- We must confess with our lips that “Jesus is Lord”
- We must turn from our sin, to repent, make a u turn
- And then we must be immersed in the water
“Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:16 (NIV)
JESUS has made salvation available, but you must respond…..
- You can do that now..
I believe this material is mostly original to me, but I do rely of Jeff Strite sometimes so there is a chance so of his work is blended in this sermon. I tried to cite my other sources throughout the sermon. Use it however you want.
