Here are the completed notes from the Sunday Morning Worship Service April 24, 2016:
Scripture: Jeremiah 32:32-35
Supporting Scripture: Lev. 18:21; 20:2-5; 2 Kings 23:10; 2 Kings 17:31; Jer.7:31; 19:5
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” -The Declaration of Independence- July 4, 1776
God’s Standard:
“Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made He man.”- Gen. 9:6
“Thou shalt not kill” – Exodus 20:13
“The Lord hates . . . hands that shed innocent blood” – Proverbs 6:16-17
1. The Need – Consider Background and Statistics:
- January 22, 1973 the Supreme Court (vote 7-2) legalized abortion
- Abort: to stop Abortion: The premature termination of a pregnancy.
This gave the right to the mother to take the life of an unwanted baby. In the courts decision, they said that unborn children are not persons and are not deserving of the protection of our Constitution and laws.
Abortion – the single greatest evil of our time.
For those yet to be born, abortion is literally a life-and-death issue.
Statistics:
- Total Abortions in the United States since 1973 – 58,586,256 (January 2016)
- Abortions decreased by 42% from 2011-2012
- Total abortions 2014 estimated 977,000
- Of all unintended pregnancies 4 in 10 end in abortion
- 21% of all pregnancies in the United States end in abortion (not including natural miscarriages)
- 2006 Virginia had 27,024 abortions / 2014 Virginia19,000 abortions (79.8% non-married)
- Amherst County for 2014 – 30 (80% non-married)
- Lynchburg for 2014 – 176 (56.3% non-married)
- Women living with a partner to whom they are not married account for 25% of abortions
- Less than 1% of all abortions take place because of rape or incest
- 65% of all women who have an abortion self-identify as Christians
Why Women have abortions: (Operation Rescue)
- 21% Inadequate finances
- 21% Not ready for responsibility
- 16% Woman’s life would be changed too much
- 12% Problems with relationships, unmarried
- 11% Too young and/or immature
- 8% Children are grown; she has all she wants
- 3% Baby has possible health problems
- <1% Pregnancy caused by rape/incest
- 4% Other
Planned Parenthood: 3 Basic Premises
1- It’s not a baby, it’s a fetus
- The word fetus is a Latin word that simply means an unborn child
2- Unwanted pregnancy puts a woman at risk
- Less than 1% of all abortions take place because of rape or incest
3- The woman is more important than the fetus
Statement from Planned Parenthood that specifically states, “To call the fetus a human being is arrogant and absurd.”
All the debates, speeches, emotions and protesting comes down to one question: Is the fetus fully human life, although not fully developed or is the fetus a mere mass of tissue in the mother’s body?
2. Life before Birth According to Scripture:
A. Scripture refers to the unborn child precisely as that: an unborn child. The same words are used to describe the child in the womb and outside the womb.
B. Jeremiah was sanctified and ordained as a prophet from his mother’s womb – Jeremiah 1:5
C. John the Baptist while still in his mother Elizabeth’s womb leaped for joy at the news from Mary about the baby Jesus – Luke 1:39-44
Note: Things don’t have joy
D. God’s personal knowledge of and involvement with the unborn – Psalm 139:13-16
Taken from the New King James Version
“For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works. And that my soul knows very well.
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them”
3. The Development of the Unborn Baby: See Literature on “Life Before Birth”
- Day 24 – heart begins to beat (18 to 24 days after conception)
- Medical authorities determine a person to be alive if there is either a detectable heart beat or brain wave activity
- Day 30 – blood flows in baby’s veins (stays separate from the mothers)
- Day 35 – mouth, ears and nose are taking shape
- Day 42 – skeleton is formed
- Day 42 – mother can feel physical movement
- Day 43 – brain waves can be recorded
- All bodily functions are present at 8 weeks and are functioning at 11 weeks
- At 11 to 12 weeks, a baby can suck its thumb
88.7% of all abortions take place by the 12th week of pregnancy (84 days along)
Technology has transformed the abortion debate – Today’s ultrasound images reveal an amazing look at a child moving, kicking, and sucking its thumb
With knowledge comes accountability
4. Being the Church to the Unborn
- Church is God’s representatives on earth
- Salt and light – Matthew 5:13-16
- We have God’s Truth in the Bible to communicate to the World – John 17:17
Being the Church to the Unborn means the Following:
A. Pray
- Protection of the unborn – the end of legalized abortion
- For father’s and mother’s contemplating abortion to choose life
- Ministry of the Blue Ridge Pregnancy Center
B. Communicating Truth about Life Before Birth
- In Conversations
- Tracts – “Life Before Birth”
- Facebook Posts
C. Contributing to the Cause of Protecting Life Before Birth
- The Blue Ridge Pregnancy Center
- Liberty Godparent Home
- Volunteer at a crisis pregnancy center or be trained as a pregnancy counselor
D. Supporting Pro-Life Candidates
E. Practicing and Promoting Sexual Purity
F. Communicating that there is Mercy and Forgiveness in Christ to those that have had an Abortion – Psalm 103:10-12, John 8:11