Praying for Abortion?

"Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment" (John 7:24).

By the time you read this, it will be over. Planned Parenthood (in a county in California) had called for 40 days of prayer on behalf of abortion, which occurred from March 18-April 27, 2012. Of course, this is a shock because you have been told that they are only concerned about "women's health" and "family planning." You're not supposed to know that Planned Parenthood has been the nation's largest abortion provider for years and that pro-choice really means pro-death. But now they are brazen enough to be honest about their mission—and sacrilegious at the same time.

They published a guide for what to pray on each one of the 40 days. They wanted to encourage pro-abortion advocates to give thanks for the "sacred care" that all of those in this death industry provide. Had such individuals been present in Nazi Germany, they would have undoubtedly praised Hitler for the "sacred care" he had provided to the Jews. Since when is it termed "sacred care" when people die?

One prayer being used was: "We give thanks for the doctors who provide quality abortion care." Really? If the voices of the aborted human beings could be heard, it is doubtful that they would be thankful for the quality of care that they received! How would those doctors react if God spoke to them the way He did to Cain: "The voice of the human beings' blood you killed cries out to me from the ground" (Gen. 4:10)?

As expected, there are some religious groups involved in this travesty such as United Methodists, Episcopalians, Reform Jewish, and Unitarian Universalists. None of these is a surprise. For many years in Denton, Texas, the abortion doctor was a member in good standing at the United Methodist Church. The Episcopal Church, although it does have some who are morally conservative, also has influential members such as John Shelby Spong, who has championed fornication and homosexuality, along with being pro-abortion.

Jesus talked about wolves in sheep's clothing (Matt. 7:15-20). Certainly, when their fruits include dead infants, it should be easy for all to identify them. In every age one will find religious leaders who will go along with whatever the culture demands. The priests of Molech and of other idols led the way in having mothers sacrifice their children to be burned to a compassionless god. Such despicable men have always been afforded a place of respect in societies whose values do not come from the true and living God.

For that reason, some are saying prayers such as the one on day 40: "Today we give thanks and celebrate that abortion is still safe and legal." True Christians will not be praying any such thing. In the first place, abortion is never safe for the infant, and, second, its legality was achieved through a court decision, which was based on no precedent whatsoever. If seven humanistic, liberal judges had not voted the way they did, abortion would probably be legal in only a few states today.

But the legal elements aside, asking people to pray for something that terminates a person's life is a horrendous idea. In this instance, the proponents of abortion have now brought God into the picture—something they should never have done—because they are opposed to His will. Can that allegation be proved? Why not consider a few questions?

Is there any place, in any book of the Bible, where pregnancy was considered a bad thing? Is there even one woman who, upon hearing that she was expecting a child, said, "Oh, no! What do I do now?" Actually, it was NOT being able to bear a child that was troubling. Rachel told Jacob: "Give me children, or else I die!" (Gen. 30:1). Because Hannah had no children, "she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish" (1 Sam. 1:10). Where are the passages of women weeping because they will give birth?

In the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam and Eve the command to be fruitful and multiply (Gen. 1:26-28). Having children has always been considered a blessing rather than a curse:

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is His reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them…" (Ps. 127:3-5a).

The midwives in Egypt knew that it was wrong to kill the male Israelite children at birth, which Pharaoh had commanded them to do (Ex. 1:16). They refused to comply, and God blessed them (Ex. 1:17, 20). In the New Testament, which is the only covenant the entire world is now subject to, God never gives authority to terminate the life of a child either before or after birth.

Furthermore, women who bore children late in life still regarded it as a blessing. Sarah was the first. She could not have children for many decades and had even lost that ability to conceive, but God restored it to her, and she gave birth to Isaac at the age of 90. She did not complain that she was too old to have a child; in fact she delighted in it:

And Sarah said, "God has made me laugh, so that all who hear will laugh with me." She also said, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his in old age" (Gen. 21:6-7).

Likewise Elizabeth, the wife of Zacharias, "was barren, and they were both advanced in years" (Luke 1:7). Was Elizabeth upset to find out she would be having a son so late in life? No, instead she said: "Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among men" (Luke 1:25). The child was not even born yet, and already she was thankful. She did not complain about the idea of a child just getting in the way at this point in their lives. Today's thinking does not harmonize with some of these women of old. The text also explains that, when Elizabeth brought forth a son, and "her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her" (Luke 1:58). The birth of a child—even the anticipation of the event—is a cause for rejoicing in godly women. What kind of women, therefore, want to kill their children?

Personhood

"All of those things are true," the pro-choice crowd might agree, "but the fetus is not a person." Where did that conclusion originate? It does not come from the Scriptures. Mary, the mother of Jesus, after being told that her Son would be called "the Son of the Highest" (Luke 1:32), traveled to a city in Judah to visit Elizabeth. When Mary greeted her, "the babe leaped" in Elizabeth's womb (Luke 1:41). When Elizabeth explained what had happened inside of her, she told Mary "the babe leaped in my womb for joy" (v. 44).

Why is that fact significant? The reason is that the Greek word translated "babe" is brephos, and it is the same word used for a child who has been delivered. In fact, Luke, the same writer, just a few verses away, uses that word again of Jesus—after His birth. The very night of His birth, an angel told the shepherds that they would find "a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger" (Luke 2:12), which was precisely where they found Him (Luke 2:16). In all four verses, the word translated "babe" is the Greek word brephos. God made no distinction between John as he was still in Elizabeth's womb and Jesus, Who had just been delivered from Mary's womb.

Elizabeth was in her sixth month when Mary was visited by the angel (Luke 1:36). Mary remained with her "about three months" before returning to her own house (Luke 1:56). Elizabeth's "full time" came after that, and she gave birth to John (Luke 1:57). Thus, John was considered "a babe" more than three months before his birth. Can it therefore be acceptable to God to abort babies more than six months along, as Dr. George Tiller did in the state of Kansas prior to his own murder? He had support from the governor of Kansas, Kathleen Sebelius, before his death on May 31, 2009. She has since been appointed Secretary of Health and Human Services, which is a national disgrace. What comfort can citizens have from someone to oversee "health" who is totally callous regarding babies only a few weeks—even days—from birth?

When Rebekah conceived, "the children struggled together within her." She inquired of God what the problem was. The Lord said to her:

"Two nations are in your womb, two peoples shall be separated from your body; one people shall be stronger than the other, and the older shall serve the younger" (Gen. 25:23-24).

The word translated "children" [1211 in Strong's Exhaustive Concordance] in verse 22 is the same word generally used for children who have left the womb. It is the same word Sarah used of the already-born Isaac, as quoted previously in Genesis 21:6-7. There is a Hebrew word translated "child" which is also used of a baby whether it is inside or outside of the womb [2030]. This word is used of Tamar (Judah's daughter-in-law) in Genesis 38:24-25.

Judah, after the death of his wife, had lain with a woman he thought was a prostitute, but it was actually his daughter-in-law, Tamar, who had only disguised herself as such. He had not given her the son he had promised her in marriage; so in order to bear children she deceived him so that she might have a descendant. Judah sent back a servant to pay her, but no one could find her. "And it came to pass, about three months after, that Judah was told, saying, 'Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the harlot; furthermore she is with child by harlotry'" (Gen. 38:24). Judah never dreamed that she had played the harlot with him, but he soon found out.

Judah had left as a pledge with Tamar his signet and cord and staff. They were on the verge of burning the woman with fire when she revealed to Judah: "'By the man to whom these belong, I am with child.' And she said, 'Please determine whose these are—the signet and cord, and staff'" (Gen. 28:25). Thus, she was with child [2030]. This is the same word that was used by Bathsheba when she told David, "I am with child" (2 Sam. 11:5). But the word can also refer to a child that has already been born. The Israelites were taught: "You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child" (Ex. 22:22). The same word is used of a male child and a female child that has been born (Lev. 12:2, 5)

All of these usages involving these words both from the Old and New Testaments show clearly that in God's Holy Book, He calls the life of the unborn child by the same term as one that has entered into this world. On what basis, therefore, does anyone have the right to end a child's life while it is protected in the womb? Who gave anyone the authority to call this innocent, pre-born child a fetus and pretend that he is not a human being? No one can make an argument for abortion based on the Scriptures. And no one can conclude that abortion is anything but murder—and the worst form of it because the child in the womb is utterly defenseless and put to death without any trial or having done anything wrong. Planned Parenthood then has the temerity to ask people to pray that this atrocity might continue?!

The Prayers God Hears

As already proven, the whole tenor of the Bible runs counter to the concept of abortion. Solomon wrote 3,000 years ago that there are seven things that are an abomination to God. The third one mentions "hands that shed innocent blood," which certainly describes Dr. Tiller. Ironically, he was shot and killed (which is also murder and therefore wrong) while serving as an usher in the Redeemer Lutheran Church of which he was a member (so much for expecting many in religious denominations to take a Biblical stance!).

The fourth abomination involves a "heart that devises wicked plans," which certainly fits the pro-choice mentality, and the fifth one mentions "feet that are swift in running to evil" (Pr. 6:16-19). Some, however, are never ashamed when they commit abominations; neither can they blush (Jer. 6:15). Then they try to sanctify it by making it appear Christian!

But some prayers God will not hear. This is probably a novel thought in the 21st century, but the Scriptures teach this truth. In the Old Testament, God instructed the prophet, "Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; for I will not hear you" (Jer. 7:16). God further said, "Therefore, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble" (Jer. 11:14). The Lord told the prophet he should not pray for them "for their good" (Jer. 14:11).

The point is that when people are as evil as those in Jeremiah's day, God will not hear whatever they say. In the New Testament John was even told not to pray for Christians if they were committing a sin unto death (1 John 5:16). People misunderstand God entirely if they think they can participate in all manner of evil things but that He will hear their prayers anyway. He will not. David wrote 3,000 years ago: "The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off remembrance of them from the earth" (Ps. 34:15-16).

Those in Planned Parenthood who are involved in taking the lives of the innocent certainly qualify as those who do evil; therefore, there is no chance that their prayers will be heard, but it is especially offensive that they would claim otherwise and try to enlist support to pray on behalf of those who are practicing evil—even abominations—in the sight of God.

Suggested Prayers

For those who truly love God and are trying their best to be pleasing to Him, following are a few prayers that might be offered up in this matter. If this exercise is repeated by a local affiliate or the national Planned Parenthood, you might want to offer up prayers that express the following sentiments.

Let the eyes and hearts of the abortion doctors be opened (as Bernard Nathanson's was), and let them realize that they are shedding human blood.

Let those who are profiting from this "industry" realize (as Carol Everett did) that the blood money they are receiving will stand as a testimony against them in the Day of Judgment.

Let the women who trust in the workers at Planned Parenthood grow suspicious about what their motivation is and find materials that show them that the children they are carrying are human beings who will develop into adults (like the rest of us did) if permitted.

Let the women who have had abortions feel a guilt that will lead them to open their eyes about what they have done and seek forgiveness.

Let the government of this country quit, once and for all, funding Planned Parenthood and other groups that are pro-abortion (Pr. 14:34).

Let those religious groups that favor the abominable practice of abortion perish from this earth. If any of the people in those groups have any decency, let them find the truth, obey the one gospel (Gal. 1:8-9), and live in harmony with God's moral system.

Let people become so indignant over this sin that they will work legally to eradicate the practice from this land. It was illegal before, and it should be again. Let people seek valid alternatives to this barbarous practice and cease destroying those made in God's image.