Jeff Schreve - When Life Begins
Summary:
In this bold message, the preacher tackles the controversial topic of abortion head-on, arguing from Scripture that life begins at conception, making abortion the murder of an innocent person, and tying it to Satan’s murderous nature as described in John 8:44. Drawing on verses like Job 33:4, Psalm 139, and Exodus 21:22–23, he emphasizes God’s view of the unborn as persons to be protected, while offering hope through Christ’s forgiveness for those involved in abortion. Ultimately, he calls Christians to confess sin, receive grace, defend the defenseless unborn through advocacy and voting, and prioritize the life issue above all others in elections, as failing here sinks everything else like the hole in the Titanic.
Introduction: The Hot Potato Topic
I want you to notice with me today, as we talk and tackle this subject, that I was reading this week. It has been said that about half of the pastors in America won’t ever talk about this because it’s like a hot potato. They think, «Ah, we don’t really want to address this. It would seem like we’re getting political.» The question of life and the issue of life is not a political issue; it’s a spiritual issue. It’s a moral issue. It’s a biblical issue, and God has a lot to say about it.
So, I want to share with you four insights that give us understanding of this issue of life and of abortion.
Insight 1: Life Begins at Conception
Insight number one: What does God say about it? God says that life begins at conception. That’s what God says. Life begins at conception, the moment a woman’s egg is fertilized by a man’s seed. Life begins. A fertilized egg is conception.
The definition of conception in the dictionary says this: The action of conceiving a child. Job said in Job 33, verse 4, «The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life,» and that life, from the life-giver God, happens at the moment of conception. God gives us life at conception. Abraham Lincoln was talking to a little boy one day, and he asked the little boy, «How many legs does a dog have?» The little boy said, «Well, that’s easy; he has four.» Lincoln then said, «Yeah, but if you call his tail a leg, then how many legs does he have?» The boy replied, «Well, then he’d have five.» Lincoln said, «No, he’d still have four. A tail is still a tail no matter what you call it.»
Hey, I don’t care what you want to call that in the womb; it’s a baby, it’s a person, and God says it’s a person. God says to protect that person. I am doing work in the womb, and this is not a blob; this is a person, and life begins at conception.
Insight 2: Taking Innocent Life is Murder
Thirdly, God says to take the life of an innocent person; it’s murder. See, that’s the issue of it all, and that’s what the abortion advocates don’t want to answer: the question of when does life begin. Because if you say, «Well, life begins when Scripture says it begins,» because God is the author of life and His word is true, then if life begins at conception, then no one can have an abortion; that would be murder. So, they don’t want to say that. They argue it’s up to the mother; the mother determines when life begins.
Now, when you think about the issue of life and abortion, you need to know that the devil is deeply involved in abortion. He is all for it. Why? Because Jesus said in John chapter 8, verse 44, that the devil is a murderer. He was a murderer from the beginning, and he’s into murder. How do we know that? Because after the fall in Genesis chapter 3, you flip the page to Genesis chapter 4, and one of the first things that happens is murder, as Cain kills his brother Abel. God says to Cain, «Where is your brother Abel?» Cain replies, «I don’t know. How am I supposed to know? Am I my brother’s keeper?» God says to Cain, «The voice of your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground.» He murdered his brother. The devil is a murderer, and the devil wants to murder the babies.
Why do people have abortions? Why is there an abortion industry? People have abortions because of fear. They have abortions because of selfishness. People have abortions because of convenience. «This is inconvenient for me. This is not a good time for me.» That’s why they call it an undesired pregnancy. «I don’t want this, and I have a choice.» You really don’t. Once a woman gets pregnant, she doesn’t have a choice whether she is going to have that baby or not; she is going to have a baby. The only choice she has is whether she’s going to have a dead baby or a live baby because she is going to have a baby. Life begins at conception, and that’s a life in there, whether it’s at six weeks, eight weeks, ten weeks, or six months—whatever it is, that’s a life. God says life begins at conception. God says that the fetus growing in the womb is a person. God says that to take the life of an innocent person is murder.
Insight 3: Forgiveness Through Christ’s Blood
And then God says this: The blood of Jesus can wash away all sin. That’s great news for all of us! Maybe you’re here, or maybe you’re listening on the radio, or watching on television or live-streaming. You may be thinking, «Man, I had this done. I was a party to this, and I am so overwhelmed with guilt over what I did five years ago, ten years ago, twenty years ago, fifty years ago. How do I live with myself?» The blood of Jesus, God’s Son, can wash away all sin. Moses killed an Egyptian. David made sure that Uriah the Hittite was killed in battle because David wanted to cover up his sin with Bathsheba. The Apostle Paul, before he was the Apostle Paul—when he was just Saul of Tarsus—was there when they stoned Stephen to death, and he was giving a standing ovation to those who were throwing the stones. He was excited about the death of Stephen. And God forgave Moses, and God forgave David, and God forgave Saul. God can forgive you; I don’t care what you’ve done.
Insight 4: Defend the Unborn
So, what does God want us to do if we have been a party in some way to abortion? He wants us to confess it. He wants us to confess it as sin. He wants us to receive His forgiveness. David, who was a party to the murder of Uriah the Hittite, said in Psalm chapter 32, verse 5, «I acknowledge my sin to you, and my iniquity I did not hide. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the Lord, ' and Lord, you forgave the guilt of my sin.» He didn’t walk around in guilt anymore over that. You receive His forgiveness—complete and total—and it’s all taken away at the cross.
And then you defend with all your heart the defenseless unborn. You defend with all your heart the defenseless, and there’s none more defenseless in America than the unborn. That’s a life; that’s a person, and we’re to defend them. The Bible says in Proverbs chapter 31, speaking of kings, speaking of leaders, this is what a leader is supposed to do: «Open your mouth for the dumb, for the rights of all the unfortunate. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.» Speak for those who can’t speak. The unborn can’t speak; they need somebody to speak for them. They need someone to defend them.
Listen, we’re in election time. If you haven’t noticed, if you’ve been living under a rock for the last year, it is all the time. It’s just sickening, all the things that are constantly coming up. Let me tell you something: I love my mother, but if my mother were running for president and she were running on a pro-abortion platform, as much as I love my mother, I wouldn’t vote for her. I wouldn’t vote for my own mother if she were pro-abortion. Furthermore, if she were running for president on a platform of pro-abortion and, out of her own mouth, said, «I am for partial-birth abortion,» murder in the worst degree, and she were running against a candidate that I couldn’t stand—someone reprehensible—but he stood for life, he stood for judges who would fight and defend the rights of the unborn, I might have to hold my nose, but I’d vote for that guy.
Listen, what are we supposed to do as Christians? We’re supposed to shine; we’re supposed to share. We’re supposed to open our mouths for the dumb, for those who can’t speak, and defend the rights and vote accordingly. Because listen, is there another issue in this election? There is only one issue-that’s the hole in the Titanic, and that is the issue of abortion. If we don’t get that right, it doesn’t matter what else we get right.