This month is celebrated in the US as Women’s History Month, and yesterday (March 8) was International Women’s Day. In the US, this month is an opportunity to remember and celebrate the achievements of women in our nation’s history.
But here at Answers in Genesis, we’re using this month to celebrate what the Bible teaches about women—I think you’ll enjoy the special series we’ve been running on our website’s homepage, available also on our gender topic page.
On my blog, I’ve set aside a few posts to discuss “women’s issues” (you can read part 1 that introduced the series here). And today, I want to address perhaps the most horrific issue that’s often considered a “women’s issue”—and that is abortion.
We’re told that women need abortion—that in order for them to be equal with men in the workforce, in relationships, etc., women need to be the same as men, and therefore they need to be able to kill their unborn children so that they will not be pregnant or tied down with children. Now, of course, it’s not usually worded as “kill their unborn children”! Generally, you’ll hear euphemisms like “reproductive healthcare” or “the right to choose,” but we must call abortion what it is—the killing of unborn children.
The primary person affected by an abortion is not the mother or the father—it’s the unborn child! It is that helpless child that is losing his or her life at the desire of another.
But is abortion really a women’s issue? No, it’s not. Yes, God has designed women to bear the primary physical “burden” of growing, delivering, and feeding a baby. But 100% of unborn babies have a father—men’s lives are impacted when unborn babies are killed. And, of course, the primary person affected by an abortion is not the mother or the father—it’s the unborn child! It is that helpless child that is losing his or her life at the desire of another. Abortion is the murder of a human being, right from fertilization.
Abortion also impacts society; a society that kills its own offspring (and celebrates and enshrines in the laws such an atrocity!) is a society that is itself dying—dying a death of moral depravity and callousness toward the most vulnerable. Abortion impacts everyone!
But most importantly, abortion is not a women’s issue because it is a moral issue and therefore it transcends us. Taking the life of someone fearfully and wonderfully created by God (Psalm 139:13–14) in his very image (Genesis 1:27) is a sin against the very Creator of life. Every child is a gift from God (Psalm 127:3), and anyone deciding to end the life of that gift—that person—is violating God’s law (Exodus 20:13). But, praise the Lord, there is mercy offered through Jesus Christ for any sin, including the sin of abortion (1 John 1:9).
Now, often when men like myself comment on abortion, we’re told that we can’t have an opinion since we aren’t women (but what is a woman anyway, according to our culture!?). But the Bible never silences any particular group of people from speaking up for justice for the oppressed. On the contrary, it commands Christians everywhere—men and women—to speak up for what is right and to protect those being led away to slaughter (Proverbs 24:11).
Never let anyone silence you from speaking biblical truth to an issue.
Never let anyone silence you from speaking biblical truth to an issue. God’s Word is for all people, in all times, in all places—so, yes, men and women can both equally apply God’s Word to this heart-breaking issue.
If you want to learn more about responding to popular pro-abortion arguments, I encourage you to read this series we produced a few years ago (it’s also available in Spanish), “Answering Abortion Arguments.”
Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken
This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.
Answers in Genesis is an apologetics ministry, dedicated to helping Christians defend their faith and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ.