The First Issue

This past Tuesday we remembered and sometimes wept over the tragic terrorist assault on our blessed nation 11 years ago. Over 3000 precious, innocent people were destroyed. Families, futures, peace, and tranquility were torn apart, along with so many possibilities never to be realized. We should always remember and care for each person and family affected directly or indirectly by the aftershock which affected us all in indescribable ways. Every human being should resist with every fiber of their being all evil that discounts the value and potential of every precious life.

God blessed Betty and me with two beautiful daughters and one awesome son – the girls through our marriage union, and our boy through the supernatural miracle of prayer and adoption. We are forever grateful as we witness the significance of their lives and the 11 grandchildren they have given us. “Precious” seems to be an understatement as we continually see the impact and influence of each of their lives.

As most readers know, because of difficult circumstances leading to the pregnancy of my 41-year-old mother, she sought to have me aborted and was stopped only by the deep convictions of a medical doctor who refused. As a result. “baby James” was born, and thanks to the saving power of God I experienced as a young man, millions of people have received Christ as their Lord and Savior and millions of lives have been saved around the world through the mission outreaches of LIFE Today.

Our son Randy, a truly gifted writer, recently wrote an article emphasizing the value of every human life. This issue is so important, I want to share it with you today. -James

I am astounded by the number of people who claim to be Christians, yet directly or indirectly support abortion on demand. Even those who put their faith in science reject the simple truth revealed in a sonogram: life begins before birth. “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart,” Jeremiah attributed to God. People may dismiss that as ancient poetry, but it takes a more aggressive betrayal of the intellect to willfully ignore modern science.

As a society, we call the termination of a one-hour-old infant “murder.” Yet one hour prior to delivery? That’s just a “woman’s right.” Does anyone really believe there is a magical transformation of the fetus during that two-hour period? Sure, there is a drastic change in the mother’s body as she amazingly delivers that life that she has nurtured for nine months or so and ushers the newborn child into the world, but the infant is remarkably the same. As the child gasps its first breath of air and shifts from umbilical cord nourishment to mother’s milk, he or she does not immediately sprout limbs, grow eyes and ears, or experience its first brain activity. These things were already there. As were other human phenomenon, such as hiccupping, dreaming, sucking the thumb, and feeling pain. Yet society consents to taking that life and many professing believers enable it by supporting politicians who advocate abortion and allowing their tax dollars to go to organizations that encourage and/or perform abortions.

And then comes the perplexing hypocrisy.

Many of these same “people of faith” pay lip service to hot-button issues like “human rights” or “women’s health” or “caring for the poor.” They use words like “responsibility” or “compassion” or even “freedom.” But there is none of this when the first issue is ignored, which is the right to life.

Our founding fathers ordered it correctly in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

The first right, given by our Creator and evident to those with eyes to see, is “life.” After that, we are able to discuss “liberty.” Once those two things are settled, we can examine “the pursuit of happiness.” Without the foundation of life, no argument on behalf of the next two issues can be safely constructed.

When “pro-choice” proponents want to discuss health insurance, claiming compassion for those who are involuntarily (and even voluntarily) uninsured, their words are largely meaningless because they will not ensure the health of a life in the womb. While activists “of color” attempt to spotlight human rights violations, most cover up the fetal genocide going on in the African-American community. When feminists cry for equal pay in the workplace, some forget that an unborn girl cries for equality in the first place. When immigration activists demand the unfettered crossing of borders, many conveniently shut down the most innocent person’s passage of life.

Those who wish to discuss, promote, campaign on, fundraise with, or champion the cause of liberty or the pursuit of happiness cannot legitimately do so until they champion the cause of life. One cannot take the second or third step without taking the first.

People caught in this charade will mock those who bring it up as narrow-minded, unsophisticated, and “single issue.” But ask anyone who has faced a life-threatening situation: “Is there any issue more important than life?” I can promise you that those people scrambling to get out of the World Trade Center on 9/11 cared nothing about their work duties that day. Nobody bemoaned a missed meeting or an incomplete spreadsheet. They didn’t care anything about social, political, or religious matters. They cared about one thing: getting out alive. They weren’t narrow-minded, they were clear-headed. They knew what was important.

Too many people have lost that ability to think clearly. Their minds are muddled with side issues, good intentions, and false promises. They have fallen for the rhetoric and failed to see reality. A nation cannot continue killing its children and expect to escape the consequences. We need not tremble at the judgment of God as much as the fruit of our own savagery. God wants to save us from the effects of our hideous sin, but those who do not change their ways refuse His rescue.

I will not advocate any politician who advocates abortion. His or her party affiliation does not matter one bit. His or her abilities on second and third issues do not count if he or she has missed the first one. Any Christian who supports such politicians, even with a single vote, must ask whether this is ever acceptable in the eyes of God. Would God really say, “I know he approves of children being killed the day before I was going to bring them into the world, but have you heard his speech on healthcare?” Not a chance. People who put more faith in science and logic must ask, “Since life clearly begins prior to birth, should we not fight for their human rights?” Obviously we should.

This election, and indeed every election, is not just about abortion. There are many other important issues. Many good and smart people have different views on the various challenges we face individually and as a nation. But do not take the second step with any politician until they have taken the first step and vowed to protect innocent human life.