Roe vs. Wade & Christians: What Now?

 

This past Monday evening, the news began to leak that it seemed that the Supreme Court was going to overrule Roe vs. Wade. To say that this leak and news was seismic in effect would be an understatement. Immediately, there were “hot takes” on seemingly every platform one could find. It seems that almost any and every one had an opinion on what this overturning could mean. Emotions ran high, tongues ran loose and opinions were shared freely. 

As someone who is a Christian and a pastor, I place myself firmly in the pro-life camp. I have served on the board of a crisis pregnancy center; pastored in churches that have supported crisis pregnancy centers prayerfully and financially; prayed against abortion; serve in a denomination that has a position statement against abortion. I believe that the Bible very clearly speaks against abortion and I stand on that. 

So, when I first heard the news that the highest court in our nation seemed ready to overturn a precedent of pro-choice for abortion, I was ready to pump my fist in the air and yell “hurrah” with the rest of the pro-life crowd. Many of us didn’t think we would live to see this day! What has been prayed for, sought for, marched for, fought for now seemed to be right at our fingertips … 

But, after some time of prayer and reflection, I haven’t so much changed my mind as I have “slightly” my perspective. Here is what I mean … and I share this in prayerful hope that this will serve as encouragement and maybe wisdom for others.

Victory isn’t certain … yet. I have been counseled all of of my life to “not count my chickens before they hatch”. What was leaked was NOT the official verdict of the church. By all accounts, it looks like the Supreme Court will over turn Roe vs. Wade. But, officially, they haven’t yet. An unprecedented leak gives the pro-life side hope … but nothing is certain. So, I don’t think it is wise yet to celebrate. Something could still happen before the verdict is made official. What we hope on is the wisdom of the Proverbs, ^“The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.” Proverbs 21:1. This is true for kings, and for Supreme Court justices. God is sovereign and works through His acts of providence, and does things in His own timing, so we make that our wisdom and direction. Victory isn’t certain … yet. But, we trust and know that God is sovereign and is at work, even in this matter. 

Be careful in how you celebrate. As soon as I saw the headline about the leak, I went to Twitter, and began to see tweet after tweet, celebrating the good news of the leak. It was like reading a verbal touchdown dance. And, to be honest, some of it was hard to read. I get being excited about the possibility of this good news, but for Christians to seemingly take pleasure in rubbing this in the face of others was off-putting. Doesn’t Paul give the wise counsel to speak the truth in love? Sometimes, that love can involve harsher speech … but doesn’t it also mean to show the love of God in how we speak to others and what we choose to say? I struggle with wondering if we, the Christian pro-life side, are any better when we choose to celebrate in such a way. A dear friend of mine, early on in his seminary career, preached at the church he now pastors (he was an intern at the time), and he made a joking and slightly degrading reference to Hilary Clinton. As soon as the sermon was over, the pastor pulled him aside and lovingly challenged him to not do that again, because he is assuming that everyone is on the same side politically, and that’s not always true. As clear as this issue may be to some of us, it may not be to some in our churches or fellowship. Over the course of 23 years of ministry, I have found that there are those in the church who have had an abortion in the past, or a loved one who has had one. In my own past, when I was a teen, I donated money for a friend to have an abortion. That can be a burden to carry, a burden many of us can’t identify with. To choose an abortion, or someone you love to choose one - what an emotional and psychological burden that it is to carry. A minster shared with me his talking to a lady who had an abortion during WWII, and how she had nightmares about that every night for the next 50 years. Can you imagine what that is like? I can’t.  When we “spike the ball” and do our social media celebratory dance, may we be alienating those who we could minister to? Are we shutting the door of Gospel ministry because we exalted too much in the moment? I am, by no means, advocating changing a view or stance … rather, I am trying to advocate winsomeness in applying the Gospel when I am called to. If that means I don’t exult over social media so folks are more comfortable to come to me for counsel and prayer, I will take that any day of the week. Let us be careful in how we celebrate. 

Prepare for persecution. If immediate reaction is any indication, then when the verdict becomes official, I believe Christians and the church will come under further persecution. Vitriol and hatred are going to be pointed at us, both barrels locked and loaded. That shouldn’t surprise us, nor daunt us. Jesus tells us that the world will hate us because it first hated him. From the early church up until today, Christians and churches have been persecuted simply because of following Christ and His word. What may catch some of us off-guard is when the vitriol and hatred doesn’t just come from the world, but also from within the church, from the pews of the sanctuary. What I have observed is that this will be across the board … from the “millennials” to the “boomers”. The millennials were raised - and, let’s be honest, in many ways indoctrinated - that this issue is all about a woman’s right to choose … so, when an individual rights are being infringed, then hell hath no fury like what we see coming from this group. They either won’t or can’t think of this in terms of the whole counsel of God and of the fetus being more than a clump of cells. They haven’t been taught how to think about this issue - they have only been told what to think. And that has sunk in deep in their brains. The boomers came from the generation when Roe vs. Wade happened, and many of them jumped onto it and have made sure to shape the conversation away from this being an actual child in the womb. It’s their right to choose in such a way - and you and I have no say in this! It's about their rights - and they refuse to talk about it in any other way. If you are a pastor, then there is a high likelihood that you have these folks in your church. You have faithfully preached to them every Sunday, prayed with them, counseled them, shepherded them. But, when it comes to this issue, emotions can run fast and hot and will dictate how they react. So, let us be ready for the persecution that will come, because sometimes even sheep bite. Let us pray for them, even if we don’t know them, that God would soften their hearts to at least having a fruitful conversation about this issue so you and I can share God’s wisdom and love with them. 

God is good. No matter what happens, we know that God is good. He is sovereign. He is at work. He loves His people. He will never leave nor forsake us. He lies us down in green pastures. He leads us beside still waters. He is our good God who is always at work for His glory and good. So, no matter what the Supreme Court decides, no matter how people react - God is good all the time, all the time God is good. Let us not forget that - and let us not continue to tell our people that. 

May God continue to lead you to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever, even through matters and situations such as we are living through and preparing for.