Paul was transformed by meeting Jesus. He went from persecutor of the church to the most ardent spokesman for Christ and explainer of Christian doctrine. This is something like the big bad wolf not just being stopped from blowing down houses, but actually becoming the fourth little pig – and then becoming the world’s foremost scholar and chief defender of piggishness. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is real; it must produce real changes in the lives of those who believe it.
This week we are in Galatians 1:11-24. In Galatians 1:15, Paul says God “separated me from my mother’s womb” and called him to a very specific ministry.
This is a thread that runs all through the Bible. Abraham, for example, was promised a son (and a whole bunch of descendants, for that matter) some 25 years before the birth of Isaac. Jeremiah was called to be a prophet “Before God formed him in the womb” (Jer. 1:5). And so on, we could follow this thread for a very long time. Therefore, abortion has long been frowned upon by those who take the Bible as authoritative.
There is, however, another argument in favor of a pro-life stance which does not rest on biblical authority (an unacceptable basis in American political culture these days). Here is how it goes and I welcome all comments and counter-arguments. Thanks to Norman Geisler for stating the case similarly (2004).
Both the right to life and the right to liberty are important values to both sides. The controversy is really only over which value applies in the case of abortion.
There is good reason for anyone to believe that an unborn child or fetus is a person. For example it has its own:
This list could go on and on. Therefore, many would agree that such details make the unborn child, or fetus if you insist, a unique person. This is a convincing set of facts. Can we at least allow that it seems difficult to prove otherwise? For example, can we prove conclusively in the face of such evidence that it was simply part of the mother’s body – and not a person at all?
Now, for the sake of argument, let’s still say the question is up in the air and we’re still uncertain. Maybe it’s a person and maybe not. Therefore, an abortion may kill a person or it may not.
In that case, the pro-life stand is still preferable to pro-choice, because it is reckless to do anything that has a 50-50 chance of killing an innocent human being. Would you throw a bowling ball off a bridge onto a freeway because an innocent person might not die? Remove the railing from your balcony? Shoot a gun into a dark room? Caution dictates that the right to life has to take priority over the right to liberty.
The Apostle Paul is seriously upset. Churches in the Roman province of Galatia that he had worked very hard and even risked his life to plant were now falling for a false gospel – one that required them to keep Jewish customs and rituals. He is writing to them to set the record straight. They need to stick to the truth of the gospel and not let anything, not even these seemingly biblical elements, cause them to depart from it, add to it, or modify it in any way.
In this chapter Paul challenges the Corinthian church, saying, “Examine yourselves.” We’re going to try to do the same, examine ourselves, noting that real Christianity involves both right Christian beliefs and real Christian experience marked by authenticity, maturity and unity with other believers in Jesus.
Central Reflections 