January 16, 2015

"The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. I am come that you may have life and have it abundantly!" John 10:10

Sunday is Sanctity of Life Sunday. It will tragically mark the 42nd year since the Roe vs. Wade decision in 1973 that ruled abortion as a legal right. During the week I have been posting facts, statistics and Biblical truths in support of life.

We serve a God of life Who gave His life and then arose from the dead to offer you eternal life. Either you love and obey Him or you belong to the thief who steals innocence, kills babies in the womb and destroys through guilt and regret.

Most of the pastors I admire and learn from are a generation behind me, but one of the several pastors of my generation I read after is John Piper. He leads a large church in the Minneapolis area. He is a strong and effective spokesman for the pro-life movement. I have posted a link to a very powerful reading by Pastor John.

(Cut and paste this link into your browser for a powerful poem from Pastor John Piper.) (Caution - grab a tissue first)

  http://youtu.be/qfB7Hpv0bVM

Every abortion stops a beating heart.

With God's help, we need to change the hearts that are willing to stop a beating heart.

God help us!

God have mercy!

January 15, 2015

"Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free." John 8:32

What you don't know about abortion can be very harmful or even fatal. That is why I am devoting two posts to addressing ten commonly held misconceptions about abortion. I dealt with the first five yesterday and here are the next five.

Myth No. 6: Abortion is good for women.

Fact: Abortion can cause significant physical and psychological harm.

Physical complications can include cervical lacerations and injury, uterine perforations, bleeding, hemorrhage, serious infection, pain, and incomplete abortion. Risks of complications increase with gestational age and are dependent upon the abortion procedure. Long-term physical consequences of abortion include future preterm birth and placenta previa (improper implantation of the placenta) in future pregnancies. Premature delivery is associated with higher rates of cerebral palsy, as well as respiratory, brain, and bowel abnormalities. Pregnancies complicated by placenta previa result in high rates of preterm birth, low birth weight, and perinatal death.

Myth No. 7: Abortion is beneficial to modern society.

Fact: Abortion has a negative impact on communities and society at large.

Despite “pro-choice” predictions to the contrary, the illegitimacy rate has increased significantly since Roe. The percent of children born out of wedlock at the time of Roe was 15.5 percent, but by 2000 that number had increased to 33.2 percent, and by 2004, it increased to 36 percent.35 There is a high correlation between out-of-wedlock childbearing and a host of negative social indicators such as

pervasive child poverty.

Abortion hits minority communities hardest. The Guttmacher Institute reports that the abortion rate among black women remains more than twice the national average, and three times that of white women. The organization Blacks for Life calls abortion “cooperative genocide.”

Abortion also has contributed to population decline and demographic changes. The U.S. birth rate has dropped to the lowest level since national data has been available. In 2002 the birth rate fell to 13.9 per 1,000—down 17 percent since 1990.

This results in a demographic shift to an older population known as “population ageing” where the share of the population of working age shrinks and the labor force grows older. This demographic phenomenon will have negative effects on the economy, especially as workers reach retirement age leaving fewer people engaged in productive work.

Myth No. 8: The more that people have access to contraception, the fewer abortions there will be.

Fact: More contraception leads to more sexual behavior, more unintended pregnancies, and more abortion.

“Pro-choice” politicians do not want to talk about abortion; they prefer to promote contraception. But research here and abroad shows that increasing access to contraception is not a solution to the problem of soaring abortion rates. In fact, it makes the problem worse. In Sweden, for example, an increase in affordable access to contraception and the presence of free contraceptive counseling have resulted in a substantial increase in the teen abortion rate. The abortion rate has climbed from 17 abortions per thousand teens in 1995 to 22.5 abortions per thousand teens in 2001.

According to Professor Peter Arcidiacono of Duke University, increasing teenagers’ access to contraception “may actually increase long run pregnancy rates even though short run pregnancy rates fall. On the other hand, policies that decrease access to contraception, and hence sexual activity,are likely to lower pregnancy rates in the long run.”

In the United States, a decrease in contraceptive use in recent years correlates to a decrease in the number of abortions. From 1995 to 2002, the rate of contraceptive use decreased from 64 percent to 62 percent,  while the number of abortions fell from 1,359,400 to 1,293,000.

Myth No. 9: Abortion, particularly early abortion, does not take the life of a human being.

Fact: Every abortion takes the life of a human being.

At the time of fertilization, when a sperm penetrates the ovum or “egg” cell, a new human organism comes into existence, with a complete and unique genetic code.  This is a scientific fact, not a religious claim. Those who claim not to know “when human life begins” are making a political statement, not a scientific one. 

Human beings develop at an astonishingly rapid pace. The cardio-vascular system is the first major system to function. The blood is circulating and the heart begins to beat at 21 or 22 days (3 weeks), and can be detected on ultrasound. By the end of the eighth week, the unborn child has developed all its organs and biological systems.50 20 weeks after fertilization (5 months), unborn children feel pain.

Some try to distinguish among human beings, arguing that some are worthy of respect (because they possess certain characteristics), while others are not. This assertion contradicts the basic premise of Western law and of our Constitution—the equality of all human beings. As the Declaration of Independence says, all human beings are created equal. It would be perilous to abandon this point of view and to adopt a philosophy that puts into the hands of some human beings (the powerful) the right to decide whether other human beings (the weak, the unpopular, the defenseless) are to be counted as members of the human family.

Myth No. 10: I can be “personally opposed, but pro-choice.”

Fact: That is impossible.

While it is true that some people claim to be “personally opposed, but pro-choice,” that position is, logically, impossible to hold. People who profess this opinion say that while they would not choose abortion themselves, they would not deny women the option to choose it. They appear to think that what is a wrong choice “for them” might not be wrong “for someone else.” However, what happens in an abortion is an objective fact, not a subjective judgment. During an abortion a human being who is unborn—and therefore innocent of any wrong-doing—is killed. Since abortion is, thus, objectively unjust, anyone who supports the “right” of others to have abortions necessarily supports such unjust acts (the killing of innocent, unborn children). Further, a choice to be “personally opposed but pro-choice” is necessarily a choice in favor of the legalization of abortion (so that the “choice” to abort is available to others). And that means the person who makes such a choice accepts that innocent, unborn children will be killed by abortions, albeit by other people. Thus, while one can say that one is “personally opposed but pro-choice,” what one necessarily means is “I support the right to kill innocent human beings.” 

Jesus said the truth will set you free. It will. It will deliver you from the lies and deceit that put you into bondage.

The truth Jesus referred to is more than knowing facts, it is knowing Him by faith! Jesus by His own words is "the Way, the Truth and the Life."

Knowing Him will lead you to truth.

Knowing Him will give you life.

Knowing Him will give you respect for life.

The more people who come to know Him, the more lives that will be saved.

January 14, 2015

"Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free." John 8:32

Abortion is the most dangerous and destructive lie perpetrated on the human race since the serpent's deception in the Garden of Eden!

In this week leading up to Sanctity of Life Sunday I want to do my best to expose some of these lies and elevate the truth.

This morning, I want to share the first five facts that destroy the myths about abortion.

Myth No. 1: Abortion is legal only during the first 3 months of pregnancy.

Fact: Abortion is legal during all 9 months of pregnancy.

Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade declared abortion a constitutional right. The Court divided pregnancy into three trimesters but ultimately ruled that women have a right to abortion any time an abortion doctor deems the abortion necessary for her “health.” The Supreme Court defined “health” as “all factors—physical, emotional, psychological, familial, and the woman’sage—relevant to the well-being of the patient.”

Myth No. 2: Abortion is legal because the Constitution says so.

Fact: Legal abortion is the fruit of judicial activism. It has been imposed upon the country by judges.

The word “abortion” does not appear in the Constitution. Nevertheless, in Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court ruled that a right to abortion was part of an implied right to personal privacy emanating from various constitutional Amendments —in other words, that a right to abortion is an “implied” part of the Constitution.

It is the chief modern example of judicial activism—judges imposing their own policy preferences rather than interpreting the law as written. When judges act in this manner, they usurp the role of the legislators, whom the citizens elect to represent them in deciding disputed, difficult policy issues. Thus, judicial activism undermines the very basis of our representative democracy. This ruling has been sharply criticized by legal scholars, federal judges, and seven other Supreme Court justices. 

Myth No. 3: Most Americans agree with current U.S. abortion law.

Fact : The vast majority of Americans strongly disagree with it.

According to various national polls:

• 61% of Americans say abortion should be illegal after the fetal heartbeat has begun — which occurs in the first month of pregnancy.
• 72% of Americans say abortion should be illegal after the first 3 months of pregnancy.
•  86% of Americans say abortion should be illegal after the first 6 months of pregnancy.
• Only 16% of Americans say abortion should be legal at any time for any reason.

However, Supreme Court decisions make abortion legal throughout all 9 months of pregnancy, for any reason.

Therefore, abortion law today is completely out of step with Americans’ views on what it should be.

Myth No. 4: Abortion is rare in United States.

Fact: The U.S. has the highest abortion rate in the western world.

There are 1.31 million induced abortions every year in the United States. 24.5 percent of all pregnancies in the United States end in abortion.

That means 3,500 children are aborted every day, 145 children are aborted every hour, and 2 children die every minute due to induced abortion in the U.S. In fact, the U.S. has the highest abortion rate in the western world, and the third-highest abortion rate of all developed nations worldwide. The U.S. abortion rate is higher than the abortion rate in Spain, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Scotland, Italy, France, England, Wales, Denmark, Tunisia, Finland, Uzbekistan, Croatia, Japan, Israel, Hong Kong, Canada, Norway, Singapore, Azerbaijan, New Zealand, Sweden, South Korea, Slovak Republic, Czech Republic, Georgia, Australia, Kyrgyzstan, and  Puerto Rico.

Myth No. 5: Most abortions in the United States are done for health reasons or because of rape or incest.

Fact : Most abortions in the United States have nothing to do with these reasons.

According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute (a pro-choice organization), 93.5 percent of the abortions every year are done for reasons other than health, rape or incest. Their survey shows women have abortions for the following reasons:

• 25 % - “not ready for (another) child/timing is wrong”
• 23 % - “can’t afford a baby now”
• 19 % - “have completed my childbearing/have other people depending on me/children are grown”
• 8 % - “don’t want to be a single mother/am having relationship problems”
• 7 % - “don’t feel mature enough to raise (another) child/feel too young”
• 4% - “would interfere with education or career plans”
• 0.5% - “husband or partner wants me to have an abortion”
• 0.5% - “parents want me to have an abortion”0.5%-  “don’t want people to know I had sex or got pregnant”

Less than 8 percent of abortions every year are done for reasons of health, rape or incest:

• 4 % - “physical problem with my health”
• 3 % -  “possible problems affecting the health of the fetus”
• 0.5 %- “was a victim of rape”
• 0.5 % - “became pregnant as a result of incest”

Yet, under current U.S. abortion law, all of these abortions are legal.

These are the first five of ten myths about abortion. These myths have cost millions of precious innocents their lives.

God, have mercy!

January 13, 2015

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10

From the CBN website comes this moving story which helps unmask some of the lies behind abortion. This heinous practice is based on lies because it is motivated by the Liar who comes to steal, kill and destroy.

“I was scared. I asked them if it’d hurt and they’d say, ‘Just relax.’ I remember they have a lot of people waiting. They don’t have a lot of time so it’s kinda like, you got to get this over with and get you out.”

Michelle Sprawl was just 14, and abortion was her choice. In the beginning, her relationship with her new boyfriend seemed like a dream.

“I really flourished in that,” says Michelle “I really wanted to be with him all the time. I wanted the attention and the affection.

“We really were planning to get married, but I never made up my mind that I wasn’t going to have sex. So then when you’re into that situation you just kinda go with the flow -- whatever happens, which was what happened with me.”

When Michelle found out she was pregnant, she went to a girlfriend for some advice…

“I said, ‘An abortion?’ And she said, ‘Yeah. It’s just a simple procedure. You go in and out, and it’s like you’re never pregnant.’ I said, ‘How do you know?’ And she said, ‘Because I had one,’ and she started naming people that I knew.

Michelle’s parents drove her to the abortion clinic. Things were plenty tense already, then protestors came banging on their car.

Michelle knew she was doing something wrong. “I felt like I needed to have the abortion. So no matter what, this is what I had to do. I’d have to just deal with the rest of it later.”

The worst part was still to come …

“I do remember the sound of the suctioning machine,” she says. “I was crying. Then the nurse came to me. The doctor told her to calm me down. So she came over and said, ‘You were woman enough to have sex. You’re woman enough to take this. You need to stop that crying.’

“It was a major turning point in my life. I felt a huge, huge loss. I knew immediately after the abortion that that was my baby. I was angry at myself. I was angry at him for getting me pregnant. I was angry at my parents for not talking to me more about sex. I was angry at the doctor for treating me that way. I was angry at God because I had asked Him, ‘Please, don’t let me get pregnant.’”

Michelle tried several methods to escape her guilt and anger…

“It just got worse because I was on the birth control pill, I was drinking, smoking dope, taking pills… I didn’t care.”

And that continued for seven years. Then came an unexpected bend in the road.

“At 21 years old the guy I was dating took me to church,” she says. “I hear the gospel for the first time, and I start hearing that God loves me the way that I am. I start hearing positive things and not just condemning things about sins.

“When I prayed and asked God, truly from my heart, for repentance. I asked Him to forgive me for the abortion, for all my sins, to come into my heart, and be my Savior. At that moment, I just felt God wrap His arms around me and say, ‘Michelle, I love you. I love you more than anything in this world, and it does not matter to me what anyone else thinks about you.’”

A few years later Michelle married, and in time had a baby. But she still hadn’t dealt with her “baggage.” So she started really studying the Bible like never before.

“God walked me through the process of dealing with the anger, the unforgiveness, the depression, and then finally accepting His forgiveness and knowing that I’m healed.”

For years Michelle has been counseling women at crisis pregnancy centers, helping them see what’s true about abortion and what’s not.

The mistruth about abortion? Michelle says, “That abortion is safe. Abortion is just a ‘simple procedure.’ You’re in and out like having your tonsils taken out. That it’s not painful. That there are really minor complications, if any. Another lie that women might believe is that there’s no psychological consequences, emotionally, physically, spiritually. God has just put a calling on my life that everything that Satan had used for evil God was going to take it and turn it into something amazing and beautiful like Jesus."

Something to ponder as we head toward Sanctity of Life Sunday.

January 12, 2015

"LORD, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief. Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you. The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground; he makes me dwell in the darkness like those long dead. So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart within me is dismayed. I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done. I spread out my hands to you; I thirst for you like a parched land. Answer me quickly, LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, or I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. Rescue me from my enemies, LORD, or I hide myself in you. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. For your name’s sake, LORD, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble. In your unfailing love, silence my enemies; destroy all my foes, for I am your servant."  Psalm 143

Do you pray just to get an answer?

Would you still pray if you didn't get prayers answered?

Why do you pray?

Have you ever thought about it?

You don't get everything you ask from your spouse but you don't stop talking to them, do you? You have no hope for a continuing relationship if you stop communicating.

Someone has said there are two primary reasons for prayer. One reason for prayer is to know the will of God and the second is for grace to do His will. 

The Psalms are filled with passionate prayers. One of those is found in our text, the 143rd Psalm. If you want to have a passionate spiritual relationship with God you must understand prayer. And if you believe that the main reason for prayer is what you can get out of Him, you are missing the better half of prayer. Prayer is also about what God wants to put into you!

Prayer connects you with God allowing you to communicate with Him. Communicating with God brings contentment. Communicating with God means you learn to listen to Him. Listening to God helps you get to know Him and learn to love Him. Connecting and communicating are extremely important to your spiritual health and growth.

Prayer allows you to confess your sins to God and that brings you peace. Peace is evidence that God has heard your confession and lifted your guilt.

When you pray you can contemplate His Word and His works, and His wonders. Meditating on God stretches your mind, expands your spirit, and encourages your heart. Contemplating how much He loves you and how powerful He is and how imperfect and needy you are.

Praying develops conviction within you. As you connect and communicate with God and when you spend regular time contemplating His goodness He will become increasingly more real to you and your faith will strengthen and grow.

Character will develop within you - His Character - as you devote time to praying His Spirit will begin shaping your Spirit. Your thinking will begin to be shaped by His Spirit as you commune with Him and contemplate His word.

So, you see, there are plenty of good reasons to pray to God beyond getting answers to your prayers. We have mentioned five or six of those.There are more reasons but these are certainly good enough!

Prayer is a powerful tool. It can be hard work but it is incredibly worthwhile. Even if you never got what you really wanted and requested from God, you discover all the joys of living in an intimate spiritual realtionship with the eternal God of the universe! Worry less about what you can get out of prayer and rejoice about what it can put in you!

January 11, 2015

"Then He said to them all: "If anyone would come after me......." Luke 9:23a

I am so encouraged to read the call of Jesus to those who would desire to be disciples!

Notice whom He addresses:

"He said to them ALL".

"If anyone will......"

Anyone can be a follower of Jesus Christ. You don't have to be wealthy or well educated or well adjusted. You just have to be willing! Consider this story from Brooklyn Tabernacle, a great church in metropolitan New York City:

Jim Cymbala preaches at a church in the slums of New York. He tells the following story: It was Easter Sunday and I was so tired at the end of the day that I just went to the edge of the platform, pulled down my tie and sat down and draped my feet over the edge. It was a wonderful service with many people coming forward. The counselors were talking with these people. As I was sitting there I looked up the middle aisle, and there in about the third row was a man who looked about fifty, disheveled, filthy. He looked up at me rather sheepishly, as if saying, “Could I talk to you?” We have homeless people coming in all the time, asking for money or whatever. So as I sat there, I said to myself, though I am ashamed of it, “What a way to end a Sunday. I’ve had such a good time, preaching and ministering, and here’s a fellow probably wanting some money for more wine.” He walked up. When he got within about five feet of me, I smelled a horrible smell like I’d never smelled in my life. It was so awful that when he got close, I would inhale by looking away, and then I’d talk to him, and then look away to inhale, because I couldn’t inhale facing him. I asked him, “What’s your name?” “David.” “How long have you been on the street?” “Six years.” “How old are you?” “Thirty-two.” He looked fifty- hair matted; front teeth missing; wino; eyes slightly glazed. “Where did you sleep last night, David?” “Abandoned truck.” I keep in my back pocket a money clip that also holds some credit cards. I fumbled to pick one out thinking; I’ll give him some money. I won’t even get a volunteer. They are all busy talking with others. Usually we don’t give money to people. We take them to get something to eat. I took the money out. David pushed his finger in front of me. He said, “I don’t want your money. I want this Jesus, the One you were talking about, because I’m not going to make it. I’m going to die on the street.” I completely forgot about David, and I started to weep for myself. I was going to give a couple of dollars to someone God had sent to me. See how easy it is? I could make the excuse I was tired. There is no excuse. I was not seeing him the way God sees him. I was not feeling what God feels. But oh, did that change! David just stood there. He didn’t know what was happening. I pleaded with God, “God, forgive me! Forgive me! Please forgive me. I am so sorry to represent You this way. I’m so sorry. Here I am with my message and my points, and You send somebody and I am not ready for it. Oh, God!” Something came over me. Suddenly I started to weep deeper, and David began to weep. He fell against my chest as I was sitting there. He fell against my white shirt and tie, and I put my arms around him, and there we wept on each other. The smell of His person became a beautiful aroma. Here is what I thought the Lord made real to me: If you don’t love this smell, I can’t use you, because this is why I called you where you are. This is what you are about. You are about this smell. Christ changed David’s life. He started memorizing portions of Scripture that were incredible. We got him a place to live. We hired him in the church to do maintenance, and we got his teeth fixed. He was a handsome man when he came out of the hospital. They detoxed him in 6 days. He spent that Thanksgiving at my house. He also spent Christmas at my house. When we were exchanging presents, he pulled out a little thing and he said, “This is for you.” It was a little white hanky. It was the only thing he could afford. A year later David got up and talked about his conversion to Christ. The minute he took the mic and began to speak, I said, “The man is a preacher.” This past Easter we ordained David. He is an associate minister of a church over in New Jersey. And I was so close to saying, “Here, take this; I’m a busy preacher.” We can get so full of ourselves.

The call to discipleship is to "all" or to "anyone who will". That means even people like David can follow Jesus! Or, people like you and me.

January 10, 2015

"Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech: "How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?" Proverbs 1:20-22

If wisdom was easy, just about everyone would be wise!

Wisdom demands that you choose wisdom by asking at every impulse, every invitation and every opportunity, "in light of my past experiences, my current circumstances and my future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing for me to do?"

Once you ask the question you must act upon the clarity you receive from the answer.

These verses in Proverbs expose three types who opt not to choose wisdom. There are the simple and there are the mockers and there are the fools.

I will have a lot to say about each of those types tomorrow in my message.

One of things that makes it difficult to live wisely is the number of simple people, fools and mockers who opt out of living wisely. And the closer your relationship and interaction with the simple, the fools and the mockers the more difficult it can be to ask and act on the question, "What is the wise thing for me to do?"

The simple lack wisdom primarily because they are inexperienced at life. They haven't learned which questions to ask in order to get the answers they need. But the poor choices they make in their inexperience can complicate decision-making for others who care about them.

Fools lack wisdom because they don't care to have it. They want to do what gives them pleasure and care not for the consequences. Despite knowing the wise thing to do they simply choose to do what they want to do. When they blow up their lives with their careless and reckless choices they create collateral damage.

Simple people lack wisdom because they are inexperienced and foolish people lack wisdom because they reject it, but the mocker not only rejects wisdom but will ridicule those who seek wisdom. Mockers are arrogant enough to believe they are already smarter than everyone else. Mockers try to control their world and everyone in it through criticism and cynicism. It is nearly impossible to reach a mocker or have a meaningful relationship with them.

In a world complicated by the poor decisions of the simple, the recklessness of fools and the opposition of mockers, what are the wise to do?

Ask it!

In light of my past experience, my current circumstances and my future hopes and dreams what is the wise thing for me to do?

And act on it!