January 19, 2015

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." Philippians 2:3-4

Once you decide that humility is important and once you commit to humbling yourself, how do you know if you have achieved it?

Humility is a bit like your shadow, others will see it when you may not.

Someone said, "Humility is a strange thing. The minute you think you've got, you've lost it!"

Another has said, "The ultimate test of humility is when you can say grace before you eat crow."

The purpose of this post this morning is to give you some questions by which to measure your attitude:

"Am I going to be about the team or am I going to make the team about me?"

Humility puts the interests of the team and the welfare of its teammates ahead of it's own needs. Is that you?

"Am I as happy over a teammate's success as I am my own?"

A humble attitude can celebrate the success of others as it would it's own. Are you able to do that?

"How well do I receive correction or instruction from the coach?"

The saying goes, "The biggest room in the world is the room for improvement." Anyone who cannot accept criticism, correction or instruction from the coach will not help his team. Are you willing to grow by receiving constructive criticism?

"Am I willing to to give up my rights and pick up my responsibilities?"

Humility does not demand its individual rights but is willing to serve were ever needed.

"Will I resist trying to control others and take control of my attitude?"

There is very little that you can control in life. The one thing you must control is your attitude. No one else can do it for you. You can do it for no one else. Will you take charge of your attitude?

"Do I see a team win and a personal win?"

John Maxwell once said, "Much can be accomplished when we don't worry about who gets the credit." Are you able to share the glory or allow another to receive it in order for the team to win?

Unity is a necessary attitude for a believer and a church. It allows God to move and accomplish His will. Humility is essential to preserve unity. Run your attitude past these questions and humbly see how you fare.

January 18, 2015

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:13-16

With respect to FDR, January 22, 1973 is "a day that will live in infamy." That is the day, 42 years ago, that the Supreme Court handed down their decision on Roe vs. Wade which legalized abortion. Therefore, this moral evil was sanctioned as the law of the land by judicial fiat and not through normal legal procedures. Abortion was made legal via the Court not by the Congress. One of the reasons this law has been so divisive and contentious is because it never got to be debate on the floor of the House or the Senate. It was never drafted into a bill and passed through the channels prescribed by the Constitution. This law that has cost the life of nearly 57,000,000 unborn Americans was decided by just 7 people! God have mercy on their souls.

I came to my first church in Princeton, Illinois on August 22, 1972, just five months to the day before this fateful and fatal decision. I opposed it then and I oppose it now. My primary reason for opposing it is not because it was implemented from the Bench. Although that does bother me. Nor is it because it is a bad ruling that ignores parts of the Constitution and distorts other parts. I oppose it because it is morally wrong. The Bible makes it abundantly clear that issues of birth, life, and death are under the jurisdiction of Almighty God. A nation who was founded on biblical Christian standards should have never been placed in the position of contradicting those principles. The Preamble of our Constitution guarantees the "right to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness". What part of "right to life" do they not understand?

In addition to the nearly 57 millions of innocent Americans who never got to draw a breath or exercise their Constitutional right to "life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness", this misguided decision has seriously eroded the moral conscious of America. How long can we believe our own lie that unborn life is just an "un viable fetus"? Once we surrender to moral deception in one area, what prevents us from surrendering in another? For example, if we convince ourselves to believe that unborn life is not worth protecting, what will prevent us from deciding that other forms of life are not viable - such as physically deformed people, or elderly people or mentally challenged people? Where do we draw the line when we don't know where to draw the line? Who is safe and who is at risk in our culture? Who knows? Who decides?

Roe v. Wade is just another manifestation of the original sin - the lie that "you will be like God". Denying a clear and recognized right of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" and to replace it with an arbitrarily manufactured right of "a woman to her own body". The desire to be "god over my own body" is motivated by this inner desire to whatever I want and not have consequences for it. It is a old as Lucifer and as unoriginal as Adam and Eve. Still, it is powerful and destructive. Witness the moral and social deterioration of our country since 1973.

Bad law, implemented in a bad way, for a bad reason and driven by a bad motive is doomed to end badly.

So, on this sad 42nd commemoration of Roe v. Wade, we pause to invoke God's mercy on our nation. We pray God's comfort on those millions of mothers who are haunted by guilt and regret. We mourn the 57 millions of innocent souls who never drew a breath and wonder if among them might have been the next great inventor, the next great author, the next great ambassador, or the next great scientist.

Only God knows. And fortunately, by His great mercy, all of them are in His tender care!

January 17, 2015

"Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ." Ephesians 4:15

This is taken from a letter to the editor of a well-known national news magazine. It makes some good points as it challenges the fallacy of the arguments given to rationalize abortion. The bold print statements are what pro-abortion people say and below them are the pro-life responses.

Pro-abortion people say dumb things: 

"Abortion isn’t killing. A fetus isn’t alive, it’s just tissue." 

Yet, how can something that’s growing not be alive?  Biology says that the fetus is alive, and abortion makes it dead. Isn’t that killing?

"A fetus isn’t human." 

What is it? A dog? A fish? A rutabaga? If a being has human parents, isn’t it human? If it isn't a baby human, the woman is not pregnant.

"Abortion just terminates a pregnancy." 

No! Childbirth terminates a pregnancy, is abortion the same as childbirth?

"A fetus is just a microscopic piece of tissue." 

Aren’t we all “pieces of tissue” in different sizes? Are bigger people, more valuable people? Is Refrigerator Perry more valuable than Gary Coleman?

"It’s just a part of the woman’s body." 

If that’s true then pregnant women have two brains, two hearts, 20 fingers and toes, two blood types, two sets of DNA, and a penis half the time! 

"No one knows when life begins. It’s a religious question." 

Can a Satanist kill a two-year-old in a ritual sacrifice? After all no one knows when life begins and that’s what his religion says.

"My body, my choice!" 

What about the child’s body and his or her choice?

"A woman has a right to privacy." 

Does a woman have a right to abuse her two year old in private?

"We shouldn’t force our morality on other people." 

Isn’t a mother who aborts her child forcing her morality on her child?

"I’m personally opposed to abortion, but I wouldn’t take away a woman’s choice to have one." Why are you personally opposed to abortion? 

Would you be personally opposed to slavery but not take away the choice to own a slave?

"Abortion is a private decision between a woman and her doctor." 

If a woman privately hires a doctor to kill her born child, should we interfere?

"What about children who will have terrible lives or live in poverty?" 

Do we need to kill them to save them from poverty or problems? 

"Abortion is legal."  

So was slavery. What is legal isn’t always right.

"Do you want women to die in dangerous 'back-alley' abortions?" 

No, the death of the mother would be just as tragic as the death of the child. Can’t we have a world where neither dies?

"You’re a man. You don’t have a uterus. You have no right to tell me what to do!" 

The entire Supreme Court that decided the Roe vs. Wade decision were men. Should we ignore that court decision legalizing abortion?

"Pro-lifers are fanatics that bomb clinics, shoot abortion doctors and break the law!" 

Why do you think Pro-lifers do those things? I am Pro-life and do not do or advocate those things. However, I am glad that you agree that it’s terrible when people harm those that they consider “unwanted.” That’s why I oppose abortion.

When you compare the logic of pro-abortion advocates to the logic of pro-lifers, which do you think makes more sense?

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.