Today Christians around the country are taking some time to
remember the value of life, regardless of what stage it is at. In 1984 Ronald
Reagan kicked off the first of the Sanctity of Human Life Sundays, in
remembrance of the tragedy of Roe vs. Wade court decision in 1973 that
legalized abortion throughout all 9 months of a pregnancy. As I was thinking
about this message earlier this week, I have been told that my Mother had
people trying to get her to have an abortion. Thankfully I was born less than 6
months after that court decision. I for one am thankful that my mother valued
life and that she gave me a chance.
Since then there have been many cases that have slowly added
restrictions to ending the life of a child before he or she is born, but it is
still not enough. I have recently read an article that made a case that in the
last 5 years more restrictions have been enacted than for many years prior.
Thankfully society is beginning to honor the life of an unborn child a little bit
at a time. Some are beginning to see that life begins at conception, not at
birth. We need to continue to pray for the Holy Spirit to open people’s eyes to
the harm they are causing and the millions of lives that have been ended.
As we begin this morning I want to ask you a question. ‘What
is the value of a human life?’ You don’t need to answer me out loud, but your
answer does have a big influence on what you opinions about some topics you may
read in the news today. I have already touched on abortion, but how about
physician assisted suicide or euthanasia. These two are issues before us in
today in society, we read about them in the news, and we may be confronted with
them in our own lives or the life of a loved one.
Most of us here will remember September 11, 2001 as a day of
infamy where terrorist crashed planes into the World Trade Center buildings,
the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. 4,000 innocent people died on that
day. People with dreams, goals, ambitions, and a large part of their lives ahead
of them. What most people do not realize is that on September 12th, 4,000
people died, as well as September 13th, 14th, and so on.
4,000 people are being killed every day via abortion, not by terrorist but by
hurting people who do not see how much God values each and every life.
Sadly these people are being blinded by the world and the
hurt in their lives, they believe the lies of Satan. Their careers are more
important, they are concerned they cannot raise a child on their own, or even
that the cost is more than they can bear. Simply put Satan has blinded them
from the reality that God loves them and the child they are carrying.
So far I have been focusing on abortion not because it is
worse that euthanasia or physician assisted suicide, they are all sins before
God’s eyes. There is simply more information available about abortion since it
has been legal for so long.
If we think about euthanasia and physician assisted suicide
we will find that once again that Satan has blinded people into thinking they
have no choice. Satan may be telling someone that they are terminal so what is
the point of living, or that the pain will prevent them from experiencing any
joy whatsoever. What about the stories in the news over the last couple of
years of people being encouraged and even wanting to euthanize their children
when he or she is born with a disability.
Whenever I hear or read about something like this my heart
brakes and I remember that in Psalms 139 it states “You knit me together in my
mother’s womb.”
God loves each of us so much that He knit us together while
we were in our mother’s womb.
Let’s read Psalm 139:13-16
“13 For it was You who
created my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well. 15 My bones were not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began.”
14 I will praise You because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well. 15 My bones were not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began.”
God sees each person ever created as a
unique individual that He was painstakingly involved in our creation.
Psalm 139:13
“13 For it was You who
created my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother’s womb.”
The Psalmist David, is saying that God was involved with
every aspect of our creation. You can take this figuratively and believe that
God created the reproductive process and hence had a hand in the creation of
each of us. I believe, as with most things with our Lord, that it was much more
intimate than Him just creating a process. God was hands on involved in the
creation of each of us, forming our hearts, putting our organs in place,
creating our skin, and breathing life into each one of us. As verse 13 said He
‘created my inward parts; You knit me together’. God was actively involved in
the creation of every person ever conceived.
Psalm 139:14
“14 I will praise You
because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful,
and I know this very well.”
In verse 14 we are not being told that I
have lived a remarkable life or have grown into a wonderful man. No, it says ‘I
have been remarkably and wonderfully made.’ King David is praising God because
of how he was made, not who he has become. He continues to praise God now that
David understands that God created him and those blessings and uniqueness given
by God forming him has had wonderful results.
Psalm 139:15
“15 My bones were not
hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of
the earth.”
During the creation of the Psalmist and
every other person every created, God was fully involved. He saw every aspect
of creation. He saw what parts of the body would be strong, and those parts
that would be weak. Is God surprised that I had the genetic make up to develop
a brain tumor? Or Becky and Sharon to need shoulder surgery? Was blindsided by
the fact that Chris was going to be hearing impaired? ABSOLUTELY NOT! God did
not bring sickness and death into this world, but He is fully aware of it. He
is so intimately involved in our creation that He is surprised by nothing, as
nothing was hidden from Him.
Psalm 139:16
“16 Your eyes saw me when I
was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single
one of them began.”
God’s love for us is so complete that He
was with us while we were being created and the connection was so intimate that
He understood all of the challenges we would face and all the choices we would
make. He knows everything about us and the choices we would make, from the
first moment He created us.
Jeremiah 1:5 states “Before I formed you in
the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I have
appointed you a prophet to the nations.” NASB
To me that sounds like God fully understood
who we were and the actions we would take from the moment he first knew us,
before He formed us.
If God new us before, let me emphasize,
BEFORE He formed us, do you think He understood the challenges we would face?
Did He know we may struggle with the choice on whether to have an abortion or
not? Does He know the pain and joy you will experience in your final days?
The answer to all these questions is a
resounding, YES! God knows you better than you can ever imagine.
If God knows you or your unborn child
before you were formed, do you think the Bible is going to give us some insight
on if God values our lives? You Bet.
Genesis 1:26-27
“26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female.”
Not only was God intimately involved in our creation, in forming us, His love was so amazing that He created us in His image.
So every Human being ever created, born or not, alive today, or passed on was made in the image of God. Every life is significant, every life is important, and every life is special because we are created in the image of God.
It does not matter who you are. The daughters of President Obama are no more important than a child living in a homeless shelter. They were all made in the image of God.
The child of a 40 year old couple who have been trying to have a baby for 20 years or the child of a 15 year old girl who feels she made a mistake are both equally loved in the eyes of God.
The man struggling with terminal cancer and his inability to care for himself, is just as valuable to God as any of us sitting in this room.
As a child of God, no matter our circumstances, no matter who our parents are, and no matter what struggles we are facing God loves us. That love was shown when He formed us in our mother’s womb and that Love is shown today as He continues to walk with us through our daily struggles.
If you ever question if you are loved by God, look at Jesus’
ministry.
Widow of Nain – Jesus brought her son back to life
A woman was caught in adultery – He gave her acceptance,
forgiveness, and another chance
Blind Bartimaeus cries out from the crowd and Jesus gave him
his sight
A wild man was living in the tombs – Jesus delivers him from
demon possession
Jesus cares about every person ever created, from the unborn
to the terminally ill Jesus Christ is there for us.
If you don’t know Jesus this morning and want His love to be
a part of your life. Listen to me carefully. The only way to become part of the
family of God is to ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and to be Lord over
your life. If you will choose to follow Him, He will walk with you for the rest
of your days until you join Him in Heaven. If you want to make that commitment,
please come forward during our invitational hymn. If anything else has touched
you this morning or you need prayer I encourage you to come up and join me.
Thank You for reading!
I pray you value life more today than you did yesterday, and with each passing day it becomes more and more important. Each of us should strive to Love All of Creation as our Lord Jesus Christ Does and see it through His eyes!
God Bless,
Robert
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