Abortion – Being a Pilgrim

“So Pilate, the governor, went out to them and asked, “What is your charge against this man?” “We wouldn’t have handed him over to you if he weren’t a criminal!” they retorted. “Then take him away and judge him by your own law,” Pilate told them. “Only the Romans are permitted to execute someone,” the Jewish leaders replied. (This fulfilled Jesus’ prediction about the way he would die.)”
John 18:29-32 NLT

Jesus, branded a criminal because He claimed to be the Son of God. Someone to be executed because they proclaim the truth. A miscarriage of justice if there ever was one, and a verdict that has had repercussions throughout the last two thousand years. In those days of religious zeal amid a rigid interpretation of the Jewish Law of Moses and the plethora of rabbinical rules and regulations added on since, blasphemy became a crime. The name of God and God Himself became a taboo subject and anyone crossing the red line drawn by the Jewish lawyers, whether mentioned in the Scriptures or not, were in danger of stoning or some other form of execution. But this is not just a feature of the Jewish faith. It emerges in other faiths as well, such as Islam. We have seen in recent years the furore over cartoon pictures of the Prophet Mohammad or the disfigurement of the Koran. The fatwah issued in response to a book written by the author Salmon Rushdie. In the Book of Acts we find a silversmith who ran a company making idols, silver shrines of the goddess Artemis. Demetrius said, “But as you have seen and heard, this man Paul has persuaded many people that handmade gods aren’t really gods at all. And he’s done this not only here in Ephesus but throughout the entire province!” (Acts 19:26). A riot ensued, and it was only through the political skills of the local mayor that the situation didn’t deteriorate further.

But in our verses today from John 18, we find Jesus criminalised for speaking the truth. We pilgrims could perhaps find ourselves also criminalised for speaking out in the name of Jesus. Recently, a man in the UK was handed down a large fine and a criminal record for praying silently outside an abortion clinic. The scandal of infanticide continues in our land, legally protected by the Abortion Act of 1967, and in the Uk in 2022 alone there were 251,377 abortions carried out in the name of “healthcare”. In addition, the politicians are discussing other forms of legislation to make it a criminal offence to provide any form of “therapy” (including pastoral care and prayer) for people perhaps confused about which sex or gender they are. Another debate is continuing over changing the law so that people can end their lives with medical assistance. The ideologues call it assisted dying, but it is suicide without any doubts. There are plenty of opportunities for people, Christians and pilgrims like ourselves, to become criminalised for speaking out Biblical truths. But two thousand years ago, the truth that Jesus proclaimed in His “trial” before Caiaphas initiated a process that led to His execution, “ … so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16b).

Over the years since Jesus died there have been many martyrs who stood firm in their witness for the truths of God. The first Christian martyr was Stephen and we can read the account of his death in Acts 7. The words that sealed his fate can be found in Acts 7:55-56, “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honour at God’s right hand. And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honour at God’s right hand!”” In previous verses we find that when Jesus left this world He returned to Heaven, ” ... where Christ sits in the place of honour at God’s right hand” (Colossians 3:1b). But as Stephen gazed upwards he received a vision of Heaven, with Jesus standing there, and I like to think that he was cheering Stephen on and preparing the way for him to enter Glory. Jesus hasn’t stopped cheering us on ever since, as we stand firm in our faith, declaring our allegiance to Biblical truths that declare God’s message for this lost generation.

Dear Lord Jesus. You willingly went to the cross for human beings like us. Because You took on our sins, we can now be righteous in God’s presence, for ever and ever. Amen.

“Children are a gift from the Lord;
they are a reward from him.”
Psalm 127:3

Solomon continues with his thoughts in Psalm 127. He now muses over the blessings of having children, calling them a reward from the Lord. At first glance, we might take this as read, not digging too deeply into what it actually means. I suppose in those days with no welfare state, a house full of sons and daughters would be a blessing. As well as supporting the family, sons were useful for protection and security, particularly in their parent’s older years. But can they fall into the category of being a “gift” and a “reward” from the Lord? And what about in society today, in an overpopulated world?

There can never be a negative answer to that question. My own two children have been a source of many blessings. Those early years were a constant stream of good experiences as we grew up together as a family, ever closer, always learning. And as the years have rolled by, we have laughed together but also on occasion cried together, united as a family in the way God intended.

But sadly, in recent years, Western nations have increasingly become engaged in the practice of infanticide. Call it abortion if you prefer. To me, the Biblical position is clear – life starts at the moment of conception. But we must never get caught up in a judgemental way; God loves each and every person caught up in their individual tragedies, and it is our duty to dispense His love and grace whenever we can. Bringing light and love into traumatised people’s lives.

We also need to pray for those desperately sad people who want to bring children into this world, but are unable to do so for some physiological reason. Good parents, devastated that they cannot fulfil their potential. And we also need to pray for the parents who lack the skills to bring up children, perhaps because they were badly parented themselves. And we have another societal problem with single parent families, where one of the parents has moved on, leaving a torn family and traumatised partner. We pray. O Lord, how we must pray.

Father God, today we thank You for the gift of children to those of us who are parents. And we pray for those of us who one day will be parents, or want to be parents, that you will reward them also. Help those people, Father, who are struggling in their parenting. We pray for those people who are single or unable to be parents, Father. We ask that You become their parent, enfolding them with Your presence and love, leading them to families as it says in Your Word. We pray this in the Name of Jesus. Amen.