John K. Jenkins Sr - Abortion

How many of y’all know? I’m sure you notice that we are in the middle of a divide in our nation. It 's a big divide; there are multiple divides on many fronts. It’s divided racially and politically. What makes the division tough for me is that people who say they’re Christians often line up on a side that is very opposite of what Scripture says Christians are. Thank you, 17 of y’all, for that rousing affirmation! Let 's go to Proverbs, because I want to talk about something tonight that this church is probably very divided on. It 's my responsibility to get into your reality. Proverbs chapter 6: Here 's a topic I want to read through several scriptures, and it’s very controversial. I want you to have the heart of God about it from what I believe the Scripture teaches. Proverbs 6, verse 16 says, «These six things the Lord hates; yes, seven are an abomination to Him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren .» I’m zooming in today on verse 17 because I want to talk about abortion. I know it’s a tough topic. If you listen to the media, television, and the philosophies of the world, they’re on one side of the coin. But my job as your pastor is to tell you what God’s heart is about walking through the Scriptures, right? Amen! That 's what I want to do tonight. It’s been a long time since I taught about it, and I always assumed-erroneously-that people come down on the right side of things. I believed it, but I know over the years that many new people have come to the church. The problem with a church like ours, where we get hundreds of people joining every year-thousands join-they bring their beliefs into the church from before they got saved. Unless you teach them what God’s heart is about it, they’ll continue to promote, stand with, and agree with what the world says. The world says abortion is fine; you can’t tell a woman what to do with her body. No, a man can’t, but God can! God told him everything. I say these things while I’m preaching, but I don’t have the time to break it down in the Scriptures. This is important for men too, because many women have gotten abortions because the man pressured them into doing something. I want to talk to y’all about what God’s heart is on this matter. Again, I don’t do this teaching to try to make anybody feel ashamed or guilty who has had that experience. The purpose of this is not to make you feel guilty. We serve a God who will forgive you no matter what you do. I want to put that out front! I want that clear- that when we sin, we serve a God who, when we confess to Him, will cleanse us and forgive us of all our sin. Thank you, 18 of y’all, for that rousing affirmation! But the Scripture says that God hates when innocent blood is shed, and my job is to walk you through the Scriptures to show you God’s heart on this matter. Alright, y’all with me? Okay, let’s start by looking at these. I’ve got four points today that I want to share with you. The first one deals with the fact that in God’s view, when He looks at life, it’s based on the blood. Life is in the blood! The world says life doesn’t begin until you’re physically born and take a breath. That 's what the world says: you have to be existent, you have to come out of the womb and take a breath, and then you have life. But according to God, life is in the blood. The moment the blood is flowing-see, a baby in the womb has a heartbeat at a certain point. The baby has a heartbeat, and why is the baby’s heart beating? Because it’s pumping blood, and that’s life! Leviticus 17:11 says, «For the life of the flesh is in the blood.» I want you to get the heart of God. This is an important concept to grasp: from God 's perspective, life begins when the blood starts to flow, not when you come out of the womb. That 's the world’s philosophy. It 's in the blood! Look at your neighbor and say, «It’s in the blood!» Here 's point two: God views life even before you’re in the world and in the womb. This is repeated multiple times throughout Scripture- God knows about you long before you’re even conceived. God knows about you already! I want to look at Psalm 139. This is verses 14 through 16, where the psalmist is writing. Psalm 139, verse 14 says, «I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.» Verse 15: «My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret"-it means no human saw you-"and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.» That 's the wall.