Abortion and God's Forgiveness

"Will God forgive me if I have an abortion?" It's a question many women have. I didn't realize how common a question it is until I wrote about this subject last time. Perhaps you are thinking about an abortion or already had one and are wondering about this. If so, please keep reading, and I think you'll find your answer.

If you are asking this question, you already know that God views abortion as a sin--as murder in fact. So the question is, what is God's criteria for forgiveness of a sin? Or more simply: What do I need to do to be forgiven?

In a word, Repent. To repent is to change your mind about your actions so completely that you change your actions. Part of that is being sorry for what you've done. Not just sorry for the circumstances that you feel forced you into doing it, but sorry that you did it, regardless of the circumstances.

Some people will think about a sin (abortion or something else), decide that they will repent the next day, and go ahead and do it. Perhaps the next day they tell God, "I shouldn't have done that. Please forgive me." And they think every time they want to commit that sin they can do it, and then just smooth things over with God. That isn't repentance. And God does not forgive someone who hasn't truly repented.

So if you are thinking about having an abortion, you will either come to deeply regret it, or you will never be forgiven. That mixture of relief and guilt you may feel is not repentance. You have not repented until you come to the place where, if you were in the same situation, you would not commit the sin that you did.

If you already had an abortion and you are sorry that you ever did it, and you wish you could undo it, and you have committed that you will never do it again--in other words, if you have repented of the sin--you are ready to find God's forgiveness and healing.

But let me warn you. God doesn't want to forgive just one sin and still have to punish you for all of the others. He wants to forgive you for all of them. And for that, you have to be willing to give up all of your sins. You don't come to the bargaining table with God. You have to surrender everything.

Imagine God as a king with subjects. Someone has led an insurrection against him, and he is going to punish the rebels. If a rebel comes to him and says, "I'm sorry about one crime I committed, but I'm not sorry about all of the rest," the king won't have much mercy on him. But perhaps the rebel comes to him and says, "I'm ashamed of everything I did. I can't make it up to you. I have nothing to give you to repay the damages. But I submit to you now, and I'll do anything you tell me now." Then the king forgives him, and adopts him as his own child, and gives him an inheritance in his kingdom.

God wants complete repentance and a complete submission to Him. In return, He forgives completely. He never brings your rebellion up to you again. He chooses to forget it, and treats you as if you had never rebelled. He gives you peace instead of guilt. He heals your broken heart. He assures you of His love for you. He gives you help to do what you ought to do when you feel like giving up. He promises that He will never leave you. He adopts you as His child and gives you a supportive family of His other children. He guarantees that no power or circumstance, including death itself, can ever rob you of your relationship as His child.

Some people try to prove their repentance by punishing themselves. They think that if they cause enough pain to themselves, God will be more likely to forgive them. They may cut themselves or develop an eating disorder. That's trying to pay for our own sin and satisfy God on our terms. Rather than submitting to God and accepting His free forgiveness, that's telling God you don't need Him. It's a sign of continued rebellion.

Whatever your situation, just submit to God and obey Him. Enjoy His forgiveness, and allow Him to heal you.


Wesley Wilson is the President of Let Her Live, a nonprofit dedicated to saving babies by showing the beauty and value of life to women considering abortion. Please learn more about the Let Her Live pro-life billboard campaign. Donations are tax deductible.

"Among these are Life..."

This Independence Day we celebrate a declaration, not only of the independence of 13 colonies, but also of some timeless truths that our Founding Fathers recognized: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

When Congress or the Supreme Court or anyone else tells us what rights we have or don't have, let us never forget that it is God Himself that has given rights to all men, based on the fact that He created them in His own image. Human rights come from God, not from government. Our Founding Fathers knew that, and we must not forget it.

The rights to life, liberty, and property are all under assault, but the chief among these is the right to life--a right which our laws fail to protect before birth (and in some cases after an injury or debilitating disease).

There are many fronts in the battle for God's gift of life. Some battle the forces of death in the legislatures. Some in the courts. Some in the battle for the hearts and minds of Americans. Some educate young people about the dangers of immorality and urge them to abstain until marriage. Others volunteer at pregnancy helping centers, persuading women not to abort. Still others stand as a last line of defense at the abortion clinics themselves, either protesting or doing sidewalk counseling. With so many different fronts, there are many gaps in which to stand.

Our Founding Fathers pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to defend the freedoms they held dear. As we honor all the patriots who have risked and given their lives in defense of our freedom, let us commit to defend the God-given right to life with equal resolve--and with equal reliance upon the Author of life and the Giver of liberty.


Wesley Wilson

--
Wesley Wilson is the President of Let Her Live, a nonprofit dedicated to saving babies by showing the beauty and value of life to women considering abortion. Please learn more about the Let Her Live pro-life billboard campaign. Donations are tax deductible.

The Supreme Court and a Culture of Life

Although none of the Supreme Court's decisions this session directly impact abortion, I believe some of these cases relate directly to our culture's respect for life.

In District of Columbia v. Heller, the court overturned the D.C. gun ban--a victory for life. It makes little sense, indeed, to say a person has a right to life, but lacks the right to protect that life. The right to self-defense flows from the inherent worth of the individual created in the image of God.

As William Blackstone explained in his Commentaries on the Laws of England, "Both the life and limbs of a man are of such high value, in the estimation of the law of England, that it pardons even homicide if committed ... in order to preserve them." Blackstone also wrote that the right of "having arms for their defense" is an auxiliary to "the natural right of resistance and self-preservation, when the sanctions of society and laws are found insufficient to restrain the violence of oppression."

Of course the Bible, upon which much of England's common law was based, encourages self-defense. As one example of many, Nehemiah instructed the people of God, "Be not ye afraid of them: remember the LORD, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses." (Nehemiah 4:14)

The Supreme Court's recognition of the right of self-defense, and the corollary right to own handguns as a means of self-defense, is a welcome affirmation of the value of life. Life is, and always will be, worth fighting for.

The court's decision in Kennedy v. Louisiana, overturning death penalty laws in six states for the crime of child rape, is a blow to the culture of life. If our society truly valued its children, would we not apply the death penalty to those who commit the most heinous crime against them? The "cruel and unusual punishment" phrase used to justify the ruling must be understood by its original intent. What did James Madison and his contemporaries mean by it? Did not their states allow the death penalty for rape--and how much more in a case where the victim was a child?

To defend the sanctity and worth of every life, we cannot allow perverts to violate children. It makes no sense to protect children's lives but fail to protect them from the worst kind of assault. What penalty other than death could fit the crime of child rape? It seems to be a self-evident law of nature that child rapists have forfeited their right to live. The Kennedy ruling devalues life. All of our lives just became that much cheaper.

The constitutional balance of power between the branches of government is out of kilter when the most important job of a president is to appoint judges. But these cases show us once again that the course of our nation depends on electing a president who will appoint judges who respect the Constitution. Someday, we must limit the judiciary to its constitutional authority. Until then we celebrate the victories, grieve the defeats, and elect presidents and legislators who will give us good kings--I mean, judges.

--
Wesley Wilson is the President of Let Her Live, a nonprofit dedicated to saving babies by showing the beauty and value of life to women considering abortion. Please learn more about the Let Her Live pro-life billboard campaign. Donations are tax deductible.

So Much for Free Speech

I commented recently on penalties imposed on "hate speech" (a.k.a., speech the government doesn't approve of) in France. With the political left pushing for hate speech laws in the United States, it is a battle that every American who values his or her right to say things that are unpopular, will soon have to fight.

But we don't have to wait long. Elaine Huguenin, a wedding photographer in New Mexico, will be brought before the New Mexico Human Rights Division because she refused to photograph a lesbian commitment ceremony.

It remains a mystery why the agency has even agreed to hear the complaint, as a spokesman for the state said the agency handles discrimination claims "in the areas of employment, housing, credit or public accommodation." Last time I checked, wedding photos didn't fit in those categories. I haven't read the New Mexico constitution, but I seriously doubt it protects the basic human right to have photographs taken of you. But we all know about the rights that courts can find in "living" documents.

How can minor "rights" override major ones? How can a supposed right not to be discriminated against trump the right to free speech guaranteed by the First Amendment? For that matter, how did the "right to privacy" discovered in Roe v. Wade trump the right to due process of law before an individual is deprived of life?

As we have just seen in the California rulings banning home schooling and legalizing homosexual "marriage," the courts are free to make up the rules as they go. The judiciary was intended to be the most conservative branch (in the sense of resistant to change) of government. It has become the most radical. Change should come as the people's representatives propose it and pass laws. The judges should see that the laws of the land (and in some cases, its traditions) are followed.

The courts are out of control, and the legislature is the only body capable of removing the judges who violate their trust and make new laws. We must get our representatives to undertake that responsibility. And it might not be a bad idea to start working toward constitutional amendments at the state and federal level allowing voter recall of all judges.

If we don't get the courts to follow the laws of the land, we won't have a Constitution left, nor will we have the freedoms it guarantees.


Wesley Wilson is the President of Let Her Live, a nonprofit dedicated to saving babies by showing the beauty and value of life to women considering abortion. Please learn more about the Let Her Live pro-life billboard campaign. Donations are tax deductible.

Totalitarian Tolerance is Nothing New

The inflexible forces of tolerance have scored another victory against intolerant speech. French actress Brigitte Bardot was fined 15,000 euros for the statement: "I've had enough of being led by the nose by this whole population which is destroying us, (and) destroying our country by imposing their ways." She was referring to the Muslims of course, specifically to what she views as their inhumane killing of animals. So to demonstrate she was wrong, the government imposed the fine for even writing the statement.

This is where the politically-correct movement is heading in the United States and Canada too. We musn't criticize Islam. We can't preach against homosexuality or we risk going to jail (in Canada and some states). Those who work against illegal immigration are called racists.

Many would also love to silence pro-life activists. Have we forgotten the police brutality against Operation Rescue and other pro-life people participating in peaceful civil disobedience? Or the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances law that was finally struck down for violating first amendment rights? Or the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law that limits political speech?

In the pro-life movement, we look back to the anti-slavery movement of the 1800's for inspiration. They faced much worse restriction of their first amendment rights than we have seen. In the 1830's, the postal system in many parts of the country refused to deliver "incendiary publications," such as those that criticized slavery. John Quincy Adams fought for years to overcome Congress' gag order that kept them from even considering citizens' petitions against slavery. Anti-slavery newspaper editor Elijah Lovejoy was murdered in Alton, Ill., because he refused to stop his abolitionist writing. And the unlawfully-elected proslavery government of "Bloody" Kansas made mere possession of Uncle Tom's Cabin a crime punishable by death.

Repression wears many "respectable" faces. Today it is the face of tolerance. Evil must not be criticized, for that would make someone feel bad. So evil and oppression go on while too many nice people enable it by their silence. Martin Luther King, Jr. condemned the silent compromise with racial oppression, and the leaders of the Moral Majority movement condemned the silent compromise with other forms of evil, such as sexual immorality, perversion, and abortion.

Ms. Bardot has pledged that she will not be silent on the Islamic takeover of her country. Respectable citizens of France may be too polite to say what she says, but when they go to bed worried that the Muslim riots will spread to their city, they have to know in their hearts that she is right. Tolerance of evil is always easier, but we must always stand against that oppression that would silence all dissidents, whether in the name of tolerance or for any other reason.

Perhaps King Solomon put it best: "They that forsake the law praise the wicked, but such as keep the law contend with them."

And again: "He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the Lord."


Wesley Wilson is the President of Let Her Live, a nonprofit dedicated to saving babies by showing the beauty and value of life to women considering abortion. Please learn more about the Let Her Live pro-life billboard campaign. Donations are tax deductible.