Worldview Made Practical - Issue 3-15

8/14/2019 Worldview Made Practical - Issue 3-15

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Introduction

In everyday life, we may not think much about the topic of worldview because it seems to be more suited for academicstudy than something that has a direct effect on our daily lives. Nothing could be further from the truth. Every worldviewbelief is directly expressed in daily life. In fact, it is not too far fetched to say that every act you do in life is an expressionof your worldview. When you do things that are good and right, it is because you believe that is how you ought to act. On

the other hand, every time you do something bad or wrong, it is also an expression of what you believe.

That last thought may seem strange because it assumes you want to do bad things. Well, in your mind, maybe not, butsomehow you have given yourself permission to override with your actions what you consider wrong in your mind. Yourworldview is not what you sayyou believe, it is what you actuallybelieve and is expressed in your life.

Today we are looking at an action that our society has allowed to go on abortion. We may say we dont personally ap-prove of it, but by not actively working against it we are saying that it is not horrible enough for us to work toward its elimi-nation. Today we are examining just why abortion is so bad.

(Continued on page 2)

There is no question that the topic of abortion is one of thereal hot button issues of our day. And there is a very strongand outspoken lobby which is active and adamant thatabortion should remain the law of the land. When advocat-ing for abortion rights, proponents put forth some very in-teresting arguments as to why it should be legal.

The first argument asserts a womans right to personalchoice and privacy. They say that the whole abortion de-bate revolves around a womans right to have control overher own body. They claim that no outside person shouldhave the right to tell a woman what she must do with herbody. It is her own business and she should have the right

to make her own choice.

Another argument claims that restricting abortions leads toback-alley procedures which put womens lives at risk. They

argue that abortion should be affordable, safe and legal inorder for women to be protected.

A third argument is that teen pregnancy leads to all kinds ofsocial problems and that most teens are not ready to beparents. They should, therefore, not have to carry a child toterm which they will be unable to properly care for.

Another common argument is that women who becomepregnant by rape or incest should not be forced to bear achild created under those circumstances. They claim that itis simply not right.

Finally, it is argued that unwanted children are highly sub-ject to abuse by a parent who does not want the child. If achild is unwanted, the mother should not be forced to haveit.


MarketFaith Ministries is an equipping ministry which is focused on helping Christians become more effective

in living out their faith in the midst of the increasingly diverse worldview environment of modern society.

Contact MarketFaith Ministries312 Anton Dr.Tallahassee, FL 32312 [email protected]

http://www.marketfaith.org

Toll Free: 888-883-0656Phone: 850-383-9756

Fax: 850-514-4571

Volume 3 Number 15 August 13, 2008

What is the Real Choice in Abortion?


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(Abortion - Continued from page 1)

Essentially, pro-abortion advocates defend their position based on issues of personal choice, privacy, rape and incest,convenience, economics, child abuse, and the like.

This is not to say that these issues are not significant. But they completely miss the single most important issue of all.They entirely ignore the fact that every abortion kills a completely innocent human being. Not a single one of the pro-abortion arguments above can possibly justify this outcome.

Think about each of these issues for a moment. Should a pregnant mother have the power to take the life an unbornchild based simply on a right to choose? Should the privacy rights of one individual trump the right of another to live?Should a child be exterminated because the means of conception was bad or even traumatic for the mother? Should ababy be killed because bearing it will be inconvenient for the mother? Should a pre-born child be killed because theparent(s) cant afford another child? Should a persons life be snuffed out because it might be brought into the home ofsomeone who may not be a good parent?

Looking at it this way, the answers to the questions are obvious. There is no legitimate reason to kill an unborn baby.

But if we are going to make an assertion like this, there is one more issue that we must address. In taking this anti-abor-tion stance, we are also making an assumption an assumption that the pre-born child is fully a human being. Manyabortion advocates assert that the unborn are not yet real human beings, so aborting them is not killing a child.

This forces us to answer the deeper question: Is an unborn child an actual human being? Is an unborn baby nothingmore than a non-viable mass of tissue in a womans body, or is it something more? Is that tissue simply a potential hu-man being, or is it a real human being? Lets look at the facts.

First, we know that a fetus is alive from the moment of conception. Science has shown definitively that the cells whichcomprise the fetus are living. There is life there.

Secondly, we know that from the moment of conception the fetus forms a distinct human being. It is not simply inert tis-sue in the mother. It is an individual person which is different from the mothers body. When a sperm and egg come to-gether, they create a new person with distinct characteristics which are not just like either the mother or the father. Thecoming together creates a unique being with its own DNA.


(Introduction - Continued from page 1)

Before we move to the article, though, allow me to solicit your help. As was mentioned last time, MarketFaith Ministriesis preparing to hold a Worldview Summit for Ministry Professionals next January. To meet the costs of this project, weare in need of Christian businesses to help sponsor this important event. If you know of a business owner who would beable to help with a sponsorship, would you please put them in contact with us and we will be delighted to share withthem what this involves and how they can benefit. They can contact us at MarketFaith Ministries, 321 Anton Dr., Talla-hassee, FL 32312. Our phone number is 850-383-9756. Thanks so much for your help.

And, of course, I always love to hear from you. Contact me any time with your thoughts, opinions and suggestions.

God bless,Freddy

Find these books along with other

great worldview resources at

www.marketfaith.org


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(Abortion - Continued from page 2)

Finally, we must affirm that this unique, living being has value from the moment of conception. The value of a human be-ing is not in the physical form it holds at any given moment. Nor is it derived from the ability of an individuals body to per-form particular functions at any given moment.

Just because a fetus does not yet have the form of an adult, does not lower its value. The fact is, the physical form of ahuman being changes throughout life. A child does not look like a teenager, does not look like a middle aged adult, doesnot look like an elderly person. All stages are the proper look of a human being at those stages. This applies to a fetus, aswell. It looks like a human being is supposed to look at that stage of development.

Just because a fetus cannot execute the functions that a normally functioning adult is able to perform also does not lowerits inherent value as a human being. Using that kind of reasoning, we could argue that people under anesthesia or in adeep sleep have less value. The same could be said for those who were born with mental or physical handicaps, thosewho have lost limbs or have lost the function of some part of their body due to disease or accident. Even without the com-plete functioning of certain parts of the physical body, the individual person is still there. The value is in the person, not inphysical appearance or attributes. As a result, individual rights must be based on inherent, not physical capacities.

Abortion is not a preference issue. We dont get to choose whether or not another individual gets to live or die based onour own personal desires. A pre-born baby is not ice cream where we get to choose whether or not we want to eat itbased on personal tastes. It is an actual, living, individual person who has as much right to life as you or I.

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So, what worldview perspective could possibly assert a

value set which would approve of abortion? Where doesthe idea come from that abortion is not the killing of an in-nocent life and that it is simply a matter of personal prefer-ence? Or where does the thought come from that a humanlife in the form of a fetus has a low enough value that it isokay to kill it based on our own convenience?

The worldview assumption underlying this viewpoint be-lieves that human life, at least pre-born human life, doesnot have as much value as the life of one who is alreadyborn. This includes the belief that there is no such thing asmoral absolutes and all we have to base our morality on ispersonal preference. This point of view emerges directly

out of Naturalism. That is, there exists no God who has de-fined morality for humanity. We must create our own.

The Biblical worldview has an entirely different perspective.God has revealed in Scripture that human life is a gift fromGod. Human beings are persons who are created in theimage of God. The spiritual person that we are did not existuntil God created us at the moment of our conception.Since God created it, it belongs to him, and human beingsdo not have the right to exterminate innocent human life.

The real choice being made when one chooses abortiondoes not relate to personal choice, personal rights or con-

venience. It relates to life and death. When an abortiontakes place, a child is killed. As Christians, we have a sa-cred obligation to protect life because it is a person thatGod created for the purpose of relationship with himself.

In the next Issue: The Gospel According to the Califor-nia Supreme Court: Postmodernism

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Worldview Made Practical - Issue 3-15