You’re Pro-life…Why?

I’ve made it a habit to engage pro-abortion arguers on social media and my blog. It’s good practice for me, and I genuinely enjoy the debates. You might think that’s a bit odd. But when you consider there is no logical pro-abortion argument, the chips are always stacked in my favor. What can I say? I like winning.

Chances are you’ve been engaged in a conversation about your pro-life views. If you haven’t, then I strongly encourage you to purposefully put yourself in that situation. It may be a friendly conversation with a co-worker, or a more contentious debate with a family member. But regardless of where or with whom, we should all be ready and able to rationally and calmly explain why innocent life is valuable and deserves our protection.

At the heart of the pro-life movement is the fact that every human being is unique, and every person has intrinsic value. There has never been—nor will there ever be—another person like you or me. (At least in my case, that’s a very good thing.) Each of us is one of a kind, created unlike any other human in all of history with our individual DNA, fingerprints, and genetic code. At Human Coalition, we convey this fact with the fingerprint on our logo. It’s inspired by the thumbprint of “Adeline,” one of the first babies we helped rescue from abortion who is an adorable 4½-year-old girl today.

Imago Dei

Though there are philosophical, ethical, and medical foundations for the pro-life ethic, the biblical arguments are very powerful. So we take this concept of human dignity a step further by validating that you and I are made in the likeness of God.

In all of creation, only human beings were made in the image of our Creator. “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness,” the Lord said (Genesis 1:26 NASB). So, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (1:27).

We refer to this image bearing in its original Latin, the imago Dei, which means to bear the marks of distinction, dignity, and divine purpose.

Every day at Human Coalition, we have the privilege of witnessing the imago Dei in the lives of the children we rescue from abortion. When a caregiver at one of our women’s care clinics or a participating life-affirming pregnancy center performs an ultrasound and shows the expectant mother her baby’s heartbeat, we are reminded that in prenatal development, God creates an awe-inspiring and wonderful work of divine—and living—art.

Oftentimes, these expectant mothers have convinced themselves that the babies they carry are just a clump of cells. (We have the media and the abortion industry to thank for that lie.) But the image of the baby on the ultrasound monitor and the sound of his heartbeat tell a different story. Growing within the mother is another human being who bears God’s image. King David understood this, saying in Psalm 139:13 that God “formed [his] inward parts…in [his] mother’s womb.”

Humanity Trumps Choice

Although Scripture unequivocally supports the intrinsic value of preborn children, many people will still ignore or, worse, deny the biblical mandate to protect life. They often respond with societal clichés about a “woman’s choice” or illogical arguments about the child’s “quality of life.”

But even from a secular worldview, we can defend our unwavering desire to protect every innocent life.

When a person states that women have the right to do what they want with their bodies, remind her that no human being (the mother) should be granted rights by the federal government that usurp the rights of another person (the preborn child). For example, I’m a staunch advocate of our freedom of speech, but that doesn’t give me the right to yell “Fire!” in a crowded theater and put others’ lives in danger.

Likewise, when your friend or family member argues that many children killed by abortion were destined for lives of poverty and hardship, remind them that there are millions of children who, although they were born into difficult circumstances, have gone on to lead successful and productive lives. In other words, difficult circumstances do not mitigate a child’s intrinsic worth, nor do they predetermine a child’s God-given potential.

Stay Tuned

I’ve only scratched the surface on the many ways you can convey your pro-life views. No doubt each situation will be unique. But if we equip ourselves with a basic understanding that all life is beautiful and is created in the image of God with divine rights that deserve protection, then we’ll go far in advancing a civil discussion about the most divisive issue of our day.

Next month, I’ll take this discussion a step further as we enter a multipart blog series to unpack the Four Points of Proof that make the case for life from a biblical, philosophical, scientific, and sociological perspective. So stay tuned for more on how you can convey your pro-life views using one of these four arguments.

In the meantime, if you’ve had an experience in which you successfully conveyed your pro-life beliefs, please share your story in the comments below. We can all learn from each other and spur each other on toward advancing the cause of LIFE.

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