Thinking Through the Roe v. Wade Decision

Approximate Reading Time: 15 minutes

(Click here for the podcast version of this article)

After nearly 50 years of legalized abortions in America, the blanket decision of Roe v. Wade was recently overturned. With it, the specifics of abortion are left up to the individual states, rather than the federal government. Everyone has responded in their own way, but there’s no question that almost everyone responded in some way. But when the immediate emotions of this decision wear off, everyone will be left navigating some major changes in our country.

This article will be slightly different for this ministry. Rather than one big idea explained over many points, I will instead offer various things we, as God’s people, should consider. Many in the world are hurting, and many more are watching to see how Christians respond to an event we’ve spent decades praying about. My desire is to call all of us to think through the Roe v. Wade decision from a biblical worldview.

Abortion hasn’t ended

I don’t want to take anything away from how we rejoice that abortion has been seriously looked at by our government and had its broad endorsement removed. Many states even have a “trigger law” in place, meaning that they’ve always had a statewide law in place that would ban or severely limit abortions the moment Roe v Wade was overturned.

However, this is also the time that many people will care the most about the topic. As the emotional hype dies out, people will continue living a life that is relatively untouched by the reality of abortion. They may share a news article or political/religious image here or there, but otherwise they’re content that things are basically better.

Abortion hasn’t ended. Many states will likely still allow some form of abortion, and there’s no doubt that the pro-choice advocates will continue fighting just as hard as we have for the past 50 years. 

Celebrate the lives that will be saved from this decision. However, don’t stop praying, educating yourself, and working where God allows us to work. An important battle was won, but no one will be content to leave things as they are.

It’s time to understand why you believe what you believe

Many people know they’re against abortion, but don’t know why beyond “it seems wrong.” People are going to ask us why we want to ruin the lives of women, force children to be born into a world of poverty and suffering, or take away a person’s right to their own body. We will be called horrible things and be accused of being hypocrites who hate people. 

How will we respond? Why do we think the life of an unborn child is so important that we’d force a woman to give birth rather than remove a fetus from their womb? Are our beliefs about the value of life really consistent with our other beliefs, or are we truly the hypocrites people think we are? 

It’s time to stand against abortion for reasons beyond our emotional discomfort or our political party. As Christ’s representatives on Earth, we need to know why we believe what we believe about abortion. To get you started, check out my series on abortion.

It may be time to stop watching the news

Watching the news may be one of the biggest detriments to a Christian’s worldview. So much of our ungodly beliefs and behaviors come from getting our truth from the world instead of the Bible. Very few people realize that their preferred news source, whether conservative, liberal, or otherwise, is more focused on entertainment than actual news. They not only report things that appeal to their audience, but they do so in a way that riles them up to be loyal to one group and hostile to another. The news is less concerned with reporting facts than creating stories.

Much of what I warn about in this article will fly in direct defiance of what people will hear on the news. You will be encouraged to hate the baby killers, mock their beliefs, and rub your victory in their faces. The other side will be dehumanized, torn down, and falsely represented. 

In short, your favorite news source will likely be calling for you to sin against God by choosing your words and actions based on your political party, not Christ.

To better understand how the news crafts our worldview without us realizing it, check out this podcast episode. I recorded it in response to what happened on January 6th, but the bigger discussion has nothing to do with that. You can fast-forward to the relevant parts from 21:08-43:00, then jump ahead to 1:07:47.

Be pro-life, not anti-abortion

A long-standing criticism of pro-life supporters is that they only care about children in the womb. Once birthed, they don’t care what happens to them. They’’re also accused of placing greater value on life in the United States if that life is a legal American with the right looks and socioeconomic background. They even point out that the people who preach the innate value of human life are the ones who most loudly support war, execution, loose gun laws that lead to school shootings, and even “jokingly” call for the death of politicians, celebrities, and others they don’t like.

My point isn’t to say whether those accusations are true. However, people make those accusations because of what they observe in the things we say and do. And for some, the accusation of simply being “anti-abortion” are going to be true. But for the rest of us, it’s at least an opportunity to examine the full range of our beliefs to make sure we truly practice what we preach.

We say abortion is wicked because we ought to protect and value life, even if that life is inconvenient for us. Let’s make sure we apply that to all human life everywhere, not just in the womb.

The “other side” holds their position for a reason

It’s very easy to see the pro-choice side as a bunch of heartless monsters. After all, they cheer for the slaughter of about 125,000 innocent babies every day. What kind of person could ever value something higher than a human life?

It’s easy to dehumanize people on the other side and portray them as two-dimensional villains whose only goal in life is to hurt others. We paint the argument as a basic good-versus-evil scenario, where the pro-choice side only wants to do harm.

We need to stop that. There’s a reason that rational, loving, intelligent, and functional adults believe in the importance of abortion. There’s a reason they fight for specific policies or question our goodness and humanity when we fight to end abortion.

This issue, like other issues, isn’t simple. Seek to understand why others believe what they believe. When we understand worldviews that aren’t our own, we have a greater chance of lovingly speaking truth into their lives. But if we keep name-calling and painting their beliefs in simplistic ways, we dishonor our God by falsely representing others.

Abortion kills humans, but some are okay with that

My series on abortion focuses on proving that the unborn are human, not just a sub-human thing called a fetus. While it’s important for us to realize that, we must also realize that it’s not a magical bullet that ends the discussion. We live in a world broken by sin, and part of that leads to minds that are simply okay with murder if it serves a greater good.

For many on the pro-choice side, they have no problem accepting that abortion ends a fully human life. However, even if they hate that reality, they also refuse to force a person to sustain a human life against their will. 

One way they explain this is by giving a hypothetical situation that removes the “cute, innocent baby” from the equation: Imagine waking up in a hospital one day and finding yourself hooked up to a number of tubes and machines that are connected to another adult lying in a bed next to you. The doctors explain that this person is currently unable to exist on their own, and they need you to remain medically hooked up to them for the next 9 months so they can gain the strength to live on their own. The doctors also explain that you have no choice in this matter, since unhooking yourself from the other person would kill them and make you guilty of murder.

Don’t focus on the improbability of the situation, because that’s not the point. Instead, understand how it explains the pro-choice side of the argument. It’s unfair, perhaps even monstrous, to force someone to surrender 9 months of their life to keep another person alive. Morally and ethically, it may be the right thing to let them stay alive, but removing the decision from someone isn’t the right way to go about it.

Use this example to understand the heart behind those who hold are pro-choice. Proving it’s a human being is important, but many will agree with us and be unconvinced that it’s enough to remove someone’s choice from the equation.

Real people are really scared

Many women feel violated by what’s happening. Many men and women fear that basic human rights are being ignored, and this only the first step. There are pregnant women who have months to figure out what to do if they can’t get an abortion, and every day more women will face a world where the child in their womb is now their responsibility.

On top of that, many people are convinced that abortion won’t slow down, it will just be less safe. Now abortions will be done in secret by using unproven doctors under unsanitary conditions, or even by people trying to figure out how to do an abortion at home after a Google search. People have always been told that overturning Roe v. Wade would only lead to painful deaths of mothers who no longer have safe access to necessary healthcare.

Realize this when you talk to people. Understand that everything we say about this moment sounds like a slap in the face to the real people who live in fear of what this means for them and others. Some people may simply be angry because their political party lost, but I suspect that the vast majority of people are angry because they are afraid of what we’ve done and we will do next.

Consider how this changes the next 20 years

In just the United States, over 600,000 babies are killed every year. While abortions won’t stop with the current laws, there will still be hundreds of thousands of lives that will continue into the world instead of ending on an operating table.

This is going to change America over the next 20 years. There will be more people financially struggling to support their children. More broken homes will have children who don’t have a father. These children will grow up to be adults who experienced life in a country where their parents had no choice but to have them, yet may easily resent them because their parents also knew a world where they could have had an abortion had lived a happier life. Our entire culture will shift with this new generation of unaborted babies.

We have no idea what impact this will have on the world, our country, or Christianity itself. However, our call to serve physical needs and spiritually train people stays the same. We have an opportunity to glorify God through the various ways that we can impact these new lives, both today and for the decades that follow. Let us be ready to do whatever God calls us to as we support these new lives and the parents responsible for them.

There’s a reason women think they need abortions

No one with two legs tries to get a prosthetic leg. No one with a healthy heart gets surgery on it. We don’t try to fix problems that aren’t problems, especially in ways that are so drastic.

Likewise, women don’t get abortions unless they think they need them. Although some are flippant about it, many understand that getting an abortion is physically and emotionally painful. Yet despite that, abortion is still pursued.

The reasons for getting an abortion go beyond what I can reasonably cover in this article. But beyond the rare sexual assault or medical justification, just consider a few reasons someone may get one.

1. They aren’t financially able to support their child
2. They don’t think they’re capable of raising a child due to maturity or intelligence
3. They don’t want to raise a child as a single mother or as a mother in an unhealthy relationship
4. Their partner, or the father, doesn’t want the child and pushes them to abort a child they may otherwise want
5. It would negatively affect their current career
6. They still have plans, goals, and even fun that would be hindered or halted by a child
7. They don’t want a child that reminds them of the person/situation that led to the pregnancy
8. They’re part of a culture that subtly teaches that pregnancy is what you do when you’re ready, and abortion is a natural choice to hold off until you’re ready for it
9. Having a child can bring shame from family, a church, friends, or society
10. Related to #9, pregnancy can be seen as anti-feminist
11. They’re afraid of the various unknowns regarding pregnancy, birth, and parenthood
12. They don’t want to bring a child into this world, whether because their own childhood was difficult or because of the state of the world

All of these varying objections to pregnancy have an underlying theme: It’s all about the mother’s belief system. It’s not the pregancy or birth itself that’s the issue (except for genuine biological reasons). Instead, the reasons boil down to how keeping a pregnancy will impact the mother and/or their child.

Women get abortions because they’re truly convinced they need them. If we honestly extend this further, the reality is that they think they need something more than they need to keep their child. There’s a need for a future they desire, avoiding difficulties, maintaining an image or lifestyle, or catering to fear about what it would mean for them or their child. Whatever the reason, it all comes down to what the mother believes about herself and the world around her.

For the thousands of women who believe they need an abortion, we need to do more than lock the doors to Planned Parenthood and tell them “no.” We need to address the beliefs, whether real or imaginary, that guide their belief that ending the life of their child will bring a greater good than allowing them to live.

Abortion is a symptom of a deeper issue

Digging a bit deeper into the previous point, abortion itself isn’t the only issue we need to address. Just as people have a variety of reasons to get an abortion, there are a variety of reasons people get pregnant in the first place.

Again, this topic deserves several articles of its own. For now, I’ll try to summarize just a few things that lead to unwanted pregnancies in the first place:

1. Sex is an idol. Previous generations were told to avoid, and even fear, sex. However, they rarely understood why. So as future generations were told to avoid sex without understanding why, they eventually started seeing what was so important about this forbidden act. Today, we find ourselves in a sexual revolution that has gone from quietly experimenting with sex to treating it as something that proves you’re mature, fun, and free. It’s also seen as a way to prove you’re a man or to prove you love someone. People rarely know why sex is so important, they just know that it feels good and they’re supposed to want it.
2. Christians have lost the purpose of sex. I won’t labor this point very much, but as the world has pursued sexual freedom and idolatry, Christians have been slowly keeping pace. Even our kids treat relationships like the world, giving in to sexual desire and engaging in sexual activity considered adulterous because it takes place with someone who isn’t their spouse (even if they aren’t married). To better understand how Christians have abandoned a biblical understanding of relationships, check out this article.
3. The future is disconnected from the present. Yes, people know that sex leads to pregnancy. But our world lives for the here and now, and the act of having sex now isn’t related to the worry of being pregnant then. Widely available abortion may have further encouraged having sex without thought for the consequences, but banning abortion won’t deal with the fundamental foolishness of people. 

Point people to Christ

On a broad scale, educating people about the previous point helps. However, no law can force people to be holy. They may have better behavior, but they still won’t have Christ. As Christians, it’s important for us to realize that the need for abortion comes from a sin issue. We need to make sure we understand the role, purpose, and importance of sex, then present the world with their need for Christ. 

As Christ’s followers, we know this world is temporary. All the problems that seem so important today will be forgotten in thousands of years as we live out eternity with Christ. God’s enemies only have this world to hope in, but we have Christ.

Because of that, we need to make sure our desires and goals align with what we know is true. Things like murdering an unborn child are sinful, but it’s far worse for someone to die and face God’s judgment without Christ paying for their sin. 

This belongs to God, not politics

One of the defining beliefs in American politics is where you stand on abortion. The Republican party has historically been on the anti-abortion side of the argument, and overturning Roe v. Wade was a huge political gain.

However, let’s not confuse what really happened here. Christians have spent decades praying for God to change hearts so that abortion can end in America. Many who began praying 50 years ago didn’t live to see their prayers answered, but we did. Today, we rejoice as we witness what happens when God’s people rely on him.

While we should celebrate that, let’s not forget that God uses His enemies to accomplish His perfect plans. God and Republicans may hate abortion, but that doesn’t make God a Republican. Certain Republicans may be the ones who signed some documents, but it’s God who deserves all the glory.

This doesn’t define who is a Christian

Want to push someone further into pro-choice beliefs? Tell them they aren’t a Christian if they support abortion. Not only does it make you look like a fool, but it further proves to them that pro-life people don’t understand God or the Bible.

All of us have wrong beliefs. The Holy Spirit is bringing us to truth at different speeds, but the reality is that none of us will come to correct belief about absolutely everything. And within Christian community, there’s great value in lovingly debating fellow believers on these important secondary issues.

The one thing we can never do is tell people to repent of abortion so that they can be truly saved. To insist that someone’s position on abortion defines their salvation is to preach a false gospel.

Represent Christ with everything you say or post

Ultimately, this is our goal with everything in life. We are representatives of Jesus Christ, and everything we say and do point people to Him. Even if people don’t believe Christianity is real, they still understand who Christ is by what His people present them with.

I’ll be honest, I stay off social media because of Christians. Too many followers of Christ find their hope, identity, worldview, and beliefs from God’s enemies. The things they say and share are worldly and indistinguishable from someone who lives and thinks as though their sin has been paid for on a bloody and brutal cross. Instead, many Christians online take a secular worldview, slap some Bible verses on it, and fight for a worldview that hates God.

Followers of Christ, I’m begging you not to throw away this opportunity. I’m sure no one will agree with everything I’ve said in this article, but please seek represent Christ before you hit that “share” button. Think of what you tell people about your Savior before you respond to someone you disagree with or share a clever image that attacks a politician you don’t like.

Your hope isn’t in this world. Your identity isn’t in a political party. Your joy and sorrow aren’t linked to what laws are passed or who sits in power. We place our hope in a perfect, almighty, eternal God whose plans cannot be stopped. If our country allows us to glorify God through politics, then serve God in that way. But always remember that no human institution can be more important to us than Jesus Christ.

For more on this, check out this article, or this discussion that also includes a podcast episode.

Final thought

This isn’t everything that can be said on this subject. The consequences of overturning Roe v. Wade will change our country, and there are likely things coming up that no one can predict. But one thing that will always be true is that we need to set our sight on God so that we can serve Him in this world. Doing so requires God’s people to have a worldview that’s grounded in His word.