Recently we have seen a gross misunderstanding in the popular culture on what it means to be pro-life. From political candidates caricaturing the position to political liberals crying foul against conservatives, we have all seen this movie play on loop over and over again. Rather than rehearsing old arguments and even providing a defense of the position (we did an entire issue of Theology for Life for this reason), my goal in this article is to explain positively what it means to be pro-life.
Defining Our Terms
To be pro-life is to be for life from the womb to the tomb. If you prefer, to be pro-life is to be for life from the womb to the grave, or from the womb to death. This definition of life covers all the essentials. It focuses on when a baby is in the mother’s womb to the time when we are laid to rest in our graves and everywhere in-between.
In the West, we are at a unique moment in our history. More specifically in the United States, we are at a unique moment in the history of our nation. Our nation’s leaders and the elites have propagated the notion for so long that all of life isn’t special and unique, with the result, many people now believe it without reservation.
God in His Word has declared that all of life is unique and special. He created us in His image and likeness (Genesis 1:27). We are not accidents. We are not goop that somehow oozed out of nowhere. Instead, we were created by our Creator on purpose and with great intentionality. Before there was ever sin in the Garden, man and woman dwelled in perfect harmony with God.
To Be Pro-Life Is to Be All for Life
To be pro-life isn’t only to be against the killing of babies. It also isn’t only to be against the killing of innocent people, all under the guise of helping them to die well. To be pro-life is to be all about life in the fullest sense of the word. It means to stand up and speak out against the injustice of sex-trafficking. To be pro-life is to put into action what we proclaim about the God-given uniqueness of life.
As a nation, America has killed some 55 million and counting children. We have slaughtered our future leaders. We have killed multiple generations. The blood of innocent children screams out against us. Yet many of the political elite and our fellow countrymen and countrywomen continue to support the evils of abortion. Even when the evils of Planned Parenthood with it’s selling of baby parts is clearly demonstrated in video format—people continue to support Planned Parenthood.
Sin is Real, the Gospel is the Cure
The problem with the abortion issue isn’t that people don’t understand the issue. The problem is people don’t see the real issues at play behind the issues. People don’t see that sin is real. Instead, people think of sin as a mistake or as improving, or even “discovering” themselves.
Sin is real. Unsaved people are blinded by their own sin. They cannot see or understand it. Those who support abortion while claiming the name of Christ are deceived and don’t understand the doctrine of creation and by extension the gospel that has saved them. To understand the gospel, we first have to understand that God created the world we inhabit.
God created us in His image and likeness. We fell into sin. God did not fall into sin—we fell into sin. We are sinners by nature and choice. We need the Second Adam—Jesus Christ to undo what the First Adam did. Thankfully this is why the Second Adam—Jesus Christ came to die in our place for our sin and to give us what we don’t deserve- the righteousness of God imputed to our accounts when we believe in His death, burial, and resurrection.
Here’s the thing—we don’t deserve mercy. We deserve wrath. Abortion has killed entire generations. The enslavement of millions of adults and kids into sex slavery is not only morally wrong it’s also criminal. Yet, each and every day, we wake up, if the Lord gives us another day to see the sunrise. Each one of us has a choice to make. Each one of us can either stand for life in all of its totality or succumb to the culture of death all around us.
Final Thoughts
To be pro-life is to be all in for life. It is to be against not only the aborting of a child—it’s to be for adopting a child. To be pro-life is to be for what God says about life and the gospel.
Brothers and sisters in Christ—let’s not only say we’re pro-life in name and carry it around as a badge of honor. To be pro-life is more than a label. Instead to be pro-life is to have a lifestyle and a worldview that honors God and brings Him glory.
Rather than only having the pro-life label be just that a label we are known by—let’s continue having our actions match our words. Then people will continue to know that yes, we’re pro-life but also that we’re truly pro-life through and through.
As Christians, we believe that we have been transferred from the kingdom of Satan to the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. Through this, God has taken our hearts of stone and replaced it with a new heart, with new desires, and affections for Himself. God calls His people to be not only be hearers but doers of His Word (James 1:22).
You and I have a lot of repenting to do. We have a lot of standing up and speaking out to do. Today in-between the sun rising and the sun setting you and I have work to do. Determine today that you will not only be pro-life in name. Instead, I plead with you to treat being pro-life as more than a label. To be pro-life is built on a lifestyle and a life view founded upon God’s Word and lived out for His glory before a watching world.
Then not only will you proclaim the truth about life and thus the gospel, but you will also in word and deed bring glory to our God great and King—Jesus Christ.
Dave Jenkins is happily married to his wife, Sarah. He is a writer, editor, and speaker living in beautiful Southern Oregon. Dave is a lover of Christ, His people, the Church, and sound theology. He serves as the Executive Director of Servants of Grace Ministries, the Executive Editor of Theology for Life Magazine, the Host and Producer of Equipping You in Grace Podcast, and is a contributor to and producer of Contending for the Word. He is the author of The Word Explored: The Problem of Biblical Illiteracy and What To Do About It (House to House, 2021), The Word Matters: Defending Biblical Authority Against the Spirit of the Age (G3 Press, 2022), and Contentment: The Journey of a Lifetime (Theology for Life, 2024). You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, or read his newsletter. Dave loves to spend time with his wife, going to movies, eating at a nice restaurant, or going out for a round of golf with a good friend. He is also a voracious reader, in particular of Reformed theology, and the Puritans. You will often find him when he’s not busy with ministry reading a pile of the latest books from a wide variety of Christian publishers. Dave received his M.A.R. and M.Div through Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary.
