One reason we have so many problems is because we keep killing children. By “we” I mean those of us in the United States and Washington State in particular. By “problems” I mean lack of justice and self-control as well as the prevalence of lies and the love of death. By “killing children” I mean abortion, whether by procedures in an office or a pills taken at home.

We have the blood of approximately 63–68 million abortions in the US since 1973 on our collective hands. For that we deserve more cultural judgment than we’ve actually gotten. We certainly ought to mourn, but we also have a mandate.

Solomon exhorted:

Rescue those who are being taken away to death;
hold back those who are stumbling to slaughter. If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,“
does not He who weights the heart perceive it?
Does not He who keeps watch over your soul know it,
and will He not repay man according to his work?
(Proverbs 24:11-12)

It is SIN to be passive. Of course it is sin to kill. This context in Proverbs isn’t war or capital punishment, where killing is lawful. It is a context of wrongful condemnation, of an attack on the weak by the wicked. Abortion certainly applies, even if there were other original applications. The stumbling means that they can’t get their own footing, they can’t stand up for themselves.

I’ve given exhortations before related to abortion, whether near Sanctity of Human Life Sunday (third Sundays of January, per a 1984 presidential proclamation by Ronald Reagan) or other times when something’s been in the news. We are holding our third June Life Jubilee this afternoon. And even following the example in Nehemiah 9 of how understanding the Book brought brokenness of heart, here is a great reason to confess and commit ourselves to obedience.

Our government, especially in our state, loves abortion. Our previous governor applauded his foresight to stockpile 30 thousand abortion pills (2023, Inslee only talked about mifepristone, which typically requires a second pill misoprostol, but it was to protect a woman’s “right”). We market ourselves to nearby states (such as Idaho) as a destination for death. “Come kill your unborn kids here.” We’re in a culture that keeps calling abortion “women’s health care” which sounds like it could have come straight out of the marketing department of the Ministry of Truth in 1984.

The Bible calls us to action: Rescue and hold back. This is a requirement. This isn’t just mental wisdom, it’s a righteous mandate to take action. Give extraordinary effort. Some things you must leave alone; don’t join a quarrel that isn’t yours (see Proverbs 26:17). But we’re not talking about winning a dumb argument, we’re talking about preserving an image-bearer’s life.

We can be thankful for the overturning of Roe v. Wade in the Dobbs v. Jackson decision by the Supreme Court on June 24, 2022. We can be thankful for some loss of funding to Planned Parenthood and the closing of some clinics around the country. We can be thankful for the faithful voices that keep speaking out.

But, of course, the Dobbs decision did not make abortion illegal. There are no federal penalties for abortion, no nationwide ban on abortion. That decision by itself did nothing to rescue the unborn. It did stop providing some cover. Again, we give thanks for that step. The burden returned to state governments to legislate and enforce. But the convenience and privacy have increased. Our technology allows greater speed and secrecy, such as mail-order abortion pills via telehealth providers. So called shield laws allow shipping pills from WA to women in restrictive states without need to travel. We may not see the blood, we are not less barbaric.

None of it is hidden from God, including passivity. People like us know better. Those who kill are guilty, but those who make excuses are guilty of a different sin. God knows what we know. Does not He who keeps watch…know it?. He keeps watch over our souls, constant and comprehensive no matter if we’re behind closed doors.

We didn’t need 3-D ultrasounds to know that there’s a human being in the womb as soon as conception (Psalm 139:13-16); the ultrasound images do make more accountable. We didn’t need undercover videos or abortion documentaries to know it was bad; those do bring some of the ugly up to the surface.

We might not say, “We did not know.” We might say, “But what could we do?” If we ask that in self-defense to justify inactivity then we are just stating the quiet part of our cowardice out loud. We’re saying we don’t want to be bothered.

Church, yes, it is difficult in our day because we are bombarded by a stream of problems we should be bothered about. The meme format is too true: “I can’t believe it’s (bombing Iran) season already, I still have my (AI’s going to ruin everything) decorations up.” Doom scrolling, doom sermons. And, yet, what about the 106 abortions per hour in the US? I’m not trying to guilt us into action, I’m reminding us of the rescue mandate so we can avoid guilt.

So, if we truly ask, “what could we do about abortion” then here are some answers.

First, fear God, hate evil, pray for ideas and energy to intervene.

We rightly talk about ordered loves. We want to abound still more and more in love (Philippians 1:9). We want to love God with all our hearts and then our neighbors as ourselves. And this means war with sin and wickedness. It means that, by implication, we need ordered hates. We want to increase in our capacity to hate evil. We want to hate evil like God hates.

The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and perverted speech I hate.
(Proverbs 8:13 ESV)

There are six things that the LORD hates,
seven that are an abomination to Him:
…hands that shed innocent blood
(see Proverbs 6:16-19)

We have to grow up in soul, which means that our worship of God brings us joy, and it brings us hope in God’s judgment.

Let the rivers clap their hands;
let the hills sing for joy together
before the LORD, for he comes
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity. (Psalm 98:8–9 ESV)

If our joy does not have judgment in the periphery, we need to open our eyes.

Second, pray for, then vote for, candidates in legislative, judicial, and executive positions who will stand with clarity and courage.

There are a lot of issues, but don’t let foreign policy and taxation crowd on your compromise regarding killing kids. See 1 Timothy 2:1-2.

Third, love your spouse and kids in such a way that killing would be unthinkable.

There is a moral weight to battle, yes, but also a weight of blessing and glory as the Lord builds our families.

The household responsibilities in Colossians 3:18-4:1 come before Paul’s own ministry and his exhortation to witness to outsiders in Colossians 4:2-6. Our families are part of our platform to speak the truth.

Fourth, pile on social media. Like, repost, share like lives depend on it.

Is online life “real” life? It’s part of it, and certainly a place where some public conversation happens these days. So why not do your part? Sure, as in all things, be wise as serpents and harmless as doves (Matthew 10:16). Be clear about God’s pure justice and God’s abounding grace to those who repent. Distinguish between those who crusade for abortion and those who are running from the culture of death who need gospel. “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).

“But it will make me seem judgmental?” It just might.

Fifth, support, as you’re able, those ministries who are called to this battle line.

Pray, give money, participate in events, share links (Abort73.com). This would include adoption (Antioch Adoptions) and foster care ministries. Join us at the Jubilee this afternoon.

Conclusion

All of this is what the gospel is good for!

The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. (Acts 17:30–31 ESV)

Part of what we can do is give thanks to God for even small steps on the path of life. Singing psalms in the park, together, thanking the Lord for His movements, seeking His judgment on evil doers, asking His forgiveness for our passivity, and His mercy to rescue the unborn from slaughter. May He bless it, and us.

We have a rescue mandate. Don’t turn away.

If you faint in the day of adversity,
your strength is small.
(Proverbs 24:10)

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Charge

You who have believed in God must be careful to devote yourselves to every good work. You have a rescue mandate for those who are being taken away to death. You who are justified by His grace have work to do. This is glory to God and profitable unto men! (Proverbs 3:11; Titus 3:1-8)

Benediction:

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:57–58 ESV)