Is it Possible to be a Christian and be Pro-Abortion? (Part 1)

Simply Google the phrase “pro-choice Christian” and you will discover that millions of Americans have taken this position. So in the next two blog posts, we will explore the pro-abortion Christian position (I don’t use the term “pro-choice,” as it is misleading and incorrect) and break down its fallacies. We don’t do this with hatred or contempt. We do it with love and understanding that we may win hearts and minds to the Truth that is supported by the Word of God. And it is imperative that we do so, as millions of unborn lives depend on it.

Much like Christians who believe in the sanctity of life, pro-abortion Christians recite Scripture and refer to early church traditions to support their case. The general arguments made by pro-abortion Christians can be summed up as follows:

• The Bible doesn’t specifically prohibit or condemn abortion.
• The Bible connects life with breath. A fetus does not breathe; therefore, it is not truly alive, so it is meaningless to talk of killing it.
• The Bible does not accept unborn babies as people. Scripture defines the unborn simply as “potential people.”
• The Old Testament cites numerous examples where God commands nations to be destroyed—including women and children. Presumably some of the women were pregnant at the time. So if God commands an unborn life to be taken, then He cannot also desire us to protect it.

In order to fully explore these views in light of being a Christian, we must first define what it means to be a Christian.

For the purposes of this article, the term “Christian” refers to someone who has trusted in Jesus Christ for his or her salvation and strives to follow Him in accordance with His Word.

• A Christian accepts that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, was fully God and fully man, came to earth as a result of the virgin birth, suffered death on the cross, rose from the dead three days later, and remains alive today in heaven.
• A Christian believes and accepts that Jesus died as a substitute for sinners, taking our punishment upon Himself. A Christian believes that Jesus’ statement in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,” is true and accurate.
• A Christian follows Jesus out of sheer gratitude for salvation. She accepts that she cannot earn her salvation. Jesus earned it for her.
• A Christian faithfully studies the Bible, prays, does good works, and ministers to others in response to Jesus’ death and resurrection. She tells others about Jesus simply because she wants other people to know the good news about what Jesus did for her.
• A Christian loves Jesus because Jesus first loved us.
• A Christian believes that the Bible is the infallible Word of God. It is the only true source for wisdom and knowledge, and it contains everything a Christian needs for faith and practice. It is the most accurate and documented book of all antiquity, amazingly and miraculously consistent and reliable when compared to itself and other historical texts of its time.

The Bible has much to say on life in general and about life in the womb in particular. And, as we will see next week, the Bible clearly affirms that life begins at conception and that innocent life at all stages should be protected.

As such, it becomes clear that being a genuine Christian (not in name only) and being pro-abortion are highly problematic and incompatible.

That’s not to say that Christians don’t hold the pro-abortion position; for surely many churches and professing Christians do. However, some reasons why a professing Christian might hold to the pro-abortion position include:

1. They are uninformed about what the Bible teaches on the subject.
2. They reject what the Bible says for personal or theological reasons, thus putting their faith and acceptance of the Bible in question.
3. They are post-abortive. They maintain a pro-abortion position because to do otherwise would be self-condemning.
4. They are not genuine Christ-followers.

In next week’s blog post, we will explore the biblical position on life in the womb. And with Scripture as our guide, we will explore the most common arguments cited by Christians who take a pro-abortion position. We will then break those down in light of the truth of Scripture.

I am indebted to Rev. Jamie Peterson for his research, input, and collaboration on this series of articles.