In Luke 12:48, the beloved physician penned the following words, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required, and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." God has blessed us with many blessings, but with these blessings come responsibilities. The country in which we live is a great blessing, and the preservation of the freedoms found herein is an awesome task. God has ordained civil government, and is concerned with and has something to say about the Christian's responsibility to it in Romans 13. We live in a representative republic, that is, we choose leaders to represent us at the local, state, and national levels. Thus, there is the principle of stewardship involved in how we choose our elected officials. Contrary to the thinking of some Christians, there is a God-given standard by which we must cast our votes!

Christians have the God-given commandment to preach the gospel, and also to promote Christian values and principles everywhere (Mark 16:15; Matthew 5:16). This includes voting for leaders and supporting laws that best uphold, promote, and protect biblical values and principles (1 Thessalonians 5:21 - 22). There are several issues deemed by some as "politics", but are in fact matters already settled in heaven and earth by God's holy and infallible word.

Among them: homosexuality, abortion, the lottery and other forms of gambling and social drinking. When politicians turn matters of morality into political issues, the faithful Christian will always uphold and promote that which is biblically right. Christians have the responsibility to support only those whose views on these issues are most closely in accord with God's Word. In this year's national elections (including US Congressional & Senate seats), two issues at the forefront of the political debate will be homosexuality and abortion. In recent weeks, we have examined some facts concerning homosexuals in America today. We continue this week by noting that the Bible condemns homosexuality in all three dispensations of God's relationship to man.

In the Patriarchal Dispensation (from Creation to Sinai), the Bible speaks of the men of Sodom as being "wicked, great sinners before the Lord" (Genesis 13:13). Their sin was "very grave" (Genesis 18:20), inasmuch that ten righteous people could not be found (Genesis 18:22 - 33). They refused sexual relations with Lot's daughters, demanding instead that Lot release to them his heavenly male visitors (Genesis 19:4 - 8). God ultimately destroyed Sodom and the other cities on the plain. (Genesis 19:24-29).

In the Mosaic Dispensation (Sinai to the Cross/Pentecost), God explicitly condemned homosexuality in Leviticus 18:22, "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman, it is an abomination." While these prohibitions are specifically directed toward males and not females, Paul recorded God's condemnation of lesbianism prior to the Christian dispensation in Romans 1:26, "For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature." Note the phrase, "the natural use for what is against nature." While this may refer to God's prohibition of bestiality in Leviticus 18:23, it also must refer to lesbianism when considered in the context of verse 27.

Finally, God condemned homosexuality in the Christian Dispensation in 1 Corinthians 6:9, "Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not enter the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites…. will inherit the kingdom of God."

Christians have the responsibility to know each candidate's views of homosexuality before heading to the polls. This perversion is a scourge and an embarrassment to the nation, and is a stench in the nostrils of God. Let us choose our leaders carefully and in a manner that will be pleasing to our God. More next week…

In Colossians 3:17, we read, "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father by Him." "Whatsoever" is an all-inclusive word, thus the Word of God is to regulate the entirety of our lives, including how we vote. While God is neither a Democrat nor Republican, He expects Christians to support men and women who promote biblical principles and values.

Since the 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, nearly 40 million babies have been murdered under the protection of the law. This is 30 times as many dead as have been killed in every war from the Revolutionary War to Desert Storm. This year, approximately 11/2 million babies will be murdered by their mothers and abortion doctors. This is one abortion every 22 seconds, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. I use the term "murdered" intentionally, for over 97% of all abortions performed in the United States each year meet the criteria for some form of homicide in most in most every state in the Union.

I an attempt to defend the horrendous decision it had handed down in Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court said, "It is impossible to know when life begins." This statement was not made in light of any scientific evidence, but rather in spite of massive scientific and medical evidence to the contrary! In 1971, nearly 2 years before that decision, more than 200 medical doctors, scientists, and professors filed a brief with the court showing that modern science had already proved that life begins from the point of conception.

In 1970, the editors of California Medicine noted the "scientific fact, which everyone really knows, that human life begins at conception and is continuous, whether intra- or extra-uterine, until death." In fact, nearly every medical or biological textbook taught or assumed that life began at conception. In 1981, the following testimony was given before the United States Congress by a Harvard University Medical School Professor, "In biology and in medicine, it is an accepted fact that the life of any individual organism reproducing by sexual reproduction begins at conception." Similar testimony was given by medical faculty members of the University of Colorado, the University of Tennessee, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Descartes-Paris, France, and the chairman of the Mayo Clinic's Department of Medical Genetics. Though invited to do so, pro-abortion advocates failed to produce a single expert witness to testify that life begins at any other point than conception.

One attempt to justify abortion is known as the "viability argument." This argument says that until a baby is viable, that is, until it is able to live on its own outside the mother's womb, it should not be recognized as a person. The viability argument is highly subjective since modern medicine can now save prematurely born children which would have most surely died even a few years ago. The fact is that no infant can live on its own, either inside or outside the womb! Its only the type of care received that changes. Never keep silent when someone says that abortion can only be opposed on religious grounds! It is a scientific fact that life begins at conception. As human beings, unborn infants deserve the same rights as anyone outside the womb. As Americans, unborn children deserve equal protection under the law guaranteed by the 5^th and 14^th amendments.

Although we have not examined them here, there is much biblical evidence to support our opposition to abortion. This article was written to show that abortion can and should be opposed on scientific grounds as well as religious. Next week we shall examine what the Bible has to say about the beginning of life.

Life begins at conception. This fact has been proven by both science and medicine. More importantly, it can be proven by Scripture. God is the giver of life (Acts 17:25), and humanity was created in His image (Genesis 1:26-27). From the murder of Abel (Genesis 4:8), God has always despised the shedding of innocent blood. Following Noah's departure from the ark, God decreed, "And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man" (Genesis 9:5-6). To shed man's blood refers to the murder of the innocent. If the Bible teaches that life begins at conception, then to purposefully destroy that life is to commit murder.

Exodus 21:22 says, "If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follow, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman's husband imposes on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life" (NKJV). The RSV reads, "so that there is a miscarriage." The NIV reads, "… and she gives birth prematurely, " but adds the footnote, "she has a miscarriage". Much debate has been made about the meaning of this passage. However, when one proves the Bible teaches elsewhere that life begins at conception, he proves the life of the unborn is what is spoken of when recompensing "life for life". Thus, it behooves us to examine other inspired passages dealing with Divine recognition of the full humanity of the unborn.

Psalm 139:13-16 is one of the most oft-used passages to prove the humanity of the unborn. The Psalmist recognizes the hand of God in the process of human development from beginning to end (vv 13-16). While this is a very strong case for Divine recognition of the unborn, these verses are couched within a context of praising a majestic, omnipresent, and omniscient God. These verses may simply be a recognition of God's power as exhibited by the natural process of human development. No man can duplicate the power of God as seen in the process of human development. The same argument can be made regarding Jeremiah 1:4-9. God is reassuring a young, apprehensive Jeremiah of His power and ability to deliver from the hands of unbelievers. God reassures Jeremiah that his prophecies and judgments against Israel and Judah are truly from heaven and that he should not fear to speak the words of the Lord.

To use Psalm 139 or Jeremiah 1 as absolute proof for the humanity of unborn children would be unwise, for within each passage is the implication of direct intervention in the womb by God himself, thus begging the question, "Where was God in the formation of children born with deformities, diseases, and other deficiencies?" Also, could the statements of recognition prior to conception be used to prove that life begins before conception?

Perhaps, the best argument from the Old Testament may be found in Job 3:3, which reads, "Let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night in which it was said, There is a man child conceived." The word so translated "man child" is from the Hebrew "geber". This word appears sixty-eight times in the Old Testament, of which sixty-four uses refer to a grown man. However, it is here used to refer to Job as not only human, but also identifies him as a male from the point of conception.

Lord willing, next week we shall examine various texts from the New Testament to determine what should be the Christian's attitude toward the unborn.