Paul's love and Abortion

Our society and the Christian Church often have very different meanings for words or expressions; one of the most controversial and yet more commonly used terms among both the Church and society is love. Although peoples’ ideas of love have greatly changed over time, the Church’s understanding of love, as shown to us in the Bible, should have never changed. The various beliefs and stigmas of love have greatly affected the Church’s response to love and the creation of a gap that separates the two main concepts of love and everything that love truly is. One major topic that our society faces today that deals an incredible amount with love is abortion. Whether a person is pro-life or pro-choice, there is no denying that the issue of abortion is one that is greatly affected by love in so many different aspects.
In our society, we often get our definition of things from media, politics, or a mixture of influential people in our lives. Love, in our society, is generally thought of as a physical action, as in sexual activity, or a feeling, like that fluttery feeling a person gets when they are around that one particular person who sees past their flaws. Love, according to today’s popular television shows, is picking the best genetic match to carry on a family line, making us think that love is not about anything greater than accepting another person’s character flaws. Popular music often makes love sound vulgar or demeaning. Women are often presented as emotionless machines that work to please men physically. Famous people are constantly going into and out of relationships and marriages, showing us that love is conditional and time constrained. If these are the things showing us what love is, there is no wonder why our views are so conflicted.

These examples that our society’s role models and major authorities are setting show us that sex is good and sex is love. They often fail to show us the other side of the story; they fail to show us the pain and heartache that comes when these people realize that what they thought was love was actually the things of this world giving them a temporary feeling of completeness. When reality strikes and the consequences of a person’s actions are evident, we tend to look the other direction or consider them the objection to the rule in the situation. If we, as a Church, open our eyes to see that these people are not the objections, they are the rule, we might see the gap that separates the love of God with the love of this world. When the young people of our society see that sex is love from our media and their peers, they desire love. They are not hearing that true love is so much more, instead they have sex to attempt to find love in the wrong places. When searching leads to sex and sex leads to pregnancy, many girls search for answers in abortion clinics only to find later that abortion is the opposite of love, and it is certainly not the love that the Church defines.

The most common theme throughout the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is love. The entire story of God and His creation is entirely about His love; the New Testament is especially full of amazing stories and lessons of love because they show God’s love through sending His only son to be murdered all for the sake of our lives, that we might be saved. Paul, who is accredited for most of the New Testament, wrote letters to peoples and churches passionately sharing God’s love with others. Paul’s life alone was a testament to the great love of his God and Father in Heaven. From a murdering politician to a man on fire for His God, desiring only to live for Him, Paul’s life was changed from one of hurt and anger to a life abounding in love, the love of God. Paul uses his letters to the churches of his region to explain God’s love and will for His people.

The gift of life is one of the greatest gifts that God has given us. God knew us all individually before the beginning of time. Paul tells us in his letter to the Ephesians that we were all predestined before the world was made. This is an example of the amazing love of God for His children that is beyond our comprehension. He loved each of us enough to make us all individually unique in every way possible. He knew our names before the beginning of time. How could anyone deny another person this great love of God? Abortion, murder of an unborn child of God, is just that. Abortion, no matter how it is defined, is in direct denial of God’s love. God gave us His law and told us that the greatest law is to love. We should love God with everything that we are, and we should love everyone else in His creation just as we love ourselves. If we love ourselves enough to maintain our life, what part of God’s law says it is permissible to inhibit the life of another?

In our society, where murder for murders is encouraged and stipends for volunteerism is expected, we see abortion as any other political topic. There is always opposition and support, but very few people are actually educated on what it really is and what its long-term effects are among its victims. In order to seriously become anything more than lukewarm on such a controversial topic, a deeper understanding is vital. We should consider our society’s influence on abortion before considering its relationship to love as Paul defines it in his letters of the New Testament.

Our society tells us that “if we truly love someone, we will let them go,” straying from the ancient concept that “it takes a village to raise a child.” Several things keep members of our society from allowing the village that is our society to help raise the children of generations to come. Pride, lack of education, and poverty, among other factors, effect the growing support for abortion in our nation. The past decades in the United States have promoted the growth of self pride among men and women of all races and social classes. This pride keeps many people from seeking help, support or even simple encouragement in any aspect of personal life, and especially when it comes to abortion. Pride implies that a person is satisfied with the condition of their current life; they are so arrogantly satisfied that introducing another life, for which they would need to take care of and be responsible for, completely throws all of that satisfaction out of place. Our society “protects” its members by sugarcoating and understating the costs of abortion, not only financially, but psychologically, spiritually and physically. Society shuns those who ask questions and seek answers in the “hush hush” topics we avoid every day, like abortion. If schools and media outwardly spoke of life and love in a different light, more people could be educated about abortion. Every day, women seek abortion as a solution to a problem that will only get larger and more overwhelming. After an abortion, women and men alike are affected psychologically by the anger and sorrow of making a conscious decision to abandon the life of a child. The physical cost of abortion often comes later when a women desires to have a baby and the trauma of abortion in her body brings pain and complications in pregnancy. Spiritually, after an abortion, most people feel a deep separation from God because they understand it is wrong to take the life of another human. These people understand that simply because this child is unborn, that does not make it any less human. Financially, abortion is like any other surgery, except that instead of attempting to save a life through surgery, the product of abortion is to take a life. Our society is taking the love out of life and attempting to play god in the role of deciding who lives. Families in poverty often seek abortion because the cost of raising a child is so great. They do not consider alternatives to abortion or seek financial help in raising a child.

This epidemic of abortion seeking women needs to be stopped by truly showing what they are doing and allowing them to experience the powerful love of Christ. The Church sees the problem, they support life and pro-life politicians, but simply telling someone they support a situation does not help to bridge the gap. There is no love in taking a life. God is love. Only God can truly show what love is and what is should mean to each individual who knows Him; however, it is the job of the Church to be the body of Christ and to do the will of God.

Society’s view of love needs to be changed; God’s love should be introduced to the world. We should set aside our differences; agree to disagree on the little things, and join together on the most important things. God’s love should be visible to all people through the life and actions of the Church body. Christians should be living complete lives of love, sharing and professing His love to the world. Pride and fear of stepping out of our comfortable personal bubbles keeps us from living a life of love.