The Hill reports that many Republican senators are worried about winning back the US Senate majority in 2024 and are discouraging US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson from moving forward with any national abortion legislation prior to next year’s election.
It seems that Speaker Johnson’s biblical worldview remains a “mystery” to certain GOP senators – even after a GOP meeting following last week’s Wednesday lunch.
A major question at the start of his speakership is whether Speaker Johnson will insert Congress into the national abortion debate by bringing bills to restrict abortion nationwide and inserting abortion-related policy riders to congressional “must-pass” spending bills.
The Hill report may be read HERE.
My brothers and sisters, sometimes the truth of the matter is exactly what it seems. There doesn’t have to be some ulterior motive to everything in life! The truth of the bible need not be a “mystery” to anyone, as it’s God’s love letter, counsel and instruction manual for our lives – which points to and reveals Jesus (see 2 Timothy 3:16).
The fact that Speaker Johnson’s worldview is considered a mystery is a mystery to this writer. I mean, the bible is very clear about not murdering (see Exodus 20:13), as we are made in the image of God (see Genesis 1:26). We are told to choose life, not death (see Deuteronomy 30:15-20). God knew every one of us before we were ever formed in our mothers’ wombs – with our days already numbered in His book (see Psalm 139:13-16). God loves us so much that Jesus willingly suffered and died upon the cross, taking our sin upon Himself, so we could be restored to right standing with the Father and have eternal life in the very presence of Almighty God (see John 3:16-17 and 1 John 4:9-10).
Now, what is not so clear is one of the main points in the above-referenced article, which is whether, in a post-Roe v. Wade world, the long and hard battle to overturn the landmark 1973 case establishing a constitutional right to abortion and returning the legal matters of abortion to the states is sufficient and the end of the “battle.”
It is true that in our constitutional republic, under the concept of federalism, the Tenth Amendment of the US Constitution does not specifically enumerate the issue of abortion to the federal government, and accordingly, could be viewed to be the sole domain of the states. That said, one must also consider the Preamble of the US Declaration of Independence.
The Preamble of the US Declaration of Independence states, in part, that “[w]e hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life (emphasis mine), Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Life is considered to be a God-given and irrevocable right!
The US Constitution does not mention abortion, but as many of us learned in school, the 10th Amendment of the US Constitution (part of the Bill of Rights) states that:
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.”
A transcription of the Bill of Rights, including the 10th Amendment, may be viewed HERE.
A transcription of the US Constitution may be viewed HERE.
This writer is thankful that Roe v. Wade is no longer the “law of the land” in the US, but the question now thrust before us is whether the sovereignty of the 50 individual states should suffice regarding abortion in light of the fact that state governments can declare things to be “legal” which contradict the word of God (e.g., abortion). This is a compelling but difficult question to answer.
It seems that at the moment, we should pray for our elected and unelected state leaders to carry hearts for the unborn. May our leaders see all children (born or unborn) as God’s very creation. And, may our state laws be changed and/or upheld to support life and not a culture of death – which is the essence of willful abortion.
Wisdom is required politically, as God-fearing officials determine the best course of action. I pray, however, that the forward momentum in the area of reducing, with an eye on ending abortion in the US, would not be derailed by in-fighting within the GOP. I pray that any attempts by the evil one and well-meaning but misguided politicians to drive a wedge between Christian believers over the details of how to end abortion would be thwarted, in Jesus’ name!
2 Timothy 3:16 (NKJV)
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, [and] for instruction in righteousness…”.
Exodus 20:13 (Amplified Bible)
“You shall not commit murder (unjustified, deliberate homicide).”
Genesis 1:26 (NKJV)
“Then God said, ‘[l]et Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…'”.
Deuteronomy 30:15-20 (NKJV)
“See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess. But if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them, I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess. I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life [emphasis mine], that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”
Psalm 139:13-16 (NLT)
“You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank [Y]ou for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in [Y]our book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”
John 3:16-17 (NKJV)
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
1 John 4:9-10 (NKJV)
“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
Praise Jesus forevermore!
