When Is A Baby A Baby?

“Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5

A professor at UCLA Medical School presented the following case history to his students:

“A woman who suffers from tuberculosis is pregnant. Her husband has syphilis. There are three children in the family. One is blind, another deaf, and the other suffers from tuberculosis. Another child died in infancy. Now a child is on the way.” The class was then asked, “Under the circumstances, would you recommend an abortion?” Most of the students recommended that the child be aborted.

Their Professor then informed them: “Congratulations, you’ve just killed Beethoven!”

I believe that a baby is a baby from inception–from the time a live sperm enters and fertilizes the mother’s egg.

God certainly sees the fetus as a baby. When referring to John the Baptist, yet unborn, He said, “For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb” (Luke 1:15). The Bible goes on to say that, “When Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb” (Luke 1:41).

How can a woman doubt that it is a baby she as she feels movement within her? What father can question the presence of a child as he feels the child ‘kick’, when they lie together in bed ?

Would Jesus be pleased with the following statistics?

• 1,500,000 – 2,000,000 babies are aborted annually.
• In many areas of our country abortions actually outnumber live births.
• 40% of abortions are performed on women who have aborted other babies also.
• 98% of abortions are for reasons other than rape, incest, or the mother’s life.
• 33% of abortions are performed on teenagers without their parent’s knowledge.
• 2,000,000 American couples are waiting to adopt babies.

Source: Landmark Independent Baptist Homepage

In testimony given at government sponsored public hearings, according to the above source, the family planning clinics do not even refer to the unborn baby as a fetus. The baby is dehumanized by referring to the fetus as ‘products of conception’ or ‘uterine contents’. The heart of an unborn baby, however, begins to beat eighteen days after conception. How can they then say that a baby is not a baby until birth?

There has definitely been a change in the thinking of our nation toward the issue of abortion. In 1963, Planned Parenthood, stated, “An abortion kills the life of the baby after it has begun.” Today they have become the leaders in the abortion business with revenues generated from abortion of over forty eight million dollars in 1997 alone. In this same year, they performed over 165,000 abortions, or nearly one out of every eight abortions performed in the U.S. (Oregon Right to Life).

Despite the fact that many in the pro-abortion movement cite reasons such as rape or incest, most abortions are still done for convenience.

The main reasons given:

• “Baby would interfere with work.” 75%
• “Can’t afford a child.” 65%
• “Problems with spouse.” 50%

Source: IBC Perspectives

God views the unborn as a child–not to be discarded just because it is not convenient for parents today.

God commanded, “Thou shalt not kill.” Rather than kill the unborn let us actively look for good homes into which we can place these babies after birth. Have you ever considered adopting one of these treasures? Remember, if you save one for eternity it is worth more than the entire world.

It is one thing to throw stones at the abortionists and to picket their doorways — it is another to help one girl in trouble and to save one baby for eternity. Let us not only curse the darkness, but also let us light a candle for love and truth.