Striking Similarities

A clear analogy can be made between slavery in the United States in the 1800s and abortion in the 20th and 21st centuries. Both slavery and abortion boast of personal property rights as paramount to liberty and freedom. The slave owner said that it was his right to do what he desired with his property. The abortion advocates cry that the woman has a right to do what she wishes with the unborn baby. Both positions ignore the freedom of the enslaved. Both positions focus only on the right of the owner. The slave owner’s rights trump those of the slave. The woman’s rights trump those of the baby.

In the nineteenth century, proponents of slavery vigorously fought to expand slavery. They knew it would die if it remained restricted while free states continued to grow and outnumber the slave states. Therefore, they sought expansion. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 was an attempt to break the stranglehold of the Missouri Compromise, which allowed Maine to enter the Union as a Free State only if Missouri could enter as a slave state to maintain the balance of slavery. There were also failed attempts to take territory away in Mexico, Cuba, and Central America—all for the expansion of slavery. The Dred Scott case of 1857 was the most notorious attempt to give slavery the right to go anywhere. The recent overthrow of Roe vs. Wade has restricted abortion rights to the states that want it, much the way slavery was relegated to the South. The fight is not only to have abortion in those states that want it but to find a way to have it in all the states. Abortion is similar in that enough is never enough. Not until the Civil War of 1861 did the insatiable desire for more slavery stop. This same insatiable desire promotes abortion today.

Under slavery, the South refused to recognize the hardship of the slave. They boasted he was better off than the free worker in the North. They ignored his deprivation and suffering and focused on their honor, culture, and state rights. Such is the way a proponent of abortion refuses to recognize the unborn baby can feel pain at 18 weeks.

Despotism is one man ruling another man in a cruel and barbarous way. That is the definition of slavery, and it is also the definition of abortion. While abortion proponents are fixated on the woman’s right to her own body, they ignore the right of life to the unborn baby.

Harriet Beecher Stowe made the greatest indictment of slavery with her book Uncle Tom’s Cabin, published in 1842. The book focused on the breakup of slave families and the pain it caused. After the book came out, it sold 300,000 in the first year, the equivalent of 3 million today. It sold more than 2 million in the first decade. It made the whole nation feel what a horrible, cursed thing slavery was. Her book was a vision of the bondage of millions of people. We now are witnessing the same awful atrocities in the killing of innocent babies every day!

The fight for life is having success, although you would never know it from the media. Half of the 50 states have declared abortion illegal. Abortions have gone down considerably, and the American public is becoming more aware of what abortion is and how important this fight to save these little lives is.

Remember What Is Important

We have all forgotten things and were embarrassed by our lapse in memory. I once forgot a speaking engagement in Southern California. When I remembered, it was too late and too far away to do anything about it. I apologized, and they were gracious enough to let me come at a later date.  There are, however, things far more important that we must not forget.

When Timothy was facing tough times in the ministry, the Apostle Paul told Timothy to remember some essential things that would always help him stay focused. First, he told him to remember that Jesus has been resurrected (2 Tim 2:8). Every time we face death, we recognize there is one who conquered death. Paul reminded him to remember that Jesus is the Messiah—the one who fulfilled all the biblical prophesies—the one who can save us. Paul encouraged Timothy by reminding him of how powerful the Gospel is. Paul referred to himself as a prisoner of Christ, not of Caesar (2 Tim 2:9). That’s because Paul knew he was in prison by God’s will, and he made the best of it, writing several of his letters from that dungeon. Paul concluded by giving Timothy a poem that would help him remember four essential things: First, if we died with Christ, we will also live with him (eternal life). Second, if we endure suffering for Christ, we will one day reign with him (reward). Third, he gave Timothy a warning that if we disown Christ, he will disown us (apostasy). Fourth, if we are faithless, Christ remains faithful (Christ’s faithfulness, 2 Tim 2:11-13). How encouraging all of this had to be for Timothy! Paul's letter had to be pivotal in Timothy’s ministry at Ephesus.

Pivotal experiences are so compelling; they impact our lives and prepare us for the future.  One particular experience in Tucuman, Argentina stands out to me from the first church we planted in that city. In preparation for an upcoming campaign, a pastor and I were building a platform. However, while doing this, something significant occurred. He brought out a huge can of old rusty nails that he had saved over the years and dumped them on the ground.

We both began straightening out the crooked nails, which took considerable time and patience. After some time of hammering out these old nails, I said in a voice of frustration, “I’m going to buy some new ones.” I immediately left for the hardware store to purchase the nails.  I thought to myself, “I have better things to do than straighten out old rusty, crooked nails.” However, on my way to the store, God spoke to me and said, “I want to use the rusty nails because I want you to learn something from the process. In the campaign, as people come to hear the gospel, and when they respond, it won’t be because you are a good preacher or because they are impressed with you or anyone else. It won’t be because of any human talent or ability but because I’m going to take the rusty and broken lives and straighten them out with the hammer of my Word.” I never forgot that experience, and sometimes even today, the Spirit reminds me of that same truth. God used this experience to remind me that it is the Gospel that changes people’s lives!