The overtly God-hating society in which we live will go to extraordinarily great lengths to rid itself of any mark of God’s Image. Whether it be through distorting justice, perverting sex, or renouncing gender, sinful man is constantly seeking to remove its Creator’s fingerprints. And so it should not surprise us at all that the hallmark of God’s Image in women—childbearing—falls under attack, and that in their rebellion, women begin to loathe that to which God called them.
Our God is a God of life. Indeed, in Him is life (Jn. 1:4), and from Him comes all life (Gen. 2:7); God’s moral law protects life (Gen. 9:6), and His eternal decree of salvation grants everlasting life (Eph. 1:4, 7). As living people, made in God’s Image, we have the awesome and blessed privilege of preserving, protecting, and especially producing life. It is a very telling thing that the first words man ever heard was the command to propagate life—to be fruitful and multiply (Gen. 1:28).
This command is described in Scripture as a blessing; so in the very first chapter of the Bible, we see that it is both the privilege and duty of mankind to pro-create life, according to the command of the God of life. In reading Scripture, it is impossible to miss the assertion that children are a blessing from God (Ps. 127:3-5), while barrenness is often associated with the idea of curse or punishment. There can be no doubt that God has designed humanity to thrive through pro-creation; He is a God of life.
A Distinct Honor
While both men and women are privileged to share in the work of pro-creation, it is the distinct honor of women to bear children. Consider for a moment what an incredible blessing this is! Scripture makes it abundantly clear that a major attribute of God’s “God-ness” is the fact that He created all things. And now, God has made woman the vessel for creating new life. She mirrors God, as His Image blindingly shines through her in the process of childbearing. This is the greatest blessing that God gave to women, even in considering that, since the fall, it has been riddled with pain and mingled with suffering.
Paul highlights the great honor of childbearing in 1 Tim. 2:15. While he certainly does not mean that women can be forgiven their sin and justified by having children, it is asserted that, for the Christian woman, humble obedience to this call, even in the midst of great pain, is sanctifying, and a fruit of salvation. It provides a picture of the endurance and perseverance unto blessing that God calls all of His redeemed people to. But even for the unbelieving woman, the work of giving birth glorifies God by revealing submission to His created order, and, as mentioned earlier, it cannot help but display God’s glorious Image, as the ultimate source and fountain of life. Childbearing, by its very nature, gives glory to the God of life.
Culture of Death
So how should we expect a culture of death to regard childbearing? The overtly God-hating society in which we live will go to extraordinarily great lengths to rid itself of any mark of God’s Image. Whether it be through distorting justice, perverting sex, or renouncing gender, sinful man is constantly seeking to remove its Creator’s fingerprints. And so it should not surprise us at all that the hallmark of God’s Image in women—childbearing—falls under attack, and that in their rebellion, women begin to loathe that to which God called them. This attack is clearly manifested in abortion.
The disturbing irony is that, while abortion is lauded as a pillar of feminism, it is in fact the most “a-feminist” institution imaginable. It robs women of their highest calling and blessing in this life, and it subverts women’s greatest role in creation. Abortion is by nature rebellious to the God of life, and like every other rebellious institution, it seeks to usurp God’s authority, and put it into the hands of man. Instead of rejoicing in God’s graciously allowing us to participate in His work of creation and subduing, we strive to overthrow Him, all the while despising His good gifts of common grace.
Christ Came Through Childbearing
All of this rebellion becomes more egregious when we consider the fact that God sent His Savior into the world through the process of childbearing. God the Son could have become man in any conceivable (or inconceivable, for that matter) way, but in His wisdom, He chose to use pregnancy and birth of a woman to take on flesh. This fact affirms the high calling of childbearing, it illustrates the blessing of obedience in the midst of pain, and it reveals, in part, God’s wise purpose in designing women for this work.
And in Mary, He gave us a beautiful example of humble submission to this design (Lk. 1:38). We are reminded of those all-too-familiar words from the prophet Isaiah: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness, from this time forth and forevermore” (Is. 9:6-7)
The Tragedy of the Unregenerate Heart
The defeat of death began with a birth, and so again, we cannot be surprised when the culture of death despises birth. Indeed, in its heart, it hates eternal life, it hates redemption, and it hates anything that would direct them to reconciliation with the God of life. This is the tragic reality of the unregenerate heart, and the more vehement and radical the defense of abortion becomes, the more evident that reality is.
As Christians, we must expose this hatred when confronting those who advocate abortion; it reveals the extent of their alienation from God and shows just how desperately they need the gospel. Understanding this ought to drive us to more fervent prayer and the explicit preaching of Christ to all of those who support this wickedness. Abortion will not be defeated by politicians, it will not be defeated by logic, it will not be defeated by science–it will only be defeated by the gospel that reconciles us to the God of life.
