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Sanctity of Human Choice

What's the Debate About?

In my experience with today's abortion debates, many people are beginning to agree that a pregnant woman is carrying a human being. With the quality of today's ultrasounds, the facts we know about development inside the womb, and the medical miracles that allow for viability, everyone is beginning to realize that the unborn is human.

If the abortion debate has evolved — if most of us (pro-life and pro-choice) can now agree that the unborn is human — then what is everyone still arguing about?¹

As many of you know, we've already had quite a few exhaustive discussions on this topic in the TrueU Coffee Shop. From what I've seen from the pro-choice positions on our boards and from discussions I've had with various other people, one of the main reasons that people continue to support abortion is a woman's right to choose.²

(Because I know there are many other serious issues surrounding the abortion debate, I want to quickly point out two solid resources that serve to equip pro-lifers with logical arguments. The first is Frank Beckwith's, Politically Correct Death. Beckwith's book presents an in-depth, philosophical approach to many abortion rights arguments; it is factual and helpful in understanding and refuting many pro-choice arguments. The second is Scott Klusendorf's Pro-Life 101. This book is a practical step-by-step guide for what to say and what not to say in an abortion debate. I highly recommend adding both books to your library.)

The Evolution of Choice

Even if the baby is human, the mother should be able to decide if she wants it, some of you say. She has to be pregnant for nine months, she has to raise the child, she is the one who should be able to decide. It's her personal choice.

Abortion is constantly talked about with regard to a woman's right to choose. It's been brought up numerous times on our forums. As I heard this argument over and over again, I began to wonder when the "right to choose" became the most important factor in this debate. And why is it so important? Is the popular notion of personal rights actually a biblical idea?³

First, why is personal choice so important? In Western society today, we are overwhelmed with choices that will improve our comfort. We have been given the freedom to choose whichever career we desire, the type of lifestyle we want to live, and even the sex of the baby we want to have. Choice has become commonplace and exalted. "Do what tastes right," Wendy's tells us. "Have it your way," says Burger King. We are constantly encouraged to follow our dreams and our hearts. "Give me liberty to buy that car I can't afford, or give me death!" we cry to the loan departments at our banks. Now, I'm not saying that choice is a bad thing. I do think, however, that some of our choices — and some of our beliefs that personal freedom is supremely important — are a fairly recent phenomenon.

Take holy matrimony, for example. Marriages used to be arranged — in some cultures around the world they still are. The parents would choose who would marry whom; the betrothed ones really had no say in the matter. No doubt, plenty of these marriages were unhappy. (Thankfully, now that we are all able to choose our perfect mate in today's society, the divorce rate has gone down drastically … right?) But I would guess that some of these arranged marriages were tolerable — perhaps even joyful and loving.

Please, don't get me wrong. I'm not arguing for the reinstatement of arranged marriages. All I am saying is that many people in history have not had as many choices as we do, but I doubt that they would all say their lives were horrible, not worth living or even unhappy. And I would be tempted to argue that according to the current suicide rate and the abundance of anti-depressants, we do not necessarily seem to be any happier with all of our choices than those of long ago were without the right to choose whatever lifestyle they wanted.

Not My Will

Perhaps you are extremely grateful that we've evolved beyond the former state of choicelessness. And maybe we should be. The American government is founded upon the principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and if an abortion will make me happier, I have the right to choose one.⁴

But pushing aside the Declaration of Independence and American law for a minute, is our ability to choose the pursuit of our own happiness the most biblical or even most beneficial way to live?

In a way, perhaps it is. John Piper defends the "Christian hedonist" in his book, Desiring God. We do desire to be happy, he says, and that's OK. However, his message is that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. You see, the Christian hedonist doesn't always get what would make her happiest — sometimes our satisfaction in Him doesn't come from being comfortable. In fact, it is often quite the opposite. As we can see, there are many biblical examples of this:

1. Jesus. Christ did not want to die on the cross. His anguish over this situation is very evident in the Gospel accounts, where His hours in the Garden of Gethsemane are recorded. He did have a choice — and He chose what was most difficult and least comfortable; He chose the unpleasant option: Someone else's will. "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will" (Matthew 26:39b, NIV, emphasis mine).
2. Paul. Paul was in chains for Christ and was continually arrested for his faith. Most of his letters were written from jail. He tells us that he would rather have gone to Heaven, and yet he lived and preached on in order to glorify the Lord. "I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body" (Philippians 1:23-24). Paul did not choose to do what would make him most comfortable.
3. James. In his letter to the persecuted Jewish Christians, James tells them to consider their trials and troubles "pure joy" (James 1:2). In fact, he tells them that instead of seeking to quickly escape their discomfort, they should persevere (i.e. deal with it) in order to become mature.

And what of our rights? Well, Paul, when writing about sexual immorality, says that, in a way, we should give up some of these ideas of being able to do whatever we want with our bodies. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body" (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, emphasis mine).

So, what is the biblical precedent when it comes to choosing what is more comfortable for us? It doesn't seem like comfort is even a factor, but instead, the important thing appears to be whatever is more honoring to God. Now, I know that not all decisions regarding abortion are between comfort and discomfort, but many of them are. We as Christians should evaluate them against these biblical examples, and the above instances seem to show that sometimes the choice that seems more pleasant to us is not the most God-glorifying.

Conscious Choice

This article is not meant to convince non-Christians that they shouldn't get an abortion. I do think there are plenty of logical arguments that can be used to show anyone that abortion is the murder of an innocent human life, regardless of circumstance, level of development, environment, and so on. But I wrote this article for my Christian friends who are thoughtfully considering the pros and cons of the abortion debate, and honestly seeking out a biblical mindset about the idea of choice.

C O F F E E  S H O P

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Why has choice become so important? Should it be?

Join the discussion!

January is Sanctity of Human Life month. As I've tried to portray in this article, I think we have sometimes made personal happiness and choice much more sacred than life. Oftentimes, whether we like it or not, it seems that the Christian life involves sacrificing our will — our right to choose what we want — in order to glorify the One who gave us life to begin with.