ADAM-ITIS
1 Cor 15:21, 22—“For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”
The law of heredity, an essential in understanding the philosophy of sin atonement, bears out the Old Testament adage that the children die for the sins of the father. (Ezek 18: 2; Psa 51:5) Not only death, but sickness and disease are part of the legacy of sin. All sickness can be properly termed “Adam-itis” because all human weakness and disease can be traced back to the original sin of Adam in the Garden of Eden. For example a pregnant woman who comes down with German measles runs a high risk of aborting her child. This abortion is just one of many which are traceable to Father Adam—Adamitis. The Apostle Paul assures us that all who die “in Adam” will be made alive “in Christ.”
KILLING THE SOUL
Matt 10:28—“Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
The distinction here is clear. Both God and men can cause the cessation of life—“kill.” However, he who is killed by man is assured of a resurrection from death. His death is only temporary. Only God can destroy life so completely as to blot out even the memory of the person, denying him a resurrection. Oftentimes men have caused human abortions—a negligent doctor, a rejected suitor, an angry husband or lover, to name a few. This text assures us that such people do not have the power to remove life forever. There will be a resurrection. Only God has reserved to himself the authority to permanently remove life. If the aborted fetus in these cases is to have a resurrection, it must be considered a living entity.
JOY IN THE WOMB
Luke 1:41:44—“And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit: and she spoke out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.”
Here the “leaping” of John the Baptist in the womb of Elisabeth is specifically stated to be “for joy,” implying responsiveness to an external stimulus. Such ability to respond can only be attributed to live persons.
Child development specialists have repeatedly shown the effects of pre-natal influences. In one experiment, for example, the reading of a foreign language to the expectant mother resulted in greatly accelerated learning that language after birth.
“THE BREATH OF LIFE”
Gen 2:7—“And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
The “breath of life” in this text obviously does not refer simply to air or oxygen. If this were true, then, in artificial respiration, when air is united with a human organism, life would result. The “breath of life,” or, as some translators put it, “the spark of life,” refers to more than mere oxygen, but the whole process by which that oxygen reaches the various cells of the body, energizing and quickening them. This process is through the circulatory system, by which blood carries oxygen to the various areas of the body. How well this concurs with the Biblical text, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Lev 17:11, 14; Deut 12:23)
BRAIN WAVES
Today’s high-tech medical world of transplants has raised a host of ethical issues. Among them is the question of what constitutes death for the purpose of releasing body organs for use as transplants. Science has now come up with a new definition of death. Instead of marking this point by the stoppage of the heart, it is indicated by the cessation of brain waves—brain death.
Psychologists and para-psychologists have conducted a number of experiments demonstrating the presence of brain waves within the womb. This further indicates that life begins within the womb.
GENETICS
The genes which are united at conception form the nucleus of the characteristics which will be possessed by the infant. There is no basic change in this character make-up between conception and one day following birth, merely its further development. Since the preservation of identity in the resurrection is based upon God’s memory of the individual’s character, and since that character does not change in the various phases of pre-natal development, it seems evident that the embryo and fetus are considered equally alive as the newborn infant.
CONCLUSION
The foregoing discussion, while admittedly not conclusive, presents a strong case for the position that the Bible considers life as beginning near the time of conception. Such testimony concurs with those who say that abortion is the taking of a life.
However, the same evidence indicates that ALL aborted children will have a resurrection. Therefore, the Scriptures are moot on the question of abortion where a medical decision must be made to save either the life of the baby or the mother.
Another hope-filled thought from the above evidence is the indication that naturally aborted, or still-born children, will have a resurrection from the dead.
How comforting and reassuring is the Bible promise that “all who are in their graves shall hear the voice of the Son of man and come forth”—both “those who have done good” and “those who have done evil.”
1 Cor 15:21, 22—“For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”
The law of heredity, an essential in understanding the philosophy of sin atonement, bears out the Old Testament adage that the children die for the sins of the father. (Ezek 18: 2; Psa 51:5) Not only death, but sickness and disease are part of the legacy of sin. All sickness can be properly termed “Adam-itis” because all human weakness and disease can be traced back to the original sin of Adam in the Garden of Eden. For example a pregnant woman who comes down with German measles runs a high risk of aborting her child. This abortion is just one of many which are traceable to Father Adam—Adamitis. The Apostle Paul assures us that all who die “in Adam” will be made alive “in Christ.”
KILLING THE SOUL
Matt 10:28—“Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
The distinction here is clear. Both God and men can cause the cessation of life—“kill.” However, he who is killed by man is assured of a resurrection from death. His death is only temporary. Only God can destroy life so completely as to blot out even the memory of the person, denying him a resurrection. Oftentimes men have caused human abortions—a negligent doctor, a rejected suitor, an angry husband or lover, to name a few. This text assures us that such people do not have the power to remove life forever. There will be a resurrection. Only God has reserved to himself the authority to permanently remove life. If the aborted fetus in these cases is to have a resurrection, it must be considered a living entity.
JOY IN THE WOMB
Luke 1:41:44—“And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit: and she spoke out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.”
Here the “leaping” of John the Baptist in the womb of Elisabeth is specifically stated to be “for joy,” implying responsiveness to an external stimulus. Such ability to respond can only be attributed to live persons.
Child development specialists have repeatedly shown the effects of pre-natal influences. In one experiment, for example, the reading of a foreign language to the expectant mother resulted in greatly accelerated learning that language after birth.
“THE BREATH OF LIFE”
Gen 2:7—“And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
The “breath of life” in this text obviously does not refer simply to air or oxygen. If this were true, then, in artificial respiration, when air is united with a human organism, life would result. The “breath of life,” or, as some translators put it, “the spark of life,” refers to more than mere oxygen, but the whole process by which that oxygen reaches the various cells of the body, energizing and quickening them. This process is through the circulatory system, by which blood carries oxygen to the various areas of the body. How well this concurs with the Biblical text, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Lev 17:11, 14; Deut 12:23)
BRAIN WAVES
Today’s high-tech medical world of transplants has raised a host of ethical issues. Among them is the question of what constitutes death for the purpose of releasing body organs for use as transplants. Science has now come up with a new definition of death. Instead of marking this point by the stoppage of the heart, it is indicated by the cessation of brain waves—brain death.
Psychologists and para-psychologists have conducted a number of experiments demonstrating the presence of brain waves within the womb. This further indicates that life begins within the womb.
GENETICS
The genes which are united at conception form the nucleus of the characteristics which will be possessed by the infant. There is no basic change in this character make-up between conception and one day following birth, merely its further development. Since the preservation of identity in the resurrection is based upon God’s memory of the individual’s character, and since that character does not change in the various phases of pre-natal development, it seems evident that the embryo and fetus are considered equally alive as the newborn infant.
CONCLUSION
The foregoing discussion, while admittedly not conclusive, presents a strong case for the position that the Bible considers life as beginning near the time of conception. Such testimony concurs with those who say that abortion is the taking of a life.
However, the same evidence indicates that ALL aborted children will have a resurrection. Therefore, the Scriptures are moot on the question of abortion where a medical decision must be made to save either the life of the baby or the mother.
Another hope-filled thought from the above evidence is the indication that naturally aborted, or still-born children, will have a resurrection from the dead.
How comforting and reassuring is the Bible promise that “all who are in their graves shall hear the voice of the Son of man and come forth”—both “those who have done good” and “those who have done evil.”
