In the World- What Does It Mean To Be Pro-Life?

What does it mean to be pro-life?

For many Christians, the answer begins with the conviction that every human life is sacred. And rightly so. Scripture establishes the value of human life from its very beginning.

In Genesis 1, we read that God created mankind in His own image. Human beings are not accidents of biology or meaningless collections of cells. We are God’s creation, bearing His image and possessing a dignity that comes from Him.

King David understood this when he wrote in Psalm 139: “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” He went on to describe God’s intimate knowledge of him even while he was being formed in his mother’s womb. And in Jeremiah 1:5, God tells the prophet, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.”

The biblical case for protecting unborn life is clear: human life is precious because human beings are made in the image of God.

But what happens when someone deliberately takes that life?

Last week, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced that the scheduled execution of Nidal Hasan, the former Army major convicted of killing 13 people in the 2009 Fort Hood terrorist attack, would be livestreamed. The proposal sparked widespread controversy! President Trump has since confirmed that the execution will proceed, but announced that the execution will proceed without a livestream.

Personally, I agree that the execution should not be turned into a public spectacle. I am glad for the administration’s change of tune on that. But I also believe the execution itself is good and right and just, and I believe Scripture gives us a clear biblical foundation for that position.

In Genesis 9:5–6, God declares:

“Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.”

Read that again. God establishes the seriousness of murder and the principle of capital punishment for precisely the same reason that we defend the unborn: human beings are made in the image of God.

The sanctity of human life is not an argument that Scripture applies only when a life is innocent, helpless, or yet to be born. The image of God gives human life its dignity, and the deliberate destruction of that life is a grave offense against the Creator.

Some well-meaning Christians will respond, “But that’s the Old Testament! We live under the New Covenant.”

Christians have long disagreed about how the New Covenant affects the application of Old Testament civil penalties. But consider the inconsistency that can arise when we dismiss the Old Testament in one conversation while appealing to it in another.

We rightly turn to Genesis and the Psalms to establish the biblical foundation for protecting unborn children. We quote Jeremiah to demonstrate that God knows and values human life even before birth. We recognize that the Old Testament reveals something foundational about God’s character and the worth of His creation.

Yet when Genesis 9 addresses the taking of human life and establishes a principle of accountability for murder, suddenly the Old Testament is dismissed as irrelevant.

We cannot simply accept the Old Testament when it supports our conclusions and discard it when it challenges them. We must wrestle honestly with the whole counsel of Scripture.

This does not mean every Christian must reach the same conclusion about capital punishment. It does mean that opposition to the death penalty cannot be established merely by appealing to the sanctity of human life. Genesis 9 itself connects the value of human life with the gravity of taking it.

Still, it is imperative that we do not confuse justice with vengeance. The execution of a convicted murderer is not supposed to be an expression of personal hatred or a desire to inflict suffering. It is a matter of lawful punishment for a grave crime. The fact that someone has committed an atrocious act does not mean that person ceases to bear the image of God.

That last point matters. It’s kind of the whole point.

I do not believe it is loving, gracious, or godly to treat a person’s spiritual condition as though it no longer matters simply because he has committed an unforgivable crime in the eyes of society. No human being is beyond the reach of God’s grace. But grace does not make sin inconsequential, and forgiveness does not erase every earthly consequence.

The English writer Samuel Johnson once observed, “Depend upon it, sir, when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.”

There is a sobering truth in those words. When eternity is no longer an abstract concept but an approaching reality, a person may be forced to confront questions he has spent a lifetime avoiding. What have I done? What do I deserve? What happens when I stand before God?

We cannot know what any particular condemned person will think, believe, or repent of in their final days. An execution does not guarantee repentance, and a prison sentence does not prevent it. But we should care deeply about whether those who have committed terrible crimes ever come face to face with the seriousness of their sin and their desperate need for a Savior.

This is why I believe we must be careful not to pit justice against mercy, or accountability against the Gospel. A society can punish murder while still recognizing the humanity of the murderer. Christians can support lawful justice while praying for the repentance and salvation of the condemned.

Ultimately, our hope is not merely that people live longer on this earth. Our hope is that they will be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ and receive eternal life.

Perhaps it is time we remembered that being pro-life must mean more than being pro-mortal life. It must mean being pro-eternal life.

We should defend the unborn because they bear God’s image. We should seek justice for the innocent because their lives bear God’s image. And even when justice demands the ultimate earthly penalty, we should never stop caring about the eternal destiny of the person who committed the crime.

Every human life matters to God. And every human soul needs the Gospel.