Devotional Index

March Devotional

Who Chooses Value?

Of all the choices one can make, the very best choice is to receive God’s wonderful provision of forgiveness of sin through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ as Calvary. “In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;” (Ephesians 1:7). If you have not received this forgiveness and eternal life freely offered to you, you may do so now by placing your trust and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation of your souls. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16).

This past fall I became a grandpa for the first time, but it was not uneventful. My oldest daughter was married in December of 2007 and a few months later she and her husband found that they were expecting to have their first child very close to their first anniversary. All seemed to be going well until a sudden medical emergency was detected. As a result my daughter was taken by helicopter in a flight-for-life to get her and the baby the medical attention they required. Once they arrived at the hospital it was determined that a c-section would have to be done as soon as the conditions were right. Everything was done to protect both mother and baby, and after several hours my grandson was born weighing less than four pounds. He was quickly carted off into the prenatal care unit. I am thankful to say that both mother and baby are doing well and those who were responsible for their care did an excellent job.

In the prenatal care unit our grandson was not alone, nor was he the smallest baby in the unit; in fact, the unit was buzzing with many other children who had been born prematurely. As I sat there with our tiny little grandson seeing many other babies (even smaller than him) I could not help but think of how much care they received to preserve their lives. And while they were receiving such quality care, so many other healthy babies were being killed under the banner of “choice.”

What a vast difference in the outcome simply based upon the parents decision to choose life or death for the child. Choose life and the mother and her baby will have at their disposal the latest technology and premium care working around the clock, no matter how far along the pregnancy. Choose to kill that baby and in a matter of moments its life is taken without any attempt to protect it or preserve it, and the mother is left with lifelong guilt and regret.

So, the fate of the baby comes down to a decision about value. But who should determine the value of life? Who has the right to make such a choice? As believers we understand that this right belongs only to God who created us, so we must see what He says, and understand why life is so precious in the first place. In the creation account God says, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them” (Genesis 1:26a, 27). As we look at this amazing account we find 3 magnificent reasons why life should be prized. First we see that the creation of man was purposeful, second we see that the creation of man was pinnacle, and finally, we learn that the creation of man was personal. Let’s consider these in more detail.

The first magnificent reason why life should be prized is that Man’s Creation was Purposeful. By a special act of God and for a specific reason man was created. We are not here as the result of random chance (some sort of cosmic accident) or by the means of natural selection (a multitude of impossible progressive mutations from simple life forms to complex ones). Quite to the contrary, according to the Scriptures, we are here by a divine act of God Who fashioned us after his Image.

As you look into this passage we find what seems to be a pause somewhere on the sixth day of creation after all of the animals had been created. It is written as though a divine counsel took place between the Holy Trinity, who stopped momentarily and conferred together and then fashioned man and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. Thus, Biblical Creationism teaches us two valuable lessons about life:

1. Life has Meaning: Because our creation was intended, that intent means purpose, thus we can reasonably conclude that not just Adam’s but our life has meaning.
2. Life has Dignity: With purpose comes dignity or honor. In this account we find the dignity of life displayed in 2 ways:
   1. Dignity is implied uniqueness - All of the creation was filled with many varieties of animals, plants, and insects they were created bountifully (not simply a single pair) yet when Adam & Eve were created they were alone as sole representatives.
   2. Dignity is implied in dominion - When man was created they were given dominion over the creation as a sacred trust, truly a position of dignity.

The second magnificent reason why life should be prized is that Man’s Creation was Pinnacle. In the creation account we find everything leading up to a climax, it is the climax of the sixth day when man is created. On that day we find all of creation complete except for the crowning event, the creation of man. The entire chapter explodes with extraordinary scenes of God’s power and might and in each case it ends as good but not finished. But on day six we find the culmination, the apex, the pinnacle, when man is created. Why one might ask? The answer is because man has an eternal soul, man is the most God-like of all creation, he alone is an image-bearer. All of the rest of creation will one day perish, the heavens will be rolled up as a scroll but man abides eternally somewhere.

The third magnificent reason why life should be prized is that Man’s Creation was Personal. When God created light it says, “let there be light.” When God created the plants it says, “let the earth bring forth.” When God created the birds and the fish it says, “let the waters bring forth.” And when God created the animals it says, “let the earth bring forth.” But when man was created the scripture says, “let us make man.” Each of these previous acts were supernatural and phenomenal and reflect the character of God, but they are different than the last act that implies a personal touch. The implication is that all three Persons of the trinity were intimately involved in man’s creation. Man was formed with God’s hands, breathed into his nostrils by Almighty God, and spoken to immediately upon creation. Man’s relationship to God was meant from the beginning to be a personal relationship and it began immediately when he was created.

Life should be prized and protected because it is of great value, how do we know, because man’s creation was purposeful, pinnacle, and personal. It is right for prenatal units and hospitals to protect life and to work round the clock to do so. It is right for society to protect life and treat it as sacred, for in the end it is the only thing that will last in eternity!

Pastor Matthew DeCleene
Twin City Baptist Church, Marinette
President of Board, Assurance Women’s Center, Appleton