A great legal victory occurred on June 24, 2022. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled to overturn Roe v. Wade after more than 49 years (Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization).  The issue of abortion is returned to the states.  Now what? 

1.  How one votes matters.

Elections have consequences.  Key to overturning Roe v. Wade was the Supreme Court appointments of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.  These appointments were made by Donald J. Trump. This is not a political statement. It is just the facts. These appointments made the difference (joined with Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and John Roberts). I have heard Christians through the years say things like, “I no longer vote with abortion as a major issue in my mind.  Roe v. Wade is the ruling of the Court.  It will never change.”

However, things can change.  They can change for the better or for the worse.  This ruling demonstrates such.     

May we as Christians always seek to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16).  Do not separate your Christian beliefs from how you vote.  Let us wisely seek to apply our beliefs to all of life, including how we vote. It is important to remember when voting that we are not seeking a utopian candidate. We are not seeking one without sin; there has only been one. We should ask which one of the candidates will be most likely to help create an environment friendly to Christianity and Biblical principles. Admittedly, this is sometimes difficult to discern. However, this should always be the goal.

The political/legal battle is not over.  The current decision does not outlaw abortions.  It simply makes it a state-by-state issue.  Moreover, future U.S. Supreme Courts could reverse this ruling. Court packing could occur. Congress could seek to codify the right to abortion in federal law.

2.  Hearts and minds need to change.

One can outlaw murder, rape, prostitution, abortion, suicide, and other moral issues.  Doing so may deter and reduce numbers.  However, it will not eliminate these things.  Prohibition did not eliminate alcohol consumption. 

Hearts and minds need to be won.  The brethren at Thessalonica had “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (1 Thessalonians 1:9).  The brethren at Corinth had once been guilty of unrighteous behavior, including such things as: fornication, idolatry adultery, homosexuality, sodomy, theft, covetousness, drunkenness, reviling, extortion (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).  Paul said that he once was “a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man” (1 Timothy 1:13).  The gospel has the power to change hearts and minds. 

3.  Salvation is more important than politics.

We should want more than political and legal victories.  What have we really accomplished in gaining political and legal victories, if we leave man in a lost condition?

We should be making effort to save souls.  Are we passionate about this, and even more so, that we are about politics?  The early Christians “went everywhere preaching the word” (Acts 8:4).  Do we?

A utopian America is not the goal of the Christian.  Instead, we are to seek to glorify God (1 Corinthians 6:20; 10:31), magnify Christ (Philippians 1:20), and win souls for Christ (Acts 8:4; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23; 2 Timothy 2:1-2; Hebrews 5:12; 1 Peter 2:9).

4.  Let us be truly pro-life and pro-family.

Let us not just be against things.  We should not just be anti-abortion, but pro-life.  We should not be just anti-same sex marriage; we should be pro-family as God designed it. (The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 26, 2015, to strike down state bans on same-sex marriage. Obergefell v. Hodges)

Let us be truly pro-life.  Let us be ready to help those who are in unexpected, unwanted pregnancy.  Let us be a neighbor towards those in need (Luke 10:25-37).  Let us do good as we have opportunity (Galatians 6:10; James 1:27).  Moreover, let us not just seek to save physical life of the fleshly body, but also the soul (Matthew 10:28).  If we want these children born, we should also want them to be saved.

Let us be truly pro-family as God designed it.  Let us do what we can to help strengthen families (Ephesians 5:22-6:4; Colossians 3:18-21; Titus 2:1-8).

5.  Let us be forgiving.

All have sinned (Romans 3:23).  This includes you.  This includes me.

It is easy for some to think that the sins of others are worse than their own.  However, the truth is that we all deserve the wrath of God (Ephesians 2:1-3).

However, God is gracious and merciful.  He does not want us to be lost (2 Peter 3:9; 1 Timothy 2:4).  Paul said, “Christ Jesus came to save sinners, of whom I am chief” (1 Timothy 1:15).  If God can save Paul, then he can save others.  He can save those who have done every manner of sin (1 Corinthians 6:9-11). 

We too much learn to be forgiving of others.  We do not want to be guilty of the attitude of the elder son (Luke 15:11-32).