This was published in The Defender, Jericho Project of Dayton's

newsletter. It provides a clear rational for direct action against the

abortion trade.

 

A PROPHETIC WITNESS THAT SAVES LIVES

 

Every day 4,000 unborn children are torn limb from limb in their

mothers' wombs, victims of this nation's abortion chambers. Many of

these children are killed right here in Dayton. Yet most Christians in

our city have remained silent in the face of this American

holocaust--often too busy, too uninformed, or too apathetic to spend a

few hours a month to speak up for God's little ones.

Yet, as Christians, God calls us to be a prophetic light to a

fallen world by declaring and acting upon the truth of His word.

Proverbs 24: 11 and 12 commands Christians to:

Rescue those being led away to death; Hold back

those staggering towards slaughter.

If you say, " But we knew nothing about this," Does not He who

weighs the heart perceive it? Does not He who guards your life know

it? Will He not repay each person according to what he has done?

Jesus taught that "whatever you have done to the least of these my

brethren you have done unto me." In the same passage He makes clear

that standing by idly in the face of human suffering is a sin. On

judgment day you will be called to answer the question "what did you

do when they were killing My innocent children?" How will you respond?

A Way to Save Lives Picketing abortion chambers is one way that

Christians can be obedient to God's commandment. It is not the only

way, but it is one of the most simple and effective. It requires no

special skills or talent. Just a boldness to declare and act upon

God's word. And yes, picketing saves lives. Many women are turned

away from the abortuary merely by the presence of Christians outside

demonstrating their concern for the woman and her tiny unborn child.

Your presence on the picket line could be an innocent child's last

chance for life.

A Prophetic Witness

On the larger scale, picketing abortion chambers is a prophetic

witness to our society of God's hatred of this evil. By picketing

abortion chambers you will send a simple but clear message that the

Christians in Dayton have not and will never accept the killing of

innocent children who are precious in God's sight regardless of how our

society assesses their worth.

Remember, we show the sincerity of our convictions and the

seriousness of the abortion holocaust through our actions.

Franky Schaeffer once observed that, "If there is an abortion

clinic in a neighborhood that is not being picketed whenever abortions

are performed, then the Christians in that community have accepted

abortion."

How true. And how sad that Church services and Bible studies are

held in our city while only blocks away the abortionists practice their

grisly trade without so much as a peep of protest from the vast

majority of Christians.

Picketing abortion clinics drives home the point that there is no

neutral ground in the abortion debate; the unborn child is either a

human being or it is not. Picketing abortion chambers forces the

public to confront this issue. It forces them to think.

The abortionists want nothing more than to fade away into the

background so that they can practice their trade in obscurity.

Won't you help expose their evil to the searching light of God's

truth?

A Call To Commitment

Fifteen years have passed since the Roe v. Wade decision was

handed down by the United States Supreme Court which struck down as

unconstitutional the anti-abortion laws of all fifty states.

Since that decision more than twenty million unborn children have

been exterminated while the church, for the most part, has continued

to act as if nothing were happening.

How long can Christians remain silent? Apathy in the face of evil

is, of course, nothing new.

When our nation was divided by the slavery issue, Henry David

Thoreau observed that, "There are thousands who are in opinion

opposed to slavery . . ., but who yet in effect do nothing to put an

end to it. They hesitate, and they regret, and sometimes they petition;

but they do nothing in earnest and with effect. They will wait, well

disposed, for others to remedy the evil, that they may no longer have

it to regret."

Fortunately, in Thoreau's day and throughout history God has

raised up the voices of a few courageous Christian men and women who

were willing to speak out against the evils of their day even while

other Christians looked askance.

These prophetic men and women bore public scorn and ridicule and

sometimes risked even their lives to stand up for God's truth. Can we

do anything less in the face of 1.5 million deaths a year?

A Moderate Response

Some Christians view picketing as too "divisive" and too "radical".

Yet if we really believe as Christians that abortion is the taking of

innocent human life, then picketing is a mild response.

Imagine this: the Supreme Court arbitrarily declares that life

begins six months after birth. "Family Planning" centers spring up

throughout the country where mothers can take their newborn infants

to be killed. Pro-life Christians begin picketing these centers.

Would we then hear criticism that pro-lifers were "harassing"

women who had made a difficult decision, that pro-life tactics were

extreme and divisive? One would hope not.

A Vision

Abortion continues for one reason only: because the Church allows

it to continue.

If just a small fraction of the pro-life Christians in our city

would picket for just a few hours a month, thousands of activists

would be on the streets every week in front of the abortion chambers,

the abortion hospitals, and the homes of the abortionists. he

abortion industry simply could not survive.

Our vision is to make Dayton, Ohio, one of the nation's first

Abortion Free Zones, a place where it is safe to be born, a place that

is pleasing to God, a model for other cities throughout our land of

what can be done by concerned Christians.

The task will not be an easy one but it can be done. It will

require a broad-based grassroots movement of Christians who have

dedicated themselves to prayer and to action.

The ultimate victory will belong to the Lord, but we must show up

for the battle. Won't you join us?

Your Involvement

Becoming a pro-life picketer is easy. Just show up.

Regular pickets are scheduled each week at key locations

throughout the city. In addition special marches, rallies, and

demonstrations are announced continuously on The Dayton Pro-Life

Action Line. The number to call for a three minute taped message is

252-CARE (252-2273).

Signs are supplied at the picket line.

Picketing is safe and legal. So please, for the sake of God's

little ones, join us in our fight to protect the unborn. ### (EDITOR'S

NOTE TO GENIE USERS/ You are free to use this article and to modify

it in presenting the need for action against the abortion trade in your

own community. If you would like to receive the DEFENDER newsletter

from Jericho Project of Dayton, Ohio. Drop me a note at GEnie address:

P.DeMott

---

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