The Pregnant Mom And Her Obgyn
(Editor’s Note: The following is fiction but it brings home the inconsistency of those who invade the womb to kill babies.)
A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said: "Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help! My baby is not even 1 yr. old and I’m pregnant again. I don’t want kids so close together." So the doctor said: "Ok, and what do you want me to do?" She said: "I want you to end my pregnancy, and I’m counting on your help with this." The doctor thought for a little, and after some silence he said to the lady: "I think I have a better solution for your problem. It’s less dangerous for you too." She smiled, thinking that the doctor was going to accept her request.
Then he continued: "You see, in order for you not to have to take care of 2 babies at the same time, let’s kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we’re going to kill one of them, it doesn’t matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms."
The lady was horrified and said: "No doctor! How terrible! It’s a crime to kill a child!" "I agree with you", the doctor replied. "But you seemed to be ok with actually doing it, so I thought maybe this was the best solution." The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point. He convinced the mom that there is no difference in killing a child that’s already been born and one that’s still in the womb. The crime is the same!
—via Bulletin Briefs
March 2009, Vol. 12, No. 3
Accepted With God
(Acts 10:34,35)
"Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him."
This passage, along with several others in the scriptures, refers to individuals being accepted with God. Accepted is defined: "To receive (a thing offered) with a consenting mind; to receive with favor; to approve." A number of principles are brought to our mind in this phrase, "accepted with God." Observe a few of these:
1. God does not accept all -- not all are accepted with Him.
2. There are conditions of acceptability with God. These conditions are stated in the passage.
3. Where there is acceptability, rejection also exists. Acceptance implies rejection of others.
4. The conditions for acceptability are the same for all. God is no respecter of persons. All may be accepted with Him who are willing to comply with the conditions of acceptability.
Whom Does God Accept?
Negatively:
No man's person. "Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons." From the original language, the phrase "respecter of persons" literally means "reception of faces." It signifies to regard the external circumstances of a man -- his rank, wealth, etc. as opposed to his real intrinsic character. God respects character -- not what men might be reputed to be (Rom. 2:11).
Not nations. The passage speaks of those in every nation. The individuals in every nation are accepted with Him -- not the nations themselves. The acceptability rests with the individual who will conform to the will of God. The Bible does not speak of "Christian nations." There are Christians in the nations. There were Christians in Caesar's household (Phil. 4:22).
Positively:
"He that feareth him, and worketh righteousness." It is quite obvious that two conditions are stated that an individual must meet in order for that one to be accepted with God. (1) "He that feareth him, and (2) worketh righteousness." To develop one and omit the other is to forfeit our acceptability with God. We should not be amazed at these conditions. They are not new. Solomon stated the same principles in Eccl. 12:13, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." The conclusion of the whole matter involved being accepted of God. To fear Him and work righteousness is to fear Him and keep His commandments.
What is it to fear God? One definition of fear is: "awe, profound reverence, especially for the Supreme Being." Fear in this respect is akin to reverence. When one fears God, he reverences Him. Fear also involves honor. When one truly fears God, he respects and honors God. Man is a foolish creature in that he so often fears the wrong thing or person. Jesus dealt with this thought when He said: "And 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" (Matt. 10:28). In all that we do in being acceptable to God, we must do so in a manner of reverence for God. There is no time to make light of God. "Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: for our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:28,29).
What is it to work righteousness? Not only are we to fear God, we are also to work righteousness. If there were no other passage in the word of God that teaches that man is to do something to be accepted with Him, this passage certainly does! Man is to work God's righteousness in order to be accepted with Him. How can anyone say that they believe the Bible and deny such a simple observation? Have they never read Acts 10:34,35? Mind you, Cornelius "feared God with all his house" (Acts 10:2), but he was not accepted with God. Why wasn't he accepted in the new covenant that is in Christ Jesus? Simply because the gospel, which was for both Jew and Gentile, was not made known to him at this time and he was not aware of what was involved in working the righteousness of God. To work the righteousness of God is to obey the commandments of God. The Psalmist wrote: "for all thy commandments are righteousness" (Psalms 119:172). Peter preached the gospel to Cornelius and his household and "commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord" (Acts 10:48). When penitent believers, on a confession of faith, are baptized into Christ, they are working God's righteousness to be accepted with Him. This is what God authorizes for men to do that they might be accepted with Him. This is not righteousness that men have established, but that which has come from God. Having done this to be accepted with Him, we must continue as His children to fear God and do the things that involve being faithful unto death (Rev. 2:10).
---Bobby K. Thompson
--- E.R. Hall, Jr.
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