Sunday School Lesson

1. Genesis 1:27; 2:7
Protect And Serve
“God created humanity in His image,
giving human life sacred value.”
January 20, 2019
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA

2. What’s the number one thing?
https://www.allenschool.edu/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/number-1.jpg

3. The Glory of God!
http://www.thecitychurch.org.uk/sites/default/files/glory-god.jpg

4. 1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV
31 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you
do, do all to the glory of God.
http://www.nmnewsandviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/glory-of-God.jpg

5. January Memory Verse
John 1:1 NKJV
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God.

7. References
•MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible NKJV
(Nashville, Nelson Publishing, 1997).
•Sproul, R.C. Abortion: A Rational Look At An Emotional
Issue (Colorado Springs, Navipress, 1990).
•Centers for Disease Control, www.cdc.gov.
•Guttmacher Institute, www.Guttmacher.org.
•Sproul, R.C. Now, That’s A Good Question (Wheaton,
Tyndale House, 1996).

8. Sanctity of Human Life Sunday
•A proclamation by President Ronald Reagan on
January 22, 1984 for the 11th anniversary of Roe vs.
Wade.
•Reagan was a strong pro-life advocate who said the
Supreme Court “struck down our laws protecting the
lives of unborn children.”
•Annual proclamations also issued by Presidents
George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush and Donald
Trump during their presidencies.

9. The Baptist Faith and Message, June 2000
•Section XV The Christian and Social Order.
•“We should speak on behalf of the unborn and
contend for the sanctity of all human life from
conception to natural death.”
•Sanctity = Sacredness.

10. Focus of Lesson Today
1. Examine how the Bible defines and teaches the
sanctity of human life.
2. Illustrate how one’s perspective on the sanctity of
human life affects every area of our lives.
3. How should Christians respond to the divided
culture on the sanctity of life issues?

11. God is the Creator of Human Life.
Genesis 1:27 NKJV
27 So God created man in His own image; in the image
of God He created him; male and female He created
them.
Genesis 2:7 NKJV
7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the
ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life;
and man became a living being.

12. Created in the Image of God (imago dei).
•God is a spirit, so the image of God would not be the
physical body but the immaterial soul/spirit.
•The likeness of God involves our mental, moral and
social capacities.
•Our physical bodies, before sin entered the world, had
perfect health and were not subject to death.

13. Created in the Image or Likeness of God.
Ephesians 4:23-24 NKJV
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that
you put on the new man which was created according
to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
•Mental – Humans can think, reason and choose.
•Social – Created for fellowship with God and man.
•Moral – Created in righteousness and perfect
innocence with capacity to choose obedience.

14. When does life begin?
•Adam was created from dust and was given breath by
God.
•All the other parts of creation were spoken into being.
•The Bible does not specifically state, but a
fundamentalist view of scriptures indicate that life
begins “at the time of conception.”

15. Psalm 139:13-14 NKJV
13 For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully
made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.

16. Psalm 139:15-16 NKJV
15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the
earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

17. Scriptures indicate that life begins at
conception.
Jeremiah 1:5a NKJV
5a “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you;”
Psalm 51:5 NKJV
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me.

18. What is abortion?
•Abortion – The deliberate termination of a human
pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28
weeks of pregnancy.
•Late Term Abortion – The deliberate termination of a
human pregnancy after the fetus could potentially
survive outside the womb.

19. Mississippi Abortion Statistics:
•2014 – 2,303 Abortions (5.6% of pregnancies).
•2015 – 2,613 Abortions (6.4% of pregnancies).
•2016 – 2,569 Abortions (6.0% of pregnancies).
•Average of 7 per day!

20. US Abortion Statistics:
•2014 – 926,240 (19% of pregnancies).
•2015 – 913,000 (16% of pregnancies).
•2016 – 885,000 (15% of pregnancies).
•The abortion rate doubled between 1973 and 1979
and peaked in 1990.
•Abortions have declined about 2% per year since
2000.
•1973-2011 there were 53,000,000 legal abortions in
US.

21. Who has abortions?
•In 2015, unmarried women accounted for 86%.
•Women in their 20’s accounted for 60%.
•Women under 19 accounted for less than 10%.
•89% of abortions are in first trimester.

22. Reasons given for abortion:
•25% – Not ready for child yet.
•23% – Can’t afford a baby.
•19% – Done having children.
• 8% – Don’t want to be a single mother.
• 7% – Not mature enough to raise a child.
• 7% – Physical health problems/fetal health problems.
• 4% – Would interfere with education or career.

23. Defining Terms:
•Pro-choice – The belief that a woman should have a
legal right to abort her unborn child at any point in the
pregnancy.
•Pro-life – The belief that every human life is sacred
and no one, including the mother, has the right to end
an innocent life.

24. The Core Issue on Abortion:
•The core issue on abortion: “Is abortion a form of
murder?”
•Many pro-abortionists and pro-choice advocates do
not believe abortion is murder because they do not
consider an unborn baby to be a living human person.
•Most surveys show that the US population is divided
50/50 on pro-life vs. pro-choice.

25. Why pro-abortionist do not consider abortion
a form of murder?
•In the Roe vs. Wade decision in 1973:
•The court used the so-called “point of viability” as a
reference point for life.
•The unborn were regarded as only having the
“potential for life” until the point of viability.
•The decision rested largely on the perceived
Constitutional right to privacy guaranteed in the
Ninth and Fourteenth Amendments.

26. What about a woman’s right to her own body?
•In Roe vs. Wade, women were granted the legal right
to “their own bodies” as it relates to abortion.
•The Court ruled that this right was implied by the
Constitution’s right to privacy provisions.
•Pro-life believes that the right to life transcends the
right to privacy.

27. Mississippi Abortion Restrictions:
•Abortion would be banned if Roe vs. Wade is
overturned.
•There is a 24-hour waiting period after counseling.
•Health plans and public programs cover only in cases
of life endangerment, rape or incest.
•A minor must have parental consent.
•Ultrasound done with option to view.
•Cannot be performed after 20 weeks gestation.

28. How does your belief about the sanctity of life
affect other areas of your life?
•It affects how you treat others.
•Do you see others as God’s creation and treat them
with dignity and respect regardless of whatever?
•It affects how you treat yourself.
•Do you treat your body as God’s creation and a
temple?

29. How you treat others?
Proverbs 22:2 NKJV
2 The rich and the poor have this in common,
The LORD is the maker of them all.
Malachi 2:10 NKJV
10 Have we not all one Father?
Has not one God created us?
Why do we deal treacherously with one another
By profaning the covenant of the fathers?
• Every human being is made in God’s image regardless of gender, race,
socioeconomic status or any other differences from us.

30. Do you show partiality?
James 2:1, 8-9 NKJV
1 My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.
8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the
Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,”
you do well; 9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin,
and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

31. How you treat yourself?
1 Corinthians 3:16-17 NKJV
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and
that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles
the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the
temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

32. How you treat yourself?
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV
19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of
the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God,
and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a
price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your
spirit, which are God’s.

33. What about capital punishment?
Genesis 9:6 NKJV
6 “Whoever sheds man’s blood,
By man his blood shall be shed;
For in the image of God
He made man.”
•Capital punishment is reserved for those who violate
the sanctity of the life of another and must forfeit his
right to his own life.

34. Abortion vs. Capital Punishment:
•Being anti-abortion and also pro-capital punishment is
not biblically inconsistent.
•A high view of the sanctity of life is foundational to
both positions.

35. Is killing the enemy in war justified in the Bible?
Romans 13:1-3 NKJV
Submit to Government
1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For
there is no authority except from God, and the authorities
that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists
the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who
resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not
a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be
unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will
have praise from the same.

36. Is killing the enemy in war justified in the Bible?
Romans 13:4-7 NKJV
4 For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil,
be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is
God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who
practices evil. 5 Therefore you must be subject, not only
because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. 6 For because
of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers
attending continually to this very thing. 7 Render therefore
to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to
whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.

37. Is killing the enemy in war justified in the Bible?
•Romans 13:1-7 teaches that:
- God has ordained civil government on earth.
- The purpose of it is his glory and our good.
- God has given to civil officers the power of the
sword.
- Christians may lawfully exercise the power of the
sword upon just and necessary causes.

38. End of Life Issues:
•Sanctity of life is as precious at the end of life as at the
beginning of life.
•Please have a “Health Care Directive” (Living Will) that
clearly expresses your wishes and beliefs to guide
those making decisions for you at that time.

39. Is there division in our churches on the sanctity of
life abortion issues?
• Abortion should be legal according to:
‐ Jewish 87%.
‐ Presbyterian USA 65%.
‐ United Methodist Church 58%.
‐ Presbyterian (PCA) 54%.
‐ Catholic 48%.
‐ Southern Baptists 30%.
‐ Jehovah Witness 18%.

40. How should Christians respond?
1 Peter 5:8 NKJV
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil
walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may
devour.
2 Corinthians 11:14 NKJV
14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into
an angel of light.
• Recognize who the enemy really is.
‐ We are in spiritual warfare!

41. How should Christians respond?
1 John1:9 NKJV
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our
sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Romans 8:1a NKJV
1a There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in
Christ Jesus,
• Help those who have had abortions to experience healing and
forgiveness found only in Jesus.

42. How should Christian respond?
•Provide support services for those needing help.
•Examples: Bethany Christian Services, adoption, etc.
•You cannot have it both ways.
‐ You cannot be pro-life and not support those who
choose to give birth.

43. How should Christian respond?
The Need in Mississippi:
•Mississippi has the highest rate of teen pregnancy in
the US.
•Only 38% of teen mothers will get a high school
diploma.
•Daughters of teen mothers are 3 times more likely to
become teen mothers.
•In 2014 there were 3,853 births to teens in
Mississippi.

44. How should Christians respond?
•Support government officials who share your views on
sanctity of life.
- Supreme Court nominations appear to the be most
important at this time.
- If the Supreme Court overturns Roe vs. Wade, then
abortion reverts back to states’ rights.

45. How should Christians respond?
John 10:10 NKJV
10 “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill,
and to destroy. I have come that they may have life,
and that they may have it more abundantly.”
•Share the gospel of Jesus with our community.

46. Next Sunday
Genesis 35:1-15
Assurance
January 27, 2019
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA

47. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
John 3:16 NKJV
16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life.”
John 14:6 NKJV
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through Me.”

48. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Romans 3:23 NKJV
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23a NKJV
23a For the wages of sin is death,
• Death in this life (the first death) is 100%.
• Even Jesus, the only one who doesn’t deserve death, died in this life
to pay the penalty for our sin.
• The death referred to in Romans 6:23a is the “second death”
explained in Revelation 21:8.

49. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Revelation 21:8 NKJV
8 “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually
immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the
lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
• Anyone who’s lifestyle is one or more of the sins listed in Revelation
21:8, will experience the “second death” if they do not repent.
Romans 5:8 NKJV
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were
still sinners, Christ died for us.

50. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Romans 6:23b NKJV
23b but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Revelation 21:7 NKJV
7 “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his
God and he shall be My son.”
• Romans 10:9-10 explains to us how to be overcomers.

51. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Romans 10:9-10 NKJV
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and
believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead,
you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto
righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation.
Romans 10:13 NKJV
13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

52. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Do you have questions?
Would you like to know more?
Please, contact First Baptist Church Jackson at 601-949-1900
or http://firstbaptistjackson.org/contact/