How the Gospel Shapes the Sanctity of Life by Dr. Russell Moore is a great resource to be reminded of how valuable human life is when properly viewed as a representation of the Imago Dei. I enjoy reading Dr. Moore’s perspective on things related to culture and this booklet proved to be quite helpful. It’s a quick read and a good reference. I highlighted several things and posted those notes below…
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We live in a world of divorce courts, abortion clinics, and gas chambers. We live in a time filled with pain and suffering. And in all of that, we have been given a mission to be a gospel people. We cannot think about the sanctity of human life and we cannot minister in an abortion culture if we do not keep, at the forefront, the cross of Jesus Christ. p. 7
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What we have to offer to the world is not our voting bloc, our cultural influence, or our philosophical arguments. What we have to offer to the world is the gospel of freedom from condemnation. If we lose sight of that, we have nothing else to offer. p. 7
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If our churches reflected the fact that the power of God and the priorities of God are different from the power and priorities of the outside world, we could cut through the heart of what is behind the culture of death. The idea that somehow people who are deemed to be problems, crises, stumbling blocks, useless or disposable are no such thing. They are part of the kingdom of God and, Jesus says, those who lead the kingdom of God. p. 11
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Our message must be standing with Jesus in solidarity so that we stand up and speak for justice for all those who are vulnerable. p. 13
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And so we stand up for the unborn. We stand up for the aged, the disabled, the persecuted, the immigrant, the orphan, the widowed, the addicted, the prisoner, and the poor. We stand u and say, “The image of God is more significant and more important than anyone’s definition of usefulness.” p. 15