June 29, 2022

I was sitting with Pastor Kyle and Preston Graham, a longtime supporter of Coram Deo, for breakfast [last week] when we saw that Roe v Wade had been officially overturned by the supreme court. Surprise turned to relief, relief turned to joy, and then joy produced a concern for the witness of the church in the midst of this very good, yet very controversial news. How should the church respond to this? 

Although the passage is too lengthy to include in its entirety I would draw you to Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18:23-53. This servant had received life-changing deliverance from his debt. You and I, in Christ, have received the over-abundant grace of God in Christ. When the man came across somebody indebted to him, he failed to live out the deliverance he received, and throttled the debtor. We now stand at that same crossroads as a church. We see the debt of our brothers and sisters alarmed by this news, many of whom have no framework to understand God’s image and as such fail to grasp the meaning of murder in the womb. Not only do we see the debt - we’ve felt the bite of transgression in the cynical mocking of pro-life efforts and organizations, many of whom will likely face vandalism and even threats of death in the next several weeks. Just like God’s victory in Christ produced the opportunity to proclaim the Good News of His kingdom come - so also the great (but still lesser) victory of God in this ruling opens the door for us to proclaim the kindness and grace of God in Christ.

Back to my question - how should we respond to this news? Beloved, we should worship in gratitude, we should explain this moment to our children, we should mourn the lives that cannot be restored by Judicial Courts, we should speak with grace and kindness with those who are now bewildered and fearful. We, who received grace and forgiveness when we acted with ignorance and unbelief have the opportunity to extend grace and forgiveness in this moment. Let us not gloat, let us gently proclaim the kind and merciful truth of the Gospel for the sake of Jesus’ name in the Inland Empire.

 — MATT ALLHANDS