[Darris McNeely] Today January 22, 2013 marks the 40th anniversary of the decision known in the United States as Roe v. Wade. 40 years ago the Supreme Court of the United States legalized abortions, sanctioned the taking of life from the womb of a mother. And since that time, multiple millions of babies have been aborted. In this country alone thousands every day take place.

[Steve Myers] The statistics are just absolutely astounding when you really look at it. Almost 1.5 million babies a year alone right here in the States, and you think about that when you add the rest of the world it is just overwhelming. And so when you think about what does God think about this because this has divided our country. This hasn't gone away in 40 years. And so it's more divisive it seems today than back in 1973.

[Darris McNeely] Those who were prochoice felt that Roe v. Wade would minimize the discussion, but what it did was just the opposite. In fact pro-lifers came out of the woodwork and their numbers continue to increase and do so to this very day. The debate has not ended. It has divided our country in many different ways. And interestingly in one article I was reading they were bringing out the fact that a lot of younger people in their 20's and 30's are growing against abortion and more prolife because that group of people look around and they see their own generational numbers having been diminished by these million upon millions of abortions that have taken place in this 40 year period.

[Steve Myers] And I think there's some significance to this number 40 because in the Bible you think of the number 40 it's often related to situations where there was trial and testing and God's judgment involved in that number 40.

[Darris McNeely] Yeah Moses was on the Mount for 40 days. The children of Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years.

[Steve Myers] Christ was tempted 40 days or at least that time that He fasted and the devil came and tempted.

[Darris McNeely] So it's a number that's associated with trial and testing as well as judgment upon an individual or upon a group of people. You just wonder, 40 years on this is a significant number biblically, but it's also pointing to a very large blight that is not only upon the United States, but the entire world that engages in infanticide, the taking of unborn life. A time of judgment historically is upon any nation, any people, any culture at any time that practices infanticide. That is one of the great lessons of history. And so when we look at that in regard to the United States of America and where we are 40 years on, the problem, the sin not going away, one wonders how much longer before a judgment might come upon our country for this one problem, this one sin alone.

[Steve Myers] And it can't help but force us to think, you know, how does God judge this? He hates the sin. He hates abortion, and He judges for life. There's an excellent passage that's found in Job 31:15. As Job considered this he said, "Did not He who made me in the womb make them?"  He also said, "Did not the same one fashion us in the womb?" You see so God is judging. Life is already going on in the womb. It's not something we can just eliminate. It's not just a fetus, but we're talking about life, and God judges that life. And so God's concerned about that and it should force us to think how much are we concerned about that. Do we mirror God's perspective?

[Darris McNeely] When we did a Beyond Today television program on this subject a few weeks back and it did air on our television program, we called it "The Sanctity of Life." And we approached that from a biblical point of view and laid out the scriptures that talk about God's approach to life which is the one viewpoint that is the most important and the one that we should come to understand and should be ours as well. Regardless of where you fall on this subject it's important that you understand what God does say about life, the sanctity of life, and how He looks upon our view about that.

[Steve Myers] That's BT Daily. We'll see you next time.