Imagine trying to treat cancer with ibuprofen. It might mask some of the painful symptoms, but it won’t cure the cancer. Now imagine trying to stop abortion with mere politics. It might restrain some of the evil, but it won’t cure the problem.

Are laws important for protecting unborn lives? Absolutely. Should Christians pursue policies that outlaw abortion and promote human life? Yes. But politics and legislature are not the solution to abortion. Theft is outlawed, but people continue to steal. And even if abortion were outlawed in every place and in every way, people would still find ways to perform abortions illegally.

So what’s the solution? To understand that, we first need to understand that abortion is the result of a much deeper problem in the human heart. Walking backwards through Romans 1 reveals this.

Abortion is a Result

In Romans 1:28-32, Paul strings together a list of sins that grow like weeds from the soil of a sinful heart. Even though the word “abortion” doesn’t appear in the Bible, the apostle Paul and the early church were no strangers to it. Abortion has been practiced for millennia, especially in ancient Rome, and the early church was consistently pro-life and anti-abortion. Abortion just looks different today due to our advanced technology.

The concepts listed in Romans 1:28-32 certainly apply to abortion. Paul mentions

• “all unrighteousness, evil… and wickedness”—Isn’t abortion a specific form of these?
• “murder”—Isn’t abortion a type of murder?
• “arrogant, proud”—Isn’t abortion a kind of pride? “My choice. My body. My rights.”
• “inventors of evil”—Haven’t we invented evil things to perform the evil of abortion?
• “unloving, and unmerciful”—How much more unloving and unmerciful can you get than killing a baby?

I’m not trying to heap undue shame on those who’ve had abortions, but we need to label abortion for what it is. And what is the root cause of abortion and every other sin?

Heart-Level Idolatry is the Cause

In Romans 1:18-25, Paul says that all people naturally suppress the truth about the Creator God, even though it’s clearly revealed through creation. Then they exchange God and his truth for created things and lies, and they worship creation rather than the Creator.

That’s the root cause of all sin. It manifests itself in innumerable ways in every person—including you and me—and in some it manifests as abortion. This means we should treat such people with compassion, not arrogant judgmentalism. If it weren’t for the grace of God, we’d be the same.

At root, people get abortions because they believe the lie that they are most important, and they worship themselves instead of God. So they seek to rid their lives of anything they dislike or that inconveniences them.

Musician Sarah Sparks nails this in her song “Religion”:

So don’t tell me you’ve got no religion,
because worship is in our blood.
And the heart is a hungry altar
always aching for something to love.
And we’re still sacrificing our children
as we lay them down at the feet
of the idol of convenience,
because “the only God I fear is me.”

Abortion is far more than a legal problem. It’s a worship problem. It’s a spiritual problem. If that’s the root problem, what’s the solution?

The Gospel is the Solution

 In Romans 1:16-17, Paul presents the gospel as God’s powerful, beautiful, brilliant answer to all our sin—including abortion.

What is the gospel? It’s the bad news that we’ve all sinned and deserve nothing but God’s eternal wrath. It’s the good news that God lovingly sent his Son Jesus to die in our place for our sin and rise from the dead, which shows that salvation’s work is complete. We don’t need to add any of our own works to Jesus’ work, because he provides a full salvation through faith in him.

The gospel means that anyone—including people who’ve had abortions—can be forgiven of all sin, rescued from God’s wrath, and born into God’s family through faith in Christ. Have you accepted this gracious gift of salvation through faith in Jesus?

But the gospel does more than merely clear our guilt before God. That’s the wonderful, necessary foundation, and from there the gospel reorients our hearts to love and worship God instead of ourselves. The gospel crushes our heart idols and powerfully transforms us from the inside out.

That’s the solution to abortion. People need to believe in the gospel and be transformed by God’s power so that they worship and obey him. So we need to get busy sharing the gospel.

If evangelism scares you, remember where Paul says God’s saving power rests: in the gospel itself. God’s power to save doesn’t depend on how smart you, how prepared you are, or how eloquent you are. The gospel itself is powerful to save and transform.

Do you want to fight abortion? Then, yes, fight the legal battle, but more importantly, fight the spiritual battle. The war for human life will be won on the field of the human heart.

Pray for people to believe the gospel and be transformed by its power. Be actively involved in a gospel-centered local church that’s trying to reach its community for Christ. Lovingly share the gospel with others in your life. If you work at a pro-life pregnancy crisis center, be sure to counsel with the gospel. Because the gospel is the only true solution to the problem of abortion.