Red States Are Now Ground Zero for the Fight to Defend the Preborn in America
As Christians, we are required to defend the voiceless and uphold justice for the most vulnerable among us. Proverbs 24:11-12 commands us, “Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.”
The tragedy of abortion in our nation demands action from the people of God, particularly as we see the continued rise in abortion numbers even in states that tout the recent passage of pro-life legislation. This article explores why abortions are increasing, even in the wake of the Dobbs decision, and what must be done to uphold equal protection for all image-bearers of God.
The Uncomfortable Truth: Abortion Numbers Are Rising
In 2023, there were over one million abortions recorded in the United States, the highest number in nearly fifteen years. This alarming figure persists despite pro-life regulations implemented at conception in fourteen states. Even in the fourteen Republican-led states with the strongest pro-life regulations—such as Louisiana, Missouri, Texas, and my home state of Oklahoma—the total number of abortions has increased since the Dobbs decision two years ago.
In the year before the overturning of Roe, 132,903 abortions were performed on residents of those fourteen most pro-life states. In the year after the overturning of Roe, following the implementation of several pro-life “bans” on abortion, there were 151,404—a shocking 14% increase in so-called “abortion-free” states. This tragic rise underscores the woeful inadequacy and fatal flaw of current pro-life laws to protect the preborn.
Why Are Abortion Numbers Increasing After Dobbs?
Abortions are increasing across the country, even in states with the strictest abortion regulations, for two key reasons:
- The pervasiveness and availability of the abortion pill.
- The continued legality of abortion itself across all fifty states. Even states with substantial pro-life laws deny equal protection to the preborn by enshrining special murder rights for mothers into their penal codes.
In 2023 alone, 63% of all abortions were performed using abortion pills, a 39% increase since 2011. Abortion pills allow mothers to self-manage the abortion of their children in anonymity without having to leave home, circumventing surgical abortion laws. Thus, the role of the surgical abortionist is entirely eliminated while the maternal abortionist is legally protected. Mothers in pro-life states willfully order these pills from other states with “shield laws” or even from other countries like Mexico and India.
While pro-life laws in states with abortion bans may prohibit surgical abortionists, they fail to address the act of abortion itself. Pro-life laws deny equal protection to preborn babies because they do not criminalize the act of abortion itself, specifically for mothers. Every state’s legal framework permits mothers to abort their children with absolute legal immunity.
In Oklahoma, for instance, the penal code explicitly states: “No penalty may be assessed against the female upon whom the abortion is performed or induced or attempted to be performed or induced.” This loophole perpetuates injustice. As James 2:9 reminds us, “But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.” By creating special exemptions for mothers, current laws fall short of biblical justice.
The First Step: Passing Bills of Equal Protection at the State Level
The only real solution to ending the genocide of abortion is to enact legislation that provides equal protection for every preborn child at the moment of fertilization, which is conception. As long as mothers retain the legal right to murder their own children in the womb, there is no hope of stopping the genocide of our preborn neighbors.
Equal protection legislation simply recognizes the basic truth that preborn image-bearers of God are equally valuable as born image-bearers of God and removes abortion as an exception in homicide laws, holding all individuals accountable under the same standard.
During the upcoming 2025 legislative session, bills of equal protection will be filed in up to twenty states. For instance, in South Carolina, Representative Rob Harris has pre-filed the South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act, which extends homicide and assault laws to protect the preborn. Similarly, I plan to refile Oklahoma’s Abolition of Abortion Act, which recognizes the full humanity of the preborn as image-bearers of God.
Similar equal protection bills will be filed in Ohio, Michigan, and Missouri (all states that recently enacted pro-abortion constitutional amendments) challenging the pro-abortion narratives embedded in state constitutions and aligning with the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
As Genesis 9:6 declares, “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.”
Every human being, born and preborn, bears the image of God and deserves equal protection under the law. As my good friend and tireless legal advocate for the unborn, Bradley Pierce, has so pointedly stated, “Murdering anyone should be illegal for everyone.”
Conclusion
Now is the time for Southern Baptists and all Christians to raise their voices. The Southern Baptist Convention’s 2021 Resolution on Abolishing Abortion called for immediate and decisive action to protect preborn children. It stated:
“RESOLVED, that, because abolishing abortion is a Great Commission issue, we must call upon governing authorities at all levels to repent and “obey everything that [Christ] has commanded,” exhorting them to bear fruit in keeping with repentance by faithfully executing their responsibilities as God’s servants of justice, and working with all urgency to enact legislation using the full weight of their office to interpose on behalf of the preborn, abolishing abortion immediately, without exception or compromise (Mark 6:18; Matt 28:18-20; Rom 13:4, 6).”
Unfortunately, the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) of the SBC has ignored this resolution for over three years now. Even worse, they flagrantly violated the will of the SBC Messengers on this most important issue when they joined other national pro-life organizations in working to kill a bill of equal protection in Louisiana.
But I trust that the thousands of Southern Baptist pastors and members in the pews who voted for the resolution are still working to see it come to fruition. In my work with the Center for Baptist Leadership, we aim to support and equip Baptists in states considering bills of equal protection to effectively advocate for their successful passage.
We must heed the words of Micah 6:8: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
The opportunity before us is unprecedented. More bills of equal protection will be filed in 2025 than ever before, offering tangible hope for abolishing abortion in multiple states. Let us engage the legislative process with prayer, advocacy, and bold action on behalf of your preborn neighbor.
Dear brothers and sisters, I urge you to contact your state legislators and demand equal protection for all preborn children. Together, we can stand as a witness for Christ, declaring His lordship over all life and calling our nation to repentance. May we honor the Lord by rescuing those being taken away to death and upholding justice for the most vulnerable among us.
You can follow legislative efforts to abolish abortion at the Foundation to Abolish Abortion and join the movement to secure equal protection for every preborn child in your state. Let us fulfill our mandate to protect life, glorify God, and advance His Kingdom.
