What Christmas Teaches Us About the Value of Every Human Life

As we enter the Christmas season, our hearts and minds turn again to the mystery at the center of our faith: the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. John’s Gospel tells us, “The Word became flesh and dwelled among us.” We often hear those words and think of the manger, the shepherds, and the angelic announcement of the birth of our Savior. But the Incarnation didn’t begin in Bethlehem.

It began in the womb.

Recognized as Lord Before He Was Born

In Luke 1, we see a remarkable exchange between Mary and Elizabeth. Twice in this passage the word “Lord” appears – once referring to God who spoke to Mary, and once referring to the child growing inside her.

Elizabeth asks, “Why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:43)

There is no ambiguity in her words. Elizabeth is not speaking poetically or symbolically. She recognizes the unborn Jesus for who He truly is: her Lord in the flesh.

Before Mary’s pregnancy had advanced beyond a few weeks, before Jesus’s body had fully formed, before He had taken His first breath, He was fully God and fully man. The unborn Jesus was not a potential human being. The Son of God was present and reigning in the earliest moments of His human development.

Jesus Became Like Us – From the Very Beginning

The book of Hebrews explains why this matters so deeply. Hebrews 2 says that Jesus “took on flesh and blood” and was “made like his brothers in every respect.” He did this so He could become our perfect mediator – our merciful and faithful High Priest – who would offer Himself as the once-for-all sacrifice for sin. Only a Savior who was fully God and fully man could be a perfect mediator between a holy God and sinful man.

But consider this:

To be fully human – truly human – Jesus did not arrive on earth as a grown man. He did not appear as a child. He didn’t even come as a newborn.

His life began where every human life begins – at conception.

The eternal Son of God entered the world as an embryo. His human life unfolded just as ours did, cell by cell, heartbeat by heartbeat. And when Mary walked into Elizabeth’s home only days after the angel’s announcement, the unborn Jesus was already honored as Lord.

What This Means for the Sanctity of Human Life

At the heart of the abortion debate lies one defining question: What are the unborn? Is it merely a “clump of cells” that is growing in a mother’s womb? Or is it something more?

Scripture answers this question with clarity and consistency.

If Jesus took on flesh and blood from conception…

If He was fully God and fully man in the earliest days of His development…

If Elizabeth could rightly call Him “my Lord” before He was born…

Then we cannot escape the truth that life in the womb is truly human life.

Every unborn child is an image bearer of God, a wholly unique human being, a life precious enough for the Son of God to once inhabit a womb Himself.

And while unborn children have no voice of their own, the people of God – and organizations like Marsha’s Place – have the privilege and responsibility to speak up on their behalf.

This Christmas season, I pray you will rejoice in the truth that Jesus is our Immanuel – God with us – who took on our humanity in every respect to reconcile us to God.

Merry Christmas,

Jared Marshall

Executive Director