On The Brink Of Victory

Abraham Lincoln

On March 4th, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln took the Oath of Office for the second time. As he was so doing, the Civil War was drawing to a close. Ulysses S. Grant was driving Robert E. Lee back toward Richmond and Sherman was marching through Georgia. The 16th President of the United States of America was standing on the brink of victory. This was the setting of President Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address. 43 days, before he would be assassinated on April 15th, 1865, in perhaps the most important speech of his career and arguably in American history, President Lincoln talked about the cost of victory in these terms:

Terms and Conditions of Victory

"The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether." — (Psalm 19:9, KJV)

1863 Black Recruitment Poster

"The Almighty has His own purposes. 'Woe unto the world because of offenses! for it must needs be that offenses come; but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh!' If we shall suppose that American Slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South, this terrible war, as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in a Living God always ascribe to Him? Fondly do we hope — fervently do we pray — that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. [Nevertheless,] if God wills that [the war] continue, until all the wealth piled by the bond-man's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said 'the judgments of the Lord, are true and righteous altogether.'" ¹

The Cost Of Victory

"… neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing." — King David unto Araunah (2nd Samuel 24:24b, KJV)

If a conclusion is the best explanation one can come up with at a given time to account for a collection of observations, events, and/or other kinds of data, then as I consider the abortion battle raging in our country, the "wealth piled" by the shed blood of the most vulnerable members of our country and that is to say our women and children, how over the last thirty-eight (38) years both the Democratic and Republican parties have repeatedly failed to end abortion, how "we the people" have have failed to hold each other accountable for the lost lives of over 53 million babies by legally induced taxpayer funded abortion alone, how Christians have failed to stand boldly, unapologetically and without exceptions and/or compromises on clearly biblical values, I wrestle with the question asked by the "Angel of the LORD" (i.e., the Pre-Incarnate Christ.) in Judges 2:2 (AMP), "Why Have You Done This?" ² and physically shudder as I inevitably come to the following unavoidable conclusions …

	Victory over abortion will come by the hands, feet and voices of those most devastated by abortion.
	The Cost of ending abortion will not be less than the price paid by the victims of abortion.
	The healing from the ravages of a rabid abortion industry will come by the heart of Christ in those most hurt by abortion.