Five ethical issues and the path to courageous faith

According to the Cleveland Clinic, mitochondrial diseases are “a group of genetic conditions that affect how mitochondria in your cells produce energy.” They can cause developmental delays in children, profound muscle weakness, hearing loss, blindness, strokes, and heart failure. Those with the worst symptoms die earliest, often before the age of three.

Now there’s a way to prevent the transmission of these diseases to the next generation.

Researchers in the UK reported recently on the birth of eight babies, each of whom was conceived using one sperm and two eggs. They took the combination of the mother and father’s DNA from a fertilized egg with sick mitochondria and inserted it into a surrogate egg with healthy mitochondria stripped of its own DNA. (Think of extracting the yoke from a chicken egg and inserting it into an egg whose yoke had been removed.)

The children produced in this way will avoid the mitochondrial diseases they would otherwise have inherited. What’s not to like about this news?

A good deal, as it turns out.

Five ethical issues

I serve as resident scholar for ethics with one of the largest not-for-profit healthcare systems in the country. In the healthcare context, I understand the appeal of this procedure. If we could remove malignant tumors, why not remove diseased mitochondria to produce healthy babies?

However, I see at least five issues with three-parent embryos.

First, the mitochondria from the surrogate eggs transmitted their own DNA to the children. While only 1 percent of the total, this DNA can influence brain development and affect everything from lifespan and height to kidney and liver function, blood counts, and the development of diabetes or multiple sclerosis.

And this means that the children have three genetic parents. What are the ethical implications here?

Second, we should consider the IVF procedures utilized. A large number of embryos are typically created in the lab and tested for viability; those that are not used are frozen or discarded. If you believe life begins at conception, as I do, then you see these unused embryos as human lives and their demise as a form of abortion.

Third, what are the future consequences of babies created from three parents? They will transmit their genetics to their offspring. Is the human race being altered?

Fourth, will this technique lead to customized children? Will the DNA of persons of unusual capacities (intellectual, athletic, etc.) be sought for inclusion in the future? Will this be a form of eugenics?

Fifth, will three-parent babies become the norm for lesbian couples? Using donor sperm, the DNA of one partner could be combined with the mitochondria of the other so that both are the genetic “parents” of their children.

“I don’t believe in heaven and hell”

Three-parent embryos are intended to prevent disease and death caused by genetically inherited diseases. They are an example of the fact that many people today will do nearly anything to avoid death, whatever the moral issues or consequences at stake.

A data researcher recently noted that “over the course of the last century, something has dramatically changed in how our species thinks about life and death.” Studies show that young people drink less, fight less, have less sex, and commit fewer crimes than any generation in recorded history. Healthcare spending is escalating while motorcycle ridership and extreme sports participation are plummeting.

The rise of secularism in our post-Christian culture is a clear factor here. When religious belief declines, this world becomes all there is. As George Clooney famously stated,

I don’t believe in heaven and hell. I don’t know if I believe in God. All I know is that as an individual, I won’t allow this life—the only thing I know to exist—to be wasted.

In this context, I find this comment in Hebrews 2 fascinating: through Jesus’ death, he came to “deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (v. 15). Such deliverance transformed his followers, enabling them to embrace missional purpose and significance in this life with no fear of death but only anticipation of reward on its other side.

The fisherman who cowed before a serving girl in fear later stood courageously before the very men who arranged Jesus’ crucifixion (Matthew 26:69–70; Acts 4:5–12). Paul could risk his life for Christ again and again (cf. 2 Corinthians 11:23–33) because he was certain that “for me to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).

I have seen pastors in Cuba imperil their families and future to preach God’s word fearlessly. I watched a teenage girl in East Malaysia be baptized in the knowledge that because of her public declaration of faith, she could never go home again. I met a young boy in Singapore whose father beat him for going to church but who continued to live at home because he wanted his family to know about Jesus.

How to “be prepared to live”

Now we have a binary choice. If we are not delivered from the “fear of death,” we will be “subject to lifelong slavery” to it. We will choose sins of commission that promise temporal benefits with no concern for their eternal consequences (cf. Mark 7:20–23). We will also choose sins of omission by refusing to sacrifice in the present for the sake of our witness and our Lord (cf. James 4:17).

However, as Jesus warned, “Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34). When we fear our death more than we fear our Lord, avoiding death becomes our lord.

Our other choice is to trust our fear of death to Jesus, asking to be freed from slavery to it and empowered to live courageously for him. Then, when such fear strikes, we can “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Ephesians 6:10; cf. Isaiah 41:13). We can claim Jesus’ promise, “Everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:26).

We can embrace the logic of missionary Jim Elliot’s famous declaration, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” And we will learn to agree with Charles Spurgeon’s assertion:

“To be prepared to die is to be prepared to live.”

Are you “prepared to live” today?

Quote for the day:

“All the glories of midday are eclipsed by the marvels of sunset.” —Charles Spurgeon

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Does your health matter to God? Every year, millions of people make goals to get healthy and/or lose weight. Dieting is a billion-dollar industry. As of December 2024, around 55% of Americans try to lose weight, though only 27% are actively trying. Meanwhile, the prevalence of obesity remains high—40.3% of American adults are classified as obese, including 9.4% with severe obesity (CDC, 2023 cycle).

There is no shortage of information on how to improve your health. It takes a simple Google search to find the latest science on how movement and nutrition impacts your health. Every health expert has an opinion. Every nutritionist and personal trainer has the “magic cure” to our health goals.

But what does the Bible have to say about the importance of physical health for believers?

Does your physical health and how you take care of it matter to God?

The idolatry of eating—and dieting

Your body was made intricately and deliberately. You are not just a physical being; you are a three-in-one creation. Your heavenly Father was purposeful about his creation.

So many of your internal processes are connected to one another. When you are mentally nervous, you may experience the sensation of physical “butterflies” in your stomach. That is your brain talking to your gut via the vagus nerve. When you choose to be grateful, you can decrease the amount of the stress hormone cortisol being pumped into your bloodstream.

So much of what you think and how you think affects the physical processing in your body. (In fact, your thinking plays a central role in your mental health as well. Read Dr. Lane Ogden’s article, “What does the Bible say about mental health?” for more.) That is on purpose. It is all part of the beautiful design that makes us human.

In 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, the Apostle Paul says that “your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you. . . . so glorify God in your body.” This verse is a reminder of two things.

One, your purpose is to glorify your Creator.

Two, how you take care of your temple can be an external manifestation of glorifying God. It is another aspect of stewarding what you have been entrusted with here on earth. How you steward what you’re given matters; Jesus devoted many parables to this topic.

I often find that there are two types of people, two extremes, when it comes to this issue of taking care of our temples.

On one hand, there are those who are overly vigilant about their health. They exercise every chance they get, monitor every bite that goes into their mouth, and worry about fat, calories, sugar, and whatever else is currently being demonized by the nutrition world.

On the other hand, there are those who have no self-control or mindfulness when it comes to eating. They consume more than necessary in order to cope with stress and unpleasant emotions.

Neither perspective is healthy.

One turns optimal health into an idol. The other elevates food and the act of eating to a level of idolatry in the form of gluttony and/or addiction. Both extremes are dangerous.

If you say food is only for fuel and for nourishing your health, you will miss out on the enjoyment that can be had in food during times of celebration or when you need comfort. If you only choose food as comfort or a coping mechanism, you’ll miss an opportunity to turn to your heavenly Father as the true source of comfort and healing.

What does the Bible say about eating?

When you look to the Bible for examples of how to eat and enjoy your food, it is clear that food is a gift that brings pleasure, but the mindset you have about your food is also important.

For example:

• “Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do.” (Ecclesiastes 9:7)
• “Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it.” (Proverbs 15:17)
• “Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do.” (1 Corinthians 8:8)
• “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)
• “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful.” (1 Corinthians 10:23)

From these verses, we can see that what we consume may not be an issue of morality, but how and why we consume it can be.

This lines up with the biological processes that occur in your body when you’re eating. When you’re in a state of gratitude and peace, your body digests food better. When you’re stressed or in a state of “fight or flight,” your body will shut down important processes, like digestion, in order to survive the stressor.

Stressing about your physical health, what you’re eating, or talking about “good” or “bad” food, affects the way you digest and use the nutrients you’re provided. I often say, “A body in stress will not digest.” When you turn to food as an idol, whether to see it as a savior or to soothe emotional pain, you don’t just hinder your spiritual growth. It impacts your physical health as well.

Two questions to ask yourself about your physical health

As believers, we have freedom as to what we consume and how we move our bodies. Within freedom, we have choices. There is a way to find balance in our healthy resolutions and learn to steward our physical bodies in a way that honors God.

When you feel well, you serve well. You are able to have the physical and emotional energy to do what God has called you to do. Thanks to many increasing studies on the gut-brain axis, we know that what we eat impacts our mental health and how we think—and how we think impacts every single thing we do.

This new year, instead of asking questions about what diet you should start or what eating or fitness plan you need to implement, ask the following questions:

1. How can I honor my temple without turning it into an idol?
2. How can I receive food with thanksgiving and work to restore my physical health this year without unhealthy extremes or obsession?

Five suggestions for better “temple” care

First, unprocess your diet.

God knew what he was doing when he gave us everything we needed on this earth for physical nourishment. When you consume food that is as close to its whole food source as possible, your body digests it better.

My advice? Start with five different vegetables a day.

How can you introduce more greens and more colorful items like broccoli, bell peppers, tomatoes, or squashes? When you overconsume processed foods that have been chemically altered to be more palatable or addictive (like chips, bars, and candy), you may often lose your taste for food in its natural state. You can hijack the pleasure response in your brain so that you’re constantly desiring that “hit” of sugar or processed carbohydrates that make you feel so good in the short term but can be harmful for your body in the long term.

Second, listen to the body you’ve been given.

When you chronically overeat and use food as emotional comfort, you can alter hunger hormones that help your sense of hunger or fullness. You can also warp your natural hunger hormones by adhering to strict food rules that cause you to put all your trust in some magical, one-size-fits-all plan for eating. You may overcomplicate eating and obsess over what you are or are not having. You may often take on the “last supper mentality” and eat everything in sight before starting a new eating plan because you worry that you will not get to experience pleasure from your food in the future.

Instead, let’s acknowledge that we have been given “everything we need for a godly life” (2 Peter 1:3 NIV). Trust God’s provision for you through the food you have available to nourish you and the many processes he has given you to listen to your body’s cues for fullness and digestion.

Third, be grateful.

Be mindful when you’re eating. Take time to breathe between bites and chew your food longer to help activate the digestion process. Stop stressing over the bread and start obsessing over the Bread of Life. We were not given food to replace our relationship with Jesus. Your faith in the next nutrition plan should never outweigh your faith in the Lord’s nourishment.

Fourth, make movement an act of worship.

Go on a prayer walk. Add in joyful movement, not because you have to, or because you feel forced to start a new workout routine, or because you need punishment for eating food you feel guilty about, but as another act of gratitude for the body you have.

Plenty of physical benefits come from movement, but my favorite side effect is an increase in brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Through BDNF, you can impact the growth of new pathways in the brain, repair aging cells, and protect healthy cells. When you have higher levels of BDNF in your brain, you can think more clearly, and you are even less likely to become depressed. It’s another example of the beautiful way God created our physical bodies to impact our mental and spiritual health.

Finally, ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to healthy habits that will strengthen your body and make you fit to serve his kingdom, however that looks for you as a unique individual.

Ask him to show you where you are making your health into an idol or maybe where you need to make it more of a priority. Ask him to lead you to people, resources, and information that will guide you along on your journey in the new year.

The answer to “does my health matter to God” becomes evident when we look to the Bible. My prayer for you is the same as Paul’s for the Thessalonian church two millennia ago: “May God Himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, put you together—spirit, soul, and body—and keep you fit for the coming of our master, Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23 MSG).

Related articles:

• “A Christian response to ‘living my truth,’” Erin Kerry
• “How to practice biblical self-care,” Erin Kerry
• “Does the Bible say being anxious is bad?,” Erin Kerry
• “How does a healthy shepherd model rest?,” Erin Kerry
• “What does the Bible say about mental health,” Dr. Lane Ogden

Denison Forum

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte have filed a US defamation lawsuit against an influencer and podcaster who has said France’s first lady “is in fact a man.” The 218-page lawsuit, filed in Delaware yesterday, accuses Candace Owens of publishing “outlandish, defamatory, and far-fetched fictions,” among them the claim that Brigitte Macron was born male under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux.

According to the court filing, Owens has also said that the French president and his wife are blood relatives and that Emmanuel Macron is a product of a CIA human experiment or a “similar government mind control program.” People have viewed Owens’s series, Becoming Brigitte, more than 2.3 million times on YouTube.

I, however, am not one of them.

Prior to seeing this story, I had no idea about these allegations. Now, because of the Macrons’ lawsuit, I know about Owens and her assertions on a level I assume the Macrons would wish I did not.

If they remained silent, however, their decision not to defend themselves could be interpreted as a lack of defense. And choosing not to hold their accuser accountable could only embolden and escalate such accusations.

This is the conundrum of digital media. The good news is that this issue leads to news that is good in a new way today.

The “tragedy of modern man” may surprise you

I am old enough to remember when publishing any content required a publisher who would employ fact-checkers and editors before publication.

Years ago, for example, I wrote a book on the most challenging intellectual issues of our day. Included were four chapters on what happens to those who never hear the gospel. My editor insisted on reducing these four chapters into one. This was frustrating for me because this was my book, but she understood her publishers’ audience and correctly knew that I had written more than they would care to read on the subject.

That was then, this is now. I could write anything in this article that I wish, since our ministry owns this platform and can produce what we choose to produce. We don’t do this, of course—my editor is brilliant not only at copy proofing and fact-checking but also at noting any content she finds questionable. And our mission is to provide biblical responses to cultural issues rather than personal commentary or partisan opinion, a calling to which our board holds us accountable.

But my point is that anyone with internet access can now produce content that others can read, hear, or see, no matter how truthful or untruthful it might be.

Artificial intelligence is already making this situation even worse. Because it collates and summarizes online content in answering queries, it depends on the algorithms and analytics with which it has been programmed. And since the ideological positions of many media companies are clearly progressive, AI-generated content often follows suit.

None of this would be what it is if our culture had not decided long before the advent of the internet that truth is itself personal and subjective. Now we have jettisoned not only objective truth but the quest for objective meaning that depends upon it.

As Os Guinness observed, “The tragedy of modern man is not that he knows less and less about the meaning of his own life, but that it bothers him less and less.”

God will lead us “where we should want to go”

All of this makes the authority of Scripture and the interpretive power of the Holy Spirit wonderful news in new ways.

For much of Christian history, truth was understood to be the product of the Catholic Church’s doctrines as they interpreted the Bible, church tradition, and papal statements. The Reformation narrowed the focus of truth to sola Scriptura (“only the Scriptures”) as our supreme authority and embraced the “priesthood of all believers” as the Spirit leads us to biblical truth.

Now, however, we have shifted from “all truth is God’s truth” to “all truth is your truth.”

Nothing could be more disorienting for humans and for society at large. No wonder anxiety, depression, loneliness, and suicide rates are so high while trust in our core institutions is so low. We have a cultural case of vestibular dysfunction whereby the central nervous system of society fails to process correctly the information of our lives, leaving us dizzy and confused.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. As C. S. Lewis noted, God will lead us “where we should want to go if we knew what we wanted.”

We can access the omniscient wisdom of Almighty God any time we read and obey his word in the leading and empowering of his Spirit. We can be transformed into the character of Jesus so completely that we manifest his holiness in our broken world (Romans 8:29). We can live the abundant life of Christ so fully that in every circumstance “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (John 10:10; Romans 8:37).

All of this is what God wants for every one of us. Holistic holiness and victorious Christian living constitute what Watchman Nee called the “normal Christian life.”

“The one marvelous secret of a holy life”

My fear is that you and I will settle for vestibular dysfunction as our cultural norm. Like a person whose vision gradually fails until their world dims without their conscious knowledge, we can shrug our spiritual shoulders at the sexual sin and moral confusion that pervades popular media and contemporary society.

This week, my wife and I watched a detective series on television in which the protagonist sleeps with the neighborhood lifeguard whenever she gets depressed. It bothered me when I realized that this did not bother me.

The English philosopher John Stuart Mill observed, “Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends than that good men should look on and do nothing.” This is true not just of our society but of our souls.

So, let’s settle for nothing less than the holistic holiness of Jesus in the transforming power of the Spirit. Our Lord was adamant: “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing” (John 6:63 NASB). When we yield to his sanctifying power, we experience what Oswald Chambers called “the one marvelous secret of a holy life,” which “lies not in imitating Jesus, but in letting the perfections of Jesus manifest themselves in my mortal flesh.”

If manifesting the “perfections of Jesus” in your life seems too high a goal, your goal is too low.

Quote for the day:

“Sanctification is not drawing from Jesus the power to be holy; it is drawing from Jesus the holiness that was manifested in him, and he manifests it in me. Sanctification is an impartation, not an imitation.” —Oswald Chambers

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