Pastor Jack Hibbs says mother tried to abort him but God had another plan for his life
During a sermon Sunday, megachurch Pastor Jack Hibbs shared with his congregation that he is a survivor of a failed abortion in which his mother used a heated coat hanger after facing pressure from his father.
The 65-year-old pastor of California's Calvary Chapel Chino Hills shared his support for the pro-life stance in a Jan. 22 sermon on the 50th anniversary of the since-overturned Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court ruling that made abortion a national right.
In the sermon titled "The Sanctity of Life," he detailed his mother's struggles that led to the abortion attempt several years before abortion was made a national right.
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"On Dec. 24, 1957, my mom was alone, putting my brother and my sister to bed, [and she] boiled a coat hanger in San Diego and attempted an abortion because she was terrified," Hibbs told the congregation.
"She didn't know anybody. She didn't know when my dad would be back after his deployment or his detail in Alaska. All she knew was, my dad said, 'when I come back, there better not be three kids in this home,'" Hibbs continued.
"And [my father] was gone for a year. And when he came home, he came home to a three-month-old and my mom's abortion attempt failed. So, this is what's really beautiful about God redeeming things and forgiving."
For those who have been involved in abortion in any way, Hibbs said there is room for God's grace if they repent.
"God wound up forgiving my mom. I watched it happen. He wound up forgiving my dad — which is very ironic. Isn't it? The very one who said: 'I don't want his life in my world. Get rid of him.' It's this reject that wound up leading my dad to Christ before he died and went to Heaven," Hibbs added, as his congregation erupted in cheers and clapping.
“[My dad was] redeemable. You're redeemable. I'm redeemable. There's not one thing that you could have committed or done in life that's beyond the forgiving blood of Christ. Not one thing. The decision is yours today. Your mind and your emotions and your heart and your soul is in the valley of decisions right now, to choose what you will do with what's before you."
"God says, 'choose life and live,'" Hibbs said, adding that if a woman in his church is pregnant, they should say something to receive help.
"If you find yourself pregnant, let us know. We'll keep it quiet. We'll find a family. We'll take care of it, and we'll take care of you. We will not be a church that says: 'don't do that,' and then don't supply the needs, and then you can't obey," he said.
Because of his mother’s experience, Hibbs said he is able to sympathize with the fear that pregnant women experience who are being pressured to get abortions.
"I understand a woman who has been harassed and is terrified and mortified," he said. "My mother was terrified when she attempted abortion on me. She was scared to death. I understand that," Hibbs admitted.
"My heart goes out to those that are being bullied. But, those who perform abortions lie about it, and then it's defended by a series of lies. It's big money, you know."
The pastor recited Isaiah 5:18 in reference to medical professionals who perform abortions as being those who engage in "wickedness" and "mock" God.
"Life is God's business," he said, but "man destroys it."
Hibbs asserted that Christians who worship God should believe in the sanctity of life.
"If we believe in the sanctity of life, then we believe that God was in the womb: Psalm 139; assembling the baby parts together. Before mom even knew she was pregnant, God was at work," Hibbs said.
As he concluded, Hibbs delivered a closing prayer.
"Father, we pray in Jesus' name that you, Almighty God, would continue the success that's happening in America today where abortions are decreasing, lives are being saved, people are given the chance, and the adoption industry is busy," Hibbs prayed.
"But, dear God, we pray that you forgive us as a nation. And that should restore, father, to our land: reverence of God, preservation of human life, the love for one another, even our enemies may we love them with all of our hearts. And Father, may we put ourselves in the position that as a nation, having repented, we might find your favor once again."
Hibbs previously told Calvary Chapel Magazine that he was born 21 days after his mother was hospitalized because "God saw fit to let me come into a world where I wasn't wanted."
"I was a severe stutterer from a very young age. I didn't blend in with other kids because I stuttered so much and therefore was teased, mistreated, and abused. Growing up, I never felt close to my dad," he said. "I could tell that he didn't really like me, and I felt rejected and hurt. I grew up an angry child and later, as a teen, became violent. One day, I accidently overheard my mother telling someone on the phone about the abortion attempt. At the time, I was a junior in high school and didn't really care, although I never forgot about it."
"A few years later, on June 20, 1977, I saw many young people going into a building, and I decided to follow them in. I had inadvertently stumbled into Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa," he added. "I had never been to church, and I was curious and excited to see a young hippie pastor named Greg Laurie teaching the Word of God."
Hibbs said Laurie, pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, shared the message of John 3:3: "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." This was the first time Hibbs had heard the Gospel and gave his life to Christ that evening.
Nicole Alcindor is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: [email protected].
