The Benefits Of In Vitro Fertilization

The beginning of human life is a beautiful thing. God divinely created human beings to create, love, and nurture children made in His image and for His glory. However, not every couple has the ability to procreate naturally. For many couples the reality of infertility comes as a crushing reality to the hopes and dreams they hoped to one day share with their children. As scientific technology continues to grow, however, an answer to this dilemma has come to the forefront. With in vitro fertilization, many otherwise infertile couples can now become parents. In order to achieve this, doctors go through a process which involves taking eggs from the woman and mixing them with sperm from the man. This creates a number of human embryos for the doctor

As stated before, many infertile couples have had success using IVF to get pregnant and start a family, although it does come with some risks due to the fact that four embryos are implanted at a time. If IVF is used often, the number of women pregnant with multiples could increase. In addition, infertility rates would go down and thus the number of pregnant couples could increase, causing labor and delivery floors to be in higher demand. On the research side, using embryonic stem cells has just begun to prove successful in treating multiple diseases. One study on embryonic stem cells stated that they could potentially “provide neuronal or glial cells for transportation” in patients that have spinal cord injuries. Researchers have also found potential benefit from embryonic stem cells to treat Alzheimer's as well as progressive blindness. The list of the potential benefits of IVF continues on, but one must analyze the downsides of IVF as well as its positive

As a Christian I believe in the sanctity of human life. Life is not something that slowly comes into existence as an embryo develops into a fetus. From the moment a sperm and an embryo meet, life is created. It is a beautiful moment at which God allows another human being to enter this earth. Keith Moore reinforces this in his book Essentials of Human Embryology when he states "Human development begins after the union of male and female gametes or germ cells during a process known as fertilization (conception).” That moment of conception starts a process of life that should not be stopped. We as human beings are not given the prerogative of deciding who should live and who should die. Deuteronomy 32:39 makes God’s authority over life and death very clear when God declares “See now that I, even I, am He, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive, I wound, and I heal.” God alone has power over life and death, and the lives of those embryos are not ours to take. Not only does God have the power over life and death, but we are created in His image (Gen. 1:27). Therefore by destroying the lives of leftover human embryos we are destroying humans made in the image of God. Although I do agree that IVF can be very helpful to couples who cannot have children, the number of embryos created should be carefully considered. If at all possible no more embryos than