IS DONATING BLOOD A SIN?
(Message by Tanny Keng)
1. What does the Bible say about donating blood or having a transfusion? Are they a sin? One large religious denomination uses one scripture to justify condemning them.
a) In regard to the Bible and donating blood, let us take a look at the principles involved in Acts 15, where James addresses brethren gathered in Jerusalem to discuss and debate whether circumcision was necessary for salvation.
i) "Therefore I (James) judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain. . . from things strangled, and from blood." (Acts 15:19 - 20)
b) It is widely recognized that a doctrine or belief cannot be based upon only ONE Scriptural verse, as this would be the case if transfusions or donations were the issue here named. Acts 15:20 is not referring to any of this at all, but to EATING or DRINKING blood (Leviticus 3:17).
c) You may notice that out of four items named in the Scripture you are referring to, three concern eating: "things polluted by idols" (meats sacrificed to idols, see 1Corinthians 10:18 - 28), things "strangled" and "blood." God's word says to abstain from them, meaning not to eat them at all. Some people fry blood until it solidifies and eat it. Others, even more grossly, drink it. This is what God forbids. It has to do with eating and subsequently passing it through the digestive system, not receiving it directly through your veins or arteries.
d) Transfusion is an entirely different matter which the Bible does not specifically mention. In those days, the medical technology was not available to perform such procedures. This medical practice isn't any more of a sin than having an operation, a root canal performed on one of your teeth, and so on. The first transfusions, directly from person to person, saved many soldiers' lives on the battlefield.
e) In regard to donating blood, it is also a relatively new advance of medicine that was unknown to the ancients. Although God's word is silent on this exact topic, here's a principle to consider if your are thinking about giving a donation. Hearing that Jesus had refuted the arguments of the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together to have their try at tripping him up. One Pharisee, an expert in the law, tested him with a question regarding which is God's greatest commandment. Jesus responded that it was to love God with all your heart and soul, your very being, and to love others like you love yourself (see Matthew 22:36 - 40). On these principles, Jesus went on to state, "hangs" or are the foundation of all the laws and words of the prophets that God has inspired.
f) If your neighbor's life could be saved by a donation of your blood, does that not abide within what Jesus in the Bible called the second greatest commandment?
The End ...
1. What does the Bible say about donating blood or having a transfusion? Are they a sin? One large religious denomination uses one scripture to justify condemning them. a) In regard to the Bible and donating blood, let us take a look at the principles involved in Acts 15, where James addresses brethren gathered in Jerusalem to discuss and debate whether circumcision was necessary for salvation.
i) "Therefore I (James) judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain. . . from things strangled, and from blood." (Acts 15:19 - 20)
b) It is widely recognized that a doctrine or belief cannot be based upon only ONE Scriptural verse, as this would be the case if transfusions or donations were the issue here named. Acts 15:20 is not referring to any of this at all, but to EATING or DRINKING blood (Leviticus 3:17).
c) You may notice that out of four items named in the Scripture you are referring to, three concern eating: "things polluted by idols" (meats sacrificed to idols, see 1Corinthians 10:18 - 28), things "strangled" and "blood." God's word says to abstain from them, meaning not to eat them at all. Some people fry blood until it solidifies and eat it. Others, even more grossly, drink it. This is what God forbids. It has to do with eating and subsequently passing it through the digestive system, not receiving it directly through your veins or arteries.
d) Transfusion is an entirely different matter which the Bible does not specifically mention. In those days, the medical technology was not available to perform such procedures. This medical practice isn't any more of a sin than having an operation, a root canal performed on one of your teeth, and so on. The first transfusions, directly from person to person, saved many soldiers' lives on the battlefield.
e) In regard to donating blood, it is also a relatively new advance of medicine that was unknown to the ancients. Although God's word is silent on this exact topic, here's a principle to consider if your are thinking about giving a donation. Hearing that Jesus had refuted the arguments of the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together to have their try at tripping him up. One Pharisee, an expert in the law, tested him with a question regarding which is God's greatest commandment. Jesus responded that it was to love God with all your heart and soul, your very being, and to love others like you love yourself (see Matthew 22:36 - 40). On these principles, Jesus went on to state, "hangs" or are the foundation of all the laws and words of the prophets that God has inspired.
f) If your neighbor's life could be saved by a donation of your blood, does that not abide within what Jesus in the Bible called the second greatest commandment?
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