SUICIDE...What does the Word of God say? All of us have probably been affected by a suicide in our family, job or church. This is often seen as a taboo issue, but we cannot act like it does not happen, because we never know what another day will bring that may cause us or someone we know to commit this act. We had a family friend years ago who committed suicide, leaving his wife and three children. They were devastated. and to this day, they wonder what was so bad that daddy had to do this. I can only imagine the pain they felt then, and probably still do now. On a talk show years ago, a man gave his account of his suicide attempt off the Golden Gate Bridge. He said, The minute I jumped, I realized that whatever I was facing, could have been resolved. He survived the plunge into the ocean, but only by the Grace of God. The saddest funeral I was asked to officiate was a suicide. Two sisters were having a family Feud, and the one sister put a gun in her mouth and killed herself in an attempt to shame the family. At the graveside, the mother of these two daughters looked upon her dead daughter in the casket and I will never forget the screams and cries coming for that mother. How sad..Even after I gave the benediction, the two sides of the family never met or had a repast. The left the graveyard and went back to their homes in Rancho Cucamonga and San Diego... I believe that suicide is selfish, and leaves a trail of questions that haunt the family for years. The reason I say its selfish is because is is the ultimate rejection of the Grace of God to intervene in your situation, and believe the lie of Satan who tells you theres no way out, God does not love you or you wouldnt be in this mess, and whats the sense of living. Thats a lie from the father of lies, Satan. 7 People Committed Suicide in the Bible Lets begin by looking at the seven accounts of suicide in the Bible. Abimelech - Judges 9:54 After having his skull crushed under a millstone that was dropped by a woman from the Tower of Shechem, Abimelech called for his armor bearer to kill him with a sword. He did not want it said that a woman had killed him. Samson - Judges 16:29-31 By collapsing a building, Samson sacrificed his own life, but in the process destroyed thousands of enemy Philistines. Saul and His Armor Bearer - 1 Samuel 31:3-6 After losing his sons and all of his troops in battle, and his sanity long before, King Saul, assisted by his armor bearer, ended his life. Then Sauls servant killed himself. Ahithophel - 2 Samuel 17:23 Disgraced and rejected by Absolom, Ahithophel went home, put his affairs in order, and then hung himself. Zimri - 1 Kings 16:18 Rather than being taken prisoner, Zimri set the kings palace on fire and died in the flames. Judas - Matthew 27:5 After he betrayed Jesus, Judas Iscariot was overcome with remorse and hung himself. In each of these instances, except that of Samson, suicide is not presented favorably. These were ungodly men acting in desperation and disgrace. Samsons case was different. And while his life was not a model for holy living, Samson was honored among the faithful heroes of Hebrews 11. Some consider Samsons final act an example of martyrdom, a sacrificial death that allowed him to fulfill his God-assigned mission. Matt Slick give us some insight and answers for the Christian and non-Christian on the subject of suicide. I hope this is helpful to the readers. If a Christian commits suicide, is he still forgiven? by Matt Slick Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry This might seem like a perplexing question, but it does have an answer. Though the Christian who has committed suicide has committed a grave sin, he is still forgiven. But, in order to understand why a Christian who commits suicide is forgiven, we first need to understand what salvation is and what it is based upon. Salvation is the state of being saved from Gods judgment upon the sinner. The only way to be saved is to trust Jesus for the forgiveness of ones sins (John 14:6, Acts 4:12). All who do not trust Jesus alone, by faith (Rom. 5:1; Rom. 6:23; Eph. 2:8-9) are not forgiven and go to hell when they die (Matt. 25:46; John 3:18). When Jesus forgives someone, He forgives all their sins and gives them eternal life and they shall never perish (John 10:28). He does not give them temporary eternal life -- otherwise, it would not be eternal. Salvation is not based upon what you do. In other words, you dont have to obey any Law of God in order to become saved. This is because no one is saved by keeping the Law of God (Gal. 2:21; Rom. 3:24-28). But that does not mean that you can go and sin all you want. Rom. 6:1-3 expressly condemns such action. Instead, we are saved for the purpose of purity (1 Thess. 4:7). Our salvation is strictly from God: By grace through faith you have been saved… (Eph. 2:8). Other than acting by faith in trusting and accepting what Jesus did on the cross, you dont do a thing (John 1:12-3) in order to become saved. Since you did not get your salvation by what you did, you can not lose it by what you do. What about the unforgivable sin? Is that suicide? No. Suicide is not the unforgivable sin. Jesus spoke of the unforgivable sin in Matt. 12:22-32. The context is when the Pharisees accused Jesus of casting out demons by the power of the devil. Therefore, suicide is not the unforgivable sin. Is repentance necessary for salvation? This is a good question and the answer is yes -- and no. Now, before you throw stones, hear me out. Repentance is a necessary result of the saving work of God, not the cause of salvation. If repentance brought salvation, then salvation is by works; or rather, the ceasing of bad works. That isnt how it works. God grants repentance to the Christian (2 Tim. 2:25). The Christian then turns from his sin; that is, he stops sinning. He is able to repent because he is saved, not to get saved. In 1 John 1:9 it says, If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Confession of sin and its natural result of repentance are necessary elements of the Christians life. But, what about the sins that we do not know we commit? If we do not confess them and do not repent of them, are we still saved? Of course we are! Otherwise, we would be forced to confess and repent of every single sin we ever commit. In effect, wed be back under the Law, living by a rule of absolute repentance of every detail lest you be damned. This is bondage, not freedom. Jesus said His yoke was light, not hard (Matt. 11:27-30. So, repentance is not the cause of salvation, but it is a result of salvation. The believer repents from his sins upon trusting in Christ and thereafter, continues to repent of further sins that the Lord reveals to him. Back to the suicide issue Suicide is, in effect, self-murder. The unfortunate thing about it is that the one who commits it cannot repent of it. The damage is permanently done. We can see in the Bible that murderers have been redeemed (Moses, David, etc.), but they had opportunities to confess their sins and repent. With suicide, the person does not. But that does not mean the person is lost. Jesus bore all that persons sins, including suicide. If Jesus bore that persons sins on the cross 2000 years ago, and if suicide was not covered, then the Christian was never saved in the first place and the one sin of suicide is able to undo the entire work of the cross of Christ. This cannot be. Jesus either saves completely or he does not. Is suicide always wrong? That I cannot answer because I cannot list every possible situation. But, it seems obvious that suicide is clearly wrong, though forgivable. However, there are general categories of suicide on which we could briefly comment: Medically Assisted Suicide - Ive never seen this as being acceptable. The doctor is supposed to save life, not destroy it. But, lately as destroying the lives of the unborn is more common place, destroying the lives of the sick has become the next logical step. Suicide to prevent prolonged torture - Lets say that someone was being tortured in an excruciating manner for an unbearably long period of time, is suicide an option? Perhaps. But if it were in this situation, why wouldnt it be all right in the medically-assisted context if the patient were also in excruciating pain for long periods of time? Quite honestly, Im not sure how to answer that one. Suicide due to depression - Of course, this is never a good reason for suicide. Seasons pass and so does depression. The one who is depressed needs to look to Jesus and get help. Depression is real and powerful and is best fought with help. Also, severe depression robs the mind of clear thinking. People in such states are despondent, not in their right mind. Suicide due to a chemical imbalance in the brain - The human brain is incredibly complex and the medical community is full of accounts of extraordinary behaviors by people whose circuits got crossed. I dont see how a situation like this would make it justifiable. I think it simply would make it more explainable. Accidental suicide - Sometimes people accidentally kill themselves. This could mean leaning over a balcony too far and falling to ones death, or actually, purposefully taking a stupid risk like playing with a gun. Of course, with either, stupidity does not remove us from the grace of God. Conclusion Is the Christian forgiven for suicide? Yes. But suicide is not an option We do not have the right to take our own lives. That belongs to God.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Jan 2014 08:38:37 +0000
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