Someone ask me to share the scripture in regards to suicide ! What Does the Bible Say About Suicide? Suicide is a desperate act and a traumatic event for family and friends. What does the Bible say about suicide and the fate of those who commit suicide? There can be no doubt that the act of killing oneself is a sin, in light of the Sixth Commandment. God says, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13), and suicide is murdering oneself. Would God condemn someone for all eternity whose last act is a sin? We should not presume to make a judgment about one’s eternal destiny. Passing final judgment is God’s prerogative, which He has delegated to Jesus Christ (John 5:22), not to us. Certainly, we can make a judgment that suicide is the wrong way to deal with one’s problems, but we should leave eternal judgment up to God. Having considered the potential future for believers who die by suicide, what about nonbelievers who die in this manner? Is there any hope for them to be brought back to life again? Yes exclusively for judgement. According to the scriptures there are, I think, six accounts of suicide in the Bible, the most notorious being those of King Saul (1 Samuel 31:2-5) and Judas (Matthew 27:3-5). Others are Abimelech (Judges 9:50-54), Samson (Judges 16:23-31), Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23), and Zimri (1 Kings 16:15-20). As far as I can tell, none of the six is explicitly condemned for taking his life. Read them for yourself the biblical account of the suicides of King Saul, Judas, Abimelech, Samson, Ahithophel, and Zimri. Suicide is a grievous sin that seriously hurts both the heart of God, and those who loved the deceased. The pain of losing a loved one who took their own life is not easily healed, and often isn’t fully healed until Heaven. Whether you are contemplating suicide or know someone who killed themselves, God wants you to know there is hope and life for you. He is the great Healer and Restorer of what has been lost or stolen. Many of the greatest saints and heroes of the Bible faced overwhelming depression and sometimes wrote that they wished they had never even been born. King David, (Psalm 13:2-4), the prophet Jeremiah, (Jeremiah 20:14-18), and Job, (Job 7:15-16) among others, all reached low points where they despaired of their very lives. Job says, “So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life. I loathe it; I would not live alway: let me alone; for my days are vanity” (Job 7:15-16). Yet, each one of these men were blessed of God, and persevered through their trials as an example to us. Though they faced great suffering and injustice, they kept their faith in God and His goodness, and in so doing, were sustained and led into abundant life. Though we may get depressed from time to time, we believe that the act of suicide never takes place apart from demonic influences driving one to take their own life. Suicide is directly counter to the power of life that God has put so strongly into His creation. Everywhere we look we see life growing, even in the most hostile environments. This “survival instinct” is a gift from God. In fact, if He didn’t bestow this gift upon His creation there probably wouldn’t be any life on this planet at all! Suicide, then, is directly contrary to the will of God, and originated in the realm of the demonic host, who come only to “steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10). Though demons may try to tempt us to kill ourselves, as Christians we have power over the devil and he cannot push us to do this if we sincerely call on the name of the Lord! We are all in a spiritual battle. The problem is, many of us are not aware of it, and do not know how to protect ourselves against attack. Do all those who kill themselves go to Hell? Some people believe that all who commit suicide go immediately to Hell. However, the Bible never says if this is the case. The Bible is silent on this issue. God probably did not address it in black and white for a good reason. If we knew that we would still go to Heaven if we killed ourselves, there would probably be a lot more suicides taking place than there already are. However, if we knew that all who killed themselves were automatically banished to Hell, no matter what their situation, it may be too much for the grief-stricken family and friends to bear. Murder and suicide are not unpardonable sins. The only unforgivable sins are rejecting Christ (Mark 16:16) and blaspheming the Holy Spirit. All other sins can be forgiven. However, anyone contemplating suicide may be in danger of going to Hell, as their relationship with the Lord is not intact at that point. Those who would consider suicide may have a severed relationship with Christ and therefore they would enter the real Hell–which is worse than the hellish feelings they are experiencing at the moment. It is so important to remember that God judges each of us individually, weighing all the factors of our lives, our beliefs and our motives. Each one of us is so intricate and complex, only God could really judge us in total truth, wisdom, and without favoritism. The most important truth of all, is that each one of us will stand before His throne and give account of our lives. If we lived intimately with this sobering truth, much of the sin in the church and the world, would immediately be stopped. If you are contemplating suicide and are relying on God’s grace to get you to heaven, PLEASE stop for a moment… God’s grace never means that we have a free license to sin! Those who willfully sin after knowing God’s grace, are in far greater danger than those who know less. Though you may feel that God is far from you right now, He is much nearer than you think. He may even be speaking to you through these words! Please open your ears and hear Him tell you how valuable your life is. You are needed on this earth and the purpose for your life has not yet been fulfilled. God loves you, and so do many people around you! God would not be God if He could not work this situation (no matter how unbearable it may seem) for His glory and for the good in your own life. Depression is often anger, and a host of other emotions that have turned inward and become frozen. If you are carrying anger, resentment, bitterness, unforgiveness, frustration, jealousy, despair, worthlessness, hopelessness, fearfulness, vengeance and/or self-pity in your heart, you can turn these things over to God and begin to receive your healing right now, in faith. If you don’t know how to let them go, confess it to God and ask for His help in releasing it to Him. No one can overcome these things by themselves. We all need the power of God to set us free from sinful and hopeless ways of thinking. That is why the Bible tells us that we must be “transformed, by the renewing of our mind” (Romans 12:2). The Holy Spirit is the only One who can help us break free and be healed of these deadly emotions. Just as ailments in our physical body need to be treated with medicine to be healed, the same is true of our emotions. One powerful way to fight against depression, is to apply and confess God’s Word as a healing balm to the places where you have been wounded. For instance, if you have unforgiveness in your heart, begin to confess God’s verses for love and forgiveness, even if they don’t exactly feel true right at the moment. If you feel worthless, confess the Scriptures of God’s great love for you. A rote, mechanical repeating of words may not do much, but if you deliberately take these living words and hold on to them for dear life, you will have the enemy on the run. The devil simply cannot stand against the Word of God spoken in faith. God’s Words are like spiritual antibiotics, destroying every germ and unclean thing in their path. In closing, its about spiritual warfare and mental jostling for a balance in the midst of conflict unresolved. I have battled it prior to salvation and after 30 yrs of being redeemed. I face the demonic presence of the spirit of suicide on several occasions and its warfare for nod your purpose, your destiny and your very life. You can win if you keep HOPE ALIVE.... Its the one that loses hope that gets away and becomes a victim and not a victor. Lastly SUICIDE IS NOT THE ANSWER! Acts 16:27 And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm:
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 20:03:48 +0000
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