{"id":90647,"date":"2021-03-10T14:12:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-10T19:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/"},"modified":"2023-10-06T22:18:48","modified_gmt":"2023-10-07T02:18:48","slug":"suicide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/","title":{"rendered":"Suicide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the US, 39,000 people committed suicide in 2013 \u2013 a\nnumber which has remained constant over the last few years.  For Christians, the concept of suicide has\nbeen characterized as an unforgivable sin by the Roman church while not well\ndefined or understood by most others. \nThis is why we turn to Scripture as our only true source of reliable\ninformation given it is God\u2019s Word.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Bible mentions six specific people who committed\nsuicide:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Abimelech (Judges 9:54);<\/li>
  2. Saul (1 Samuel 31:4);<\/li>
  3. Saul\u2019s armor-bearer (1 Samuel 31:4\u20136);<\/li>
  4. Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23);<\/li>
  5. Zimri (1 Kings 16:18);<\/li>
  6. Judas (Matthew 27:5). <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Five of these men were noted for their wickedness (the\nexception is Saul\u2019s armor-bearer\u2014nothing is said of his character). Some\nconsider Samson\u2019s death an instance of suicide, because he knew his actions\nwould lead to his death (Judges 16:26\u201331), but Samson\u2019s goal was to kill Philistines,\nnot himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Given the character of each of the individuals cited, it\nleads us to the Biblical view that suicide is equal to murder, which is what it\nis\u2014self-murder. God is the only one who is to decide when and how a person\nshould die. This is plainly taught by the psalmist David who wrote, \u201cMy times\nare in your hands\u201d (Psalm 31:15).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    God is the giver of life. He gives, and He takes away (Job\n1:21). Suicide, the taking of one\u2019s own life, is ungodly because it rejects\nGod\u2019s gift of life. No man or woman should presume to take God\u2019s authority upon\nthemselves to end his or her own life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But what of great despair? \nSome people in Scripture felt deep despair in life. Solomon, in his\npursuit of pleasure, reached the point where he \u201chated life\u201d (Ecclesiastes\n2:17). Elijah was fearful and depressed and yearned for death (1 Kings 19:4).\nJonah was so angry at God that he wished to die (Jonah 4:8). Even the apostle\nPaul and his missionary companions at one point \u201cwere under great pressure, far\nbeyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself\u201d (2\nCorinthians 1:8).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    However, none of these men committed suicide. Solomon\nlearned to \u201cfear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all\nmankind\u201d (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Elijah was comforted by an angel, allowed to\nrest, and given a new commission. Jonah received admonition and rebuke from\nGod. Paul learned that, although the pressure he faced was beyond his ability\nto endure, the Lord can bear all things: \u201cThis happened that we might not rely\non ourselves but on God, who raises the dead\u201d (2 Corinthians 1:9).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So, according to the Bible, suicide is a sin. It is not the\n\u201cgreatest\u201d sin\u2014it is no worse than other evils, in terms of how God sees it,\nand it does not determine whether or not a person goes to hell. However,\nsuicide definitely has a deep and lasting impact on those left behind. The\npainful scars left by a suicide do not heal easily. May God grant His grace to\neach one who is facing trials today (Psalm 67:1). And may each of us take hope\nin the promise, \u201cEveryone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved\u201d\n(Romans 10:13).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It is a sad fact that some Christians have committed\nsuicide. Adding to the tragedy is the false teaching that committing suicide\nautomatically consigns one to hell. Many believe that a Christian who commits\nsuicide will not be saved. This teaching is not supported in the Bible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Scripture teaches that, from the moment we truly believe in\nChrist, we are guaranteed eternal life (John 3:16). According to the Bible,\nChristians can know beyond any doubt that they possess eternal life (1 John\n5:13). Nothing can separate a Christian from God\u2019s love (Romans 8:38\u201339). No\n\u201ccreated thing\u201d can separate a Christian from God\u2019s love, and even a Christian\nwho commits suicide is a \u201ccreated thing\u201d; therefore, not even suicide can\nseparate a Christian from God\u2019s love. Jesus died for all of our sins, and if a\ntrue Christian, in a time of spiritual attack and weakness, commits suicide,\nhis sin is still covered by the blood of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    According to the Bible, suicide is not what determines\nwhether a person gains entrance into heaven. If an unsaved person commits\nsuicide, he has done nothing but \u201cexpedite\u201d his journey to hell. However, that\nperson who committed suicide will ultimately be in hell for rejecting salvation\nthrough Christ, not because he committed suicide (see John 3:18). We should\nalso point out, however, that no one truly knows what was happening in a\nperson\u2019s heart the moment he or she died. Some people have \u201cdeathbed conversions\u201d\nand accept Christ in the moments before death. It is possible that a suicide\ncould have a last-second change of heart and cry out for God\u2019s mercy. We leave\nsuch judgments to God (1 Samuel 16:7).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The suicide of a believer is evidence that anyone can\nstruggle with despair and that our enemy, Satan, is \u201ca murderer from the\nbeginning\u201d (John 8:44). Suicide is still a serious sin against God. According\nto the Bible, suicide is murder; it is always wrong. Christians are called to\nlive their lives for God, and the decision of when to die is God\u2019s and God\u2019s\nalone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This last point does raise a question about personal habits\nwhich prove harmful to an individual. \nFor example, tobacco use promotes disease.  Alcohol consumption not only can prove\nphysically harmful, but negatively impact cognitive and spiritual reasoning\nwhich, too, can prove harmful to oneself and others.  Are these forms of suicide?  Knowingly damaging our body flies in the face\nof 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, which states that our body is the temple of God and\nhas been bought with the blood of Christ. We are to glorify God with our\nbodies, and to do otherwise is sin.  To\nknowingly impede one\u2019s physical existence can be considered an act of\ndestructive self-will, denying God His right of determination.  So, yes, these actions are ultimately akin to\nphysical suicide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Conclusion: May God grant grace and the psalmist\u2019s\nperspective to each one who is facing trials today: \u201cWhy, my soul, are you\ndowncast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet\npraise him, my Savior and my God\u201d (Psalm 43:5).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    In the US, 39,000 people committed suicide in 2013 \u2013 a number which has remained constant over the last few years.  For Christians, the concept of suicide has been characterized as an unforgivable sin by the Roman church while not well defined or understood by most others.  This is why we turn to Scripture as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[526],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nSuicide - Grace Evangelical Free Church<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Suicide - Grace Evangelical Free Church\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In the US, 39,000 people committed suicide in 2013 \u2013 a number which has remained constant over the last few years.  For Christians, the concept of suicide has been characterized as an unforgivable sin by the Roman church while not well defined or understood by most others.  This is why we turn to Scripture as […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Grace Evangelical Free Church\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-03-10T19:12:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-10-07T02:18:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Tony Raker\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Tony Raker\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Tony Raker\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/#\/schema\/person\/6785bcea471ae92fb3660d811c5c74ef\"},\"headline\":\"Suicide\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-03-10T19:12:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-10-07T02:18:48+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/\"},\"wordCount\":1041,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Issues & Answers\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/suicide\/\",\"name\":\"Suicide - 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