As the number of suicide increases dramatically in the developed countries, both in the traditional sense, as well as in assisted suicide, many Christians are wondering what happens to believers who take their lives. As always, theologians are divided on this key question. However, if we look at it from the only angle we can – that of love and hope – we will find out that the answer is much more obvious than we think.
Before we move deep into the subject, let’s start by defining what we should understand when we say that a person committed suicide. For the purpose of this post, a person who commits suicide shall be one who intentionally or knowingly kills himself in a premeditated way. Excluded from our definition are therefore the persons who kill themselves accidentally by taking an unnecessary risk (for example, speeding on a motor way). These Christians sinned by testing the Lord, but will be saved and go to Heaven without the shadow of a doubt. There is thus no point in discussing these cases further.
However, what about all those who intentionally kill themselves, will they go to Heaven? Well, let’s examine carefully what these persons have done. They basically committed a major sin by violating the sixth commandment: you shall not murder (this includes yourself!).
Thus, it is clear that they have committed a sin. Now let's ask a second question: have they committed an unpardonable sin? Although we may be tempted to say yes, the Bible says there is only one unpardonable sin, which is "blasphemy against the Holy Spirit" or, to put it differently, continual rejection of God. Does the blood Jesus shed on the cross cover the rebellious act of suicide? Yes. Jesus died for ALL our sins: the past, present and future ones. Does it matter that the person who commits suicide cannot confess his sin and repent? Actually, no! Why? Because we are not saved by repenting, but by faith: i.e. by believing in Christ and what He has done for us. (Ephesians 2:8 and John 1:12-13)
If we had to confess ALL of our sins in order to go to Heaven, then no one would. Indeed, who is so spiritually aware that he or she knows ALL the sins he or she commits every day? The truth is that Christ’s death is a once-for-all remedy for our sinful condition. It cleanses us from ALL sins. This is what God’s grace and forgiveness is all about, and why it is so wonderful and powerful. What many Christians fail to comprehend is that repentance is a fruit of our salvation, not the cause of our salvation!
Can we then conclude that those Christians who commit suicide go to Heaven? No, we cannot jump to this conclusion yet. Of course, John 10:27-28 says: " My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand ”. Some of you will say this means that once we are saved, we are forever saved. I must admit that you have a point. However, what does this scripture really reveal to us? That “true” believers listen to Jesus’ voice, that He knows them and that they follow Him. It also confirms that Jesus gives eternal life to those believers and that no one can snatch them out of His hand. The question that we must therefore address at this stage is the following one: what does it mean to listen to Jesus' voice and to follow Him? Well, it signifies that we follow His example, and in particular that we obey, in love, His commands and submit to His will as He obeyed His Father’s commands and submitted to His Father’s will.
Can you imagine for even one second that the will of Jesus is for some Christians to take their lives and be overcome by Satan? Of course not! Many of the heroes of the faith mentioned in Hebrews 11 struggled with depression or went through terrible trials and times of suffering. Take for example Elijah: at one point, he prayed and even begged God to let him die as he felt that nothing he did mattered or made a difference. (1 Kings 19:4) Did God grant his wish? No. He spoke to him and reminded him that he was not alone and that He knew and appreciated fully the works and deeds he had done. God then gave him the strength to continue to do what he had been called to do. (1 Kings 19:5-18)
What about Job? Did not he think of giving everything up and dying? Definitely yes. And to be honest, I can understand how he was feeling at that point because he had lost almost everything: his children, wealth and health. I do not know of any other believer who has gone through such a trial since. Did he go on to carry his plan and kill himself? No. He understood that God had placed him on earth for a larger goal than to amass wealth and raise a family. He realized that he was to be a light, an example of courage and faith under intense adversity. Yes, he went through a time of darkness, but he recovered. He came to understand that he could no longer continue on his own strength and that it was time to call upon God for help. And God did not forsake him: He came to his rescue. In the end, Job excellently passed his test of faith and God blessed him abundantly, giving him double for his trouble.
Let’s now ask ourselves the following critical question: what made it possible for Job to successfully go through his tough trials? It was his attitude of faith. Rather than becoming mad at God for what was happening to him and turning away from God, he increasingly sought God and direction from Him. At the core, faith is nothing more than just TRUSTING that God knows what He's doing and that everything He allows in our lives has a great purpose. This is the attitude that we all need to espouse when we go through trials. Jesus did it as well, and so should we.
Needless to say, I could also have taken as an example the lives of Moses (Numbers 11:14-15), King David (Psalm 13:2-4) or the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 20:14-18). They all reached such low points in their lives that they preferred to die rather than continue living and carrying the plan of God for their lives. However, they all recovered and crossed the finishing lines as victors. Why? Because they understood that they serve as examples to others. Collectively, they show us that it is possible to overcome evil and successfully go through difficult trials, and face great suffering and injustice. They believed in the goodness and love of God, even while traversing great pain. This enabled them to regain strength and joy.
Just as Christ suffered for us, so too must we be prepared to suffer for the sake of others and be godly examples for them. Though we may get discouraged and depressed at times – and we wouldn’t be human if we didn’t – we can overcome any trial on this earth if we remain steadfast in our trust on the goodness and love of God. Let’s never forget that we can do everything – and everything here really means everything – in Christ who strengthens us. (Philippians 4:13) Once we are saved, we are not supposed to conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but to be transformed through new ways of thinking. Then we will be able to experience that God's will for our lives is good, pleasing and perfect! (Romans 12:2).
Let’s never forget that God is all about love, life, vitality, passion, endurance, surrender, kindness, grace, mercy, patience, forgiveness, perseverance and hope. Death is not part of God’s world and certainly not His will for us. As Ezekiel 18:32 reveals to us, He takes no pleasure whatsoever in the death of anyone. What He wants is that we turn back from our evil ways and thoughts so that we may forever live.
Do not let Satan deceive you: committing suicide is contrary to the will of God and no true believer would carry it out. Those who do carry it out are only professing Christians who have never really let God’s love penetrate into their hearts and change them. The sad truth is that they have never been saved. To those professing Christians who kill themselves, Jesus will tell them plainly: “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers.” (see Matthew 7:21-23 or Luke 13:23-27)
→ Where have we arrived at? To the conclusion that killing oneself is not something that a true believer would do unless it was a command emanating directly from God Himself. However, let’s face the truth: the likelihood that God would ask this from any of us is quasi nil for it has never happened until now, and He defines himself as LIFE. Yes, unbelievers can interpret some death circumstances as suicidal actions, but they are not. As example of such a case would be when we continue to preach the gospel in a country or city even though we know we might be persecuted and killed. In some countries, some true believers are dying a martyr’s death, but it has nothing to do with taking one's life. Quite the opposite, it has to do with giving one's life. It is not an act of violence, but an act of love. By dying in such a way, they have not been overcome by evil; it is evil that has been overcome by love. Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt of love to one another. (Romans 13:8)
Our days are numbered by God and He has a plan for each one of us. (Psalm 139:6 and Jeremiah 29:11) By committing suicide we become our own masters. God is no longer our master. When the suffering increases, when you start to feel depressed or discouraged, call upon God: never think of killing yourself. Every time you die to impatience, selfishness, revenge, self-pity, desperation, loss of hope, injustice, or hatred, you get blessed. Have no fear and live fully the life that God has planned for you. Choose life, not death, and you will surely live forever. Even if the pattern of this world (e.g. the promoters of Euthanasia) would have us believe otherwise.
Love is the fulfillment of the law. It may require that we die in the battle to serve as an example to others, but it will never ask of us that we take our lives. It may require that we give our life, but never that we take it.
Serge Roux-Levrat is the Principal Ambassador of SRL Ministries and the author of numerous books and ebooks such as Spiritually Stronger In 40 Days!, Make Your Life Worth Living and How To Enjoy An Abundant Health.
Serge stayed seven years in what he calls God's detoxification clinic. During this time he studied and meditated extensively upon the Word of God, renewed his mind, received many revelations from the Holy Spirit, developed many spiritual gifts, taught Bible-Study classes in a large Christian Church and successfully passed key tests that God had asked him to take. More importantly, he learned to trust and to depend solely on God.
He is married since 1995 to Barbara, and they are the parents of two children.
Joni shares that instead of cursing God because of her accident, she chose to praise God and live.
Hi, this is Joni Eareckson Tada and welcome to Joni and Friends.
You know, when I was first injured and only just beginning to realize that my paralysis was permanent, I remember identifying – and I mean really identifying – with Job. As far as I was concerned, mine were the trials of Job. I could not face living life as a quadriplegic. It was so overwhelming, it was so scary. Actually, the idea terrified me. Somewhere in those early days, I came across Job 2:9 where it says that, “Job’s wife said to him ‘...Curse God and die!’” And I’m going to tell you what, that sounded very tempting.
‘Cause there were nights that I would actually toy with that idea. Many dark nights in the hospital when, in my mind, I would tiptoe as close to that edge, as near to cursing God as I dared get. I felt like I just had to take my frustration out on somebody... and not just anybody... but somebody who was somehow responsible. Oh sure, sure, I knew I was responsible for taking the stupid dive into the shallow water in the first place, but I mean a bigger responsibility, a cosmic one, like “God, You could have prevented this, but You didn’t.” So I was tempted to listen to the advice of Job’s wife – if I couldn’t live without use of my hands or legs then, hey, why not just curse God and die!
But I was never quite able to do that. I knew if I did, if I actually cursed God, it would be the end of hope. It would mean the absolute closing of the door on any hopeful future. I knew that if I were to turn my back on God for my circumstances, I knew I’d be committing spiritual suicide… and not just spiritual, but emotional suicide. I would be cutting myself off from what I knew – way down deep I knew – was the source of every good and happy and hopeful thing. To turn my back on God would be to turn my back on myself. It would be the death of my heart and my soul.
So somewhere shortly after realizing this, I prayed a prayer in the dark, and I said, “God if I can’t die, then please show me how to live.” No longer was it curse God and die... it was now praise God and live. Do a spiritual about-face. Believe that joy really would come in the morning. That God really did have hopeful plans for me for a hopeful future. I decided to follow the One who had the only words of life... Jesus, the Prince of Life, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the resurrection and the life. Most of all, Jesus, the Lord of all hope... the Blessed Hope, as it says elsewhere in the Bible.
Friend, I don’t know what you’re struggling with today, but perhaps you feel “that’s it, I can’t go on like this.” You want somebody to pay. Well, please know that somebodydid pay. Jesus paid the ultimate price... He bore the curse... and He died. And He did it all so that you... so that you and I could live... and live with hope.
And once again, let me remind you of our website. Come by and visit us at any time. It’s
joniandfriends.org.
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