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Is Suicide An Unforgiven Sin?
I Introduction: The
Word of Truth I knew a Pastor many years ago that committed suicide. But yet again, just because he was a Pastor does not mean he is saved. I felt that he was. But he took his life. Suicide is an action caused by severe mental or emotional illness and not a direct and purposeful act of evil against God or man (including oneself) nor a rejection of Him on their part. If a suicidal person was in their right mind, they would not commit such an act. There may be those who aren’t as prone to suicide as others, but harsh or traumatic circumstances may have pushed them past their ability to recover. All in all, this is Satan’s doing to destroy anyone he can, especially Christians, but that does not mean Christians who commit suicide are destined for hell. IV Rewards And Losses Now that we know what the Unforgiven Sin is, there is scripture that seems to suggest suicide cannot be forgiven. It is found in 1 Corinthians, chapter 3 verses 16-17; “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” In chapter 3 in 1 Corinthians, Paul was correcting the Church of Corinth about how they were building upon their spiritual foundation. He accused them of still being spiritually immature and not moving on to deeper truths of scripture. The church had been arguing among themselves as to which apostle they should follow. They had forgotten their foundation which is Jesus Christ. Paul wrote and said that the Lord’s disciples were mere men but it is Christ that works through all of them and it makes no difference which apostle they followed as long as Christ was their only foundation. In verses 11-15 Paul says, “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation...” (Let’s stop here for a moment). Paul just said that if anyone builds upon this foundation. What foundation was Paul talking about? Jesus Christ, which means he was talking about and to Christians. He was speaking about the saved, not the unsaved which is the key to these continued verses. . . “with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” Paul was talking about the Day when all Christians will stand before God and receive their rewards or realize their losses. He was not talking about the Great Judgment Day when all nations will stand before Him as He separates the saved from unsaved as goats from the sheep written in Matthew 25:32, “All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.” Paul wanted Christians to think about how they were building upon that foundation and whether or not their motives were right in God’s eyes. If not, their work will burn and their hard labor will count as nothing. The unsaved are not even in this category. Again in verse 15, “If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” This does not mean eternal hell. Paul says ‘he, (the Christian man or woman) himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.’ And the word fire in this verse doesn’t mean damnation or harsh punishment. It means God will test their work (refine it) to see if it stands. I heard Pastor Hagee say that “stones, wood, hay and straw will burn under fire but gold, silver and precious stones only get purer.” The verse, ‘yet so as through fire’ certainly doesn’t mean we will get into Heaven by the skin of our teeth if we suffer any loss on that Day. None of us will make it into Heaven by the skin of our teeth. We make it into Heaven only by the sacrifice Jesus Christ made on our behalf by suffering and shedding His blood for us, which carries a far greater price and power than barely getting us into Heaven. Because of what Jesus did for us, our home in Heaven is assured. It is the next two verses, 16-17, that does seem a bit confusing. “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” Again, it’s clear that Paul is talking to those who are indwelled by the Holy Spirit and not bound for an eternal death. Our labor for Christ and our works begin the day we become Christians up to the time of our death and then on an appointed Day God will test every Christian’s work to see if it stands. That is, when they are revealed with fire through God’s testing. It is true that we are tested by God now, but the test of our deeds and motives that Paul talks about will completely expose our intentions. Did we work to glorify God or to gain praise from men? Did we obey God in our ministries or do it for selfish gain? As far as destruction of the flesh, I’ll talk about that in just a moment. “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.” (1 Corinthians 4:5) Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give every one according to his works" (Rev 22:12).
Not only will we receive rewards in Heaven but also ‘Crowns.’ Each Crown stands for different services throughout a Christian’s life. Jesus warns Christians that not being faithful to Him and in our service can result in the loss of our Crowns but He did not say anything about losing our salvation. “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.” (Revelation 3:11)
V Destruction of the Flesh To cross-reference what Paul said about defiling God’s temple leads us to chapter 5 in 1 Corinthians, which talks about the destruction of the flesh. “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles--that a man has his father's wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Corinthians 5:1-6) This is where 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 should again be referred back to for a moment. “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” It is a destruction of the flesh and not an eternal punishment as stated in 1 Corinthians 5:6, “Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” Sin such as this defiles our bodies and by going back to the ‘world’ after we’ve become a Christian, is giving our flesh back over to Satan. That is why God says that anyone who defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. When we are indwelled and sealed by the Holy Spirit our destiny is in Heaven. We do not lose our salvation on the basis of future sins, although there are harsh consequences for those who do not repent and turn their backs on it, whatever that sin may be. If it’s a blatant sin as described in the scripture above and one that continues on with no repentance, we can be assured that the joy (or feeling) we get from that sin will never be worth it when God corrects us! VI Illnesses and Diseases Suicide is not a blatant sin, but a devastating and destructive illness. There is no joy, pleasure or glory in it. It’s tormenting and an agony that no one would want to suffer. It is also bondage, but I won’t talk about demonic bondages in this message. I wanted confirmation about my perception of scripture and felt lead to call a Pastor I had known for few years but never met. He lived one state away. He is a born-again Christian and has been a Pastor most of his adult life (more than 50 years) and although he’s retired now (in his 80’s) he still does the occasional wedding and funeral. Throughout his life he has given sermons at funerals to families of suicide victims. When I called him I did not explain my feelings or tell him my beliefs (nor did I know his beliefs on suicide) but simply asked him to explain what 1 Corinthians 3:11-17 meant concerning suicide. His words were exactly what I felt the Lord was saying to me and this is how he explained it. . . . “From the time a person accepts Christ as their Lord and Savior, they accumulate rewards and blessings. If they end their own life through suicide, and God allows that to take place, that person will still receive the rewards due him or her up to the point of their death, but from the moment they end their life, they will suffer loss of all rewards and blessings they would have received if they had not committed this act. They suffer the loss of life and blessings on this earth and loss of rewards in Heaven that they would have received if they had not taken their life. But any rewards or crowns due them prior to suicide, they will not lose, but after suicide everything else would be considered lost.” God would not condemn a person on the basis of a mental, emotional or physical illness any more than He would condemn a brain cancer victim. Years ago a woman whom I did not know wrote to me through email and explained that her son was a Christian and is suffering from brain cancer. She was caring for him at home. She said that he blurts out horrible curses and she was afraid that he would not go to Heaven because of his vulgar language. She wrote and asked me if he was going to hell. It was a terrible fear for her, not to mention the torment she was already suffering by watching her son die. My answer to her was “No! He is not going to hell. His salvation is sealed by the promise of the Holy Spirit. God would not hold that sin against him. It was not something that he purposely did against God. It was out of his control. He didn’t even know what he was saying.” Our Father’s mercy and compassion goes far beyond any human comprehension. He proved it through His Son, but why God allows some to heal and others to die long before their years are full, I do not have the answers for. I do know that if we were to catch one glimpse of the joy, laughter, peace and beauty of Heaven, we would not struggle so hard to use any means possible in prolonging our life in the case of a terminal illness. In most cases, an illness is not even caused by any sin on our part. We are in a sinful and depraved world. Illnesses happen. All kinds of suffering happens. If God allows a person to suffer a terminal illness, why would He turn around and hold it against them? VII God’s Immeasurable Love I want to tell you a personal experience I had with someone and the lesson God gave me concerning His love. (I was given permission to post this and for the sake of privacy I will change his name to Michael). He is a Christian who is manic depressive and has been diagnosed with mild Schizophrenia. He is highly intelligent and has a doctorate in business administration. I knew nothing about these illnesses until I met him. I cannot speak for others who have it but I can speak about my own experience with him. Despite all the medication he is on, he still falls into what I call, emotional and mental dives. He becomes angry at the drop of a hat, very verbally abusive and extremely foul-mouthed. I’ve heard him say things that I’ve never heard the unsaved say when his mental illness reaches an all-time low. When he is not in a manic-mode, he is passive, happy and kind. Although that was some time ago, he has changed tremendously through the years. One may ask why he's changing if it is a mental illness that he cannot control? Because the Sprit of God lives in him and God is changing him to be more like Jesus and less like 'Michael.' I don't know why God hasn't healed him of this or maybe the Lord is healing him slowly, because he is nothing like he was ten years ago. But on one particular day God decided it was time for me to learn a lesson concerning His love and mercy. I started a discussion with Michael before I realized what mood he was in. When I did realize it, I should have waited for a better time and bowed out, but he got angry at me for no reason and that made me angry. I defended myself by telling him there was no cause for his attitude. I wanted him to get that through his stubborn skull but instead of listening he cursed me and God out, then turned and walked away. All I could see was red! I thought to myself, ‘How can a Christian speak like that and actually believe he is right? Lord, he is so wicked! Why don’t You slap him up against the wall and teach him a lesson!’ When I was through fuming inwardly, I turned to chew him out for his filthy mouth, but before I could take a step in his direction God spoke to me so clearly it was as if He was standing right beside me. The Lord said, “Do not call unclean what I have made clean.” I froze. What I heard God say and the way God opened my mind to receive it made me realize that no one can fully understand the depth and the love that God has for us. His love cannot be searched out and it is too deep for anyone to completely grasp. God was not ignoring my feelings for being spoken to that way by Michael, but He used that opportunity to make me realize how committed He is to us and that His love will never fade or die. Nothing can separate Him or His love from us. When the Holy Spirit is indwelled in someone, that person is clean in God's eyes. Period! Not because of ourselves but because of the Holy Spirit. What that Christian says or does is a separate matter and one God will deal with in His own way. When a person is saved, they are saved and God does not 'soul-hop'. Do not call anything impure that God has made clean. (Acts 10:15) For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) What God’s Son did on the cross for us far outweighs any foul language or sin that we could commit. His Power is above everything and anything, seen and unseen. God placed it all under Jesus' feet, and that includes any sin possible except for the Unforgiven Sin which no Christian would commit if they are saved. Even Peter threw out curses upon himself and publicly denied Jesus three times but that was not enough to condemn him when all it took was one look into the eyes of Jesus. Peter realized what he had done and wept bitterly. And although Peter repented to God in tears, he knew that he still belonged to Jesus and nothing would ever tear their love apart. Peter, just like all of us had a lot of changing to do. VIII Conclusion: Don’t Judge For we know in part (1 Corinthians 13:9) Not everyone understands everything. We see in part and know in part, but saying that someone will go to hell because of something they did or the way they behave is a sin in itself. We are not to place judgment on anyone either by what we say or how we say it. A condescending attitude or word stems from a self-righteous heart. I have seen several sites that take this next scripture to the max. . . “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. (Ephesians 5:11) There are people who are severely obsessed with trying to find out every little thing someone says or does to show they are not obeying God’s Word. They post long lists of each person’s ‘sin’ especially about those who are before the public eye. That is not what Jesus is telling us to do! For example, if you know someone who is preaching and teaching God’s Word, then using God’s money to do evil, he or she should be exposed. That person is not fit to preach or teach. But we’re not to spend our time searching out someone else’s faults and sins then yelling it off the mountaintop by using the net or any other means to humiliate them. People who do this are no better than those they try to expose. You will find everyone else’s sins listed on their site, but never their own. The difference is this: If you personally know a person or a situation and you know the truth about that person or situation then by all means confront that person. If s/he does not repent then their sin needs to be brought before the church. But to throw your own hateful remarks or opinions across the net about someone you see on TV and yet you don't know don't even know that person at all but assume this or that about them, is not 'exposing' them as scripture says to do. It’s at that moment when we are about to condemn or judge someone, that we need to take our pointing finger and turn it back on ourselves. “. . . he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions,” (1Timothy 6:4) “. . .to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. For we, ourselves, were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior" (Titus 3:2-6) "Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you." (Luke 6:37-38) Only God can see into someone’s heart and mind and only He can make the right judgment. Maybe they are ill or in pain or going through grief, trauma or hardships. Or maybe they are just like Peter and have a lot of growing up to do.
"Do all
things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and
harmless children of God
©
Copyright Cheryl Taul
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