Results 1 - 4 of 4
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Bible's view on suicide? | Matt 27:5 | Morant61 | 125497 | ||
Greetings Angel! Suicide is an emotional issue for many people. So, I am concerned when we go beyond what Scripture actually says. For instance, you wrote: "Though Jesus spoke of one particular sin that would not be forgiven (Matthew 12:31-32), when a person commits suicide he/she is rejecting God: the Holy Spirit: Christ." Where exactly does the Bible define suicide in these terms? There are simply too many causes for suicide to define it so narrowly. Obviously, suicide is not a good thing! :-) But, Scripture is simply silent on the issue. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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2 | Bible's view on suicide? | Matt 27:5 | JCrichton | 125560 | ||
Hi, Tim Moran! True we are creatures of emotions… so much so that Christ Himself allowed some of His emotions to show through when confronted with some human issues. And you are right. The Bible does not speak on suicide; could that mean that God condones suicide? Well, if we fallow simple logic (0, 1; on, off, yes, no), we must conclude, from your observation, that He does! But if we apply simple logic to one part of Scripture, would it not be fair to do the same with the totality of Scripture? So, again by the simple logic rule, since Scripture does not mention hard liquor, marijuana, cocaine, acid, prescription drugs, household cleaners and other compressed household chemicals… all these would be consumable goods and could even be abused with Biblical endorsement! Well, not direct endorsement since Scripture does not testifies to their use… just indirect endorsement since there is no text that sanctions the use/abuse of any of the above mentioned chemicals. Clearly, simple logic does not work! The same applies to suicide! Though Scripture does not speak on suicide, we have to go beyond simple logic to understand that God, the Creator of Life, does not desire to take a single life. His concern is such that He establishes an eternal statute: “Do not kill.” Jesus talks about God’s concern for us to the point of having even the hairs on our head numbered… is this a sign of a God who could care less if His followers just up and quit life? If Christians, reinvent the wheel and profess that it is Biblical to commit suicide, where do we draw the line: poverty (just at national‘s level, 10 percent bellow, 30 percent…), diminished capacity (blindness, mental retardation, alcoholism, drug addiction, obesity, anorexia, low IQ…), old age (in America that would be something like 53--males and 46--females), genetic deformities, social pressures, debt, loss of job, spouse, child or parent, personal failure (marriage, school, business, profession…), incompetence, laziness, boredom…? Our society prides itself on empty values (perennial youth, stick-figure females, cosmetic surgery, physical perfection, depravity--every sort, individualism--to the extinction of the family, wealth-centered--anything and everything with the inclusion of “Christianity“, and the all mighty disposable everything), is it any wonder that “Christians” are now making excuses for self-annihilation? Where in the Bible did Christ command us to “take yourselves out when life becomes unbearable?” Of course, there are those who interpret Scripture as stating that Christ is but a glorified prophet… so Scripture can be molded to mean anything we want! If Christians begin to teach that we can commit suicide at whim with assurance of a better life in Heaven, how can we face Christ’s death on the Cross for our infirmities? Which part of His suffering covered the sin of self-annihilation? There are “spiritual” doctrines that promote murder-suicide as a sign of martyrdom, others that promote suicide in the face of personal failure in order to deflect dishonor from the family unit, still others that promote suicide as means to ascension to a better/more spiritual level of existence… which one of those doctrines are based on Christ’s teachings? When “Christians” manipulate Scripture to reflect these same values, have they heard a word Christ said?: ‘Why do you call me, “Lord, Lord” and not do what I say? (Luke 6:46) God Bless! Angel |
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3 | Bible's view on suicide? | Matt 27:5 | Morant61 | 125572 | ||
Greetings Angel! Thanks for the response my friend! Allow me to clarify that I never said that suicide was okay! :-) All I said was that you were making very precise statements about suicide that simply are not supported by Scripture. Is suicide always a 'sin' issue? There is evidence to indicate that mental illness or chemical imbalances can be a cause of suicide. I am simply not prepared to say, without any Scripture to back it up, that anyone who commits suicide has rejected Christ and is going to Hell. :-) Nor am I prepared to say that someone who commits and sin and dies before he can confess it is going to Hell. I would simply urge that any discussion on such a complex issue be based on what Scripture actually says, not what we think it means by what it doesn't say. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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4 | Bible's view on suicide? | Matt 27:5 | JCrichton | 125611 | ||
Hi, Tim Moran! I understand your point! Though, my concern is with "Christians" who are promoting the idea that we can commit suicide--since the Bible is basically silent on this issue (as far as stating "do not commit suicide"). There are people in my community, from other nations (both on and off the net) who are teaching that it is ok to commit suicide because Christ has already paid the price for our sins. This is ludicrous! If a person driving to work dies in an accident before he/she has time to make peace with God I believe that the Holy Spirit would pray for that person's salvation. On the other hand, if that person just had a shoot-out with the police after comitting a crime and that person dies in his/her sinful state how can we believe that he/she is to be welcomed into God's presence in their sinful state? This would negate Scripture! There are people who have diminished capacity who could potentially cause harm to others or to themselves... it will be the Holy Spirit who will see to their final moments if they commit suicide. But we cannot decree that all people who commit suicide die in a state of grace! There are people who are such cowards that when they decide that life is not worth living (whatever the reason) they seek to end their existence... they are not thinking of God. They are not even thinking of those they will leave behind. In their blind selfish desire they end it all! We cannot decree that they are in God's grace! It is not for me to judge who lives and who dies... Christ said that those who do not believe are already judged by the Word! He also cautions that not all who claim to be saved will be saved, but those who do the Will of the Father! Since God can turn even the most negative situation into good for those who love Him, and since Christ has assured us that if we go to Him He will not cast us away, there's no excuse for a person who calls him/herself Christian to commit suicide in order to escape the turmoil of his/her corporal existence! Lack of faith in Christ Jesus can allow Satan to deceive us into seeing nothing but darkness and death as the only answer to life's problems. This is why it is so important for all Christians to fellowship, to love, to care for their weaker brothers and sisters, to demand that we become more responsible Christians instead of looking for loopholes and quick solutions to life's tribulations! If I am forceful in demonstrating that suicide is not the answer, please forgive me. But my responsiblity, as a Christian, is not to accomodate those who have had a brush with or are contemplating suicide, but to offer them Christ as the means to resolve their personal situations. Christ, when praying for the disciples, said to the Father that He did not ask Him to take them out of the world (tribulations and persecutions) but to keep them safe! God has the power to keep us safe in our temporal existence, but we must humbly abide in Him and obey His Word! God Bless! Angel |
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