Saturday, July 04, 2009
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10 comments:
I disagree with this video; a true Christian cannot commit suicide. The focus of suicide is on the self not on GOD who CREATED US.
Anonymous,
Thank you for your comment. This is a difficult issue and I disagree with you. I do believe most people who take their own lives are not saved. But to say that a true Christian cannot commit suicide is saying God does not forgive that sin which we know is not true (Colossians 2:13-14). Are you saying God forgives murder but not suicide? I personally know true Christians with extreme, severe, acute mental problems and if in a moment in their weakness they lose it, make an impulsive decision, choose to sin and take their own lives, God has forgiven them. It is rare that a truly regenerate person kills themselves but it does happen.
Blessings,
Josh
How can someone who commits suicide ask for forgiveness? "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us..." The key to forgiveness is to acknowledge sin and ask for forgiveness. Someone who takes their own life has no way to ask for forgiveness. I agree with anonymous on this one. Also, why would a true born again believer commit such a horrendous sin as this? Also, how do we know a truly regenerate person commits suicide? Can we see into the heart of man? If a heart is truly regenerated, then why would such a heart sin so grievously against God?
Lyn, I hope you don't sin just before the second coming of Christ. According to your own words, you would not be forgiven for it.
David was regenerate and committed adultery and murder. We sin constantly and do not know it. Anything we do that does not bring glory to God is a sin. Most times we breath, eat, sing, hunt, drive, etc we do not do it for His glory. I agree with the last comment, many of us will sin right before we die or the rapture.
I am not insinuating that I, or anyone, am sinless. I know that I sin and live a life of continual repentance. We are called to strive for holiness, walk worthy, walk in the Spirit, forsake sin. That certainly does not mean perfection, but it does mean to strive for it. If a professing Christian knowingly steps in front of a train to end his/her own life, how does that reflect a regenerate heart? Can a true believer commit suicide and go to heaven? What does God's word say about murder? "Thou shall not commit murder". So, if a 'believer' murders self, have they not broken a commandment? David's sin was grievous, but he was brought to repentance over it. Someone who takes their own life has no chance of being brought to repentance.
I think we want to believe we can sin, willfully, and still enter into God's kingdom. Yes, we all sin daily. BUT, it is the CONTINUAL walk of repentance that signifies a true believer. To think that someone would take their own life and still have eternal life cannot be proven with scripture. There just isn't any biblical evidence to support such a view.
John MacArthur of www.gty.org says it best, "Suicide is a grave sin equivalent to murder (Exodus 20:13; 21:23), but it can be forgiven like any other sin. And Scripture says clearly that those redeemed by God have been forgiven for all their sins--past, present, and future (Colossians 2:13-14). Paul says in Romans 8:38-39 that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.
So if a true Christian would commit suicide in a time of extreme weakness, he or she would be received into heaven (Jude 24). But we question the faith of those who take their lives or even consider it seriously--it may well be that they have never been truly saved.
That's because God's children are defined repeatedly in Scripture as those who have hope (Acts 24:15; Romans 5:2-5, 8:24; 2 Corinthians 1:10, etc.) and purpose in life (Luke 9:23-25; Romans 8:28; Colossians 1:29). And those who think of committing suicide do so because they have neither hope nor purpose in their lives.
Furthermore, one who repeatedly considers suicide is practicing sin in his heart (Proverbs 23:7), and 1 John 3:9 says that "no one who is born of God practices sin." And finally, suicide is often the ultimate evidence of a heart that rejects the lordship of Jesus Christ, because it is an act where the sinner is taking his life into his own hands completely rather than submitting to God's will for it. Surely many of those who have taken their lives will hear those horrifying words from the Lord Jesus at the judgment--"I never knew you; Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness" (Matthew 7:23).
So though it may be possible for a true believer to commit suicide, we believe that is an unusual occurrence. Someone considering suicide should be challenged above all to examine himself to see whether he is in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5).
If someone has a heart attack and dies we do not question it at all. It's a shame that even today people do not understand mental/emotional illness.
I hate child molestation. These young children can not possibly "emotionally" process what was done to them. And what makes it worse is when they become adults and battle all kinds of emotional problems including suicide, we want to condemn them to hell.
A genuine christian is forgiven for "all" sins. Even the ones that "we" all die with unconfessed. Does anyone really believe they know every sin they commit? Confession is a result of salvation not a "work" to be saved.
We need to be very careful confusing spiritual disciplines with a sickness! Mental illness is a sickness not a sin!
Lyn....may I suggest that you never counsel a person suffering from a mental illness.
I personally love John MacArthur, but I know for a fact that in years past he counseled a young man with mental health issues...using spiritual applications....and the young man committed suicide. That would be like me finding someone having a heart attack and just pray over them w/o calling 911.
You are obviously a well versed christian but you absolutely do not understand the complexities of mental illness.
Dr. Vogt
If I were to guide someone who suffers from depression, I would tell them of the strength, hope, and power of God to set them free from their depression. We want to label certain things as mental illness, when, in fact they are attacks of Satan. I do not claim to understand the 'complexities of mental illness', but I do know One who has all the answers. I trust my all to Christ, He is the only answer to all suffering.
We certainly cannot blame MacArthur because someone took their own life. Could you have prevented this? If so, how? This young man obviously saw no way out, he opted to end his life. This is tragic. However,the real issue here is NOT that he killed himself, the real issue is which side of eternity did he step into? We all die, whether by our own hand or by some other way. Every person has an appointed time to die; the biggest concern here is to give the Gospel of Christ, and in this case,try to deter the lost sinner from ending his/her own life by sharing the love of Christ with them. Christ alone can set the sinner free from the bondage of sin, whether it be alcoholism, sexual addiction, depression, or whatever sin has you in bondage. If the lost sinner rejects Christ, it certainly is no fault of the messenger.
We do indeed to be thankful to God for modern medicine, for lives have been prolonged because of it. But, in the end, we all still die, whether it be sooner or later. If we extend life, yet fail to give the Gospel, what good have we done?
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