Musings120510, Depression and Suicide, by John

Too many people in our world today suffer depression. They've lost most of their hope for the future and are usually unhappy. Most depressed people are wonderful, but they don't make very good company because of their problem. That can increase their depression. These folks tend to be overly concerned about themselves even when they express real concern for others. Doctors give medications designed to lessen the problem, but there is no pill that will heal it. Psychologists and psychiatrists help many, but some people leave their counseling sessions in as much pain as when they went in.

I've been told depression may be caused by a chemical imbalance in a person's system, and that it may be a result of their early environment, or perhaps still something unknown. Whatever the cause, it is a very real problem and some victims end their own lives. Sometimes a person struggles through his own personal battle and wins. Sometimes they lose.

I am thinking about this right now for two reasons. The first concerns a man who recently took his own life. He was well known by some of our church members. His death left sorrowing people in its wake. The second reason is that so many people during the past sixty years or so have asked me, "What does God say about suicide?" Some of them were victims of depression, some wanted to help those who were struggling with thoughts of ending it all.

We do not have definite answers about how God considers suicide in spite of what some good, well-meaning Bible students say. I am sure God is grieved by anyone's failure to live out his full God-given life. As well as I can remember the only account of suicide in the Bible is that of Judas Iscariot. I've known quite a few people use that to say, "See? God is against suicide!" Some go further, "Anyone who commits suicide is going to hell!" As far as I know neither is necessarily true. One of the wonders of life is that God gives us great latitude in living it. Perhaps suicide is not so terrible in His sight as so many of us think. I believe God loves us so much that He suffers with us any time we even hurt! I'm a Christian, a child of God, and I am devastated when I hear of a suicide. I believe that reaction is something God has given me, but I'm aware it may not come from God. It may be circumstantial. I was exposed to a suicide early in my life. A little girl, my second grade classmate more than seventy years ago, suffered terribly when her father committed suicide in his office one morning. I heard my parents say he left his wife and daughter shocked, penniless, and grieving. They thought business reverses were responsible for his death. I knew him well myself, and as I've thought of it in the passing years, I've wondered if suicide isn't actually murder! Is the perpetrator also a victim along his friends and family? I still am not sure. God forgives murderers when they truly seek His forgiveness. David is a good example. He ordered the murder of Bathsheba's first husband Uriah the Hittite. The prophet Nathan faced David with his sin. David confessed to God, and God forgave him, but He also told David Bathsheba's child would die. That shows us that even when forgiven, sin always has consequences right here on earth. Sometime later, Bathsheba bore Solomon and he lived to become the person God chose to reign on his father's throne.

I think almost all Christian people agree that taking a human life is a terrible sin whether it is their own life, or someone else's, but that does not mean it is unforgivable. It is forgivable. All sin is. I think Muslim leaders sin when they convince their young people to be suicide bombers. Those leaders may experience worldly blessings, but I believe it is at a cost of spiritual blessing. Remember what Jesus said about little children? He said, "If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck." (Mark 9:42) Can you imagine what waits for these leaders in eternity? I'm not at all sure about what will happen with the misled children in eternity. At least some of them may be okay. I believe one of the most precious gifts God has given us is our physical life and the opportunity of living forever with Him as His children.

Another aspect of suicide is that there is certainly no reason to believe Christians who commit suicide will be lost. I know from reading the whole Bible and living with God as my Father that He knows the heart of every person. I also know what He says in His Word. If you believe that a Christian who commits suicide will be lost, you will still make an exception for a Christian soldier who saves other soldiers by throwing himself on an exploding grenade, won't you? I think such a soldier is a hero, and I see no Biblical reason to believe he loses his salvation by giving his life that way, but it is suicide in the strictest sense.

Another thought is that the only kind of life God offers living people is eternal. I agree with Billy Graham. He said being saved means that we will live as long as God lives. I know some think Christians can lose their salvation. My goal each year is to read the Bible through. I finished in early August this year, and as yet I do not see anything indicating Christians can be lost. I am quite aware Hebrews 10:26-29 is used by some as a proof text to say we can be lost again by sinning. The key to understanding that passage is in verse 29. It is not talking about all sinners, but rather speaks of those who despise both Jesus and the Holy Spirit. In Ezekiel 18:20, God said, "the soul who sins is the one who will die." He also said a righteous man who turned to sin would die, and the wicked man who became righteous would live. In a sense this fits with the New Testament Gospel Jesus gave us. We are guilty because "all have sinned" (Romans 3:23). In John 5:24 He said, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal (present tense) life and will not be condemned: (future tense), he has crossed over from death to life." That last phrase is present perfect tense indicating the life that began in the past will not die in the future! Our turning to God is exactly what is described in Ezekiel. Jesus makes it possible.

Suicide is extremely sad, forgivable, but a person contemplating it should think what the future can but will never be if he is not alive in it. He should also think of the pain, longing, and loss he will put others through who know and love him. Personally, I feel that saving my family such grief is worth all the suffering I might experience. That includes depression, and I'd hate to come before the Lord with such failure. If you are thinking of ending your life prematurely, don't trust yourself! Seek the help of others, particularly the Lord. Find a godly purpose that will fill up your days. Work at it! Cling to it! And perhaps you will discover many years later, it was worth it all after all!