What The Bible Says About Suicide

(Text: Psalm 42:1-11)
By: Barry L. Cameron


ILL. Suicide is the senseless taking of a life.
(1) Linda Welch
(2) Hungary
(3) Coast Guard Officer
(4) Football Coach
(5) CEO of Luby’s

* According to USA Today, suicide is the eighth leading cause of death among the general population in America.
* Some 23,000 people are murdered in the United States each year.
* 32,000 Americans commit suicide.
* Children ages 10-15 are now twice as likely to commit suicide as they were 15 years ago.

Facts About Suicide:
1. There are four male suicides for every one female; however, at least twice as many females as males attempt suicide.
2. Sixty percent of all people who commit suicide kill themselves with firearms.
3. Guns are now used in more suicides than homicides.
4. Women are most likely to use barbiturates, drugs or poison rather than more violent means; men are more likely to use a quick, violent means of suicide such as a gun or hanging.
5. 750,000 Americans attempt suicide each year, but survive.
6. No evidence exists of a genetic or biological tendency toward suicide.
7. Of those who commit suicide, 25% are mentally ill.
8. Of those who take their lives, 80% warned someone.
9. The highest suicide rates are among people ages 35-49 and people 65 and over.
10. The suicide rate on some reservations is five times the national average. This reflects the poverty, disease, and despair for many Native Americans today. Gay and lesbian youth are also at increased risk.
11. Suicide is not the unpardonable sin. The unpardonable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit--the unwillingness to yield to the convicting work of the Holy Spirit which leads to salvation through Jesus Christ (Mark 3:29; John 15:26)
12. The hoplelessness that accompanies severe depression can undermine faith and the most religious person can become of victim of suicidal despair. (Proverbs 13:12; Hebrews 6:19)
(Source: Associated Press, Public Health Service, Irving Christian Counseling Centers, and Hope for the Heart.)

Myths About Suicide:
(1) People who talk about committing suicide never actually do it.
False: Statistics show that 80% of suicide victims talked with someone about it.
(2) The chances of suicide happening can be reduced by avoiding the subject.
False: Experts say that getting the suicidal person to talk about it helps them feel their burden has been lifted.
(3) All people who kill themselves are mentally ill.
False: Many people are “not themselves” when they commit suicide, but only a few are mentally ill.
(4) Only a certain type of person commits suicide.
False: Demographics show that all ages, races, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds are represented.
(5) Suicide happens without warning.
False: Studies show that most suicidal people drop numerous clues about their intent, but they go unnoticed by loved ones and friends.
(6) Once a person is suicidal, he will remain so forever.
False: Most people feel suicidal for a limited time, ranging from a few hours to a few months. They’ll usually survive if carefully nurtured through this unstable contemplation period.
(7) Suicidal attempts are rarely repeated.
False: Odds indicate that without proper help, 12% who have attempted suicide in the last year will try again--and will kill themselves within two years.
(8) Signs of improvement after a suicidal attempt mean that the risk is over.
False: Repeat attempts often occur without three months of the first signs of recovery.
(9) Suicidal people are committed to dying.
False: Most actually are undecided about living and dying. They don’t realize until after the attempt how badly they still want to live, even if they don’t know how to deal with life’s problems.
(10) There’s nothing you can do about suicide.
False: Caring intervention and counseling have convinced thousands of people that their lives are worth living.
(11) People who attempt suicide are weird in the first place.
False: They are people just like you and me.

Causes of Suicide:
There is no single answer as to why people kill themselves, but there are a number of circumstances that can serve as the catalyst.
- Ultimately, suicide is not about dying, but about living.
- The suicidal person can’t take it any more. They want to silence the emotional pain of life.

* Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.
- And it always creates more pain than it alleviates.

1. Absence of hope.
2. Feelings of worthlessness.
3. Rejection
4. Loneliness
5. Inability to overcome addictions.
6. Aging
7. Inability to overcome difficult circumstances
8. Death of a family member or close friend.
9. Divorce
10. Prolonged illness
11. Loss of employment
12. Fear of humiliation (being found out)
13. Family history of suicide

Biblical Examples of Suicide:
1. Abimelech (Judges 9:54)
- Motive: PRIDE (He didn’t want people to know that a woman killed him.)
2. Samson (Judges 16:29-30)
- Motive: REVENGE. (He wanted to get the Philistines back.)
3. Saul (I Samuel 31:4)
- Motive: FEAR (He didn’t want to be tortured by the Philistines.)
4. Saul’s Armor Bearer (I Samuel 31:5)
- Motive: HOPELESSNESS (With Saul dead, he knew he was a dead man.)
5. Ahithophel (II Samuel 17:23)
- Motive: HUMILIATION (When he saw that his advice wasn’t followed.)
6. Zimri (I Kings 16:18-19)
- Motive: HOPELESSNESS (When he saw the city was taken, he set it on fire.)
7. Judas (Matthew 27:3-5)
- Motive: DEPRESSION. (He’d betrayed the Lord and there was no hope left.)

How To Help Those Who Are Considering Suicide:
1. Don’t wait to help. Talk to them NOW.
- Share the hope of the gospel with them. Salvation means deliverance…eternally.
2. Surround them with love and support. NOW.
3. Get them to talk about their problems (the past) and their solutions (the future).
4. Remind them of the Scriptures. NOW.
- Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is close to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
- John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”
- Philippians 4:6-7; Philippians 4:13; Isaiah 40:31
5. Get them professional help. NOW.
- If you can carefully nurture them through the present crisis, they will look back on it and be eternally grateful that you helped them through it.

Conclusion: “Why Suicide Is NOT Painless” by Ann Landers

Can A Christian Commit Suicide And Still Go To Heaven?
* That’s really not the question we should be asking.
- It’s like asking, “How sinful can I live and still go to Heaven?”
* That’s not the question Christians ought to be asking.
* We ought to be asking, “How can I avoid sin and live a more godly life and honor the Lord?”
- Even Paul said in Romans 6:1, “What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace
may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live it in any longer?”

* Someone has said, “Our lives are God’s gift to us. What we do with them is our gift back to God.”
- We have so much to live for and even more important than that, Someone to live for.
- So, we ought to make our lives count, every day, for God and for His kingdom, making sure that
we’re giving Him the best gift we can by living the best life we can.
* Ultimately, the answer to the question, “Can a Christian commit suicide and still go to Heaven?” is one only God can and will answer.
- One thing’s for sure: we can trust that His answer will be the right one.