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Question: The question is....if you are a Christian, and commit suicide, will you go to heaven or hell? We need a scripture to prove this.

Answer: Suicide is defined by Webster as: the act of killing oneself intentionally. It is the taking of one's own life. Suicide is an act of putting oneself in the place of He who has the power to give and to take life. To take the life of someone is murder in the eyes of the Lord.

There are several famous radio teachers who teach that people can accept Jesus as their Savior and afterward fall into deep sin; sinning to the extent that they even commit immoral sins or take another's life, and that it will not negate their salvation. Because they made a decision at one point in their life to serve God, they can fall into gross sin and die in that state and still make it to heaven. Others teach that it is only for a season that some fall away, and they ultimately return if they really were saved, or else they were never truly saved to begin with. A fine line is drawn to distinguish between those who fall away into temporal sin and those who return to a "lifestyle" of sin. If the latter is correct, according to the teaching of these respected men, then those who have committed suicides never returned, and ultimately died in that prodigal state, or "lifestyle". However still, according to the teaching of many in line with this theology, somehow even those "Christian suicides" remain saved.

Hmmmmmm... Since we are dealing with priceless, eternal souls, it would behoove us to examine this very closely so as to not deceive others or be deceived ourselves.

Many view suicide as a way of escape; escape from their problems, escape from a sour relationship, escape from debt, escape from terminal illness, escape from an unfair life...

Some cite examples of people from the Bible and offer a suggestion that they committed suicide and made it to heaven. Saul, Judas and Samson are among those listed. Well, Saul would have to be excluded because he clearly fell away from serving God to the extent that he became God's enemy (1 Samuel 28:16) and ultimately committed suicide (1 Samuel 31:4,5).

Some may ask, "What about Samson? Didn't Samson commit suicide, and yet he is mentioned in Hebrews as having died in faith? Samson, however, left his life entirely in the hands of God. Those who commit suicide, intentionally take their own lives regardless of what God's will may be. In Judges 16:28 we find Samson praying that God would remember him (turning back to God), and ultimately dying while carrying out the will of God in turning judgment upon the heads of the enemies of the Lord. God's call on his life was for the deliverance of God's people from the Philistines, and in Judges 16:28 we find that he slew more Philistines in the incident of his death than he had slain in his entire life. God honored his prayer and allowed his death at the same time, but Samson put no sword into his own chest, nor did he slit his own throat.

Putting all excuses people may come up with aside, let's get back to the original definition of what suicide actually is: the act of killing oneself intentionally; taking one's own life. Those who take their own life have certainly left God out. He is the answer to ALL our trouble, no matter how extensive that trouble may be. Peter wrote, "Casting all our care upon Him; for He careth for you." (1Peter 5:7) Those who resort to ending their life have chosen to reject God, and therefore end any further opportunity to make Him Lord of their lives. God rejectors will not make it to God's Heaven.

Murder is the unlawful premeditated killing of one human being by another. Suicide is simply self-murder. Revelation 21:8 clearly tells us that the unbelieving and murderers who do not repent will surely be thrown in the lake of fire. We would have to believe that one who commits suicide has truly chosen a route of unbelief in God. They are saying by their action that even God cannot offer hope in whatever situation they may be. Suicide is a willful act of unbelief. It is taking into their own hands the choice of ending a life and counting it unworthy of salvaging, when God has stated that He is not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). According to Scripture, God alone has the right to take life (Deuteronomy 32:39; Job 1:21). The final decision for suicide is prompted by the very first detected sin in Lucifer; that of exalting our will above that of God. 1John 3:15 says, "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." (Cross reference this verse with Revelation 21:8.) Jesus gave His life so that we would not have to die. HE paid the price that we could never pay. Unfortunately, if we take our last breath and our life ends with unrepentant sin, we cannot go to God's holy Heaven. It is impossible for one to ask God's forgiveness for the heinous sin of suicide after they have died. A murderer can repent and be saved (King David did), but suicide victims have no time to repent to find forgiveness. We must not be deceived. Without exception, all unforgiven murderers will end up in the lake of fire.

Suicide is NEVER the solution to ANY problem no matter what may be the magnitude of our trouble. Suicide, like any other temptation of the devil, must be steadfastly resisted. One songwriter so aptly put it his way:

Jesus is the answer
For the world today.
Above Him there's no other.
Jesus is the WAY!

For further reference, consult The Believer's Conditional Security by Daniel D. Corner. This book can also be purchased from:
Evangelical Outreach
P.O. Box 265
Washington, PA 15301-0265.

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