Monday, February 22, 2016

Can A Person Go To Heaven If They Commit Suicide?

As a pastor I get asked this question fairly frequently. There are differing viewpoints and uncertainty abounds as to exactly what specific religious groups believe.  
 
Before answering this question in it's entirety when someone commits suicide PLEASE:
 
Do not pass judgment. The family members are not looking for a treatise on what you believe theologically. Simply, give them a hug. Be a presence of compassion and mercy. Do this above all else when tragedy happens.
 
The question still remains: can someone go to heaven if they commit suicide?
 
The answer: Yes!
 
On the contrary, some believe that certain sins are so grievous that they cannot be forgiven. Suicide is seen as not only selfish, but the person who commits suicide has the inability to repent because they have taken their own life.  It is argued that even Jesus shares that their is a sin that cannot be forgiven (Matthew 12:30-32).
 
To answer this question one must fully look closer at the context of Matthew 12. Jesus, God incarnate, had come to earth and the religious leaders of that day credited his miracles from coming from Satan. Jesus is stating to them that they can be no further from the truth than in seeing God himself and crediting the works of God to Satan. The unforgivable sin that Jesus is talking about is one of blatant rejection from the religious leaders in seeing Jesus firsthand. The unforgiveable sin is ONLY relegated to the religious leaders of that day and era.
 
Is any sin too grievous to be forgiven today? The answer is NO! God's Word is explicit that those in Jesus have their sins forgiven both in the past, present, and FUTURE! There's nothing we can do once a child of God to lose the forgiveness of sins. Here are some Scriptures that point to this:
 
Psalm 103:12 "as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."
Our sins can never be reattached to us once they are covered in the blood of Jesus!
 
Romans 8:1 "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
Once you are in Christ you will never have to worry about condemnation or separation from Christ!
 
John 10:29 "My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand."
Once saved we are permanently God's!
 
The issue for people, regardless of committing suicide or not, is did they accept Jesus as Savior before they died? That is the ultimate question.
 
There are many different reasons people commit suicide. Some have physiological and psychological issues that impair their judgment. Others are in severe pain. Still others have unthinkable decisions to make like burning to death or ending their life quickly by jumping from the Twin Towers on 9/11 for example. 
 
My point is that instead of passing judgment on people for the reasons they commit suicide allow God, the perfect Judge, to sort all of that out!
 
Our job is to be ministers of light to hurting people and to preach truth and hope to those who are alive. It always comes back to whether or not people know Jesus before they die. Do you know Jesus?
 
 

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