Mark Vestal Supporter Proud of nothing of myself. Freed by Christ who did it all!

All our sins were forgiven at the cross, but this should never be viewed as a license to sin. A proper understanding of the gospel of God's grace is crucial not only for this very serious question, but any that makes a believer doubt their salvation. Salvation being the primary concern in this question is however not the only issue at hand. We should review scripture to be reminded of what the requirement for salvation is today, and also touch on what having salvation should mean in the life of a Christian.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4
"15 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:"

The requirement for salvation today is to believe that all our sins were forgiven through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, that He was buried, but He rose from the grave the 3rd day for our justification. The foundation for every Christian should be knowing the sin barrier between God and man was removed through Jesus Christ. Christ, who knew no sin, was made to be sin for us, so that by faith alone in Him we are made the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21).

God was in Christ not imputing the world's trespasses (2 Corinthians 5:19). This is how believers can know with certainty they have an eternal savior in Jesus Christ. Consider the below two excerpts from Ephesians to see what happens next upon belief.

Ephesians 1:12-14 "12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory."

Ephesians 4:30 
"And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption."

When one 'hears the gospel', or otherwise comes to the knowledge of it, and then 'believes' the gospel, they are immediately 'sealed with the holy Spirit', 'until the day of redemption'. Not just until they sin again, but until Christ returns to collect what He has purchased. There is nothing a believer can do to break their seal from the Spirit of God.

Romans 8:38-39
"38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Paul speaks of the agony he has had to endure as Christ's apostle to the Gentiles, including his 'thorn in the flesh'. Paul reminds us that our weaknesses in the flesh ultimately make us stronger for God, so although salvation would not be compromised by suicide, the question of how this act would affect the edification of the church the body of Christ is an entirely different matter (2 Corinthians 5:10).

2 Corinthians 12:7-10
"7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

March 10 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Justin Hale

The reality is that 'suicide' is a term not found in the Bible because no human being is ever 'completely disconnected' from all others when we do anything, say anything, or decide anything.

'Evil thoughts' and their corresponding actions ALWAYS come from a source within us, emanating from the deepest chamber of our psyche away from our conscious mind. The Bible calls this place our 'heart,' (Mark 7:21-23).

It is here that we make 'eternal' decisions too, since it is from this deepest chamber that a spontaneous and unplanned verbalization emanates that indicates whether or not we confess or deny that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead, and this confession or denial either saves us for all eternity or condemns us for all eternity, (Romans 10:9-10).

How or when we die does NOT affect this decision. Whether we die peacefully surrounded by loved ones while the whole world sings our praises and mourns our loss, or we die in a back alley alone with a needle sticking out of our arm, it is ONLY our heart's decision that ultimately determines our eternal destiny.

The idea that 'suicide' immediately causes a person's soul to enter hell is NOT Biblical at all. As I stated above, it isn't even a 'real' thing in the sense that larger evil influences and other people are ALWAYS involved, making it, in fact, a 'murder' in most cases. 

However, not even that is always the case. Look at the famous Old Testament Judge Samson, who was finally captured by Israel's enemies, literally blinded by them, chained inside their pagan temple and awaiting his role as a 'sacrifice' to their vile demon 'gods.' Instead, GOD inspired Samson through the Holy Spirit to annihilate the entire Baalite priesthood with a single act of destruction after they had all arrived to join in the pleasure of torturing and killing GOD's 'special man.'

How did Samson do it?

He intentionally brought their entire temple down around his own ears, killing himself and all of them in the process. 

Yes, that's 'suicide,' (if I even accept the term), but it was an act of bravery, loyalty to Yahweh GOD, inspired justice, and undeniable righteousness. The idea did NOT come from an 'evil' place inside Samson's heart, so it was not even 'murder' in this case.

This was a 'holy sacrifice,' and not at all the type the worshipers of Baal were planning on delivering to their 'gods.' 

So that is why we should NEVER spread the notion that the victim of a 'psychologically induced murder,' (as I call them), is anything other than that. The destiny of the person's soul is neither reflected in the event itself or their manner of death.

In truth, every death is a type of similar 'murder,' since it is sin that causes each and every one of these deaths to occur. Every time we 'tolerate' a vile lust and allow it to develop to its maturity we physically 'die' a little more, (James 1:15). That is OUR choice, so this entire process would be 'suicide' too, (if any act is suicide), the only real difference being the speed of our death.

Stay focused upon the truth of the gospel and understand that the ONLY truly important factor in our eternal destiny is our mouth's spontaneous confession of Jesus Christ in response to our heart's belief that He is indeed our soul's personal Redeemer and Savior, having proven this undeniable fact beyond any doubt to every source of evil power currently trying to 'murder' us, doing so through His resurrection from the dead. 

Within this holy act is also contained the certain promise that we will someday rise with similar victory over the same vile influences that put us to death unlawfully, along with everyone who has called upon the Lord's Name throughout all of human history, and they will each bow the knee willingly to the same GOD who made both us and them, (Philippians 2:10-11).

March 12 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report