Ask Your Preacher - Archives

Ask Your Preacher - Archives

“Last Worst Decision”

Categories: RELATIONSHIPS, SALVATION, SELF
I have a friend that says he is a true born-again christian, but he has been having a lot of problems in his life and has thought about taking his own life.  His question was if you were to take your own life, even if he is really saved, if he was to do something like that, he wanted to know if he would go to hell.  I told him I didn’t think so; I think once you are saved under Jesus’ blood, you’re always saved no matter what.  Is there any verse in the Bible that talks about that?  If so, could you give that to me, so that I can talk to my friend?  Thank you so much.

Sincerely,
Friend To The Hurting

Dear Friend To The Hurting,

People can lose their salvation. Heb 6:4-6 and Heb 10:26-27 outline that if someone rejects God’s Word (even after becoming a christian), they will go to hell just like any other unbeliever. And that is the key to the whole thing – is suicide an example of rejecting God’s Word and sinning willfully?

Suicide certainly is condemned. Suicide is murder, self-murder, and is therefore very clearly a sin (Rev 21:8). The only difference between suicide and murdering someone else is that you don’t get a chance to repent after suicide. Suicide is a final decision and leaves no room for correction or for asking forgiveness. Therefore, in most cases, it would be fair to say that suicide will send you to hell. It is a willful act of disobedience against God without opportunity for repentance.

We here at AYP only hesitate to say, “All people who commit suicide go to hell,” because God never specifically makes that statement. The final judgment belongs to God (Heb 12:23), but we certainly wouldn’t want to face that judgment with our own blood on our hands.