I Corinthians 6:12-20 (NASU)

19"Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body."

(I Corinthians 6:19-20)

"So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11)

(A) SUICIDE IN THE UNITED STATES

(1) Melinda was twenty-two years old. She lived with her husband and their two blond-headed children in a rural idyllic two-story farm house surrounded by corn and soy bean fields.

Responding to several invitations from neighbors, she and her family began attending the Presbyterian Church located a few miles from their farm. That’s how I became acquainted with Melinda – and how I came to officiate her funeral – for on the morning of May 15, 1985, a little after first light, Melinda got out of bed without disturbing her husband, went downstairs, out into the yard, and shot herself.

(2) I can’t vouch for the statistics I’m about to give you, but here’s a sampling of what I found just for the United States. Between twenty-five¹ and thirty thousand² people commit suicide every year. It’s assumed thousands more try and fail,¹ while an even higher number think about it but never follow through. For example, it’s reported that one in three teenagers have contemplated suicide.²

Suicide ranks among the top ten causes of death in the United States.⁴ However, it’s the second highest cause of death among young people, like Melinda, who are in the 15-24 year-old age bracket¹.

Many years more people commit suicide than are murdered.⁴ Men take their own life twice as often as women, but women attempt suicide twice as often as men.¹ The statistical weapon of choice is the one Melinda used – i.e. a gun (58%). Hanging and poisoning come in second and third.² For some reason, suicides rates are highest in the western and rocky mountain states.²

In case you are wondering whether this is a problem among people who profess to be Christians or not, statistics tell us Protestants have a higher rate of suicide than Catholics or Jews – and that more Christians take their own life than followers of Buddhism and Hinduism.³

(3) Many suicides are associated with long-term depression. Others are because of a terminal illnesses and/ or intolerable pain.² Additional contributing factors include – an unbearable sense of guilt over something that seem unforgivable – an intense desire to exact revenge – or extreme loneliness and grief brought on by the death of a loved one.⁴

Regardless of the reason, one factor remains constant – i.e. the person thinking about suicide believes their crisis is inescapable and/or utterly beyond their control – as in, “I can’t stop the pain” (be it physical, mental, or emotional) – “I can’t see any way out” – and/or, “I can’t regain control of my life.”⁵

Many people struggle with these kinds of issues without ever considering suicide. Most who do eventually come to realize suicide is an extreme solution. As one website put it, “suicide is a permanent solution for a temporary problem.”² Those who don’t come to this realization, however, often choose to end their suffering by taking their own life – which is what Melinda chose to do.

(B) IS SUICIDE AN UNFORGIVALBE SIN?

(1) To my knowledge, no one in my immediate family has ever committed suicide – so I don’t have that kind of first-hand experience. However, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn some of you do. I DO have some experience, though, as a pastor – both with the family and friends of people (like Melinda) who have taken their own life – and those I have talked with who were seriously thinking about doing so, but by God’s grace never followed through. From my limited experience, I know people often ask: “Is suicide an unforgivable sin?” “Do people who take their own life forfeit their place in heaven?” “Is suicide a one-way ticket straight to hell?”

(2) Many people think it is. (a) I’m not sure where this idea originated – but I do think it is based partly on a misinterpretation of First Corinthians chapter three, verses sixteen and seventeen, which says: “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are” (c.f. I Corinthians 3:16-17) – the argument being that suicide “destroys the temple of God”, therefore God “will destroy” anyone who takes their own life by sending them to hell.

(b) While this morning’s Scripture lesson indicates every individual Christian is “a temple of the Holy Spirit” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:19), Paul was using the word “temple” differently in chapter three. There he used it to refer to the corporate body, known elsewhere as the Body of Christ, or the Church (c.f. I Corinthians 3:9). Hence, the warning in chapter three is actually directly at those who attempt to destroy Christ’s Church, rather than those who take their own life.

(3) Having said that, I want to try and give you as clear, and concise, and above all biblical answer as I can to the question: “Is suicide an unforgivable sin?”. First, make no mistake about it – suicide IS a sin. It’s a form of murder – albeit self-murder – nevertheless, it IS a violation of God’s Sixth Commandment (c.f. Exodus 20:13).

(a) However, the problem doesn’t stop there, because taking one’s own life is also a violation of the Eight Commandment, which forbids stealing (c.f. Exodus 20:15). If we use Melinda as an example, we must say that when she took her own life, she also stole her children’s mother – her husband’s wife – her parent’s daughter – her brothers’ sister – and her neighbors’ friend.

She also broke the Fifth Commandment by dishonor-ing her father and mother (c.f. Exodus 20:12) – nor am I talking about the stigma that’s often unfairly attached to suicide – but rather the heart-breaking pain she brought upon her parents.

(b) But the problem doesn’t even end there. I’m glad to tell you there was some evidence Melinda made a profession of faith in Christ four to six weeks before she took her life. Assuming that’s true, then according to this morning’s Scripture lesson, “her body had become a member of Christ” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:15), as well as “a temple of the Holy Spirit” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:19). As a Christian, then, even though she was obviously a very young one, her suicide dishonored her Savior and grieved the Holy Spirit (c.f. Ephesians 4:30), in part, because she took matters into her own hands, when verse nineteen says her body was no longer her own (c.f. I Corinthians 6:19), thereby failing to “glorify God in (her) body” as verse twenty exhorts us to do (c.f. I Corinthians 6:20).

(4) Obviously, then, taking one’s own life a very serious offense in God’s sight – an offense no follower of Christ should seriously consider, let alone carry out. However, I also want to make it very clear this sin is NOT unforgivable.

(a) For one thing, according to Scripture the only unforgivable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit – which Jesus said amounts to an explicit, willful decision to attribute the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan. This is exactly what the Pharisees did when they publicly accused our Lord of casting out demons by the power of the prince of demons (c.f. Matthew 12:22-32). Suicide is a sinful act, but it is NOT blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and there-fore not THE unpardonable sin.

(b) Others believe (albeit erroneously and even illogically) that people who die before they’ve confessed ALL their sins are doomed. And, since the person who takes their own life can’t ask the Lord to forgive them after the fact (apparently “before the fact” won’t work either) they forfeit any possibility of heaven.

[1] Beloved, this is such a perversion of the Gospel of Grace through Faith in the Person and Work of Jesus Christ that I hardly know where to begin.

[2] First, while we Christians SHOULD confess our sins every day, we all have numerous faults we don’t even know about, and therefore never confess. David asked: “Who can discern his errors?” (Psalm 19:12a) … while in another psalm he admitted his own sins were “more numerous than the hairs of my head” (c.f. Psalm 40:12). Hence, one reason we can’t discern all our sins is because they are too numerous to count. Furthermore, we might as well base our entrance into heaven on being able to correctly number all the stars in the night sky, as to say our salvation ultimately depends on discerning ALL our sins so we can confess them ALL.

Along these same lines, the prophet Jeremiah said: “The (human) heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Again, the point is, you and I don’t know and/or don’t even comprehend the full extent of our sin and depravity! Therefore, how can we confess that which we don’t even recognize?!

[3] I suppose someone might counter that David also prayed: “Acquit me of HIDDEN faults … then I will be BLAMELESS” (c.f. Psalm 19:12b, 13c) – the argument being that we should confess all the sins we’re aware of, and then offer a kind of blanket prayer of confession to cover all the ones we’ve forgotten.

[4] Actually, that’s not a bad habit to cultivate. However, our salvation doesn’t stand or fall on it, because we are NOT made blameless in God’s sight by confessing ALL our sins – we’re made blameless by confessing we are sinners, and professing faith in Jesus Christ! We’re blameless in God’s sight because Christ’s righteousness has been applied to our lives by faith (c.f. Romans 3:21-22) – not because of some kind of “works righteousness”, which is what the unreasonable and even unnecessary goal of confessing EVERY sin we’ve EVER committed, is.

[5] What if one sinful thought slips in at the very last moment, right before we close our eyes in death? What if death suddenly takes us before we can confess that one last sinful act? Are we lost because of that? According to the theological view I’ve just summarized the answer is “Yes”!

Beloved, if such a possibility did exist it would turn our hope of salvation into despair! It would turn the joy and freedom we have in Christ into a kind of spiritual paranoia, because we could never be sure all our sins were confessed and forgiven. In the end we would be driven to ask with the disciples: “Then who can be saved?" (c.f. Luke 18:26).

[6] Paul’s hope of salvation was NOT based on something like this. On the contrary, he said, “in (Christ I have) a righteousness (NOT) of my own derived from (trying to keep) the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith” (c.f. Philippians 3:9), not on some work of my own – even a good one like keeping my sins “confessed up” (as it were) – although I would guess Paul confessed his sins regularly, not to be saved, but because he had already been saved by God’s grace through the gift of faith in Jesus Christ (c.f. Ephesians 2:8-9).

[7] The point I’m trying to make is this – even though suicide is a serious matter, that act in and of itself does NOT place a person outside God’s saving grace in/through Jesus Christ. Suicide IS a sinful act – but so is adultery, and lying, and stealing, and failing to keep the Lord’s Day holy, to mention a few. And yet, none of these sins are unforgivable – and neither is the sin of taking one’s own life. On the contrary, the Scripture says: “where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (c.f. Romans 5:20b) … and again: “the grace of our Lord (is) more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus” (c.f. I Timothy 1:14).

(C) WHAT DOES SCRIPTURE HAVE TO SAY?

(1) This morning’s Scripture lesson doesn’t mention suicide … but it does talk about sexual immorality (c.f. I Corinthians 6:15-18), comparing it to a kind of spiritual adultery, because when we become Christians we are united to Christ in a way that involves the whole person, including our bodies⁶ … hence, verse fifteen says our “bodies (become) members of Christ” (v 15), while verse nineteen says our bodies become “temple(s) of the Holy Spirit” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:19). The conclusion in verse twenty is that we “have been bought with a price” – i.e. Christ’s shed blood and sacrificial death on the cross – “therefore, (we should) glorify God in (and/or with) (our) body” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:20).

(2) These facts – i.e. that our bodies are actually members of Christ (v 15), and temples of the Holy Spirit (v 19) – that we no longer belong to ourselves (v 19), because Christ has bought us with His blood (v 20) – and that as a result, we now have a solemn responsibility to glorify God in/with/through our body (v 20) – (these facts) are not only relevant to the sin of immorality, they are relevant to any misuse of our bodies that dishonors Christ and/or grieves the Holy Spirit – including things like over-eating, drunkenness, drug abuse, over-work, taking foolish and/or unnecessary risks, AND suicide.

(3) With that in mind, let’s go back through this morning’s Scripture lesson quickly, and apply what we find there to the specific temptation some brothers and sisters in Christ face to take their own life.

(a) First, as a Christian my body belongs to the Lord – not just my soul, not just my “heart”, not just my mind, or my spirit – but also my physical body! Look at the last part of verse thirteen, which says: “the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:13b).

In the next chapter, Paul will tell Christian wives they do “not have authority over (their) own body, but (their) husband does” … he will also tell Christian husbands they do “not have authority over (their) own body, but (their) wife does” (c.f. I Corinthians 7:4). In a similar way, since we Christians are Christ’s Bride, we don’t have authority over our own bodies, our Bridegroom does.

Our body is the instrument by which we are able to serve Him, love for Him, honor Him, and/or please Him. Using my body immorally certainly doesn’t fulfill any of those purposes – and neither does “abusing” my body by taking my own life!

(b) The idea my body belongs to Christ is accentuated further in verse fifteen where Paul asks: “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be!” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:15).

When we come to Christ for salvation, He doesn’t just save us, He also unites us to Himself. Furthermore, this union is so intimate Scripture says our physical bodies actually become members of Christ.⁷

Now I will admit I don’t understand this. I don’t understand how such a union can exist, let alone what all it entails. Nor does Paul explain it in today’s Scripture lesson. Instead, he makes this point – when a Christian commits any act of sexual immorality he/she uses a part/ member of Christ’s body to do it. Such a thought was both incomprehensible and reprehensible to Paul – as it should be to any believer with an ounce of spiritual discern-ment. Hence, he exclaimed, “May it never be!”

In a similar fashion, any Christian who commits suicide is misusing a part/member of Christ’s body. Obviously, that should not be either.

(c) Verse nineteen also emphasizes this theme of belonging to the Lord, saying in part: “do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:19).

When we profess faith in Christ, one thing that happens is God the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us. Jesus said: “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you” (c.f. John 15:16-17).

The reasons for His dwelling “in us” are not within the scope today’s message. But it should be obvious that we ought not “desecrate” the temple of the Holy Spirit by committing acts of immorality … nor should we grieve the Spirit (c.f. Ephesians 4:30) who dwells within us by “destroying” His temple.

(d) Since our body belongs to Christ, verse twenty concludes that we should “glorify God in (our) body” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:20).

Later in chapter ten, Paul will say: “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (c.f. I Corinthians 10:31). Eating and drinking are things do with our bodies – hence, we are to eat and drink in a manner that glorifies God in/through our body.

Likewise, even though a person can commit adultery in their heart (c.f. Matthew 5:28), our body is the primary instrument by which we obey or disobey God’s commands regarding moral purity. There has never been, nor can there ever be, an instance where a person glorifies God by using a member of Christ’s body to commit immorality.

Likewise, it is equally impossible to glorify God in our body by taking our own life.

(4) If we define suicide as “deliberately taking one’s own life,” then there are only a handful of people in Scripture who did so. Probably the one that comes most readily to mind is Judas, one of Jesus’ twelve disciples, who betrayed our Savior into the hands of His enemies for thirty pieces of silver.

(a) Because Judas’ sin was so monstrous, it’s not hard to understand how his unrelieved sense of guilt drove him to take his own life. He committed the most heinous crime any man ever committed … indeed, his act of deceit and treachery resulted in the crucifixion of the only truly innocent and perfect Man who ever lived.

When Judas realized Jesus had been condemned to die, his guilt became so unbearable he actually returned the money, saying in part, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood” (c.f. Matthew 27:3-4). Unfortunately, neither his confession, nor returning the money did anything to ease his guilty conscience … and so, unable to bear it any longer, the Scripture says: “he went (out) and hanged himself” (c.f. Matthew 27:5).⁴

(b) Suicide was not the only choice Judas had. He could have repented – he could have gone to Jesus and asked for forgiveness – he could have asked the Savior of sinners to save him, which Scripture says the Lord would have readily done (c.f. John 6:37b). Instead, he chose to try and relieve his problems by taking his own life.⁸ I say “try”, because in Judas’ case death only intensified his problems by ushering him off into eternity without Christ.

(c) There was another man, whose sense of guilt could have driven him to consider suicide (although I hasten to add Scripture doesn’t indicate he ever did). His situation was actually not that different from Judas’. Peter denied Jesus three times. Afterwards, the Scripture says his sense of guilt caused him to “(weep) bitterly” (c.f. Matthew 26:69-75). But instead of taking his own life, he repented of his sin – he received Christ’s cleansing and forgiveness – and was restored to useful service in the Savior’s kingdom (c.f. John 21:15-17).

(d) For non-Christians like Judas, the biblical solution to suicide is to flee to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith, asking Him to save you from the guilt and penalty of your sin, which He promises to do (c.f. John 6:27).

For Christians like Peter, the solution is to flee to Jesus Christ for cleansing and forgiveness, which He promises to give (c.f. I John 1:9) – and/or flee to Him for the grace and mercy He promises to give His people, thereby helping them successfully fight off any/all temptations to take their own life (c.f. Hebrews 2:18; 4:16).

Essay on Suicide; p. 1.

Suicide; p. 2.