There is a thread of understanding in the Bible, but is part of mysticism in general: Why do we not commit suicide and get it over with? More broadly, if this life is so messed up (fallen) and awful, why do we stick around?
Mostly, it’s because God said so.
No, it is not exactly stated flatly anywhere that suicide is a sin. You can deduce it from other statements, but we must admit, in the sense of God’s Laws, it’s not there. But in another sense, it’s the wrong question. The right question is: Why does God call any of us to live for Him?
All of humanity rushes like a raging torrent to Hell. From the stream, God chooses out for Himself a few to show — in part — it was not His idea for people to go to Hell. Humanity chose that end, by rejecting God’s way. That does not have to make sense to you; it makes sense to God. Feel free to argue your case with Him, but that’s what He has revealed. My calling is to make some effort to clarify things. In that sense, I am a chosen vessel of God for His glory. So it is with a great many others.
In committing myself to that mission, it becomes the sole priority. All other things are just decorative art work on the exterior. Yes, I do take care of my body, with exercise and good nutrition. That’s because it’s not my property, but God’s. Should He call me to a situation where proper exercise and nutrition aren’t available, that’s for Him to choose. Watch me go, just as soon as I can feel certain in my spirit that’s the mission. I’m altogether willing to face the various forms of abuse in this world, self-deprivation, etc. That’s the commitment I make to Him. And don’t try to say He wouldn’t ask such a thing. He used exile to Patmos as the setting for revealing some pretty amazing things to the Apostle John. He can command me to go anywhere in performance of anything we would consider a futile gesture, even if I know it would be “suicidal.”
There’s that word again. I teach from my convictions you have no right to take your life in the more blatant forms of suicide. That’s usurping God’s authority. But at what point do we define some act as “suicide”? Like most people, I think I know it when I see it, but trying to set up definitions which fit all cases is a waste of breath, ink and electrons. It’s wrong when you aren’t acting in faith — the word means commitment, personal loyalty, a promise to seek God’s divine pleasure. I don’t stand between you and God as some arbiter; I am not the Holy Spirit. I can make my case, declare my convictions in light of His Word, but it’s still in your hands.
Yeah, it’s in your hands as long as you do not directly reach out to harm another, as reflected in Jesus’ command to respect your fellow humans. If your suicide is going to kill others for whom there is no lawful justice in killing, then you sin. General guideline, of course.
So I’m willing to go charging hard into the future with God’s mandate to act, and it will surely at times be approaching what most folks consider “suicidal” in one sense or another. I’m willing to live in His mighty glory that way. I’m willing to burn myself up quickly, without sparing any part of me, if my spirit tells my heart that’s the command of God. The fire is brightest which burns its fuel quickest.
If sinners live long and prosper on the earth, and you see a problem with that, you miss the point. This is all they have. When that’s done, they have eternity to shine their light in Hell. For us who live by the Spirit, we may still suffer from the hesitance of the flesh, but once we overcome that by the Spirit, we are ready to get on with it, to finish the job and get out of here. Not so much as to constitute a waste of God’s resources, but in our best perception of His calling, we use His resources as He sees fit. Let the sinners plod along in creature comforts; maybe they’ll eventually be touched and repent. I came to Christ early, and I’m hoping for the earliest fitting departure into eternity.
Flame on!
