Suicide is More Than A Statistic

Suicide is up 300% from my father’s generation. Over the last few months, I have read an alarming number of articles on the suicide rate in our nation. A quick Google search will reveal that suicide is on the rise in almost every region, and most alarmingly, it is on the rise among pre-teens.

Would it surprise you to know that a number of the greatest people in the Bible at one time thought they would rather die than live?

Job gave up on life. Elijah prayed to die. Moses wanted the Lord to kill him. Jeremiah said he wished he had never been born. Jonah thought death was better than life.

What a list!

Yes, good people sometimes lose hope. The truth to remember is that each of these individuals lived. They not only lived, but we are talking about them today. God did amazing things with their lives after they passed through “the valley of the shadow of death.”

You are not alone. Others have been there. You are not alone. Christ is with you.

The Lies of Satan

Satan is a master of despair. He lives in darkness and loves to bring others into it. Remember that he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). “There is nothing to live for” is a lie from one who only knows death. And many believe his lie.

Our enemy is not only a liar, but he is a murderer from the beginning. Jesus said that the devil came “to steal, to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10). If you are a child of God, Satan cannot touch you, but he can seek to get you to harm yourself. In a sense, that’s what all sin is – man bringing harm to himself and grieving the God who gave him life.

There are many reasons why people take their own lives, but there is always one person behind it – Satan.

Christ is the Deliverer

And there is One who is able to deliver from it. He is the One who gave life to start with; he is the One who sustains life. He is the One before whom we will stand at the end of this life. His name is Jesus. He is life. Eternal. Abundant. Life worth living.

The jailer in Acts 16 “would have killed himself.” I love the words that Paul spoke, “Do thyself no harm.” And then he proceeded to give him the good news of Christ.

Several months ago, while speaking to a large group of young people from this passage, the Lord brought this truth home to my heart. In that Philippian jail that night, there was the possibility of death and life. Satan wanted to destroy a man. Jesus wanted to rescue him.

We have a message that an entire generation needs to hear. It is a reason to live; it is hope. It is Jesus.

“For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion” (Ecclesiastes 9:4).

As long as there’s life, there’s hope! If you are breathing right now, God is not through with you. He has a purpose for your life.

People view death as a release. Relief. And in God’s timing, it is indeed that. But, David reminds us that the timing is God’s alone, “My times are in thine hand” (Psalm 31:15).

Suicide is a cheap substitute for the release that is to be found only in Jesus Christ. It robs man of goodness, and it robs God of glory. Death is not the answer. Jesus is.

Suicide is more than a statistic. It is a story that ended too soon. Don’t miss the rest of your story…

Resources:

About Scott Pauley