Choose Life (27 of 27)
Series: Calling All Leaders
Keith Krell
1 Samuel
This past Sunday, we lost a very important member of our church family. His name was Geoff Prozora and he was a great man of God. Tragically, Geoff committed suicide. Yesterday, at his memorial service we remembered Geoff and celebrated his life. Today, however, we will examine the topic of suicide. This will not be an easy sermon to listen to, yet I pray that we will hear a timely word from God. To help us think through the difficult topic of suicide, I would like to ask and answer four important questions.
1. What does the Bible say about suicide? We must begin by acknowledging that the Bible never deals with suicide, per se. By that I mean that the Bible doesn't contain a verse that reads, ''You shall not commit suicide.'' The Bible only alludes to a few examples of suicide (e.g., Judas, Matt 27:5; Saul, 1 Samuel 31). Fortunately, the Bible does give a number of clear principles that will help us understand God's view of suicide.
- Life is sacred. The first chapter of the Bible tells us that as human beings we are created in God's image (Gen 1:26-27). Human life is sacred because God created us to bear His likeness in the world. That can never be said about any other creature. Killing a mosquito and killing a human being are not the same thing, because one is made in the image of a mosquito while the other is made in the image of God. Our physical lives are precious to God.
- Life is a gift from God. James, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote, ''Every good and perfect gift is from above'' (Jas 1:17a). Certainly this applies to life. When Job said, ''The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away'' (Job 1:21b), he was recognizing the fundamental insight that life itself comes down from God as a gift. Suicide usurps the power that belongs only to God. He alone gives and He alone takes. No one has the right to interfere in that process.
- Suicide violates God's Word. The sixth ...
Series: Calling All Leaders
Keith Krell
1 Samuel
This past Sunday, we lost a very important member of our church family. His name was Geoff Prozora and he was a great man of God. Tragically, Geoff committed suicide. Yesterday, at his memorial service we remembered Geoff and celebrated his life. Today, however, we will examine the topic of suicide. This will not be an easy sermon to listen to, yet I pray that we will hear a timely word from God. To help us think through the difficult topic of suicide, I would like to ask and answer four important questions.
1. What does the Bible say about suicide? We must begin by acknowledging that the Bible never deals with suicide, per se. By that I mean that the Bible doesn't contain a verse that reads, ''You shall not commit suicide.'' The Bible only alludes to a few examples of suicide (e.g., Judas, Matt 27:5; Saul, 1 Samuel 31). Fortunately, the Bible does give a number of clear principles that will help us understand God's view of suicide.
- Life is sacred. The first chapter of the Bible tells us that as human beings we are created in God's image (Gen 1:26-27). Human life is sacred because God created us to bear His likeness in the world. That can never be said about any other creature. Killing a mosquito and killing a human being are not the same thing, because one is made in the image of a mosquito while the other is made in the image of God. Our physical lives are precious to God.
- Life is a gift from God. James, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote, ''Every good and perfect gift is from above'' (Jas 1:17a). Certainly this applies to life. When Job said, ''The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away'' (Job 1:21b), he was recognizing the fundamental insight that life itself comes down from God as a gift. Suicide usurps the power that belongs only to God. He alone gives and He alone takes. No one has the right to interfere in that process.
- Suicide violates God's Word. The sixth ...
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