Sermon Tone Analysis

Depression and Suicide

So tonight we are going to be having a pretty serious conversation about Depression and Suicide.

We are finishing up with our series Hope in the Darkness.

Recap Hope in the Darkness

The whole conversation started with us as a leadership team looking at what are things students deal with?

Mental illness and ultimately suicide were ones that we at the top of all of our list.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death in young adults from the age of 15-24, the number one being accidents— Motor vehicles.

But suicide is number 2.

Depression is the number one mental illness in young adults today.

To say suicide and depression are related is an understatement.

Of the suicides that happen 90% of those are dealing with mental illness and of that 90%- 60% are specifically depression.

While we will literally just be skimming the surface today, we want to be a church, a youth group that doesn’t flinch when we encounter these illnesses.

Hence why we are talking about them.

This will be very much an overview.

However next year we will be doing a much more in-depth look at these illness.

So lets begin with prayer and then let us tackle these mental illness and where does our hope in Christ come into play.

PRAY

I want to start out these conversation with, I have not had to deal with depression nor thoughts of suicide in my life.

I can say that I never have, this does not mean that it won’t happen, but for now this is an area of my life that I have not dealt with personally.

However, I have been closely related to someone who has, and I have had to walk with them through this area of their life.

That person being my wife Brittni, Who I have asked to come up and share a little about her battle with depression and yes even thoughts of suicide.

Brittni:

Questions:

What is a definition of depression?

What were some of your symptoms that you had?

How long have you been dealing with depression?

Have you always been depressed or have you had different bouts of it?

Did you know that you were depressed or did someone have to point it out to you?

What were some treatments that you recieved?

How did it feel as a Christian to be officially diagnosed as “depressed?”

The next part here is a little more focus on what suicide is

Many questions get asked about depression and suicide.

Can a christian who commits suicide go to heaven?

or really what is asked is can Christian commit suicide?

Can a Christian be depressed?

Or even How can a Christian be depressed?

Let’s take the first one— can a christian commit suicide?

Answers that have been around for hundreds if not thousands of years.

1.

Those who grew up in the Roman Catholic church have heard that suicide is a mortal sin that would put the one who did this in hell for eternity.

2. A true Christian would never commit suicide as God would not allow them.

3. A christian can commit suicide but they would lost their salvation.

4. A Christian can commit suicide without losing their salvation.

IF some of these make you uneasy you are not alone.

I want us to look to the Bible as we continue this conversation.

I can tell you right now that the Bible, does not say anything about suicide.

Many of these answers that were stated above are answers based on emotions and not scripture.

Let us being by stating the obvious that as humans we are deprived.

This doesn't mean we're as evil as we could be, but that every human capacity—intellect, heart, emotions, will—is tainted by sin.

We are naturally sinners.

I want us to be clear on this that we live in a broken world, and because we live in a broken world we as people are all broken.

A common thought is that suicide is an unforgivable act or a mortal sin that cannot be made right.

Only two times in all of scripture is an unforgivable sin ever mentioned.

And they are both the same sin.

It is speaking against the Holy Spirit.

Matthew

Mark 3:

From these passages we can conclude it refers to the continual rejection of the Holy Spirit in the work of conversion.

Others believe this passage speaks of attributing to Satan the work of the Spirit.

It's clear that in any case it's referring to an unbeliever.

This is someone who continues to deny God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit to the point of death— never having a relationship with Jesus.

That means of course that would be an unforgivable sin because someone who carry that out until death.

However if that person were to repent and turn to Jesus then their life would be saved!

Romans 8:

We will commit sin all of us do on the daily!

However nothing that we do as repented believers of Jesus can separate us from the love of Christ.

I know that we have talked about David and Uriah— you know the dude that David had killed so he would be with Bathsheba!

Yeah David was not condemn to hell after committing murder.

His actions did not change His salvation and that law was specifically give to the Israelites as command number 6

Exodus

Christ sacrifice on the cross was for all sins- past, present, future.

Christ sacrifice on the cross was for all sins- past, present, future.

The sin a Christian will commit tomorrow was forgiven at Calvary—where Jesus justified us, declaring us positionally righteous.

He accomplished this work through one single offering that didn't need to be repeated again.

On the cross Jesus didn't make us justifiable; he made us justified

Moreover, some hold suicide robs a Christian of her salvation because it doesn't provide an opportunity for repentance.

But if you were to die right now, would there be any unconfessed sin in your life?

Of course there would.

So, to summarize:

If we've established a Christian is capable of committing any sin, why can't we conceive one could ever commit the sin of suicide?

If we believe Jesus' blood is capable of forgiving any sin, wouldn't his blood cover this other one also?

If Jesus' sacrifice has made believers perfect forever (), could any sin remove their salvation?

If someone like Moses (and Job, and Elijah, and Jeremiah) came to a point where he wished God would take his life, couldn't a believer with schizophrenia or extreme depression, who lacks Moses' strength of character, make this wish a reality?

On the basis of Scripture, history, and the experience of God's people—as well as the indwelling Spirit and the means of grace in the church—it's nonetheless likely that suicides are rare for genuine believers.

Suicide is a serious offense against God, as it represents arrogant violation of the gift of life the Creator has given.

But if a genuine believer is theoretically capable of taking another's life, why is it impossible to conceive he could ever take his own?

I believe that we can still call suicide sin but not because someone cannot repent from it, no, but let us clearly define what sin is.

Sin is:

The glory of God not honored.

The holiness of God not reverenced.

The greatness of God not admired.

The power of God not praised.

The truth of God not sought.

The wisdom of God not esteemed.

The beauty of God not treasured.

The goodness of God not savored.

The faithfulness of God not trusted.

The promises of God not believed.

The commandments of God not obeyed.

The justice of God not respected.

The wrath of God not feared.