Suicide and Salvation

It is sometimes thought that a person cannot not be saved if he commits suicide. However, this is not true.

To be clear: Suicide is a very serious sin, since it is self-murder. We should not downplay the seriousness of suicide. Yet, suicide is not an unforgivable sin. A person who commits the sin of suicide is still saved if he believes in Jesus Christ.

Let us remember that we are saved through faith in Christ alone—

• not through faith plus works;
• not through faith plus avoiding sin;
• not through faith plus avoiding suicide.

In some cases, when a person attempts suicide, it may show that he never truly believed in Jesus. A good example of this is Judas Iscariot. After Judas betrayed Jesus, he felt remorse for what he had done (Matt. 27:3). Yet, he did not trust in Jesus in order to receive forgiveness of his sins from God. Instead, he took his guilt in his own hands and committed suicide (v. 5). However, this is not always the case with every person who attempts suicide.

In many cases, when a person attempts suicide, it is a rash decision that he made in a moment when his judgement is clouded, and not because he has no faith or hope in Jesus. Let us remember that we all make sinful rash decisions, yet it does not indicate that we are not saved, or that we do not truly believe in Jesus. The only difference is that when a person commits suicide, his sinful rash act results in his own death.

The Gospel is clear: Every person who believes in Jesus will be saved (John 3:16). A true believer may still struggle with suicidal thoughts, and may even commit the serious sin of suicide. Yet, because he has trusted in Jesus Christ, then God has forgiven him of all his sins—including suicide (Col. 2:13).