Let’s Prevent Suicide by Bryan Craig

Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”  Matthew 4:5-6

September was Suicide Prevention Month, which is appalling in and of itself that we have to have a month to bring awareness to this epidemic, but that’s really what it’s becoming.  So many people are taking their own lives, especially teenagers and young adults and it truly is tragic.  Probably everyone reading this has been touched by suicide in some form.  Currently, I know people who are having suicidal thoughts and making those thoughts known to me and others.  I have walked through this with a few parents whose kids have committed suicide, and I’ve even had a few friends who took their life.  My heart grieves for those families left behind after suicide and also for those right now being plagued by voices of temptation that they should kill themselves. 

Ultimately, as with all things, it is a spiritual battle, and I want to speak to those who are thinking of suicide and also those who know someone who may be considering it.

First of all, Suicide is not from God.  If you are hearing voices in your head suggesting that you take your own life, it is not God nor His Spirit.  God loves you, no matter what you think you’ve done bad or even if you don’t feel loved by others.  He created you.  You are His treasure.  It is the Enemy, the Devil and his demons who are speaking to you.  The Enemy is the Father of Lies and the Accuser and he comes only to STEAL, KILL AND DESTROY.   He wants to kill you, but he can’t do that without permission.  He can only tempt someone else to kill you or tempt you to kill yourself.

Second, Jesus understands.  Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”  Yes, Jesus was tempted EVERY WAY we are, including a temptation to commit suicide.  If you read the account of Jesus in the wilderness, immediately following his baptism, you read different ways the devil tempted him.  One of these, as described in Matthew 4:5-6 was to throw himself off the pinnacle of the temple.  Jesus was weak, hungry, vulnerable and the lie that Satan tells him is that, “Oh, surely the angels will catch you.  You won’t really die.”  It’s a lie!  And even if Jesus knew he would die by jumping, there was the thought, “I know you’re struggling, Jesus, and in anguish.  Make things easier by leaving this earth and go back to Heaven where things are easier.” 

Jesus tells the Devil, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”  Basically, He is taking spiritual authority over the situation and quoting Scripture (Deuteronomy 6:16) to the Devil.  This quickly diffuses the situation.

When we are in desperate situations where we feel temptations pressing in on us, we, too, can call on Scripture, but we also can always call on Jesus.  Continuing in Hebrews 4:16, it says, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”  If you can’t think of anything else to do or say, shout out the name of “Jesus.”  He will help you in your time of need.

Third, you have power and authority over evil.  If you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ, you are part of the royal family and most importantly, God sends the Holy Spirit to live in you and to teach you and to guide you and to give you power.  You have power through the Holy Spirit to “renounce” evil spirits.

To “renounce” means to declare one’s abandonment of a claim, right or possession.  For many of us there are evil spirits claiming a right to us that they do not possess.  For many, this has been going on for years. We need to declare OUT LOUD that, “I renounce the spirit of _______________!”  Fill in the blank.  If it’s suicide, “I renounce the spirit of suicide, in Jesus’ name.” 

If you have never placed your faith in Jesus, He is waiting for you.  He died for your sins.  He died so you can have life, even abundant life.  The devil wants death and Jesus wants LIFE.  As a matter of fact, Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  John 14:6. You don’t have to earn your way to heaven or earn Jesus’ sacrifice and love.  You merely have to humble yourself, admit that you need Him and receive Him.

If you are reading this and you don’t struggle with suicidal temptations, let me tell you that there are those around us that need us.  And you may not know it.  In my F3 men’s workout group, they have a target of men they want to help in the world.  They call them “Sad Clowns.”  These are men who look good on the outside, but they are dying on the inside.  We don’t always know who they are, but if we are abiding and prayerful, I believe the Holy Spirit will guide us to these people who are suffering in silence.  One man in a past Journey group told us at Commencement that he had been struggling with thoughts to take his life.  He said even at our extended prayer retreat, he was hearing a voice to end it all while he was alone and in prayer.  It wasn’t until the end of the Journey that he finally asked Jesus to help him, and the Spirit intervened quickly and the voice (the evil spirit) left him.  We were shocked to hear this, but I was SO glad God had prompted me to invite him to The Journey 9 months earlier. 

We must pay attention when someone in our world gets isolated.  Satan seized the opportunity to tempt Jesus when He was all alone in the wilderness.  And Scripture says Satan left Jesus for a more opportune time.  The “more opportune time” was in the Garden of Gethsemane, right before the Cross.  His disciples fell asleep and so Jesus was left alone to battle the voices telling him not to go to the Cross.  He was in so much anguish, he was sweating blood.  The weight of our salvation hung in the balance.  Consider also the famous parable Jesus uses as he talks about 100 sheep.  Ninety-nine are with Him, but He goes after the one lost one.  He sees that the one isolated sheep is vulnerable and needs rescue.

If we pay attention and ask for the Lord’s help, we will see people that are disappearing into isolation.  They may need a text, a phone call, a visit.  In another Journey group I led, my co-guide was feeling burdened for a particular man, so much so that he reached out to him one night.  Little did he know that man was about to commit suicide.  My co-guide’s loving concern for him thwarted the enemy’s plans, and the man did not go through with it.

If you are reading this, and you are in a dark place and starting to isolate yourself, please reach out for help.  Find a church, phone a friend, but more importantly, ask Jesus to help you.  There is always hope, there is love, there is a master plan.  God has plans for good, not to harm you.

It’s a spiritual battle, folks.  Let's start praying fervently against this tactic of the devil and start interceding with even more than our prayers, but also with our intervention of Love through action.  Let’s Prevent Suicide together.