1 Samuel 31:41Sa 31:4 Then said Saul to his armorbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armorbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took his sword, and fell upon it.
1Sa 31:5 And when his armorbearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell upon his sword, and died with him.
2 Sam 23 And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.
Mat 27:3 Then Judas, who betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
Mat 27:4 saying, I have sinned in that I betrayed innocent blood. But they said, What is that to us? see thou to it.
Mat 27:5 And he cast down the pieces of silver into the sanctuary, and departed; and he went away and hanged himself.
"Sometimes I get so lonely it’s unbelievable. Life has been so good to me. I’ve got a great wife, good kids, money, my own health—and I’m lonely and bored . . . I often wondered why so many rich people commit suicide. Money sure isn’t a cure-all." Those were the words of O. J. Simpson in 1978.
Dear Sir, Hi. My name is Carole. I am seventeen years old and a senior in high school. And I want to die.
My name is Brandy. I’m 13 years old and I’ve tried to kill myself six times. I had some problems with my mom and I felt I couldn’t live anymore.
I don’t know what to do anymore. My life has been a nightmare. I’ve lived all my life without love. I hurt everybody around me. I’ve come to the end of the line. I can’t go on anymore. I’ve ruined enough lives. I don’t have anywhere else to go. I hurt so much. I can’t stand it anymore. "Bobby"
I don’t want to die but it’s like the only thing I feel will work. I have so much pressure at home and school. I have so much pressure with friends. No one expects me to have problems because I am always happy. But I’m also hurting inside. I hate my life. I think about suicide. I just know tomorrow brings more pain. Sometimes there is so much hurt I can’t stand it. Why do I feel like my problems are worthless but worth dying for? Signed, "On the Edge"
Lori was 14 years old when she was baptized at Blue Springs Community Church, a one-room country church only a few miles from her house. A few months later, Lori dropped out of the church. The pastor and his wife visited her several times, but failed to persuade Lori to return to church. Everyone was concerned for her, but no one suspected the real reason for her absence. Lori was pregnant. About a month before she was expected to deliver, Lori tidied her room, emptied her school locker, and wrote a note to her mother:
“You kept asking me if I was OK and I kept telling you I was, but I wasn’t OK. I’m sorry, Mom. I’ve got too many problems. I am taking the easy way out.”
Lori left that day before her mother arrived home from work. She walked to the railroad tracks near her house, knelt between the rails, and folded her hands over her little round belly as Amtrak 168 barreled down upon her. The train engineer, a man who had a fourteen-year-old daughter of his own, later said that when he saw Lori, it was too late to stop the train. He watched her cross herself before she died.
People everyday considers “ending it all.” In fact, Suicide is the third leading cause of death among 15-24 year olds. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, eighteen teenagers per day kill themselves in the United States. Every 80 minutes another teenager commits suicide. Over a hundred teens per week, and the total comes to a staggering 6,500 lives lost. Not only that, but over 1000 teens per day attempt to take their own lives. That’s almost 1 teen per minute. 73% of kids admit having thought about suicide. How many of you in here know someone who has talked about or attempted or commited suicide? The statistics show that at least 90% of you know someone who has attempted it.
Every suicide or suicide attempt screams these three words… “I NEED HELP.”
Suicide is not a new idea. The Bible records seven suicides.
Abimelech
Judges 9:52-54
Abimelech lacked personal identity. After murdering 70 of his brothers he was pushed off the roof by a woman and so people wouldn’t think he was killed by a woman he ordered his armor bearer to thrust him with his sword.
Samson
Judges 16:25-30
Samson died for a cause he believed in and for revenge.
Saul
1 Samuel 31:4
Saul was stressed out, unable to live up to certain expectations; felt rejected and a failure (fell on own sword)
Saul’s armor-bearer
1 Samuel 31:5
Impulse, he wanted to die with his boss. 40% of teenage suicide is impulse. (fell on own sword)
Ahithophel
2 Samuel 17:23
Ahithophel was bitter because his advice was not followed.
So after arranging his worldly affairs, he hanged himself,
Zimri
1 Kings 16:15-20
Rebellion; Zimri had a problem with authority. Set fire to the palace and died
Judas
Matthew 27:3-5
Depressed, Judas felt trapped by materialism, greed, and guilt.
Let me tell you what the Bible says about our lives?
1. God has a great plan for your life. God has created us in His image (Genesis 1:26-27). He created us for a purpose. God has a specific plan in mind for everyone.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).
1. Jesus wants us to have life. He said:
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10).
1. Because of God’s salvation through the death of Jesus on the cross, we can have assurance of eternal life with God.
I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life already and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. (John 5:24)
1. When we accept Christ, God gives us a brand-new life and sees us as completely holy and righteous.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17).
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).
1. Romans 10:13 says:
For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
John 1:12 says:
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
If people like us would just tell others like them about Christ, many of these terrible situations would never happen. Not in every case, but in many.
Now… Choose Life!
I come now to the end of my message. The words of Jesus seem so appropriate. "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10) The devil is a thief. He steals, he kills, he destroys. Everything he touches turns to death. Behind every victim is the laughing face of Satan, rejoicing that he has had his way, again.
But when Jesus comes in to your life, he brings life! The only life worth living is the life that is found in Jesus Christ. His life is free, His life is eternal, and His life is abundant.
If you want to go to heaven, you need Jesus. There’s no doubt.
The issue isn’t suicide, or murder or alcoholism, or addiction or thievery, or hatred or any of the sins of this world. The issue is Jesus.
If you want a new life, then Jesus is the answer. And He is the answer… Right Now!
Board:
(I Need Help) well, (There is Hope)
There is hope! There is a better way. There is love!
Someone cares for you. You aren’t alone.
. Don’t take a permanent solution for a temporary problem.
It’s appropriate that today we should proclaim the good news to all that Jesus Christ is alive today. Because He is alive, we now have a reason to live.
SING:
(Because He lives, I can face tomorrow, because He lives all fear is gone, because I know, He holds the future, and life is worth the living just because He lives.)
Hymn# 169
In the end, we are all left with a choice that we have to make every single day.
When Moses stood before the people of Israel as they were poised to enter the Promised Land, he ended his message with these words: "I have set before you life and death. Now… choose life." (Deuteronomy 30:19)
Prayer:
Our Father, some of us know first-hand that the Devil is a thief who comes only to steal, to kill and to destroy. We confess that he has tempted many of us to take the quick way out of our problems. Forgive us, Lord, for listening to his voice.
Thank you for sending Jesus Christ who is the light of the world. We reaffirm our faith that in him is life!
I pray for those who are standing on the edge peering into the abyss. O God, save them from thinking that death is the only way out of their problems. Show them a better way.
And Lord, we pray that we might have eyes to see beyond comfortable words and frozen smiles to the deep pain all around us. Open our hearts to feel the desperation of those who pass us by every day. Make us a church where it’s okay to say, "I’m hurting and I need some help."
Most of all, we thank you for Jesus who came to give us life and life more abundantly. Let the word go forth that Jesus is alive! Because he lives, we too shall live.
O Lord Jesus, our hope is in you alone. Therefore, we are not afraid to die and not afraid to live. We bow before you, our living Lord, lost in wonder, love, and praise, for you have conquered death and now live forevermore
