The Cruelty and Horror of Assisted Suicide

I saw this image on the J C Ryle Facebook page a few days ago. I felt shocked, then sad as I realised the reality for many millions of people. I couldn’t forget what I had seen. 

Death has always been one of those difficult subjects. We try to avoid thinking about it but it’s all around us; war, terrorism, crime, famine, earthquakes, abortion, murder, freak weather events, genocide, cancer, accidents, allergic reactions, suicide and now assisted suicide in some countries and the list goes on and on… If we dwelt on the reality of our own frailty and helplessness we’d never get anything done.

The Christian Institute provided a sobering list of what the Bible has to say about death at the Birmingham City Mission Convention this weekend:

-the punishment for sin (Genesis 3 vs 17)

-universal precursor to judgement (Hebrews 9 vs 27)

-a curse (Deuteronomy 30 vs 19)

-the wages of sin (Romans 6 vs 23)

-the last enemy (1 Corinthians 15 vs 26)

-feared by unbelievers (Hebrews 2 vs 15)

-the source of immense human grief (John 11 vs 33-35)

-the end of the opportunity for salvation (Luke 16 vs 26)

The last one on this list is the most frightening of all. What it means is that the minute a soul breathes their last breath here on Earth, they are consigned to their eternal destination without recourse or escape. 

I was on an Open-Air Mission team in Yorkshire last week and one of the guys had a talk entitled “Where are they now?” Then, he had large pictures of famous (or infamous) people including Queen Elizabeth, Margaret Thatcher, Hitler, Jimmy Savile and Amy Winehouse. 

You might imagine that this generated a lot of comments from passer’s by. A few bright sparks pointed out the obvious that they are all dead. Some people were angry about Savile being in the same list as the Queen or even that their pictures were next to each other. Others shouted things about individuals and where they felt they should be. Most believed good people like the late Queen and Margaret Thatcher would be in Heaven and bad people like Hitler and Savile would be in Hell. Amy Winehouse was more of a puzzle but most seemed to want to give her the benefit of the doubt.

The truth (and point of the talk) is that none of us know for sure where these people are now because we aren’t God and we don’t know their hearts, but we do know that their souls have lived on and that they are either in Heaven or Hell forever. They are not just dead in the ground as some would have us believe. 

The Bible also makes it clear that their perceived goodness/badness has nothing to do with where they ended up and although we may think we are better than some of those people, we are not as good as we think we are. The reality is that none of us live up to God’s perfect standard so instead of using society’s yardstick which sets the bar ridiculously low, we should be looking to God who sets the rules.

The debate about whether we should legalise assisted suicide in the UK is a product of secular (and atheistic) values permeating society. Would anyone really dare to suggest it was kinder to “help someone on their way” if they knew their loved one would face an angry, just God at the end of the process? Most sane people would surely agree that no matter how much pain someone was in, an eternity in Hell has to be far far worse. 

The Bible tells us that we are given one life and that the dates of our birth and death are determined by God. Every breath we take is a gift from God who sustains the Universe second by second and minute by minute. When we die we will face God and give an account of our lives; the God who created us, Who knows all things and Who is angry with our rebellion against Him. 

This would be a terrifying prospect for every person if it wasn’t for one historical event that changed everything…

God loved the world so much that He provided a mediator in His Son Jesus. He  sent Him to live a perfect life and then to die on a cross for the sins of the world. God the Father punished God the Son on the cross. This perfect sacrifice opened the way for anyone who believes that Jesus died for them to repent and be forgiven of their sins. We know the sacrifice of Jesus worked because He defeated the curse of death given to humanity at the beginning by coming back to life. Anyone who repents and believes in Jesus will be at peace with God and enter Heaven one day. 

This is amazing news for a broken, dying world.

However, most people who are advocating things like assisted suicide and encouraging others to consider ending their lives prematurely, don’t even acknowledge God let alone the Good News of the Gospel.

They are not, therefore, forgiven of their sin and will face God’s fury and be consigned to Hell for all eternity. Hell is a place of fire, punishment and torment where people will want to die but won’t be able to. Their pain will endure relentlessly. It's why the Bible warns us to "flee from the wrath to come...."

The horrible cruelty is that people who support this legislation are leading others astray by believing they are compassionate and caring and wanting to end people’s suffering.

Instead, they need to realise that God is the author of life and meddling in this way will have tragic and never ending consequences for those who die prematurely and are unprepared to meet their Maker.

Christians, please think about this and stop being neutral and/or silent during these discussions. There is no place for supporting assisted suicide in the church and we must stand against these evil laws that may soon be on our statute books unless we resist them with everything we have at our disposal. 

God is on our side and prayer is powerful when we take our part in the spiritual battle seriously.

Let's support the Christian Institute and other organisations as they seek to defeat this horrible bill once and for all. Let's also make evangelism a most urgent priority as we seek to share the Good News of Jesus with every soul before it's too late for them...

Ashers Bakery in Supreme Court Today #supportashers #freespeech

I have been monitoring the Asher's bakery case in the UK since the story first made headlines. For those that don’t keep up to date, Asher's is a bakery, in Northern Ireland, owned by the McArthur family, who are Christians. They were asked  by a gay activist to bake a cake for a gay wedding containing a slogan indicating support for gay marriage. They declined on the basis that the message conflicted with their Christian beliefs about gay marriage. They were taken to court, not by the gay activist, but by the tax payer funded Equality Commission, primarily for discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. The bakery is being supported by the Christian Institute.

I found it especially interesting that the people jumping to defend Asher's were in most cases non-Christians who were concerned about the potential impact on freedom of expression. Maybe this is not surprising as many Christians don’t seem to be able to make up their minds where they stand on this issue with comments like, “I don’t really know what to think about this,” and other such bland statements appearing on social media platforms. But the absence of comment from many Christians is just as concerning. Maybe they feel that their faith is a private matter, or maybe they just resolve to do whatever it takes not to find themselves in a similar situation. I don’t really know the reason for the eerie silence.

I think what many are forgetting is that Asher's didn’t in any way choose to make global headlines or to be thrust suddenly into the public eye by their stance, and I’m sure did not intend to be controversial, or to upset anybody. They were simply trying to live their Christian lives in peace as a godly witness in an increasingly secular country. They have been forced to defend their Christian faith in a tax-payer funded court case which has really been a disgrace from the outset. I followed the case in disbelief at first, thinking that at some stage the craziness would come to an end. It eventually concluded with Asher's being found GUILTY.  After my initial shock and disbelief, I grew increasingly confident that the judgement MUST be reversed on appeal as the negative consequences for so many areas of public life would be staggering otherwise, and not just for Christians.

I am writing to highlight the many incredibly profound statements that have been made by the McArthur family throughout their trial, and to encourage continued support and prayer for them, That they have been able to maintain their Christian witness and dignity at “such a time as this” is a remarkable testimony to non-believers, and I hope will convict those Christians who feel that faith is a private matter that needs to be kept hidden. 

Statements like: “We feel that the Word of God is of much more importance than the words of the Equality Commission,” have a profound ring of truth to them. On hearing this, I was ashamed to recall the times as a Christian where I had been afraid to take a stand because of a secular authority, or person, and their potential reaction. But really, if God is God, and the Bible is God’s Word then why aren’t we all taking a leaf out of the McArthur's book and standing up for what we believe. Is it really okay that a Christian should be forced to violate their sincerely held Christian beliefs by doing some action that they know will offend a holy God? Who are we serving and who is our Master?

The McArthur's are providing a great example to all of us as Christians, as even when they were no doubt devastated by the outcome of the court case, they still released statements firmly reiterating their faith in God and His plans for their future.  Even that they were “happy” to be part of His plan!

“It doesn’t change how we feel about God and it doesn’t change anything about why we took our stand, we don’t regret that for one minute. And we believe God has a plan for the future and whatever that will be we are happy to be in His plans.”

Asher's was also contacted and encouraged by a Christian bakery in the USA in similar circumstances and facing a hefty legal bill. They now join the minority of Christians who have stood against secularism in the UK and abroad including:

1.       The B and B owners who refused to allow a gay couple to share a double bed.

2.       The Doctor who was sacked after 30 years of practice for offering to pray for a patient.

3.       The Judge who was investigated for refusing to place a child for adoption with a gay couple.

4.       The Registrar who refused to marry same sex couples.

5.       The Nurse who was investigated for wearing a cross to work.

6.       The Taxi driver who was investigated for a Christian symbol in his taxi.

7.       The lady who was investigated for offering to pray for a Muslim colleague.

8.       The street preachers that have been arrested for quoting Bible verses and thereby “offending” people.

9.       The parents who complained that their 5 year old had been told he wasn’t allowed to read his Bible in his free time whilst at school.

10.   The students and hotel visitors who stood against their universities and hotels banning Bibles from the rooms.

There are no doubt many more that haven’t made the national news and others who have quietly accepted their predicament and resigned without a fuss knowing that God will bless them for their failure to compromise.

I think we need to remember that this is not about politics or political activism. I would agree that Christians should avoid getting too bogged down in politics as a life focus. These people are defending Christian liberties. If they don’t, then ultimately Christian freedoms will be eroded to the point that there will be no legal evangelism. Christians need to take a stand on this issue and remember the words of Jesus;

”If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” Mark 8 vs 38 (NIV)

(NB I am grateful to the Christian Institute for a lot of the facts. Please visit their website to keep up to date The Christian Institute)