Last fall, my uncle committed suicide. He was a devout Christian, but he felt suicide was the only way to solve his problems. I've heard that if you commit suicide you won't go to heaven. My uncle was a good man. It hurts me to think of him in hell. Will he really go there?
I'm so sorry about your uncle's death. It's always hard to lose someone you love, but suicide seems to make the loss even harder. It raises so many questions, like the one you've asked. I've spoken to youth workers around the country on the subject of suicide prevention. When I ask them what question students ask most about suicide, they all say the same thing: "Do you go to hell if you commit suicide?" I am by no means a biblical scholar, and there are Christians who will disgree with me, but I just don't see a clear answer to this question in the Bible.
Please hear me when I say I don't believe the best option for your uncle was suicide. And it's not the best option for the 7,000 teenagers who commit suicide each year, or the 2 million who attempt suicide every year. There are much better ways to deal with life's problems. I hope and pray that people who consider suicide as an option would continue to look at other, more positive options.
So what does happen to people who commit suicide? As I said, I don't find an answer in the Bible. But there are several scripture passages that can help us understand the eternal nature of our relationship with God:
"If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
As we look to the Bible for answers, I believe it's clear that those who give their lives to God will spend eternity with him. I wish people like your uncle could find comfort in that promise instead of giving in to their pain.
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