Last night, as I was scrolling through the news headlines, my husband told me that Rick Warren's son, Matthew, had committed suicide. My heart sank. When children die before their parents, it is just awful, that is not the way it is supposed to be. I mean it is bad enough when this tragedy happens via organic illnesses such as cancer, or diabetes, or influenza, but suicide? Somehow that just seems worse.
Was Matthew Gay?
"I Know I'm Going To Heaven"
"I'll never forget how, many years ago, after another
approach had failed to give relief, Matthew said, 'Dad,
I know I'm going to heaven. Why can't I just die and
end this pain?' but he kept going for another decade."
[emphasis mine]
Did you catch the subtle maneuvering of this seasoned false teacher? I don't know why I should be so shocked by this, since Rick Warren is a patently proven false teacher, but I'm shocked anyway. He just subtly insinuated that his son is in heaven. Now I am sure many people will jump on me with their favorite verse from Matthew 7: Judge not lest ye be judged, which doesn't even apply here, it actually applies to hypocrisy. Others will say I am being evil, or mean-spirited, but that is all a bunch of baseless and emotionally driven accusations, meant only to placate their consciences against the truth. In truth, no one likes to think that their loved one is in Sheol awaiting their fate in the lake of fire, including yours truly, but Jesus gives a pretty clear list in Revelation 21 of just who will be populating the lake of fire. Here is his infamous list:
"...dogs, those who practice magical arts, the sexually
immoral, the MURDERERS, the idolaters, and every-
one who loves and practices falsehood."
[emphasis mine]
Here are the lists the apostle Paul gives for the type of residents that will be occupying the lake of fire:
"Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
homosexuals[penetrated], or sodomites[penetrater],
nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers,
nor extortioners, will inherit the kingdom of God."
1 Cor. 6:9
"the law is for....the lawless, and insubordinate, for the
ungodly, and for sinners, for the unholy, and profane,
for MURDERERS, of fathers and mothers, for MAN-
SLAYERS, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kid-
nappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any
other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine..."
1 Tim. 1:9-10 [emphasis mine]
Suicide is self-murder, and if you don't believe me, then here is the definition from Google's Free Dictionary":
SUICIDE:
Noun-The action of killing oneself intentionally: "he committed suicide at the age of forty".
Verb-Intentionally kill oneself.
Synonyms
noun. self-destruction - self-murder
verb. take one's own life - make away with oneself
So, since suicide is self-MURDER, I can safely say, according to Scripture, that if Matthew did indeed kill himself, then he is not in heaven. I do not enjoy saying that at all, it hurts me to say that. Why? Because I know a lot of wonderful people who have suffered losing someone they love to suicide and that is the last thing they want to hear. But dear reader, it is the truth. Jesus demands our complete loyalty, even above that of our own family members. This is the case in the Old Testament [Deut. 13:6-11] and in the New Testament [Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26]. We cannot love anyone more than we love Jesus, not even our own children, and certainly not our own self, that is defined as idolatry, a sin what will land you into the lake of fire. The truth must not be compromised to save face or to placate our hurt feelings.
Sadly, if the rumors of Matthew having been gay are true, which I hope they are not, then going by the lists above, then Matthew is definitely not in heaven, that is the unyielding truth.
There Is Hope For The Broken Hearted
But there is hope for these precious souls. Jesus! Sin enslaves us, and for those who struggle with habitual physically harming sins, like drug and alcohol abuse, sex addiction, homosexuality, and the like, it can wear heavily on your soul. When someone is being demonically harassed, oppressed, or even possessed due to unrepentant sin, or dabbling in the occult, it surly reeks havoc not only to their soul and mind, but also their body. I read an article many years ago that left an impression on me. I can't find it, and now I wonder if it was even based on a real event, or if it's one of those urban legends, but basically it was about a psychiatrist who said that many people inside insane asylums are there because of unconfessed sin in their lives. He concluded that if a priest were to visit these people and set up a confessional, then all the asylums would be nearly emptied. I wonder if that is true. It certainly couldn't hurt to try.
Scripture says that Jesus is our faithful High Priest, who makes intercession on our behalf to the Father. When we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins. Now, that doesn't mean we can confess a sin, the same sin, every week and not change. When Jesus is made Lord of our life, he comes into our soul and sets up shop. He makes us a new creature. What great news for the weary sinner! All we have to do is accept his Lordship, and confess our sins to him. Then we are expected to live according to Jesus' two great commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. These two great commandments encompass the whole law of God. Even better news is that God doesn't leave us to our own devises, to try and keep these commandments on our own strength. He gives us his grace, which is his power given toward us, so we can do what the truth demands of us, to live a holy life. What a deal!
So if you are broken hearted, depressed, and if you are tired of living in sin, then there is hope for you dear reader and the cure doesn't involve psychotropic drugs. If you are ready to throw in the towel and kill yourself to gain what you believe will be relief from the pain of living in this life - DON'T DO IT! Turn yourself into the heavenly authority, turn yourself into Jesus. He loves the honest sinner, and he won't turn you away. Things may not change overnight, but if you keep working with him, things will change. But even if it seems things aren't changing fast enough, Scripture promises that those who preserver through the pain, that they will never be alone, and they will inherit the crown of life, if they stick with Jesus. Those who murder themselves forfeit this reward.
The Hidden Dangers Of N.D.E.'s
One of the most famous Scriptural N.E.D.'s was had by none other than the apostle Paul. Did Paul give a detailed account of his heavenly experience? No. He said that he wasn't allowed to say anything about it, and that it was unlawful for him to say one word about it. Isn't that odd coming from the man who received most of the New Testament though divine revelation? If the apostle Paul was not allowed by the Spirit of our Lord Jesus to reveal what he saw while he was in heaven, then why on earth do we Christians believe every yahoo that comes down the pike, claiming that they died and went to heaven? Or worse yet, why do we readily believe those who claim that Jesus himself told them it was okay to leak out classified information regarding the sweet by and by? Paul said that no eye has seen, nor any ear has heard the glories that await those who love God and do his commandments.
Yes dear reader, I used to be one of these kinds of Christians, but now that I have been saved from the Word of Faith theology, I am scripturally critical of any and all N.D.E's., especially those that come from non-believers that speak of going to a place of love and peace after their untimely demise and return from behind the veil According to Scripture, and not me, non-believers don't go to a place of love and peace after they die, they go to a place of darkness, weeping and gnashing of teeth. A terrible place where they fearfully and painfully await their final fate, the lake of fire. That is the hard and bitter medicinal pill of truth, a bitter pill indeed that few can swallow.