Yes, committing suicide is a sin. One of the Ten Commandments teaches us “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13) and this surely includes “taking your own life.” Having said that, there may be cases where someone has a mental illness (such as Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia), and their mind is so warped they don’t realize that taking their own life is a sin.

Regarding approaching someone who is suicidal, we must discern WHY they are entertaining the taking of their own life. Are they extremely DEPRESSED? Are they in EXCRUCIATING PAIN from an accident or some illness (such as cancer or nerve damage in parts of their body)? We have a case in Scripture where a servant of the Lord became so DEPRESSED he wanted to die. I’m speaking of the great prophet Elijah where we read in 1 Kings 19:4, “But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he PRAYED THAT HE MIGHT DIE, and said, ‘It is enough! Now, LORD, TAKE MY LIFE, for I am no better than my fathers!’” Why was this great man of God (read 1 Kings chapters 17 & 18) depressed? We have the answer in verses 1-3, “And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, ‘So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as one of them by tomorrow about this time.’ And when he heard that, he arose and RAN FOR HIS LIFE, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.” Think of it, Elijah had manifested great faith and courage the day before his life was threatened, and now he is “running for his life” and asking the Lord to “take his life.” DEPRESSION doesn’t usually come on that fast but for some reason his faith towards God failed him as did his courage, by the mere threat of a woman! I believe he expected his great victory over the “false prophets” at Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:20-40) to cause Israel to repent and abandon their idols, but because they did not repent, he wanted his life to end because his ministry had failed to produce results. If we read on (in 1 Kings 19, we see that God sent an angel to him to minister to him and then God Himself spoke words of conviction and encouragement to him and his depression disappeared.

The lesson here gives us “one way of approaching a true believer” who is wanting his life to end and may even be considering taking his own life. We must go to them with COMPASSION in our hearts and desire to see them RESTORED to the Lord. In Galatians 6:1 we read, “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.” If we see a fellow-believer that is DEPRESSED and considering SUICIDE (which would be the ultimate example of being “overtaken in any trespass”) we need to: 1) pray to the Lord to be used of Him in his/her restoration, 2) go to him/her with a compassionate and gentle spirit, knowing that we are no better than them and it could be us that is tempted to end our life because of dire circumstances. If it is a case of a mental disease, we should encourage them to seek medical help where a physician could diagnose their exact disease and then treat it accordingly.

I should also mention if this is an UNBELIEVER who is depressed and considering suicide, we would need to APPROACH THEM IN LOVE WITH THE GOSPEL. I once led an inmate in prison to Christ who was on “suicidal watch.” He was filled with remorse and wanted to end his life for killing his wife while in a drunken state. I was asked to counsel him, and I showed him from Scripture that “suicide may end your life here on earth, but you will be in eternal torment in hell for dying without faith in Christ.” I showed him many scriptures, and he came under deep conviction and desired to be saved. Thankfully, he did “repent before God and believed on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21) for the salvation of his soul.  (DO)  (689.1)