Euthanasia and the Failure of the Church
“Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”—and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is…meant…for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14 And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?…. your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Cor 6:13-14, 19-20)
Introduction
As I drove to see a friend last week (with a weight problem), I passed our state Parliament; there was a demonstration outside against a bill to permit voluntary assisted dying. It’s generally expected that we will follow the recent Victorian legislation permitting suicide under certain conditions. I think people killing themselves is a very bad idea, for life belongs to God (Gen 9:5-6; 1 Cor 6:20). Such theological arguments can’t however be used in these sorts of debate. Concerning issues of morality and spirituality I don’t even believe people are essentially rational. The nearer an assertion of reason approaches the centre of humanity’s relationship with God the less rational humans become and the greater our need for revelation (Brunner). It follows that only the Church’s access to the spiritual realm can reverse the erosion of Christian values which have undergirded the laws of our civil culture for centuries. As I prayed for my friend (mentioned above) I sensed certain inconsistencies in the life of the people of God which could be called “hypocrisies”. Discrepancies which in the eyes of the evil powers in the heavenly places (Eph 6:12) communicate a spiritual impotence in the Western Church. The demons do not see us as a community whose holy lives radiate a wisdom destabilising their influence over the lost (Eph 3:10). In the matter of “mercy killing”, it’s not the tragic fact that Christian people kill themselves that’s undermining our spiritual plausibility, but something much more pervasive and difficult to tackle.
We are Killing Ourselves
Western governments are worried that the overweight/obesity epidemic amongst children (1 in 4 in here) will decrease the life span of their populations. Amongst Aussie adults 20-29 years old life expectancy amongst the overweight is shortened by 3.3 years and for the obese/severely obese, amongst men the shortening is 8.1-10.3, for females, 5.6-7.6 years (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41366-018-0210-2). Casual observation would suggest the Christian population is afflicted similarly to the wider community. This means that many believers are slowly shortening their lives. A sort of involuntary euthanasia by stealth is happening for thousands of Jesus-lovers before our eyes.
A godly bishop once publicly labelled a senior priest in his diocese as a “glutton”. Having seen this man eat the bishop was accurate. Idolising taste in all its forms is universally condemned in scripture (Gen 25:29-34; 1 Sam 2:15; Deut 21:20; 1 Sam 4:11; Prov 23:20-21; 28:7; Matt 11:19; Luke 7:34; Tit 1:12). I distinctly remember asking the neighbour of a prominent Christian, in whose house we were staying, if he knew the owner, he replied in the affirmative. Then proceeded to make a major point about this brother’s weight. I believe that this otherwise devout man has an attitude to his physical health which weakens his witness and as such is sinful. “Self-control” (Gal 5:23) is a fruit of the Spirit because it is a share in the disciplined life of Christ (Matt 4:1-2). In the Early Church pastors like Gregory the Great did not hold back about speaking to their flock about dietary matters because the Church was concerned for the whole life of its members. Holy leaders’ linked lust, gluttony and greed together in a way which speaks to the deadly sins of our time. Generally today, and sadly, such topics are treated as too sensitive to handle.
Self-Indulgence
Euthanasia is the ultimate self-indulgence because it is the self-indulgence to end all self-indulgences. This trajectory began in Eden, where Eve and Adam put their relationship with God to death by disobeying his clear commandment concerning the tree of knowledge, “in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (Gen 2:17). When Eve saw “the tree was good for food” (Gen 3:6) “she couldn’t help herself”. For centuries the leaven of the gospel in Western society held the limitless desire of people for self-rule in check. No longer, for the Church has lost its moral presence and authority. So long as our popular churches pander to the coffee shop culture of our day to connect with “seekers” we cannot raise up disciples who have broken their addictions to pleasure (2 Tim 3:4-5). The only answer to the prevailing insidious idolatries of our time is the power of the gospel.
Resurrection Life
The quote from 1 Corinthians at the top of this article is oriented towards the end of all things when Jesus comes back to raise the dead. Our bodies were created by God and redeemed by the precious blood of Christ (1 Pet 1:18-19) not finally for this world but for eternal resurrection life. This entails a deep call to embody the gospel. But as we look around the Church in our nation Moses’ words have become true of us, ““Israel soon became fat and unruly; the people grew heavy, plump, and stuffed! Then they abandoned the God who had made them; they made light of the Rock of their salvation.” (Deut 32:15). I see very little longing for resurrection/new creation life among Christians. Until the Spirit who raised Christ from the dead (Rom 1:4; 8:11) is outpoured on us, so that with live lives visibly aching for the End and the resurrection to eternal life I don’t expect our protests about euthanasia etc. to carry the day. A Church with a compromised conscience about money, sex, power, food, comfort…is a Body that grieves the Spirit. Only a gospel revival can deliver us.
Conclusion
I recall being in a church where one lady asked to have a “word” with another. The word was, “Do you love God more than food?” This of course was unhelpful to the overweight person because it placed the focus on their love and commitment to the Lord rather than the Lord’s all conquering love for them. We are a Church permeated by addictions, like “bingeing on Netflix”, the inability of many believers to fast from sleep, the “need” for expensive holidays. Only a radical return to the power of the gospel to impart the all transforming energy of the Spirit which recreated Jesus’ mind, soul and body in the tomb will be enough to heal Church and nation. For this we must pray with all our hearts. Sharing through the Spirit in Christ’s great praying heart in Gethsemane, the cross and today (Mark 14:36; Luke 23:34; Heb 7:25). Then as in days of old fewer and fewer people will want to kill themselves.