Comments on: Is depression a sin?

By: Mark Barnes

Mark Barnes — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:10 +0000

@Jeannie: I'm sorry you feel like this. This post is from 2005, and refers specifically to a discussion on another blog which unfortunately is no longer available. Without reference to those earlier posts, my comments here are easily misunderstood, as I was dealing with specific questions they raised. If you want a more thorough and more helpful answer to the question Tim Chester examines "Is depression a sin?" far better than I did here. As you are by no means the first to misunderstand my post, I must take some responsibility for not making myself clearer. I'm sorry. I'm also going to close the comments here in the hope that others who wish to comment on the question can do so on Tim's blog.

By: Jeannie

Jeannie — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 14:49:59 +0000

I was doing nothing but loving my Lord and trying to support my child. I was in no sin. The darkness came over me so heavily to the point that I no longer had that ability to function. I was not giving into a temptation! I was not thinking any negative things. The depression consumed me. Adrenaline flowed freely, feelings of guilt when no sin had been committed. Darkness and hopelessness. I cannot even begin to explain. Have you ever even for 1 week experienced this awful suffering? I would ask that you ask God to allow this to happen to you so that you can be humbled and stop judging something that you know nothing of. Christ came to bring hope not condemnation. Reading your hellish ignorance and seeing your sin of judging others grieves me greatly. You my friend would make one who loves Christ and finds the heavens to be like brass when all they are capable of doing is breathing and enduring the pain, and when they cry out with the faint whisper that they can muster up… you would point the finger of accusation at this little one (believer)? You, if you are not careful might find yourself guilty before God for having broken the bruised reed and caused the death of such!!!
I am suffering now and all I wish to do is sleep forever, or go and be where He is. I cannot even take care of myself! Why would you insist on driving me or anyone else into condemnation? You have not the love of Christ. You speak of things which you do not know. Shame on you!!!

By: wigrd

wigrd — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 18:58:46 +0000

Can anyone tell me what difference it can possibly make if we say depression is, or is not, a sin? Does it alter in the slightest how we approach depressed people or how we treat them? Surely these are the important considerations. This sort of twaddle is certainly making me depressed. Perhaps it is demonic possession! That will be it! I’m sure there are some Biblical quotations to support this. Specialist hospitals were filled with clinically depressed people for years after 1918. Thankfully, electric shock treatment was remarkably successful until the 1960′s! They may have been a particularly sinful lot (or not) but I’m sure these people would have been most grateful to know you are on their case.

‘There are those whose minds often tempt them into depression’

What on earth can this possibly mean? Sounds like a hen being an eggs strategy for producing another egg.

By: lisa

lisa — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:18:29 +0000

i have been delivered from manic depression and i am the first to say to any christians who is battling depression that the first place that you need to be looking to for help is god. it is a proven fact that all psych meds stop working once the body builds up a tolerance to them and often the side effects are more dangerous than the disease. no one no matter how ell intentioned they may be can never even begin to grasp the depths of depression because no man
understands what is in his own heart let alone another mans and it is never within man to find his own way. only god and sad to say the great accusor really knows the answer to those questions. but i am living proof that i know firsthand the Great Doctor who can cure it. his name is the Prince of Peace and He wants to meet you

By: MJ

MJ — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 21:48:26 +0000

I googled “Is depression a sin?”, because I know some Christians think it is.
I wish I could make my depression go away. I am manic depression, with major anxiety and depression.
I actually wanted to help people in my church in a lay ministry, but because I was honest with my meds and doctors, I did not get into the program. So much for honesty!
My father is a pastor, and I have been a christian all of my life.
A sin is something I do wrong, and I ask Jesus for forgiveness. I didn’t do anything wrong with this illness, it’s who I am. Some days are better than others.

By: Rebekah

Rebekah — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 21:43:33 +0000

I have been on both sides of this argument – I had struggled with depression earlier in my life and thought that I had been delivered once and for all. I quickly became one of the self-righteous pharisees who would say not only that depression was a sin, but that God couldn’t use anyone in church leadership who was being medicated for depression. Well, two months ago I entered a season of pure torture after my husband’s sexual addictions resurfaced (he is now getting help, thank God). I haven’t been able to sleep, have been suffering the most extreme anxiety and depression of my entire life. I have been in the hospital twice from all of these symptoms and finally they put me on anti-depressants and I am just beginning to be able to function again. Throughout this period I have been praying, reading my Bible, crying out to God in the middle of the night and seeking counsel from my church. This thing is NOT a sin problem and it’s NOT a lack of faith. It is a medical condition that comes for various reasons – one of them being emotional trauma. God heals us in many different ways, and one of them is through the medical field. The interesting thing is that evangelicals seem to have a hidden list of “holy” drugs (antacids, caffeine, hormone replacement, cholesterol meds, etc.) and a list of “unholy” drugs.

I just want to say that while my evangelical family was berating me in the midst of my mental torment for taking any kind of anti-depressant, I had two friends who were literally the hands and feet of Jesus to me. They took care of my kids, brought me meals and sat by me when all I could do was lay on the couch in agony. This is what it means to be a real Christian – to hold the hands of the suffering and celebrate with them when they recover – regardless of how God chooses to bring that about. Thank the Lord for my friends and the prayers of true saints who carried me through.

By: Marie

Marie — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:35:16 +0000

So I heard this speaker a few weeks ago… and he said it like this.

“Did you know that most of our unhappiness comes because we’re listening to ourselves, instead of talking to ourselves.”

The basic principle being, if you don’t discipline your mind and purposely focus on what is good and right, and speak truth to yourselves, your mind will default to wrong thinking.

I don’t speak as an outsider. I simply know that it’s true in my life. When I don’t consciously make an effort to be pouring God’s word into my mind and focusing on what I KNOW to be true by the revealed word of God, I start thinking wrongly and “lying” to myself… and I don’t do it consciously. I don’t even know it’s happening until I end up miserable and try to figure out why.

You can’t choose to switch off the wiring, but you CAN choose to short circuit it. Think you can’t memmorize scripture? Try it. Repeat it over and over and over again, let your mind dwell on that, and see God show up.

“There is no temptation that has seized you that is not common to man”

By: Laura Wigley

Laura Wigley — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 10:03:38 +0000

Can I just say how completely unhelpful and hurtful this “discussion” is. At the end of the day, who cares whether you think depression is a sin or not?!?

You say sucumming to depression like it’s a choice, like, along with all the other symptoms (which you seem to have ignored) like being unable to sleep, eat, extreme anxiety and terror, chronic pain, headaches, etc, we can just choose to switch off that “wiring” in our brains.

I found this discussion searching for help on depression. Jesus didn’t ask us to debate issues until we were blue in the face, but he demanded that we go out and help those who are suffering, and said that when we ignore their pain, we are ignoring his. Instead of asking, what part of depression is a sin, why don’t you ask, “how can we help, how can we support, how can WE, on the outside of this terrible, debilitating, soul and faith destroying illness, help, support and shine a little of God’s light in their darkness.”

By: Gary

Gary — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 07:16:41 +0000

Thanks be to God, through Our Lord Jesus Christ, that he came to HEAL the sick.

By: jana

jana — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:11:42 +0000

Mental attitude sins will bring on depression.depression comes through no fault of our own. There may be severe problems which are imposed by outside circumstances. There may be physical exhaustion and a weakening of physical and emotional strength.
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jana

Dual Diagnosis