Son of Obama's "Spiritual Counselor" Found Dead

(RNS) Isaac Hunter, the son of megachurch pastor and Obama spiritual counselor Joel Hunter, was found dead Tuesday (Dec. 10) in an apparent suicide, local police say.

Isaac Hunter, 36 and father of three, had resigned from his own megachurch after he admitted that he had engaged in an affair with a staff member. His wife of 13 years had filed a domestic-violence petition against Hunter, describing him as unstable, erratic and suicidal, according to the Orlando Sentinel...

Isaac Hunter was the second of Joel Hunter’s three children. His resignation in the fall of 2012 was one of three Orlando pastors who left their pulpits after admitting affairs.

~RNS

Police are investigating this apparent suicide by gun shot.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, "In her domestic-violence petition, Rhonda Hunter said her husband abused drugs and alcohol and had guns in the house. Isaac Hunter denied the allegations that he was abusive to his wife or a danger to his three children."

Other suicides, the report mentions, were that of Frank Page's daughter who killed herself in 2009. He is the former SBC president. A pastor in Georgia killed himself after a Sunday morning service back in November. Rick Warren's son killed himself back in April.

The death of a loved one is always difficult, and hopefully for a true Christian it will cause them to turn to Christ all the more fervently. 

Jay Wegter  of Frontline Ministries deals with the issue of suicide here.  In trying to help a mother with the question of whether she will see her son, who committed suicide, in Heaven, Wegter rightly goes back to the hallmarks of true salvation and calls the mother to honestly look at his testimony in light of what the Bible says and then attempt to discern the reality of his spiritual condition, as hard as such a thing can be.

Here is the list:

First, the following are evidences that neither prove nor disprove one's faith:

A. Visible morality - Matt. 19:16-21; 23:27
B. Intellectual knowledge - Rom. 1:21; 2:17ff.
C. Religious involvement - Matt. 25:1-10
D. Active Ministry - Matt. 7:21-24
E. Conviction of sin - Acts 24:25
F. Assurance - Matt. 23
G. Time of Decision - Luke 8:13-14

Now, here are some proofs of authentic faith:

A. Love for God - Ps. 42:1ff; Luke 10:27; Rom. 8:7
B. Repentance from sin - Ps. 32:5; Prov. 28:13; Rom. 7:14ff, 2 Cor. 7:10; 1 John 1:8-10
C. Genuine Humility - Ps. 51:17; Matt. 5:1-12; James 4:6, 9ff.
D. Devotion to God's glory - Ps. 105:3; 115:1; Is. 43:7, 48:10ff; Jer. 9:23-24; 1 Cor. 10:31
E. Continual prayer - Luke 18:1; Eph. 6:18ff; Phil. 4:6ff; 1 Tim. 2:1-4; James 5:16-18
F. Selfless love - 1 John 2:9ff, 3:14; 4:7ff; John 13:34-35; 1 Pet. 1:22
G. Separation from the world - 1 Cor. 2:12; James 4:4ff; 1 John 2:15-17, 5:5
H. Spiritual growth - Luke 8:15; John 15:1-6; Eph. 4:12-16
I. Obedient living - Matt. 7:21; John 15:14ff, Rom. 16:26; 1 Pet. 1:2,22; 1 John 2:3-5

If the first list is true of a person and the second list is false, there is cause to question the validity of a profession of faith. Yet if the second list is true, then the first list will be also.

End quote.

He quotes MacArthur on this which I would also like to share as well:

Can one who commits suicide be saved?

Suicide is a grave sin equivalent to murder (Exodus 20:13; 21:23), but it can be forgiven like any other sin. And Scripture says clearly that those redeemed by God have been forgiven for all their sins--past, present, and future (Colossians 2:13-14). Paul says in Romans 8:38-39 that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

So if a true Christian would commit suicide in a time of extreme weakness, he or she would be received into heaven (Jude 24). But we question the faith of those who take their lives or even consider it seriously--it may well be that they have never been truly saved.
I say that because God's children are defined repeatedly in Scripture as those who have hope (Acts 24:15; Romans 5:2-5, 8:24; 2 Corinthians 1:10, etc.) and purpose in life (Luke 9:23-25; Romans 8:28; Colossians 1:29). And those who think of committing suicide do so because they have neither hope nor purpose in their lives. Furthermore, one who repeatedly considers suicide is practicing sin in his heart (Proverbs 23:7), and 1 John 3:9 says that "no one who is born of God practices sin." And finally, suicide is often the ultimate evidence of a heart that rejects the lordship of Jesus Christ, because it is an act where the sinner is taking his life into his own hands completely rather than submitting to God's will for it. Surely many of those who have taken their lives will hear those horrifying words from the Lord Jesus at the judgment--"I never knew you; Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness" (Matthew 7:23).

So though it may be possible for a true believer to commit suicide, we believe that is an unusual occurrence. Someone considering suicide should be challenged above all to examine himself to see whether he is in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5).

[End of MacArthur's quote]

End quote.

I would also add that given the false gospel that so many churches and preachers give, it's no wonder that so many are without hope or help. Psychology, which is usually married to a false gospel, is centered on man and it seeks to fulfill Self, which is to feed the monster of pride. The only hope and help is found in Christ alone and His Word. There one finds defined the real problems we face which always includes sin, how God sees such things, and God's answer to the problem. The false gospel of so many popular pastors and megachurches today does nothing but feed the dead man. It is no wonder that so many are incapable of dealing with life and have no hope. They are "without Christ in the world" which is truly, truly hopeless and never victorious because true victory over sin is found in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross, as well as the Holy Spirit's work in us as He conforms us to the image of Christ Jesus.