The following "Question" was asked by a member of the congregation at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, and "Answered" by their pastor, John MacArthur Jr. It was transcribed by David Lee of Malaysia, from the tape GC 1301-N, titled "Bible Questions and Answers Part 16."  A copy of the tape can be obtained by writing, Word of Grace, P.O. Box 4000, Panorama City, CA 91412 or by dialing toll free 1-800-55-GRACE.  ©1981. All Rights Reserved.

Questioner

I was wondering if you can give a biblical perspective on how far does a physician go in prolonging a patient’s life given all the technology available today?

John MacArthur's Answer

This is very difficult. Recently Bill and I had a situation like that where Olive Ash, well, I don’t know when she was dead. There were all these things on her and everything. The doctors said, "We’re just keeping the stuff going, but there is no life there, what do we do?" I thought that was a very difficult question. She was 89, 90, who knows? She never would tell. Right? But she was old, really old, 90 maybe, no family, no husband, no kids, no relatives, no nobody. The nearest relative was some shirt tailed cousin in England or South Africa. She lived a full life, she knew Christ, everything was well. My answer to him that night was, "Hey, you know, don’t prolong it, it’s pointless."

Now if you are talking about a young person; talking about someone who doesn’t know Christ; talking about someone in the prime of life or the prime of ministry, I think I'd be prone to hold on as long as I could with medical technology. And I guess the ultimate answer has to come in whether there is the possibility, not only is the life sustaining itself, but whether there’s even that possibility and I guess that would be clinical. But I think it depend on the circumstances.

I know that many older people have written in their will, now, that if they have come to that point, they don’t want to be prolonged. And I think we have to take all of those factors into consideration. And even having done that I think it all comes back down to the very moment, and the very person and the very circumstances. And you as a physician would know more about that than I would. Well, you tell me now, what do you think?

Questioner

I think it's an individual situation and I also think that the physician has a lot of input in terms of whether the patient will die or live, because I think the family depends on the physician and that’s why it is very difficult for the physician to sway the family one way or another and to feel right about it. But I think it's individual.

John MacArthur's Answer

And I think that’s what so wonderful about a Christian physician is that you have high respect for life and you understand the eternity involved. And I think you would give the wise council whereas someone else might be a little less spiritually oriented, a little more clinical and so forth. But that’s a tough question, I hate to think that we’re going to make rules about that. You know, or laws about it. Having a bunch of senators on a hill decide who lives and dies isn't really...it's the same with abortions. That these people could sit up there and make all these rules about killing babies by the millions...a horrible thing.

Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "MacArthur's Questions and Answers" by:

Tony Capoccia
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