Short Answer
Using pain relief like fentanyl in end-of-life care is not wrong, and choosing not to resuscitate can also be appropriate when death is imminent. The goal is to allow natural death with dignity and comfort—not to intentionally end life.
The Overview
End-of-life decisions can be emotionally and spiritually challenging, especially when trying to honor God while caring for a loved one. The Bible affirms the value of life, but it also recognizes that death is a natural part of the human condition. When someone is nearing death, the focus shifts from prolonging life at all costs to allowing a natural process to take place with dignity and care.
Palliative care, including the use of medications like fentanyl, is intended to reduce pain and suffering. This is not only acceptable but compassionate. While such treatments may sometimes indirectly affect the body’s systems, the intention is not to cause death but to provide comfort. Scripture supports easing the suffering of those who are dying rather than forcing them to endure unnecessary pain.
Similarly, decisions like “Do Not Resuscitate” (DNR) orders can be appropriate when medical intervention would only prolong the dying process without meaningful recovery. Repeated resuscitation in such cases may extend suffering rather than preserve life. Allowing natural death, especially when supported by medical guidance, is not the same as giving up—it is recognizing the limits of human intervention.
However, there is a clear distinction between allowing natural death and actively causing death. Practices like euthanasia, which intentionally end life to relieve suffering, are not supported. The biblical approach is to care, comfort, and walk with a person through the final stage of life, trusting God while preserving dignity and compassion.
Key Takeaways
- Palliative Care Is Acceptable
Pain relief at the end of life is compassionate and appropriate. - Intent Matters
The goal is comfort, not causing death. - DNR Can Be Appropriate
Especially when death is imminent and recovery is unlikely. - Natural Death Is Recognized
Life is not meant to be prolonged artificially at all costs. - Euthanasia Is Different
Intentionally ending life is not supported biblically. - Seek Wise Counsel
Decisions should involve doctors, pastors, and family.
Transcript:
[00:00:01 – 00:00:55] Sheney Shaneie says, “I’ve listened to a number of your sermons about end of life. I have some questions. Is it wrong to use fentanyl towards the end of life or pallet of care? Is it wrong uh not to proceed with resuscitation? Definition of natural death for Christians who here?” Okay. Yeah. I I do address this in a couple of places. One, in our end of life series, we do talk about this and I talk about it in more detail. If you go to focal point, go to pastormike.com, look under our heading
[00:00:28 – 00:01:25] focal point or our focal point app. If you go to the app store, you can look up our focal point app and under focal point U, it’s at the very bottom there. I think you’ll see a a a button for it. Um, and and it will take you to the section on anthropology or the study of of human beings. What does the Bible say about that? We’ve got a section there on uh on death and dying. And [snorts] and about death and dying, we do we we believe in in life and the protection of life from, and I know you’ve already
[00:00:57 – 00:01:51] used the phrase from conception to natural death. Now, natural death, we understand that we’re going to die and we’re going to naturally die at some point because life is going to give out, right? Our life is going to naturally give out. And so, we sit here and say, “Okay, when is that?” All of us, not all of us, but most of us are going to have that that that terrible situation of having a loved one in the hospital. Uh maybe after an accident, maybe just because they’re they’re old and aging
[00:01:24 – 00:02:15] and dying. And uh we’ve got all these artificial means particularly in the first world in the 21st century. And uh we’re going to say, well, do do we unplug them? Do we stop with all this uh unnatural means of keeping them respirated and their hearts going and and feeding them with feeding tubes and all the rest? And when do we quote unquote pull the plug? Okay. Well, first of all, you talk about palative care, which is trying to make this easier, right? Fentanyl or whatever you’ve got
[00:01:49 – 00:02:37] and trying to make the pain go away. No, not at all. And I think the book of Proverbs helps us with this. And of course, wine was the best they had. Alcohol was the best they had to ease the pain. And it says, “Give wine to him who’s perishing. Don’t give it to kings. Don’t give it to nobles. Don’t give it to people whose minds are important.” God is pro- sobriety, by the way. And if you’re into drinking, uh, you know, and and you love getting intoxicated, let me just speak to you. God God is
[00:02:13 – 00:03:04] pro-briety. Keep your mind as sharp as you can keep it. Uh, it’s not about getting your mind dull. It’s about keeping your mind sharp. Uh, unless you’re dying. And if you’re dying, right, and you’re in a lot of pain, well, then of course uh whatever whether it’s fentanyl or whatever it is, codin or whatever you got to take uh take what you got to take uh to to to help ease the pain in the the the pain as it ramps up near death. Of course, uh we want pallet of care to keep you comfortable.
[00:02:39 – 00:03:33] And if you’ve got a loved one who’s dying, we want to keep your your loved one comfortable. Well, that has an effect on respiration and all the rest. And sometimes you think, well, it’s a catch 22. the more comfortable I make them, it seems like this is seeming going to going to accelerate death. Well, that’s been the problem, you know, in for for as long as we can think back to helping people get comfortable. I understand that. But death itself is eminent. uh oftent times as we’re trying
[00:03:06 – 00:04:02] to make people comfortable and uh I don’t think it’s wrong at all to pe keep people comfortable and when you talk about not resuscitating people and not having a do not resuscitate order on yourself or on your loved one I don’t think that’s wrong either especially if you think okay this is just the the circle of continuing to say okay I’m I’m doing this death seems to be eminent we’re continuing just to resuscitate and resuscitate and resuscitate and and doctors can help with this Right.
[00:03:34 – 00:04:28] Doctors that are are being honest with us about the fact that it seems like death is near, [snorts] the problem is terminal, either the age or the ailment or the cancer, whatever it is. Yes, natural death to define it is hard, but I do think most people can define it when you’re right near the the midst of it. Now, what I don’t want to get into is what Canada is getting into and a lot of European countries are getting into. I we’re not into mercy killing. We’re not into what’s called euthanasia, which
[00:04:01 – 00:04:50] is just a compound of Greek words that it’s a good death, right? We don’t want to have a good death, like to say, “Oh, we’re going to give you a good out here if it’s painful.” I I’m all about dulling your pain and giving you some kind of narcotic to to try and make this easier for you in terms of the pain itself, but I’m not going to end your life to try and end your pain. That’s just not the way the Bible uh addresses us. Matter of fact, if you listen to my
[00:04:26 – 00:05:20] lectures on this as it relates to death and dying, you’ll find that the Bible’s always calling us for courage and strength. We we certainly need courage. We need to have courage and we need to say God is going to give us courage as we seek to to face the ultimate challenge at the end of our lives to face the threshold of death. And and this is something as Christians I hope that God’s going to give us extra courage in all of this. So, uh I I want you to feel okay about pallet of care. I
[00:04:53 – 00:05:53] want you to feel okay about the great advantage we have about having more than alcohol or biting a lead bullet as we near the end of death. And I want you to realize that I think we have a lot of advantages here even in understanding uh dying and and how we can face the the question of you know if we resuscitate we’re just going to be doing this again in in 5 minutes or or 5 hours and I think we can have do not resuscitate orders that probably can make a lot of sense when we’re near the end of
[00:05:22 – 00:06:12] someone’s life. So um don’t feel like you’re alone on this. I think a lot of good consultation, calling your pastors in uh when you’re near the end of this. Pastors have to deal with this a lot. And [snorts] of course, doctors, pastors, uh your family members don’t make these decisions alone. I think you can make these things as a team and make these decisions as a team. And I think you can walk through this, Sheney, um with a lot more confidence.
