What Is Gods View Of Smoking
Naoko, mentioned in the opening article, said of her victory over smoking, I was able to change my life because of learning the truth about Gods qualities and purpose. What she learned is found in the Bible. Even though the Bible never mentions tobacco, it helps us to understand how God views smoking. * For many, that knowledge provided the incentive they needed to resist or quit the habit. Let us consider three well-known harmful effects of smoking and see what the Bible says about them.
Cannabis Role In The Bible Remains Mysterious
As cannabis use continues to gain acceptance throughout the world, perhaps future Bible scholars will be inspired to dig even deeper and uncover its true significance in Biblical times. But for now, like most of the events described in the Bible, the early role of cannabis in the Hebrew and Christian faiths mostly remains a mystery.
What About Freedom In Christ
We do have freedom in Christ, but that freedom is not to be used to sin:
- For you were called to freedom, brethren only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
- Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.
The freedom of Christ is freedom to follow Him in service to others. We are not to use the law as an excuse for immorality . Likewise, we are not to allow things to bring us under their control:
- “Everything is permissible for me”–but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me”–but I will not be mastered by anything.
- For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved.
We are not to be slaves of sin, engaging in fleshly desires and lusts, but we are to serve the living God.
Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
Also Check: Scripture On Defending Yourself
What Are Some Facts About Smoking Tobacco
Smoking tobacco facts
- Tobacco smoking can lead to lung cancer, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema. It increases the risk of heart disease, which can lead to stroke or heart attack. Smoking has also been linked to other cancers, leukemia, cataracts, Type 2 Diabetes, and pneumonia. All of these risks apply to use of any smoked product, including hookah tobacco.
Questions To Ask Yourself
Its important to ask yourself questions about why, as a Christian, smoking weed is something you want to participate. Here are a few questions to ask yourself:
- What are the benefits of marijuana that could help me get closer to the Lord?
- It is beneficial?
- Am I using it to glorify God?
- Is this holy and honoring to the Lord?
- Is this pleasing to the Lord?
- Is it wise?
- What is the motivation of the heart?
- Why do I want to smoke it?
Recommended Reading: Does The Bible Say No Tattoos
If You Or Someone You Know Needs Help In Quitting
If you or someone you know needs help in quitting, please seek support from friends, family, and even a local church. If that doesnt help enough, then please dont neglect seeing a drug addiction rehab facility. There are so many ways to get help, and you can stop smoking pot. Pot addiction is very real, and it has devastated many people.
The national helpline is a treatment referral routing service. It is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. This service provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations. Callers can also order free publications and other information. The number for the helpline is 1-800-662-HELP .
Can Christians Smoke Weed The Not So Clear Answer
The question of if Christians can smoke weed or not hasnt traditionally been a gray answer. When it was illegal, it was a black and white answer because it was off-limits to those who are subject to the governing authorities , but now that recreational marijuana is becoming legal in more states, the question stands if Christians can or cant smoke weed.
Can Christians smoke weed? The Apostle Paul tells us that all things are permissible, but not all things are beneficial . If the Christian is smoking weed for the sole purpose of getting high, they should absolutely not participate because it is not possible to smoke marijuana and not violate Pauls expectation of always being in a position of sober-mindedness . Therefore, it is wisest for Christians to not go down that road. But if they are using marijuana solely for medical purposes, no other resource helps, and the Christian is not getting high from it, I would say its not a sin but I would encourage them to use much wisdom and caution ensuring that it is advised by a medical professional.
Cannabis is a plant that was not intended to get man high. Getting high causes a person to be disengaged not only from people, but also from life in general. It can easily become a passive way of dealing with issues by disengaging from them rather than seeking counsel from the Lord.
Don’t Miss: What Does Bible Say About Cremation Vs Burial
Why Is Smoking Weed A Sin
What did Paul say in the Bible? He said, I will not be brought under the power of any. The sole purpose of marijuana is for you get high and receive the effects of the strain of cannabis that you are smoking. With marijuana you are yielding up control to an external force and releasing self-control.
1. 1 Corinthians 6:12 All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.
What Are Native American Beliefs About Smoking
- There are exceptions to this, though, with Native American beliefs being one well-known example. Among Native Americans, tobacco is used for spiritual purposes and even for healing, so the cultural attitude to smoking differs substantially. Native Americans dont generally condone habitual, everyday use of tobacco, though.
Recommended Reading: What Is Omer In The Bible
Cannabis And Other Religions
Before we jump right into the scriptures of Christianity, it seems only right first to take a look at how cannabis is received amongst other religious groups as a whole.
Along with many well-known religions such as the aforementioned Rastafarian religion , there are now a number of religions that center massively on marijuana. These modern faith groups have come together to celebrate religion and cannabis!
Groups such as THC Ministries, Cantheism, The Cannabis Assembly, The Church of the Universe, The Free Marijuana Church of Honolulu, and The First Church of Cannabis concentrate on cannabis, just to name a few!
Among these are also other well-known religions that date back centuries who benefit from cannabis as part of their spiritual healing. Taoism, which originates back to 4th century China, uses cannabis incense as a cleansing tool while in Norse mythology the cannabis plant relates to beauty, fertility, and love.
These are merely a few examples of cannabis being implemented into the holy and ancient rituals of religion. But where does it fall with Christianity and the Bible?
What The Bible Says About Drunkenness And Drunkards
Alcohol was one of the most abused drugs during the time period during which the Bible was written. Its possible that references to drunkenness refer to alcohol addiction.
Dozens of Bible verses refer to drunkards and drunkenness.
- Romans 13:13
- Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.
- 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
- Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
- Galatians 5:19-21
- The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery idolatry and witchcraft hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy drunkenness, orgies and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
These verses can be interpreted to mean that being addicted to alcohol is a sin, but the sin is forgiven if you recover from alcoholism. The verses can also be interpreted to mean being drunk is a sin, and if you stop sinning , God will forgive you.
Read Also: Does The Bible Say Anything About Cremation
The Second Mention Song Of Songs : 10
The second time cannabis is mentioned in the Old Testament occurs several centuries later, in a love poem, written for his wife by the famed King Solomon .
Solomons father was King David, who slayed the giant Goliath in single combat.
This poem is considered as one of the most beautiful segments of the Bible, and whats quite unusual about it is the sexuality of King Solomons words.
How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume more than any spice! Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride milk and honey are under your tongue. The fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon. You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.
Your breasts are like two fawns, like twin fawns of a gazelle that browse among the lilies. Until the day breaks and the shadows flee, I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of incense. You are altogether beautiful, my darling there is no flaw in you.
Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with choice fruits, with henna and nard, nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree, with myrrh and aloes and all the finest spices. You are a garden fountain, a well of flowing water streaming down from Lebanon.
Final Thoughts On Marijuana And The Bible
When it comes to cannabis and the Bible, there really is no right answer. The ancient scriptures are completely open to interpretation. However, there does seem to be a strong argument for cannabis and its use in biblical times.
Just like the apostle Mark wrote in Mark 6:13, to be rubbed with the Holy Plant was to receive divine knowledge. We couldnt agree more!
Recommended Reading: What The Bible Says About Loneliness
What Does The Bible Say About Tobacco Addiction
- The Bible helps us to have the correct view of the matter when it says: Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey? When an individuals thinking and actions are dominated by a craving for tobacco, he soon becomes a slave to a degrading practice.
Jesus ‘healed Using Cannabis’
Jesus w as almost certainly a cannabis user and an early proponent of the medicinal properties of the drug, according to a study of scriptural texts published this month. The study suggests that Jesus and his disciples used the drug to carry out miraculous healings.
The anointing oil used by Jesus and his disciples contained an ingredient called kaneh-bosem which has since been identified as cannabis extract, according to an article by Chris Bennett in the drugs magazine, High Times, entitled Was Jesus a Stoner? The incense used by Jesus in ceremonies also contained a cannabis extract, suggests Mr Bennett, who quotes scholars to back his claims.
“There can be little doubt about a role for cannabis in Judaic religion,” Carl Ruck, professor of classical mythology at Boston University said.
Referring to the existence of cannabis in anointing oils used in ceremonies, he added: “Obviously the easy availability and long-established tradition of cannabis in early Judaism _ would inevitably have included it in the mixtures.”
Mr Bennett suggests those anointed with the oils used by Jesus were “literally drenched in this potent mixture _ Although most modern people choose to smoke or eat pot, when its active ingredients are transferred into an oil-based carrier, it can also be absorbed through the skin”.
Don’t Miss: What Does The Bible Say About Cremation Of The Body
What Does The Bible Say About Using Marijuana
In November 2012, Colorado passed the Colorado Marijuana Legalization Amendment, or Amendment 64, legalizing marijuana in the state for everyone aged 21 and over. Since then, most states have moved towards legalizing marijuana by decriminalizing it or allowing recreational or medicinal use.
In recent years, Americans have begun to examine questions regarding marijuana use and what role, if any, it should have in their lives. When weed was strictly illegal, most Christians believed that using the substance was clearly wrong because the Bible advises readers to obey the government. Now that using marijuana even recreationally is no longer illegal in several states, the morality of it seems a little murky to some.
How Many Times Is Marijuana Mentioned In The Bible
If we acknowledge the mistranslation theory proposed by Benet, well find that cannabis is mentioned five times in the Bible, with three different words, all of which have the same root word .
The usage of different words can be explained by the passage of time, because the Old Testament covers approximately one thousand years.
Also Check: Where Does The Bible Talk About Tattoos
The Final Reference To Cannabis
TRADING WITH TYRE
The final Biblical reference to kaneh appears in Ezekiel 27, in a passage called A Lament for Tyre. The kingdom of Tyre had fallen into disfavor with Yahweh, and cannabis appears as just one of many of the wares received by Tyre, the merchant of peoples on many coasts.
Both of these passages refer obliquely back to the story of King Solomon. The mention of Sheba brings to mind Solomons love affair with the Queen of Sheba, and the King of Tyre played a pivotal role in Solomons building of the temple.
DANITES AND GREEKS FROM UZAL BOUGHT YOUR MERCHANDISE THEY EXCHANGED WROUGHT IRON, CASSIA AND KANEH FOR YOUR WARES.
EZEKIEL 27:19
FROM FAVOUR TO DISFAVOUR
Of these five references to kaneh and kaneh-bosm, the first three have cannabis appear in Yahwehs favour, the fourth definitely in his disfavour, and the fifth on a list from a kingdom that had fallen from grace in the eyes of the Israelite God. One might wonder at the reason for these apparent contradictions, and the answer can be found within the story of the suppression of the cult of Ashera, or Astarte, the ancient Queen of Heaven.
In The Chalice and the Blade, Riane Eisler explains this as follows:
The ties between cannabis and the Queen of Heaven are probably mostapparent in Jeremiah 44, where the ancient patriarch seems to be concerned by the peoples continuing worship of the Queen of Heaven, especially by the burning of incense in her honour.
BIBLICAL PROHIBITION
BREAKING THE SERPENT
Where Does The Bible Say Smoking Cigarettes Is A Sin
- While the Bible doesn’t directly address smoking , there are principles that apply to smoking in Scripture that we should be mindful of. Our health is so important to the Lord that in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17, He calls our bodies temples of God: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?
Don’t Miss: Pray Without Ceasing Means
Before The Fall Of Man
Genesis 1:29-30 God also said, Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This food will be for you, for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the eartheverything having the breath of life in it. I have given every green plant for food. And it was so.
For food not for smoking, not to be in a bong, not to be put in a blunt, but for food.
Proof Of Marijuana Use Discovered At Ancient Biblical Site In Israel
An ancient biblical tribe in Israel likely used marijuana to produce hallucinogenic effects as part of cultic rituals, according to a new study that identified cannabis resin on an alter in a shrine built around 750 BCE.
Two alters that appeared near the entrance of the Holy of Holies in the Judahite shrine were excavated about 50 years ago and now an analysis of the materials on top of the alters turned up evidence of marijuana combustion at the site.
The study, published Thursday in the journal Tel Aviv, states that cannabis inflorescences were burnt there, conceivably as part of a ritual that took place in the shrine.
Via Tel Aviv.
It seems feasible to suggest that the use of cannabis on the Arad altar had a deliberate psychoactive role, the study concluded.
Cannabis odors are not appealing, the researchers opined, and do not justify bringing the inflorescences from afar. The frequent use of hallucinogenic materials for cultic purposes in the Ancient Near East and beyond is well known and goes back as early as prehistoric periods.
However, this is the first time physical evidence has been identified that indicates the tribe of Judah participated in marijuana-infused ceremonies. Evidence of frankincense being burned was also found at the site.
Researchers said its unclear where the ancient tribe obtained cannabis, but they suspect that it may have been imported from distant origins and were transported as dried resin .
Via Tel Aviv.
Also Check: What Does Bible Say About Cremation Vs Burial