Is It OK for Christians to Smoke Pot?
In a few days, marijuana will be legal in Illinois. So…will it be OK for Christians?First, there are a lot of things that are legal that Christians are obligated to refrain from. Abortion is legal. Fornication is legal. Even adultery is technically legal. Drunkenness is legal, if in private. But each of these are quite clearly forbidden for us who claim to follow Jesus. The approval of the state does not automatically equate to the approval of God.What, then, does God think about people smoking marijuana, now that it’s legal?I recently read an article defending marijuana use with the logic that not all alcohol use is prohibited in Scripture, only its misuse. They deduced that as long as marijuana is used recreationally, and not to excess, it would be ok.But there is a major flaw in that thinking. The misuse of alcohol that is prohibited in Scripture is drunkenness (i.e., “Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery.” –Ephesians 5:18). Studies show that it takes about 4 drinks before a person begins to feel the inebriating effects of alcohol, but only 4 puffs of weed. A person can enjoy a bottle of beer or a glass of wine without impairment or a buzz. But the whole purpose of smoking pot is to get that buzz. People do drink alcohol for the taste. However, people smoke marijuana for the high. That’s the point of smoking pot. The excess of alcohol that the Bible condemns, equates to the very purpose of smoking (or ingesting) weed. So it really is not true to say that the Bible is silent regarding recreational marijuana use.As followers of Jesus, we should seek to have a heightened sense of reality, being readily alert to act in wisdom and to recognize opportunities to represent Jesus. We are to seek to glorify God in our bodies and our lives, refraining from those things that would hold us back and keep us down (1 Corinthians 6:12). When reality is painful, we are to go to God with our troubles. Christians should not seek to escape reality through a bottle or a bong.I did smoke pot as a teenager, though not a lot. But I had friends who were potheads. Sadly, some of them still are. I think about one of the most gifted and promising guys I knew in high school, who had so many opportunities to make something of his life. Yet to this day, his life is characterized by pot, zero drive, and no passion. He is still living like an adolescent, and still smoking weed.Ultimately, when it comes to any of these issues, this Scripture should govern our conduct: "Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT).