What About Smoking?

In my jail ministry, I once spoke on why smoking was a sin. When I would ask the fellows why they would quote: 

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What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? (1 Corinthians 6:19 KJV)

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So in other words, smoking is defiling/harming the temple of your body. That’s possible, but if that is the case then wouldn’t also going out in the sun without sunscreen on be harming the temple of your body. . . or eating high fat/high sodium foods with little or no nutritional value. . . potato chips come to mind. . . drinking sugary cola drinks also be defiling/harming the temple of our body? 

Smoking is different. Nicotine is an addictive drug, and when you are addicted to something, it is not possible to follow Jesus’ commandment: 

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Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. (Matthew 22:37-38 KJV) 

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When I was addicted to nicotine, it was not possible to love God with ALL my heart, ALL my soul, and ALL my mind. Keeping my addiction cravings at bay was the MOST important thing to me, and not God. The other issue is that sin hangs out with sin. 

As Christians we cannot pick and choose what sin we drop, and what sin we keep. It is utter foolishness to think that we can quit stealing, but keep lying. We must make every attempt to rid our lives completely of sin. Illicit drugs/adultery/violence hang out together. Drunkenness/smoking/gambling/adultery hang out together. . . . and on and on. . .

I believe that if I were to begin using tobacco again, that it would be a short time before I was again drinking. . . Think of it this way. . . sin is like cancer. It never stays small. I always grows until it consumes you. 

Imagine having surgery to remove a cancerous tumor, and waking up after the surgery, and talking to the surgeon. . . “Well. . . I took most of the tumor out. I left some of it. I didn’t figure it was a big deal, leaving that little bit.” . . . really????? 

That little bit of cancer will not stay small. It will grow and grow. . . It will metastasize to other parts of your body until you are consumed with it. 

The only people who I have known who were successful in quitting crack, or meth were those who also quit smoking. The ones I’ve known, who said that smoking wasn’t that important, eventually went back to their illicit drugs. 

I’m not perfect by a long measure. I’m working on things today, that I had no clue about when I first came to God. I’ve been given victory over many things. I’m not battling the same things I was 20 years ago. I’ve grown. Now He has revealed to me other things that I need to tackle. The important thing is I can’t ever be satisfied and complacent about sin in my life. 

Whatever sin I accept, will ruin my relationship with God, and will lead me back to where I started from. . . I cannot live back there. . . , but also importantly I cannot forget what life back there was like. . . the pain. . . the shame. . . the darkness. . . 


If I ever forget, then I could be tempted to return. . . 

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 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes. (Numbers 11:5-6 KJV) 

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The Hebrews were delivered from slavery in Egypt, and when a trial came, all they thought of were the cucumbers, the melons. . . leeks, onions, and garlic. . . They didn’t remember the taskmasters. . . the pain. . . the death sentence on the baby boys. . . the making bricks without straw. . . the slavery. . . they were tempted to go back, because of their selective memory. . . 

Dear God. . . help me always remember what life was like before coming to you. . . don’t let me forget how far a journey I have traveled from Egypt. . . 

 I love you my God. . . 
 I thank you my Lord. . . 
 Thank you for saving me. . .

Dave 





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