Occasionally people ask my opinion on various personal or church issues. I recently received the following question which I have reprinted below, followed by my response.
QUESTION
A couple in my church is having marriage difficulty. She found out that he regularly smokes marijuana, and she will not tolerate him smoking it. He came to talk with me, yet argued why he thought it was okay for Christians to smoke marijuana.
He reasoned it is just a plant that grows naturally, that he doesn’t smoke a lot, and it’s just to relax him. He claimed it didn’t affect his mind any more than the caffeine in my coffee affects me. I explained to him that it did alter his mind differently than caffeine, but more so, the main problem issue is that it’s illegal in the state where we live. It’s not right for Christians to break the law. He argued it would be legal soon, and then I would have no biblical ground to stand on.
This couple has gone to counseling, yet they are at an impasse. She won’t live with him if he smokes marijuana, and he won’t stay with her if he has to give it up. What advice would you give, especially if it were legal? As marijuana becomes legalized in more and more states, I fear we in the church will be dealing with this much more.
MY ANSWER:
People who call themselves Christian can be so disappointing. How selfish of this husband! Smoking marijuana matters more to him than his relationship with his wife? Really?
He’s violating three passages of Scripture:
Romans 13:1 – Obey the governing authorities
Ephesians 5:25 – Love your wife and give yourself up for her
1 Cor. 6:19 – The body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. (Evidence is now mounting up that marijuana damages the mind and the body. Christians should know that instinctively.)
Below is an article I wrote on this same subject several years ago – maybe it will be helpful to you.
— Bob
Smoking marijuana was regarded as very wrong twenty years ago but is considered acceptable by many today. It’s estimated that more than 1 in 3 people in America have tried marijuana at one point in their lives. While I’m confident there are a lot of things worse than smoking weed, I want to suggest seven reasons why I think it’s wrong and would advise against it.
1. It’s illegal in most states. The Bible commands us to be submissive to the governing authorities (Romans 13:1). Although police often look the other way, it is still against the law to smoke weed in most states. Even if your indulgence is confined to your own home, if you live in a state where it is illegal to smoke weed, you are disobeying the law.
2. It’s wasteful and expensive. The Bible encourages us to be wise stewards of the resources God has entrusted to us (1 Cor. 4:2). One study estimated the average pot smoker in Colorado (where marijuana is legal) will spend around $650 a year. Cannabis users in states where it’s illegal and those who use it habitually will spend much more. Wouldn’t it be a wiser use of your money to give that amount to a missionary or a needy person?
3. It’s damaging to our health and well-being. The Apostle Paul asked, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies” (1 Cor. 6:19-20).
It took years for science to document the harmful effects of tobacco. The claims that smoking marijuana is harmless are naïve and counter-intuitive. Some recent studies are now connecting marijuana to brain damage and the dulling of the senses. Side effects also include short-term memory problems, severe anxiety, lowered reaction time, increased heart rate, increased risk of stroke, problems with coordination, and sexual issues. One study shows a decline in IQ (up to 8 points if prolonged use started in adolescent age).
Research also shows a link between marijuana use and mental health problems like depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, short-term psychosis, and schizophrenia. While it’s not clear if marijuana causes these conditions, it can make them worse. Since our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, it doesn’t make sense to intentionally ingest a substance that has such negative consequences.
4. It’s potentially addictive. Jesus warned that all sin is potentially enslaving (John 8:34). Though you may have heard otherwise, studies now indicate nearly 10% of people who use marijuana become dependent on it. Some argue that weed in itself is not addictive, but the behavior is too easily repeatable. So at the very least, the pot-smoker develops a dangerous habit that is not easily broken.
Years ago, a very sharp high-school teacher confessed to me that he was smoking weed twice a day. He realized his dependency was causing him to lose his focus in the classroom. In his guilt, he brought me a large bag of marijuana and asked me to dispose of it. It was his way of declaring freedom from his addiction. I quickly took it to the dumpster hoping no police officer would interrupt me on the way and ask me what I was doing! That teacher would tell you that marijuana was a very difficult habit for him to break.
5. It’s obviously a gateway drug. Some dispute this objection, but common sense and numerous examples indicate this premise is true. A counselor in a treatment center who dealt with hundreds of patients recently stated that he met very few addicts who had not smoked marijuana as the first step to harder drugs like cocaine and heroin. Satan is a crafty deceiver who exploits the law of “increased appetite and diminishing return” to kill, steal, and destroy good people (John 10:10).
6. It’s a poor example to the people you influence. If you have children or grandchildren who look up to you, your example of using drugs for recreational purposes enhances their potential to develop a serious problem. Paul told Timothy to “set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12).
7. There’s a better alternative. Christians who are filled with the Spirit don’t need an artificial high.* The Bible doesn’t insist that Christians be total abstainers from alcohol (although I think it’s a wise practice), but it does command us, “Do not be drunk with wine which leads to debauchery, instead be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18).
The very purpose of smoking marijuana is to get an artificial high, to escape reality. Our sense of comfort and peace comes from knowing Christ, not doing drugs. Some may suggest they could smoke pot and still pray to Jesus. However, rather than saying, “I can still pray to Jesus,” why not ask, “Does this activity enhance my prayer life, or improve my walk with Christ?”
Jesus experienced excruciating pain when he was crucified. Early that morning He was offered a pain-killer (wine mixed with gall). But He refused to drink it because He intended to die for the sins of the world with a clear head.
Regardless of the pressures you face in life, you really don’t need marijuana. As a Christian, you are filled with the Holy Spirit, and you don’t need to escape reality. You don’t really need the temporary “high” you might get on drugs. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.
The Apostle Paul wrote, “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other so that you are not to do whatever you want” (Gal. 5:17).
I would encourage you to increasingly “walk by the Spirit.” This way, you will find it unnecessary to gratify your carnal desires. As a result, your walk with Christ will deepen, and you’ll enjoy the confidence of knowing you are in the center of God’s will for you.
*NOTE: It was not my intent to address the controversial subject of medicinal marijuana in this article. If it is proven that cannabis is helpful for the treatment of some maladies, and if it is legalized and prescribed by a respected physician, then Christians will need to make individual decisions about its proper use. The danger of any endorsement of medical marijuana is that it will become more readily accessible to those who simply crave an emotional high and abuse it..
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