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When it comes to smoking,
the bible says very little, if anything about it. The main most
popular scripture in the bible that all the righteous folks like to "beat
you" with concerning smoking is:
1-Corinthians 6:19
-
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in
you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?
1-Corinthians 6:20
- For you have been
bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
1 Corinthians 6:19 & 20,
does not pertain to drinking or smoking. It pertains to immorality.
Specifically, it pertains to "sleeping with prostitutes".
If you have a problem
believing this, read it for yourself. Go to 1 Corinthians 6:19, then back up
4 verses to 1 Corinthians 6:15 to put it in context. As you will see, Paul
clearly says that "all" other sins are outside of the body. (1 Corinthians
6:18)
Matthew
15:11
-
"It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what
proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man."
The sin here is "not" the
person lighting up a cigarette, it is the person telling you that "God
said", when "God did not say!"
Please do not misinterpret
me, I do not disagree with the American Cancer society or any of the other
organizations that claim smoking is dangerous or unhealthy for you,
However, I highly disagree
with those who tell you that God said you'll go to hell if you smoke. God
did "not" say that! It is dangerous to say "God said",
when "God didn't say!" (That is a sin!)
As far as I'm concerned,
enjoy that last cigarette five minutes before you go to heaven, because they
probably don't sell them up there!
And as far as the (quote)
"church people" in the restaurant and other public places, complaining to
the management or who ever, not because they can actually smell your smoke
from fifty yards away, but because they can "see" you smoking, well,
I'm dubious as to whether
you will run into them up there anyway.
Fact is: If you don't
smoke, don't start! If you are stupid like I was and started smoking when
you were 17 years old, if you can quit, DO IT! There's no benefit in it.
(and they are about six bucks a pack!) But absolutely don't let any preacher
or well meaning Christian weigh you down with guilt that keeps you out of
church over it!
The truth is, smoking
won't send you to hell, It will just make you smell like you've been there!
A Personal Story
about Smoking
I'll share a short story
with you. Short but true. Some years ago I was a musician in the praise &
worship group at a very large church. Behind the dressing rooms were two
large metal doors leading outside, but rarely used.
One morning after the
music part of the worship had ended, I was standing outside those doors
smoking a cigarette with my fingers wedged between them so I would not be
locked out and have to go around to get back in.
Well, one of the choir
ladies walked by, opened the door (nosey) and saw me smoking a cigarette.
Needless to say, the look on her face was either the look one would give if
you were standing there naked, or if you had just ran over their puppy. I'm
not sure which, maybe a combination of the two.
A few days later I was
asked to report to the pastors office. The pastor mentioned that one of the
choir people saw me smoking. For one thing, I was not hiding it, I was
simply standing outside to have a cigarette.
I saw where he was headed
with this conversation and told him I was quite aware of all the arguments
concerning smoking (your body is a temple of the holy spirit etc...) and had
noticed that almost everyone I had heard preach them was overweight or had
some other vise.
I mentioned that I also
enjoy having a beer now and then. (it was actually more "now" than "then") I
don't think he liked that very well. The meeting ended. He did his duty by
calling me to his office, *Grin* and I went and had another cigarette.
He did mention during the
meeting, "what if the children saw me smoking". I told him I would smoke in
my car. After pondering it for a few days, I realized that if any children
"were" wandering the parking lot during that hour in the midst of the
service to see me smoking, maybe he should call "them" to his office.
THE POINT
My point is, the bible has
nothing to say about smoking, good or bad. On the other hand, the bible has
a lot to say about gossip and is very blunt about it!
To this day, you could not
convince me that this "choir girl/lady" had my best interest at heart when
she reported me. Neither did the pastor by calling me to his office. The
reason was not to be a blessing to me, it was not to sincerely try to save
my soul.
Lets face it. The reason
was plain, old fashioned "Gossip!", and though God says nothing about
smoking, God clearly condemns Gossip! To my knowledge, this choir
person was never called to the pastors office concerning this.
The pastor did however, go
the the music director and tell him that I drink beer! Although I'm sure the
intention was to have me removed from the praise & worship group, to the
music directors credit, I was not.
The Ministry of
Jesus
According to historical
accounts, the ministry of Jesus only lasted a few years here on earth.
Unfortunately, Jesus had to spend a considerable amount of that time dealing
with ridiculous problems like the one above.
Jesus had to deal with
people who were ready to condemn him for even "healing" on the Sabbath.
Because God said it was a day of rest! Well, you can see things have not
changed much, except for getting worse.
The church accepts the
word of the American Cancer association as Gods written word. And it is not!
Furthermore, to be politically correct, does not make you scripturally
correct!
Don't misinterpret me, if
you smoke, quit now! I'd be a fool if I told you that cigarettes were good
for you. But worse than smoking, is pretending to be holier than anyone else
because you don't! This will destroy your soul. Smoking, on the other
hand, will only destroy your body.
God Bless You
Dan Douglass
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