Scripture: Proverbs 23:29–32; Romans 13:1; 1 Peter 1:13; 1 Corinthians 10:31–32; 1 Peter 5:8–10
“Is It Okay for a Christian to Smoke Marijuana?”
A few years ago, Pastor Jared Oldenburg, a speaker with Time of Grace, our media ministry partner, and now the new lead pastor of this church, created this video. On YouTube, it was called “Is It Okay for a Christian to Smoke Marijuana?” A man named Ron wrote in the comments section, “Praise God, Pastor Jared, thank you for this answer.” Another guy, though, did not agree with Ron. He blasted Jared by saying this, “As a Lutheran pot smoker, your opinion does not come from a position of knowledge.” The comments were outweighed by the little thumbs up, as you can see there, 316 people said they enjoyed the video. But a guy who goes by Chief5813 definitely did not enjoy the video. He said this and I quote, “I smoke to survive, bro. It just relaxes my mind, bro. I’m alert and sober. Don’t get me stupid, bro. I’m still in control when I’m smoking bud. All weed does is enhances everything. That’s it, bro.” Unquote.
There are plenty of snarky jokes in the comment section for or against the use of marijuana. One person said the Bible says that God gave us “every green plant” for food, therefore, weed was okay. Someone said that weeds did not come into existence until after the fall into sin, therefore, they’re sinful. Someone pointed out that God calls himself the most high God … which is just a bit much, if you ask me. But the reactions were definitely not unanimous and not just from, you know, potheads who just wanted to get away with anything but from sincere Bible-reading Christians. They were wrestling with the question that we’ve been wrestling with: can a Christian do this or do that?
Have you wrestled with the deeper questions about substances and Christian faith? If you’re taking notes in your program, maybe we can put it this way. Can a Christian drink and smoke? Can a Christian drink alcohol? Is that an option for someone who’s all in with their faith in Jesus? And on a similar line, can a Christian smoke weed? Is that something that’s an option for Christians? Is it a possibility? Do you have to be careful? Is it just about moderation? What about medicinal things? If someone asked you those questions, do you think you could respond with a truly biblical answer?
Two Extremes Christians Run To on Tough Questions
Here’s what I’ve noticed. A lot of times when we ask kind of these tough or taboo questions, there’s kind of two camps that people run to. Sometimes people run maybe out of fear and maybe out of a good place to say because something can be dangerous, therefore, it’s absolutely forbidden. You know, if this leads to that, which leads to that, which leads to this, which is a really bad thing, therefore, the first thing is in and of itself a bad thing. Sometimes people will prohibit things that aren’t exactly prohibited in the Bible just because of where they might go. Right? Can you watch a certain show? Can you dance? Can you do this or that? Can you celebrate Halloween? Well, you never know where it goes so people are really cautious and sometimes, they add things to the Bible that are not necessarily in the Bible.
Other people, on the other hand, because there’s not like a verbatim prohibition of something in the Word, they just say, “Well, whatever. It’s fine. Give me like the exact verse that says I can’t do it.” And then their freedom goes a step too far and they end up committing the sins that the Bible is very serious about. So, I’m curious, if you wanted to avoid those two extremes and actually have a biblical response to these big questions, what would you say? If a friend wants to smoke, if someone wants to drink, what would you say to them? What page of the Holy Scriptures would you open to guide them?
That’s the question I want to wrestle with, with you today. Can a Christian drink alcohol? Can a Christian smoke weed? Today, I want to cover three things with you with an open Bible and plenty of passages quoted. I want to talk, first of all, about alcohol, then I want to talk to you about weed, and finally and most importantly, I want to talk to you about Jesus.
What Does the Bible Say About Drinking Alcohol?
So, let’s dive into the deep end together. What does the Bible say about drinking? Can a faithful follower of Jesus Christ drink? According to this book, the answer is never. I recently finished a 162-page book from a seminary professor whose total and ultimate point was to convince you that alcohol is never an option for a Bible-believing Christian. Here’s a summary of the professor’s argument. He says that you cannot deny that alcohol is connected to all kinds of drama, carnage, and wreckage in society and in the family. Talk to any cop or social worker and you will find out that violence, abuse, assault, domestic issues, so much, a majority of things, in fact, are connected to alcohol. So, would it make sense if Christians are people of peace and love and humility in the family? Would it make sense that we distance ourselves from something that historically has been so destructive? That’s argument one.
Argument two, he says, that the kind of wine that you’ll read about in Bible times was shockingly different than the average glass of wine on an American dinner table. It was mixed wine that was so watered down, people in biblical times would look at a Merlot that you might drink with a good steak and be stunned at the potency of it. So, the author says, don’t see wine in the Bible, and it comes up quite a bit, and think that that’s the wine of today. It’s two different things, often two-thirds water to just one-third wine. In fact, his third argument: in biblical times, people who drank like straight red wine were considered barbaric pagans and therefore, today, Christians should think very deeply before imitating barbaric and pagan behavior. Because of all these reasons and a few more, the author says, that you and I, if we’re going to be faithful to the Bible and to Jesus, should never, ever, ever drink.
Now I have to say, I really like this book. I’m a Lutheran kid from Wisconsin, which is a very big drinking culture, but I love the fact that this man tried to persuade me with his best case, not with anger and exaggeration, but with logical reasoning. And at the same time, I have to say, as a Bible-believing Christian, I couldn’t come to the same conclusion and here’s why. Because even in the book, this author admits that people were drinking intoxicating substances in the Scriptures. He quotes in the book, for example, Proverbs 23, which says this, “Do not gaze at wine when it is red.” Ah, see, there’s the problem, red wine. “When it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! In the end, it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper.” See, he says don’t drink red wine. But you know the words that come immediately before this verse? I’ll show you. “Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?” Verse 30, “Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of,” don’t miss this word, “mixed wine.” We cannot deny that people, including Jesus himself, drank alcoholic beverages. What the Bible’s very serious about, though, is not the use of it but instead, the abuse of it.
Did Jesus Drink Wine?
As you keep reading the Bible you find out this fits perfectly with the life of Jesus. Did Jesus ever drink? The answer is yes. In fact, his enemies unfairly accused him of being a drunk. Did Jesus ever serve drinks? Y’all know about his first miracle? He turned gallons and gallons, and gallons and gallons, and gallons and gallons, and gallons of water, into grape juice? Nope. He turned it into wine but not because he was trying to get anyone drunk. And when Jesus instituted Holy Communion or the Lord’s Supper, he took the Passover glass not of water but of wine and then he said to Christians and future generations, do this in remembrance of me. We know from the Bible that Jesus drank an intoxicating beverage, he made intoxicating beverages, and he told us in the sacrament of Holy Communion to drink intoxicating beverages. So, the problem cannot be with the beverages themselves, but with an exaggerated use of it. Therefore, the Bible’s simple answer to this question, can a Christian drink? Is yes. Faithful Christians can be faithful as Jesus himself was and drink alcohol. So, I’ll see you on the brewery tour? Well, not quite, not quite. Hold up.
We’re not done answering this question yet because there’s three big principles and biblical truths that we need to remember as we consider our own relationship with alcohol. Let me share them with you really quickly.
Is It Legal? Underage Drinking and Romans 13
The first one comes from Romans 13, where the apostle Paul says this about the government. Let everyone be subject to governing authorities, for there’s no authority except that which God has established. So, if you’re under twenty-one, let me be black and white and blunt, God does not want you to drink. In this culture, God wants you to be obedient to the law. So, if you have a fake ID, today’s the day to repent and get rid of it. If you have a friend who can buy you beer or someone who hands you a red Solo cup even though you’re a college freshman or only twenty years old, it’s time to say no, perhaps to avoid such environments if that’s a temptation to you. God wants you to be obedient to the law and not to drink. And you might think I’m some lame, middle-aged man who just doesn’t get invited to parties on Friday night, all of which is kind of true. But I’m just going to share to you what the Bible says. I’m not going to add to it; I’m not going to subtract from it for the good of your soul. And if it’s illegal, if you’re not subject to the governing authorities, you are crossing a biblical line. That’s issue number one.
Is Your Mind Alert? Staying Fully Sober
Issue number two has to do with the state of your mind and not your age. In the book of 1 Peter, Jesus’s friend writes these words:
“Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.” — 1 Peter 1:13
God wants your mind, whether you’re eighteen, twenty-eight, or seventy-two, to be alert and fully sober. And therefore, whatever relationship you might have with alcohol, God wants you, at all times and in places, at every minute and moment throughout your week, to have a mind that can fix its thoughts on the words and works that are good worship of Jesus. God never wants you to be at a state of inebriation where you’re buzzing, where you speak first and think later. Where your red alert of the devil’s temptations has been toned down to a mediocre yellow flag. No, God wants you to be able to think critically because isn’t it true that so much of the Christian life is about your thoughts? And God, as a good Father, wants you to think good thoughts, true thoughts, noble thoughts, loving thoughts. God wants that for you not because he’s trying to rob you of like relaxation or fun, but because he actually believes that your life matters.
And not just your life in general is important to God. I’m talking about this Friday night matters to God. What you say on Friday night at 9, 10, 11, or midnight matters to God. The words that you speak, whether they build people up or tear them down, whether you’re proud of them or have to apologize for them, those words matter to God. And the morning after the house party, that morning matters to God. I don’t know about you, but I find it rather difficult to be a decent human, to be patient, self-controlled, selfless, gentle, kind, to put down my phone and do the things that make my wife and my children happy. It’s not easy to live a life of love and God doesn’t want you to be sluggish, to be fighting a low-level headache, to be dealing with the amount of alcohol in your system that costs you the day after. Your life, moment by moment and minute by minute, matters so much to God. He says things like this, not out of hate, not out of being lame, but out of great love for you, he says, with minds that are alert and fully sober. The sobriety of your mind matters because your life matters to God.
Is It Loving? Christian Freedom and 1 Corinthians 10
Final question, is it loving? There are a couple of curious sections in the Bible, where the apostle Paul teaches us that sometimes something is okay if you’re by yourself, but in the company of others, you might restrict your freedom for the sake of Christian love. In 1 Corinthians 10, for example, Paul says these words:
“Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God and do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews or Greeks or the church of God.” — 1 Corinthians 10:31–32
If I gave you a second, I bet you could think of a situation where you could have a beer at the bar, but if a certain person was sitting next to you, you might think twice about your order. Can you think of someone like that? Maybe someone who’s seven months sober and you can have a drink or two and then stop, but once they get the taste in their mouth, they’re not going to stop until they’re seven beers in. And so, even though it’s legal and even though your mind might be alert, you might resist and restrict your freedom for the sake of love. Or maybe someone at the family party grew up in kind of a church culture where they were told, “It’s always sinful, it’s always wrong, you can’t even have a drop.” And they’re trying to get back to the truth but their conscience still struggles with the black and white or grayness of the issue. Do you need a glass of wine in that moment? No, you might resist it for the sake of letting them relax and enjoy the moment together. Christians always, whether they’re eating or drinking or whatever they’re doing, do it all for the sake of Christian love.
The Biblical Answer: Can a Christian Drink?
So put all that together, if you’re taking notes, you come up with this biblical answer. Can a Christian drink? The answer is this. If it’s legal, if you’re alert, and if you’re acting in love, a Christian can drink. To put it another way, if you are of age, if you are fully sober and absolutely alert, and if you’re thinking of others, then you can drink wine, beer, bourbon, and nearly anything else to the glory of the God who saved you.
What Does the Bible Say About Marijuana?
So, what about weed? Let’s transition to the second part of our message today. Is that an option for a Bible-believing Christian? This has become a question that more of us have had to wrestle with as state by state by state by state has legalized the recreational use of marijuana. So, the science behind the substance leaves Christians with three big questions. I want you to write them down.
Is It a Sin to Get High?
Question number one, is it unholy to get high? Like it’s a sin in the Bible to get drunk. Is it unholy to get high? I actually just had a high school young man ask me that question. After a presentation I did, he pulled me aside. He was a super kind, super talkative kid, and he confessed to me that there was a lot of alcohol abuse in his family and that alcohol turned his family members into angry, sometimes violent, and abusive people. And he said, “You know, Pastor Mike, weed is not that. It’s not the same thing. I don’t get violent. It calms me down. It doesn’t turn me into a monster of anger. It helps decrease my anxiety.” So, is it unholy? Is it sinful to get high?
I opened my Bible to 1 Peter chapter 5.
“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” — 1 Peter 5:8
Your spiritual battle to be more and more like Jesus every single day is not just about avoiding anger, rage, and the abuse that alcohol can often lead to. It’s also about work, effort, attention, listening, motivation, eagerness, a godly anticipation to get up and to do what God wants you to do. I talk to friends at church who say that when their friends smoke, they don’t turn into like, Hulk monsters of anger and abuse but they’re just disconnected and conversation decreases. The things they remember about the conversation starts to slowly disappear. When the Bible talks about the Christian life, it says things like be as hardworking as a farmer. Like, do farmers pop a few edibles before you harvest in the fall? The Bible says fight evil like a soldier. Do you think the soldiers watching before a big and dangerous mission light up together so they can calm down? No, the way that the Bible describes the Christian life is not just avoiding these sins, it’s also avoiding these sins: laziness, disconnection, a lack of full attention. And therefore, God, who loves love, who cares about each and every moment, he wants your mind to be sharp. The devil is prowling around trying to get you and therefore, what’s the answer? Be alert and of sober mind. Getting high like getting drunk crosses the line that God is so clearly drawing and becomes sin. It is absolutely unholy to get high.
Can a Christian Use Weed in Moderation?
Question two, but can a Christian smoke like they drink? Honestly, this is a question that I had. If you’ve been fully attentive in this sermon, you might have heard me say that alcohol abuse is a sin but alcohol use is not. That you can’t have ten drinks but maybe you could have one. So, is weed the same way? Like don’t have too much of it but maybe you can have some of it. I dug into the research trying to answer that question and I realized that the answer is actually very, very complicated. Medical experts tell us that even small amounts of THC do slow reaction time, impair memory, and decrease attention span. In addition, as edibles become more popular, when you smoke, you almost always feel the effects instantly, but edibles often take one to two hours for your brain receptors to process the THC in your system. And so, people tend to eat more and more because they’re not feeling the effect and then they get in more and more trouble.
Is it a possibility? We’d have to say in the Bible there’s no passage that says you shall not have weed. There are passages about being fully alert and entirely sober. Is it possible to smoke in moderation? Maybe. But if you’re considering that, I’d have to ask you this question. What are your intentions with using weed? When he was researching for the book Cannabis and the Christian, author Todd Miles went to a local dispensary and he asked the clerk who was working that day if there was any reason for a person to smoke pot recreationally besides getting high. Quote, “The clerk looked at me like I was an idiot and he laughed. ‘Why else would anybody smoke pot?’” Fair question.
What About Medical Marijuana?
Final question, “But what about medical marijuana?” Christians, and I have a hunch the room is full of them today, some of you watching at home are in the same situation, Christians have long admitted that sometimes a faithful follower of Jesus might use a substance or a medicine that actually makes them not fully alert and sober for the sake of a medical procedure. A year and a half ago, I had surgery on my torn ACL. I was not fully alert when it happened. I wasn’t sitting up on the operating table saying, “Look at that, you’re cutting me wide open.” No, I was out and when I went home, they gave me pills that put me out so I could do the rehab and sleep through the night so the pain wouldn’t keep me up.
So, is it possible that weed, like certain pills, medicines, could be the same thing? Does marijuana have a medicinal purpose? I have to admit here; I’m not that kind of doctor but I do know this. Currently, marijuana is federally illegal and right now, it is not endorsed by the American Medical Association or the American Psychological Association for the effects it has on the human body. The website of the Mayo Clinic says that cannabis may help with nausea after chemo, muscle spasms, and chronic pain, but they also warn about the mental effect, the possibility of addiction, and the legal issues that currently exist in America. As a pastor whose expertise is in the Bible and not in the science, I don’t want to give you a black and white answer to this question, especially given the changing legal landscape and the additional medical research currently being done. So, if you push me and say, “Pastor Mike, as a Christian, can I smoke?” Here’s my answer. If it’s illegal and if it decreases your alertness, a Christian cannot smoke weed except, perhaps, for medical reasons.
The God of All Grace Runs Toward Sinners
You know, in the same chapter where Peter talks about the prowling lion, he goes on to say this about God:
“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ . . .” — 1 Peter 5:10
I love that description of God. He’s a God of grace. That’s a fancy Bible word that means undeserved love and he’s not a God of some of it or a little bit of it or a teaspoon of it, he’s a God of all of it. That when you think he’s going to thump you, when you think he’s going to send you back far from his presence, instead, because of his Son Jesus, his arms are open with a kind of mercy that you know you don’t deserve. If you have been drunk, if you have been high, if you have had too much to drink even under age, today’s the day to come back to Jesus because his arms are wide open.
Here’s what I know about Jesus. Two thousand years ago when God came down from heaven, he didn’t run from drunks and those who lacked self-control. He ran towards them. He came not to call righteous people, but those who were unrighteous and sinful people and needed God’s grace and forgiveness. He walked into the bars and dispensaries of the first century and he said, follow me. And now for people not a second chance to fix themselves, but the forgiveness that they needed to stand in the very presence of God. Friends, if you’re like me and you can remember many of the nights or the seasons of your life when you did not take substances seriously enough, know this. The God who takes your life so seriously, takes his love so seriously. And there’s nothing, no night, no morning after, that Jesus did not die for when he shed his blood for you two thousand years ago.
Something Better Than Weed: Forgiveness and Worship
Know that your sins, even your lack of sobriety, is forgiven. Know that God is not scowling in heaven waiting to thump you over the head with his justice. Now the justice has been paid when Jesus paid the price at the cross and today, he’s offering you something so much better. A way to deal with your worries and anxieties that isn’t illegal, what you don’t have to hide. A kind of joy that doesn’t leave you with regret the morning after but one that endures forever and ever. He’s offering you something better than weed, he’s offering you worship. To step into his presence and realize there’s something infinitely better than what the substances of this world can offer, it’s what our Savior Jesus does. Mercy, grace, and a place in the kingdom of God. So, my brothers and sisters in Christ, come back to Jesus today. Put all of your hope in him and fix your sober mind on the great facts of your salvation. And when you realize just how loved you are by God, join me in a life of moderation, of mental sharpness, of self-control, so that you and I can praise God with all of our heart, with all of our soul, with all of our strength, and with all of our mind.
Let’s pray.
Jesus, I thank you that the people you spent time with two thousand years ago were such a mess. Thank you that you didn’t just stay in the synagogue every second of your life. You went to the street corners and to tax collectors’ booths. You went near brothels not to sin but to call people to salvation. Thank you, Jesus, that you called Peter, who was a mess, and Paul, who was a mess, and Mary Magdalene, who was a mess, so that when we look in the mirror and see a mess, we know there’s mercy for us, too.
Thank you, God, for your forgiveness. Thank you for the gift of salvation. And we ask you now by the power of your Spirit to give us self-control. God, I live in a state that is famous for drinking. Help me never, ever again, to be drunk. We live in a culture that is minimizing the seriousness of the sobriety of the mind. Help us as Christians to be the ones who think most deeply and critically about our use of cannabis. God, we don’t want to escape from the life you have given to us. We want to lean into it so that we can love more and more like Jesus. Give us the power to do it.
We ask all these things in the beautiful name, the name that saved us from our sins, in Jesus’s name we pray and all God’s people said, amen.
