Using marijuana as part of your prayer life if your a Christian..

It's funny to me, how well Christians ignore my replies when they pierce the ring of truth, and the only thing they want to do is ignore it.

"You know what i hate more than anything, as an Atheist, i have read the bible front to back multiple times... and 99% of every Christian i have ever met has never read the entire thing, or lies about reading the entire thing, which is sin in itself.

Please, familiarize yourself with your faith if you wish to be a true follower of a certain religion. But like i said before, Christians usually take the parts out of the bible that they like, and ignore the rest, in order to justify their behavior in the eyes of the lord.

Thessalonians 5:6-8 - Being sober is the opposite of being drunk and is associated with being alert and watchful.

Peter 1:13-17 - Be sober, gird up the loins of your mind so you can avoid lusts and be obedient and holy. This requires being alert.

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Corinthians 9:25-27 - Bring our bodies into subjection to our minds, exercising temperance (self-control) like athletes in training, so our bodies will be properly guided by our minds.

Proverbs 4:23 - Keep your heart (mind) with all diligence because it must decide the issues of life.

Struggling against evil is difficult and dangerous at best, even with the clearest of faculties. That is why God has forbidden intoxication. There are other ways to violate these principles, but drug abuse is surely one way.

If you consider yourself a Christian, and you get intoxicated in any way... repent, discontinue the behavior, or you are going to hell. This is all in literal reference to what is considered one of the holiest texts in the world, the bible.






If this information at all contradicts your denomination... i would rethink you stance, and choose a different religion to fallow... if you wish to continue smoking cannabis, or consuming any substance that is mind altering, if i were you... i would choose something other than the Christian doctrine... else you will fall into the pits of hell for consumption of any substance that is intoxicating.

For God, according to the Christian doctrine, knows, sees and hears ALL. You cannot hide from the lord, even your thoughts can be seen, do not allow the temptation of intoxication of the devil infiltrate your life, for then... you will surely burn in hell.:

Alright, lets start this.

First off, you have to understand what are the apostles saying and meaning when they imply being sober. Do they mean a state of mind unaltered by substances so they can be aware of the devils schemes? yes, they do. Do they mean a mind that is alert and ready to be watchful and able to pray at any given moment when trouble comes? Of course. The problem comes when one starts to tread the line being drunk and being sober. Drunk referring to both alcohol intoxication and marijuana's effects on the brain. Just like a little bit of alcohol isn't intoxicating tot he point of inebriation, marijuana in small doses is beneficial if used in moderation as well. The bible lcearly states that alcohol in moderation is fine, it is when it is used in excess and one is drunk and no longer able to think straight that they are in sin. The apostle Paul warned everyone, however, not to drink if it was going to cause a brother to stumble. For instance, if you were my brother, Zaehet, I would no longer drink around you if you believed any form of alcohol at all was a sin, just like I would no longer smoke at all around you.

Let me be clear, I am in no way condoning the use of marijuana to get stoned when it comes to Christianity. Am I here to judge people that aren't christians? Absolutely not. God will judge them, so when I say I dont condone people to get stoned, I am impying my christian brothers and sisters. The difference is that a little bit of weed is similar to a little but of alcohol. When I say little I do in fact mean a puff or two. I am not one to smoke more then that ever. Did I used to, before I got saved? Of course, but I have been born again and my goal is not to get stoned because I am VERY well aware we have a devil out to get us at any moment.

It is made clear that alcohol use is fine when used in small doses. I am sure you have heard these verses before but I will throw then out anyways to support the multiple people in teh bible who drank and why it is good to drink in small amounts.

He makes grass grow for the cattle,
and plants for people to cultivate—
bringing forth food from the earth:
wine that gladdens human hearts, Psalm 104

Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. Ecclesiastes 9:7

"For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' But wisdom is justified by her children." (Matthew 11:18,19)

Jesus was around drinking wine with the tax collectors and sinners, and was accused of being a drunkard by the pharisees of his day, much like people of the church accusing Christians of being able to hang out with anyone that is an unbeliever for the gospels sake. Jesus was sinless, so for him to drink wine and not have sinned is another reason ti shows that wine, without excessive use which leads to drunkenness is not sin.

It is admonished for overseers and older men to not be given to much wine, in other words to practice self control. ""But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things—" Titus 2:1

In case you are part fo the people that beleive any wine spoken of in the bible is referrign to grape fruit, I would encourage you to read this verse in Numbers where it demonstartes a clear distinction between wine and grape juice. Along with the fact that it is made clear throughout the bible that wine is in fact, wine. "Numbers 6:2,3 reads, "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord, he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins.'"


Now, onto your side of it, Excessive alcohol use, just like excessive marijuana use is certainly wrong and condemned by the Lord.
"Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long at the wine, Those who go in search of mixed wine. Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it swirls around smoothly; At the last it bites like a serpent, And stings like a viper. Your eyes will see strange things, And your heart will utter perverse things." Proverbs 23

Now I will tackle why medical marijuana is fine when used to treat illnesses. It was even supported and encouraged in the gospels for them to use alcohol for their frequent stomach illnesses. ""No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach's sake and your frequent infirmities." 1 Timothy 5
As you can see, the reason this was suggested was for an illness and in the same way, medical marijuana, which works very well in small doses as I myself am one that uses it to medicate, is perfectly fine.

^This is a great example of how someone can take the words of the bible, and twist them around to mean anything they want them to mean.

Take a verse from the bible, and ask 100 Christians what it means... you will get 100 different answers.

me? no, not yet.. well, I suppose I have over the years.. but not like studied.

I started reading from genensis & kept lossing interest. I started with the Gospels.. read them prob 10 times over an over again. Then Acts, etc. Mostly the New Testiment. I figure that's the best place to start.

Zaehet Strife said:

^This is a great example of how someone can take the words of the bible, and twist them around to mean anything they want them to mean.

Take a verse from the bible, and ask 100 Christians what it means... you will get 100 different answers.

Click to expand...

There is only one truth on every subject. It is the holy Spirit that is responsible for teaching it to us and our responsibility is to listen. All of the different answers is just a lack of guidance by the Holy Spirit.
"All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."

When the Holy Spirit is within us, and we are actively listening to Him, he will not contradict himself, once the church begins to wake up to this, you will see Christians finally coming together to agree on subjects, but until then you will see the mass confusion that is modern day Christianity.

Now please show me how anything I said went against being sober and alert.

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Being high... is not being sober. lol

wow..... i missed a bunch!

Zaehet Strife said:

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Being high... is not being sober. lol

Click to expand...

telling someone this just makes you satan tempting us to stop. go away please. ive had to continually deal with people like you. if you say your read the book front to back yet you are a non believer i will not and would not believe a word you say. i dont know any christian who has taken advice from a non believer. usually its not good when you do.

HOly crap. This isnt my intention. I dont want to debate anything. I think the point I made in my OP was that I dont know. My eyes are being opened.

To be honest debating with you would be like me arguing with my 8 year old. He just doesnt know & the conversation is silly. I can make him look silly, but he;s 8.. its not that hard. (I am the 8 year old btw.. not you. You obviously have far more experience than I do with reading the bible.)

Same thing. I'm a new Christian.. Just started studying for myself... instead of just hearing it for the past 25 years type thing.

Come back to a this post in a year or so & we'll discuss your point of view, but for now.. just don't waste your time. I have no idea nor do I pretend to know what God says about things. That's the point.

I just want to discuss my experience with like minded poeple. You want to debate, do it with someone else. I don't have the experience or the vocabulary at this point.

BUt your welcome to read along with us, but as I said this isnt the place or time for debate.

Thanks

QUOTE=Padawanbater2;8823697]How do you reconcile the belief that the Bible and its teachings are inherently good while it simultaneously discriminates against women, homosexuals and science?[/QUOTE]

Once again, not a place for debate. I just want to talk to like minded people. I dont pretend to know everything. I have not read the bibble cover to cover etc. I don't believe that having some wine, booze or pot is a sin for me. It also says that everyone has different things ie some peoples faith didnt allow them to eat certain foods, but God says all food is good. So, if you want to eat something that offends your neighbuor dont do it. (back to that golden rule thing) But its not what goes into a man that kills him its what comes out of his mouth that kills him.

That's how I read it.

Jesus made water into wine.. please note that the guest said you saved the best for later in the night instead of the cheaper stuff once everyones had a few. ( paraphrase ) Better wine is stronger wine so I dont think Alcohol is the issue. Its getting drunk. There is a difference.

That's part of why I started this. I learned for years no booze, but that's not what the bible says. Jesus never told anyone to not drink.. Not that I've found anyways..

Zaehet Strife said:

You know what i hate more than anything, as an Atheist, i have read the bible front to back multiple times... and 99% of every Christian i have ever met has never read the entire thing, or lies about reading the entire thing, which is sin in itself.

Please, familiarize yourself with your faith if you wish to be a true follower of a certain religion. But like i said before, Christians usually take the parts out of the bible that they like, and ignore the rest, in order to justify their behavior in the eyes of the lord.

Thessalonians 5:6-8 - Being sober is the opposite of being drunk and is associated with being alert and watchful.

Peter 1:13-17 - Be sober, gird up the loins of your mind so you can avoid lusts and be obedient and holy. This requires being alert.

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Corinthians 9:25-27 - Bring our bodies into subjection to our minds, exercising temperance (self-control) like athletes in training, so our bodies will be properly guided by our minds.

Proverbs 4:23 - Keep your heart (mind) with all diligence because it must decide the issues of life.

Struggling against evil is difficult and dangerous at best, even with the clearest of faculties. That is why God has forbidden intoxication. There are other ways to violate these principles, but drug abuse is surely one way.

If you consider yourself a Christian, and you get intoxicated in any way... repent, discontinue the behavior, or you are going to hell. This is all in literal reference to what is considered one of the holiest texts in the world, the bible.






If this information at all contradicts your denomination... i would rethink you stance, and choose a different religion to fallow... if you wish to continue smoking cannabis, or consuming any substance that is mind altering, if i were you... i would choose something other than the Christian doctrine... else you will fall into the pits of hell for consumption of any substance that is intoxicating.

For God, according to the Christian doctrine, knows, sees and hears ALL. You cannot hide from the lord, even your thoughts can be seen, do not allow the temptation of intoxication of the devil infiltrate your life, for then... you will surely burn in hell.

Click to expand...

Im not saying I'm right. I'm saying I dont know.

Why can't people just say I dont know? How hard is that?

I think science shows that GOd created everything.. The big bang, how the laws of thermal dymamics work, electrons & the like. I think its fantastic!

You don't have to agree.. That's ok. I could be wrong.. But nothing I've seen so far makes me think that.

The good news is that nowhere does it say you have to believe not believe in evelution to be saved. Jesus never said that.

I think that's sort of my point on the whole thing. Heaven has nothing to so with evelusion or creationism. Its all about Christ. The rest is irelevent.

ie Christ never told anyone to repend & become a Jew & follow the Torma. His whole point was a freedom that the Jew's didnt have because they worshipped the law instead of the law giver.

Legalism & all that. Jesus preached againt that.

I am experiencing the freedom of following Christ. I used to look at it the other way. All the rules & regulation. Turns out its not about the rules, its all about the freedom to worship God through Christ on your own. All the rest is window dressing.

QUOTE=Padawanbater2;8823959]Irrelevant

I also know Christians who support the theory of evolution, it doesn't make them any more right about reality. [/QUOTE]

OH.. I think it was Luke who said to take a little wine for your stomach..

Zaehet Strife said:

It's funny to me, how well Christians ignore my replies when they pierce the ring of truth, and the only thing they want to do is ignore it.

"You know what i hate more than anything, as an Atheist, i have read the bible front to back multiple times... and 99% of every Christian i have ever met has never read the entire thing, or lies about reading the entire thing, which is sin in itself.

Please, familiarize yourself with your faith if you wish to be a true follower of a certain religion. But like i said before, Christians usually take the parts out of the bible that they like, and ignore the rest, in order to justify their behavior in the eyes of the lord.

Thessalonians 5:6-8 - Being sober is the opposite of being drunk and is associated with being alert and watchful.

Peter 1:13-17 - Be sober, gird up the loins of your mind so you can avoid lusts and be obedient and holy. This requires being alert.

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Corinthians 9:25-27 - Bring our bodies into subjection to our minds, exercising temperance (self-control) like athletes in training, so our bodies will be properly guided by our minds.

Proverbs 4:23 - Keep your heart (mind) with all diligence because it must decide the issues of life.

Struggling against evil is difficult and dangerous at best, even with the clearest of faculties. That is why God has forbidden intoxication. There are other ways to violate these principles, but drug abuse is surely one way.

If you consider yourself a Christian, and you get intoxicated in any way... repent, discontinue the behavior, or you are going to hell. This is all in literal reference to what is considered one of the holiest texts in the world, the bible.






If this information at all contradicts your denomination... i would rethink you stance, and choose a different religion to fallow... if you wish to continue smoking cannabis, or consuming any substance that is mind altering, if i were you... i would choose something other than the Christian doctrine... else you will fall into the pits of hell for consumption of any substance that is intoxicating.

For God, according to the Christian doctrine, knows, sees and hears ALL. You cannot hide from the lord, even your thoughts can be seen, do not allow the temptation of intoxication of the devil infiltrate your life, for then... you will surely burn in hell.:

Click to expand...

well said.

I think its a fair statement that ff your not being led by the Holy Spirit none of it makes sense. Christ did everything backwards by the worlds standards. The King served as well as being served. You're not to replay evil with evil. ect.
If you want to rule you have to serve.. If a man takes your coat give him your sweater too type thing.

I think I ssee the issue here. I dont want to follow a religion. I did that for 25 years.

I want to follow Christ. Christ didnt belong to any church. He as a Jew & he was very clear not to follow Him & follow the law.. he said you CAN'T follow the law to the letter. THat's why He came, to give us the freedom to worhip God without all the rules & regulations. [

That's what Ive discovered in the last little while.

People worhip the book instead of what the book talk about. There's a part in the Gospels that says something like What's holy, the gold on the alter or the alter itself that makes the gold holy? Which is holy, the meat sacrificed or the alter on which it was sacrificed? Im not going to argue the bible (see previous argument) I don't know enough at this point. BUt I know I'm on the right path based on the Holy Spirit leading me.

No one else has to agree with me or think like me or even believe me.

THis is my own experience & I would like to discuss this with like minded people. I can't be the only one.



QUOTE=Zaehet Strife;8827686]You know what i hate more than anything, as an Atheist, i have read the bible front to back multiple times... and 99% of every Christian i have ever met has never read the entire thing, or lies about reading the entire thing, which is sin in itself.

Please, familiarize yourself with your faith if you wish to be a true follower of a certain religion. But like i said before, Christians usually take the parts out of the bible that they like, and ignore the rest, in order to justify their behavior in the eyes of the lord.

Thessalonians 5:6-8 - Being sober is the opposite of being drunk and is associated with being alert and watchful.

Peter 1:13-17 - Be sober, gird up the loins of your mind so you can avoid lusts and be obedient and holy. This requires being alert.

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Corinthians 9:25-27 - Bring our bodies into subjection to our minds, exercising temperance (self-control) like athletes in training, so our bodies will be properly guided by our minds.

Proverbs 4:23 - Keep your heart (mind) with all diligence because it must decide the issues of life.

Struggling against evil is difficult and dangerous at best, even with the clearest of faculties. That is why God has forbidden intoxication. There are other ways to violate these principles, but drug abuse is surely one way.

If you consider yourself a Christian, and you get intoxicated in any way... repent, discontinue the behavior, or you are going to hell. This is all in literal reference to what is considered one of the holiest texts in the world, the bible.






If this information at all contradicts your denomination... i would rethink you stance, and choose a different religion to fallow... if you wish to continue smoking cannabis, or consuming any substance that is mind altering, if i were you... i would choose something other than the Christian doctrine... else you will fall into the pits of hell for consumption of any substance that is intoxicating.

For God, according to the Christian doctrine, knows, sees and hears ALL. You cannot hide from the lord, even your thoughts can be seen, do not allow the temptation of intoxication of the devil infiltrate your life, for then... you will surely burn in hell.[/QUOTE]

The perfect scripture that shows what you're conveying carl is this one which Jesus said to the pharisees, which to us represents modern day church goers who are not truly following Jesus. You said they are worshipping a book. This is what Christ says concerning that.

You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me,yet you refuse to come to me to have life. John 5

And to zaehet, I have made it very clear that I am not condoning marijuana to get stoned, there is a big difference between smoking a little bit and smoking a lot, just as there is a difference in drinking some alcohol and drinking a 6 pack of beer.

There is a difference between having a toke or 2 or a glass of wine or 2. You're still sober Zaehet. Everyone has a differnet tollerence so you can't make a judgement call here. Everyones differnent but that was taken into account by the Holy Spirit too. Christ was very clear that if it bugs yor brother don't do it! If someones offended by either drinking or having a toke or 2 then I wouldn't do either.

Actaully, the only time I smoke weed is when I'm alone studying my bible or praying. I find it opens my mind up to the moving of the Holy Spirit.

At the same time, I have noticed once or twice I have had too much weed & my mind & words wander during my prayers. I regognize that & have backed off now since that happened.

It's all about the freedom Christ provided.. No more legalism!

Its a GREAT thing


tHERE IS A

Zaehet Strife said:

Peter 5:8,9 - Be sober so we can be on guard for the devil, resist him, and not be devoured by him. Realizing how dangerous Satan is, we should keep our minds clear so we can recognize his deceit and resist his temptations.

Being high... is not being sober. lol

Click to expand...

Justify your use of cannabis as much as you all want... in the eyes of our lord and savior, you will be judged after death. If you have read the bible, then you understand no sin goes unnoticed, no matter how petty you make them out to be.

It is your decision whether or not you live in sin, or without.

God has given you the freedom to decide if you are going to go to hell, or go to heaven. If you want to take a chance on your own personal interpretations of the bible, you go on ahead and do that.

But when you die and you are at the gates, don't say God didn't try to warn you.

I respect your desire to make sure Christians accurately interpret the bible, especilly with your lack of belief in Jesus. We need more Christians to follow that example. Your view, however, represents the modern Pharisee view currently, however, and it is interesting to note how yesterday I was talking to a friend about how modern day Pharisees are like unbelievers on the inside and Christians on the outside (if that were possible) and I stated that the reason they are just like unbelievers is they don't truly believe in God, yet teach as they do and hold others to standards they don't hold themselves to. Then you come along, one of the first unbelievers that seems to do this to people.
Jesus said to watch out for wolves that come in the form of sheep outwardly, these are Pharisees and false prophets.

It's your life, it's your death, and more importantly... your risk. /shrug

You make the choice, but like i said before, when you get there... don't say God didn't warn you, because he did.

Hey! Once you start looking at things through the guidence of the Holy Spirit you start seeing God everywhere.

Driving to work today on the highway doing 80kph on slush because we just got a dump of the white stuff (all you coke heads settle down.. Im talking about snow!) Being passed by transports constantly & you know, I didnt have to put my wippers on once. I wish I had taken pictures somehow.. You ever drive on the highway in the snow with slush & crap so bad that you can't drive the speed limit & not use your wippers?? I drive a company vehicle & it is TERRIBLE in the snow (Small 2 wheel drive pick up truck, no weight, no power, but man is it cheap for me to run ) & I hate driving it in the snow or freezing rain (both of which are happening right now here) After I prayed about my fears I felt reassurance. I felt that God woudnt be working in my life only to see me squished on the highway early into the program..

Now I could be nuts & that's ok.. isnt it better to give credit to God for something rather than fluff it off as nothing? I suppose it could be that it was so windy that the spray was being blown away from the other vehicles instead of hitting my windshield.. Its possible.. but I now get to spend the entire day thinking God's looking out for me, which goes along with what I read in the bible this morning & you know, its a good place to be

Lol.. I love it. I really do.