God Can Deliver You from Smoking

Smoking causes severe health damage to nearly every organ, resulting in roughly 480,000 U.S. deaths annually. - Center for Disease Control

As I was concluding my sermon on Sunday morning and invited people to respond to God’s leading, Henry stepped out and started walking down the aisle. As he came near to the front, he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. I watched and wondered what was going to come next. Then he tossed them up in the air toward me, and fortunately, I caught them. Everyone’s eyes in the church were on Henry as he knelt down in prayer, seeking God to deliver him from smoking. And he did for a little while, then Henry caved to the temptation of those cigarettes once again. (Image by Pixabay)

Henry is just one story of millions. Among U.S. adults, 11% smoke, which is nearly 30 million people. And of those who go to church, 12% struggle with the addiction. I say struggle, because a Gallup survey found that 60% of Americans would like to quit. The great Christian theologian, R.C. Sproul, was among those. After 40 years, he walked away from cigarettes, but said of his battle, “I struggled with my own spiritual state because I had an addiction to the flesh, and I simply could not get rid of it.”

The health impact of this addiction is deadly. One report says, “Smoking causes severe health damage to nearly every organ, resulting in roughly 480,000 U.S. deaths annually, with smokers dying about 10 years earlier on average than non-smokers.” On top of that, second-hand smoke is deadly for family and friends of smokers, killing 40,000 people annually, not to mention the health complications among children. Of course, all this costs money. Smokers spend nearly $3,500 a year on their habit, and is money that does not go toward groceries, retirement, healthcare, gas, or toward their children’s or grandchildren’s needs.

Smoking is a terrible addiction, and smokers know it. They know it is not good for their health, finances, and family but struggle to give it up.

Is God okay with this? It is written, “…whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31) Does spending $3,500 each year on smoking glorify God? He once said, “…you shall love your neighbor as yourself:” (Leviticus 19:5) Do the risks of secondhand smoke to those around you, along with the example you are providing, demonstrate a genuine love for them?

Here are six questions to help you kick the habit.

1. The question. Do you want to quit? If you want to stop this habit, it starts with that simple ask.

2. The truth. Do you believe your addiction to smoking is morally wrong and displeasing to God? If you want God’s power to help you stop, you need to wrestle with that.

3. The choice. Are you willing to make a deliberate and thoughtful decision to turn from your addiction and to Jesus for His supernatural help? And your first step, throw away all your cigarette and vaping paraphernalia.

4. The battle. Are you willing to face the great challenges in quitting? It will be a long hard struggle. The Devil and his demons do not want you to quit. Your body and mind, and how you have trained them, will fight to keep the habit.

5. The desperation. Are you willing to throw yourself at the feet of God, and plead desperately for His mercy to deliver you? The Bible says, “In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me!” (Psalm 71:2)

6. The help. Are you willing to seek the assistance of others? The Scriptures declare, “And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him⁠—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12) Do not fight this addiction alone. Ask others for advice, for pray and be accountable to them.

The Jesus who conquered death, can deliver you from smoking. Nothing is impossible with Him.

A prayer for you – Lord God, I pray for the many who are battling this awful addiction. Make them desperate for your help and set them free! You are the God of the resurrection. Do miracles, O Lord! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Who is God?

The Bible does not argue for, but rather, presumes the existence of God, and it communicates that God is real and knowable. - Clint Decker

As I walked through the Hindu temple in Tamil Nadu, India I observed person after person as they worshiped their Hindu gods. I came to learn that Hinduism has over 300,000 different gods. This contrasts with my Christian faith, which is the belief there is only one true God. In our climate of religious tolerance and pluralism, who is right? And what about the atheist, agnostic and those of other religions like Islam, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Buddhism and Judaism? Logically speaking, not everyone can be correct, so this leads to the valid question, “Who is God?” (Image by NASA)

Sometime around 1200 B.C. when the Egyptian empire was the greatest nation on earth, the God of the Jewish people appointed a man named Moses to go to Pharaoh, Egypt’s king, to command him to let God’s people go. For 400 years the Jews had been enslaved by Egypt.

Moses was a Jew but was raised in Pharaoh's household. He knew that Egyptian’s had over 2,000 gods, like Ra (the sun god) and Horus (the sky god) and how Pharaoh himself was considered a god. Knowing all that, Moses came before Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’ But Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.’” (Exodus 5:1-2)

In many ways, our world is the same, where we have Christians talking about God like Moses, but people of other religions or no religions are saying like Pharaoh, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice?” We also have Christians wondering, “Is it fair and loving for people of other faiths, to be told that the God of the Bible is the only true God?”

The Bible starts with Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” This does not argue for, but rather, presumes the existence of God, where He is immediately known as the Creator. We also see God creating humankind and beginning a relationship with them. All this communicates that God is real and knowable. In Genesis 3, humankind eventually rebelled against God, but that did not change who God is. Then when people were fashioning and worshiping other gods, the Lord responded, “For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God…” (Deuteronomy 10:17) He once identified Himself to help people know Him saying, “I am who I am.” (Ex. 3:14) This is a statement categorizing God as self-existent and self-sufficient not dependent on anyone or anything else.

A few thousand years after God described Himself that way, He took His greatest step to reveal who He was. He sent His only Son from heaven to earth. Jesus once said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9) And the “Father” is the Lord God. Jesus became the visible image of the invisible God. Jesus spoke about Himself, saying “I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11:25) “I am the bread of life.” (Jn. 6:35) “I am the light of the world.” (Jn. 8:12) “I am the good shepherd.” (Jn. 10:11)

Do you have questions? God invites you to come and ask. In the end though, remember that no one will be able to say, “I did not know.” It is written, “…what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (Romans 1:19-20)

If you wonder or have doubts about God, get yourself a Bible and begin reading the book of Mark today.

A prayer for you – Lord God, are You real? Do you exist? I bring my questions and doubts before You. Help me to know who You truly are. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Christian and Christian Nationalism

Christian Nationalism has its roots in the dangerous myth that we were founded as a Christian nation. - Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush

CNN produced a widely watched documentary on “The Rise of Christian Nationalism.” Christianity Today created a podcast episode, “Christian Nationalism Is Worse Than You Think” to go along with many other articles and resources on the subject. Tammy Swanson-Draheim, President of the Evangelical Covenant Church, said on a podcast that she “…speaks against” Christian nationalism. The National Association of Evangelicals has addressed the subject, and Christians Against Christian Nationalism is a group that was formed and is endorsed by denominational leaders from the Presbyterian Church USA, American Baptist Churches, Evangelical Lutheran Churches of America and many more. (Image by Unsplash)

Christian nationalism is a label that has been popularized in the last few years, causing incredible polarization and divisiveness. The term has largely been used by opponents to stereotype Christians who speak out on moral issues from a biblical perspective, call America back to God and promote America’s Christian heritage. The Charles Kettering Foundation says, “Christian nationalism is an ideology that desires a close fusion of a particular expression of Christianity with American civic life. It demands our government, at all levels, vigorously defend this ideology as central to our national identity, public policy, and social belonging.”

Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, President and CEO of Interfaith Alliance, states that “Christian Nationalism has its roots in the dangerous myth that we were founded as a Christian nation, and because of that, enjoy special favor from God.” He clarified what that practically looks like, saying “the suppression of voting rights, the promotion of white supremacy, and the policing of personal privacy, including the right to abortion and same-sex marriage.”

Here are five statements about America and Christian citizenship.

1. America was founded on biblical principles. John Adams was the 2nd President of the United States and signer of the Declaration of Independence. In a letter to Thomas Jefferson, he reflected on the founding of America, “The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity.” Noah Webster shared similar views. He was a Revolutionary War soldier and also known as the “Schoolmaster to America.” He wrote, “The moral principles and precepts found in the Scriptures ought to form the basis of all our civil constitutions and laws.” The Christian heritage our nation has does not mean we were “chosen by God” or that we have a special “covenant relationship” with Him. Among all nations, the Bible teaches only Israel has that distinction.

2. America has both succeeded and failed at times, to live up to its founding ideals. We praise God for how America has been a beacon of freedom and liberty for the world, but also lament our sins of slavery and Native American atrocities, as well as the deaths of 60 million babies, the imposing of transgender ideology on our young and much more.

3. Christian citizens are to be loyal to only one King. For Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” (Mark 8:38) When Christians do so, they will honor their leaders, pray for them, seek the welfare of their communities and nation, live with integrity, love their enemies and encourage one another.

4. Christian citizens are to point out evil and stand for what is just. The Scripture says, “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.” (Ephesians 5:11) Wherever Christians are they have a moral duty to unmask evil, and advocate for laws and practices that are wise, godly and just.

5. Christian citizens are to go into all the world to proclaim the gospel and make disciples of Jesus. This is the primary mission for all believers. May the people and leaders of all nations turn to Jesus. May the whole world serve the King of kings and love their neighbor as themselves regardless of differences, and including their enemies.

A prayer for you – Lord God, let us not be bound to politics or religion. Rather, help us to be united with Christ alone, and love Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and to do all the good we can for others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.