"Are All Things Lawful?"

Momentum Builds For Legalizing Pot

Just when you thought it was ok to say "no" to marijuana again, legalizers who love liberty and license more than purity and righteousness, are rearing their ugly heads using the savage drug war in Mexico, crumbling state budgets, war on drugs fatigue and the election of a president who said, "Yes — I inhaled," to push for the legalization of marijuana in America.

Said a veteran of the movement, Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance: "This is the first time I feel like the wind is at my back and not in my face." Some examples of this momentum are:

_Numerous prominent political leaders, including California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and former Mexican presidents, have suggested it is time for open debate on legalization.

_Lawmakers in at least three states are considering joining the 13 states that have legalized pot for medical purposes. Massachusetts voters last fall decided to decriminalize possession of an ounce or less of pot; there are now a dozen states that have taken such steps. BTW: this policy has proven to be an abject failure in the Netherlands and Holland, as pot-smokers at open and legal cafes, have moved up the obligatory ladder of addiction to heroin use, abuse and related crime (oops- they didn't figure on common sense).

Because of these developments , legalizers are kindling unprecedented optimism among the many Americans who want to see weed legalized. Make no mistake, the "green" movement has gone haywire. National polls show close to half of American adults are now open to legalizing pot — a constituency encompassing today's college students (of course) and the 60-something baby boomers who popularized the drug in their own youth.

What is the Bible to make of this movement regardless of whether or not uber-liberals like Barney Frank can make it happen through legislative channels? The apostle Paul says we are to make of it the same as whether or not we should engage in any other addictive, tempting behavior or lifestyle that our secularly influenced government allows, such as: fornication, over-eating, drinking and gambling, as per 1 Corinthians 6:12, “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be enslaved by anything" While Paul was speaking to lusting and partying Corinthians about abstaining from things not explicitly condemned by scripture, the principle holds true for American Christians today that love Romans 14 liberty more than holiness and Romans 13 love, which prioritizes relationship and godliness more than our legally-sanctioned appetites.

For those of my liberty loving, libertarian friends, brothers and sisters that attack anything that may smack of alleged legalism, they should keep in mind that when you take any prior substance- particularly an illegal one, that has been an attractive social lure and taboo for two generations here, legalize it, remove it's social stigma, make it more accessible and cheaper, use and abuse will only rise. Would greater pot use- abuse, be better or worse for this country? One DEA (U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency) official said, "Legalization of marijuana, no matter how it begins, will come at the expense of our children and public safety. It will create dependency and treatment issues, and open the door to use of other drugs, impaired health, delinquent behavior, and drugged drivers."

With today's marijuana containing four times the THC content (active chemical in marijuana) of it's 70's counterpart, little wonder that drug-rehab facilities are filling to the brim with young, pot-only addicts. For the Christian with (non-bloodshot) eyes to see through a biblical lens, there is only one true option regardless of U.S. law, the option Paul wrote of in that same letter to those curious Corinthians, "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body (1 Cor. 6:19-20)."