Imagine for a moment, The Lord Jesus stopping in at your house to visit with you personally. You have him sit in your most comfortable chair. In the course of your sharing together you offer him a cigarette. What do you think his response would be?

To consider the Lord’s response we will take liberty with scripture passages found in Colossians 3:23 and 1 Corinthians 10:31 in light of the smoking questions: “When you smoke, smoke heartily as unto the Lord.” “Whenever you smoke, smoke to the glory of God.”

Probably, on the merit of only these two scripture passages you will agree cigarette smoking is not compatible with the Christian experience. Let’s examine further to see what the Spirit of God reveals about tobacco and smoking.

We are responsible to God for the care of our body. When a person truly receives Jesus Christ as Savior, the Holy Spirit of God enters the human spirit making a new creature. 1 Corinthians 6:19 states that the body of the believer is a Temple, a tabernacle or dwelling, abiding place of the very Holy Spirit of God. Our willing covenant or contract with God to receive eternal life through Jesus Christ puts us in a place of responsibility. As genuine Christians we are held responsible by God, for the care and use of our physical body. 1 Corinthians 6:19 states: “What? Know you not that your body is the Temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which you have of God, and you are not your own?”

We can further see in 1 Corinthians 3:17, when we behave or perform irresponsibly and defile our body we open ourselves to our physical destruction.

“If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.”

Beyond question, it is established medically and scientifically, smoking adversely affects virtually every organic system of the human body and bodily function. The smoker opens the door to the spirit of self-destruction and commits “slow-suicide”. The heart and blood are affected. The eyes and nasal passages are inflamed and burned. The respiratory system easily falls prey to emphysema and asthma. Tobacco, nicotine and smoking attack and break down immune systems so cancers can develop unrestricted. Common to smokers are lung cancer, throat cancer and lip cancer.

The “narcotic” property in the tobacco and nicotine attacks the nervous system of the smoker and works its breakdown process, see-sawing the smokers nerves between periods of Hypertension and Depression. Mental awareness, alertness and function come under a dulling, slowing effect. This hinders our mental ability in everyday activity and restricts or cuts off our mental fellowship with the Holy Spirit speaking to our mind from our spirit.

A person who has the smoking habit, in honesty, must label themselves an “addict”.

Smoking harms others. For the Christian it is to be especially noted that the smoker “forces” all these above mentioned plagues, diseases and problems on other “innocent” people in the smokers presence. Co-workers, family and especially children are victims of the smoke from the smoker and cigarettes. Christians are definitely not to be “stumbling blocks” to others. Think how God views it when a believer, by smoking, causes others, especially children, to have to endure burning eyes, clogged nasal passages, undue colds, flu, nervous disorders and hindrances to mind function! Even asthma and cancers! Yes, Christian smoker – You are guilty of these! Others are offended by smoking believers yet most endure the offense silently. The children and infants tormented by tobacco smoke have no choice but to endure silently. II Corinthians 6:3 is a command to followers of Christ to “give no offense in anything, that the ministry be not blamed”. A most serious, sobering warning from the Lord Jesus himself concerning our offending others, especially children (smoking Christian parents take special note), is written in Matthew 18: 6, 7, “But who so shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe unto the world because of offenses! For it must needs be that offenses come; but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh!”

The Smoking Believer’s Question of Stewardship

We have seen above that the smoker buys misery, destruction & death when cigarettes are purchased. Most Christians desire to be seen of the Lord as “good stewards”. How much financial resource is “going up in smoke” from believer-smokers? What would Jesus say about this waste of funds that otherwise could go to evangelism, missionary work or the needy? Should a smoking believer even pray for God’s financial blessings? Most probably the smoking believer causes a curse to come upon his or her finances.

The Smoking Believer’s Question of Example

It has been well said: “you are the only Christian someone knows” or what would another person read in “The Gospel According to You”? Again, responsibility demands of the Christian we walk holy and unblamable in our behavior. Can there be any argument, smoking can in no way serve as a good example to a young Christian?

How easy a matter it is for satan to convince young boys and girls and teens it is certainly o.k. to smoke “modern” dope if parents and adults, especially Christian adults smoke “old fashioned” tobacco.

Smoking has Spiritual Effects

God is Spirit and sees things spiritually. Believers are called to be spiritually minded even though in the physical world. We note in Ephesians 6:12 our enemies are evil spirit beings in the spirit realm. We are each of us as a believer called and commanded to do personal battle against the demons and overcome them in our lives.

Satan and the unclean spirits (demons) know they have spiritual “legal right or ground” to successfully attack and harm (steal, kill, destroy) the smoking believer! Spiritually speaking (the way God sees it) cigarette smoking is “burning incense to other (demon) gods”. II Kings 22:17, II Kings 23:5; II Chronicles 28:25, 34:24, 34:25; Jeremiah 1:16, 7:9, 11:12, 19:4; Chapter 44, 48:35.

Burning tobacco originated with ancient aboriginals. The modern world learned of the use of tobacco from the Indians. History reveals Columbus found the Indians smoking and watched with surprise and wonderment. The Grand Pipe or Pipe of Peace was first observed among the Indians of Upper Mississippi country by the French. They called these pipes “calumets”. According to the Indians the pipe possessed a supernatural power and a “charming” effect to compel the partakers of the smoke to a brotherly bond of peace (obviously not the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ).

Historically the calumet was considered a sacred pipe to offer smoke to the demon gods above and below. Tobacco was looked upon as a sacred plant and burning it brought favor in the eyes of the gods (demons). Even a member of an enemy tribe who entered a house and smoked with the host, was guaranteed protection and safe conduct when he left.

Several Indian tribes burned incense for a purifying medium or an acceptable offering to the unseen. Some eastern tribes did not smoke a pipe in a sacred ceremony but burned tobacco in a small fire. This smoke offering was believed to ascend to the power to whom they prayed.

As the use of tobacco as an offering to gods continued, it was rolled in corn husks, the predecessors of modern cigars and cigarettes. Inhaling the smoke was incorporated into the rituals and both the smoke and the aroma continued to have a serious place in the religious rituals and ceremonies.

History reference books also state the tobacco pipe was used by American Indians in ceremonies to ratify treaties. Also, some Indians smoked the tobacco pipes to their sun-god and blew the smoke to him. Indians related many sources of illnesses to “witches who flew through the air disguised as owls to poison their victims”. The protective practice against these witches was to cut their limbs and cleanse themselves of bad blood; and the use of “the old man’s tobacco” was to avert spirits of the dead.

These are processes of witchcraft prohibited by God.

The DELIVERANCE of Jesus Christ Brings Freedom

To receive complete freedom from tobacco bondage, the believer must see his “habit” or being “hooked” as a spiritually rooted problem.

The scriptural DELIVERANCE process of applying the power and authority given by Jesus Christ to the believer (Luke 10:19) must be implemented. It is wise for the needy believer to search out fellow believer prayer warriors at a fellowship where biblical DELIVERANCE is actively administered to the saints. Acknowledging tobacco, cigarettes and smoking as sin is prerequisite.

Confession of the sin according to I John 1:9, along with breaking associated curses, places the believer on proper ground for the unclean spirits to be cast out. Often, for DELIVERANCE to be complete, repeated sessions of prayer are necessary, but with perseverance, victory is assured!

FOR DELIVERANCE: Confess and repent and ask God’s forgiveness for burning incense to other gods. Go back at least ten generations on both sides of the bloodline and break the curse of burning incense to other gods. Also break the curse of self-destruction. Then command the demons to go in Jesus Name.

DEMONS TO CAST OUT: spirit of self-destruction, slow-suicide, heart and blood diseases, demons in the eyes, nasal passages, respiratory system, emphysema and asthma, tobacco, nicotine, break down of immune system, cancer, lung cancer, throat cancer and lip cancer, addiction to nicotine, rebellion, destroying the temple of God, undue colds, flu, nervous disorders and hindrances to mind function, asthma, Hypertension, Depression, dull mental awareness, alertness and function, sting of death, mind control, etc.