As a precursor to this discussion, I'm not a mental health expert and would not want anyone relying on my expertise regarding this topic.
The basic question is whether a Christian should use mental health pharmaceuticals or not.
My position is that there are some individuals with genuine chemical imbalances which can benefit from mental health pharmaceuticals, but that our society tends to overprescribe such pharmaceuticals and these drugs can have a detrimental effect on the Christianity of those who take the drugs
The question is: WHY do people have chemical imbalance?? Exodus 20:5 TELLS US!! Unrepented sin and the worshipping of idols brings a curse upon the forthcoming generations. Until the sin is acknowledge and repented of, those in that family line WILL SUFFER at the hands of the enemy and that includes mental illnesses. What better way for the devil to insure that a person can't be used of God than to render him/her mentally unstable so as to not be taken seriously and believed?
Pharmaueticals are of "Pharmakia" which is the Greek word for WITCHCRAAFT. So NO meds are not the answer. They sidestep the work that Jesus did for us. Turning to meds rather than looking at the spiritual condition and history of a family is nothing short of IDOLATRY. Also....meds...psychotic meds...are nothing more than a band-aid. They do NOT CURE, they only cover up the symptoms. As soon as the meds are stopped, the symptoms return...often worse than before. Jesus confronted the mentally insane man in Gadarene. He did not give him a pill, but commanded the DEMONS to be quiet and come out. In SECONDS, the man was sane and completely in control of himself.
I want to point to my personal experience. I started taking Paxil in about 2010 or so, due to social anxiety.
Anxiety is a child (so to speak) of the demon of FEAR. I had just left a church I was involved with for years, and the experience was very disillusioning
Remember that churches are made up of IMPERFECT PEOPLE and here, forgiveness is KEY. I needed to get involved with another fellowship which taught sound doctrine, but felt out of place. I thought the drugs may help me to adapt to a new environment and to deal with the resulting anxiety
Just subdued and covered up the symtoms of fear. And go a step further; anxiety is PRIDE...overly concerned with what people think about you to the point of becoming fearful and unable to function.
Instead, I believe the drugs caused me to feel complacent about non-attendance, and about my Christian duties in general. I ended up backsliding for a number of years, getting involved in very obvious immoral behavior.
Great side effect, right?
I don't blame my behavior on these anti-anxiety medications, but I do believe they engendered a false sense of peace, which replaced the peace I should have been receiving from the Holy Spirit.
Exactly!!! Knowing that regardles of what situation you might be in, YOU ARE GOD'S CHILD and He's got your back ALL THE TIME!! I also gained a lot of weight from these anti-anxiety medications, which caused further issues.
There are different attitudes in the Church regarding mental health drugs. My understanding is that John MacArthur teaches that they are never useful to the Christian. I have a friend who attended MacArthur's fellowship..my friend had a roommate with genuine mental health issues (having auditory and visual hALUCINATIONS
That would be demonic OPPRESSION (Not POSsession). Satin attempts to drive people insane with sending his minions to attack people so they cannt fulfill His plan for their lives.who was not encouraged to take medications and it caused great difficulty in his life.
He just needed deliverance by someone filled with the Holy Spirit. So, while I respect MacArthur's view on other topics, and while he has a genuine concern regarding mental health drugs, I do not agree with his black and white view on this topic
But according to scripture it is very black and white.My aunt is a very faithful Christian and also experienced auditory hallucinations and takes mental health drugs as a result. So, I am definitely sympathetic to both perspectives. Our physical bodies are subject to the effects of the Fall, and I believe that these sorts of illnesses are a manifestation of underlying physical frailties due to this, in some circumstances. However, I also believe that these illnesses can, in some cases, be caused by sinful thinking. It's a mixed bag.
Not really. There a millions of people that SAY they are Christians because they go to church on Sunday. But Satan sends his demons to church too!! They sit beside people and cause them to fall asleep; they whisper in the ears of the congregants so that they DON"T hear the word of God in it's truth. They come in and influence people to be more concerned about what they are wearing or what things have been purchased by the church without their input, or with what kind of music is played and for how long and cause them to COMPLETELY IGNORE the FACT that it is supposed to be a time of WORSHIP and ADORATION towards the Creator. And for the MOST part...MOST of those sitting in the pews on any given Sunday, don't know the first thing about God's character or how to have a RELATIONSHIP with Him.
Those that are TRUE CHRISTIANS...true followers of Jesus are the ones that are DOING THE WORD OF GOD.
James 1:22-25
But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.(most of those calling themselves "Christians" are deluding themselves) For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. ...
Just wondering what everyone else thinks on this topic.
Now you have my two cents worth. Tough words for many, but would Jesus have us 'be nice' and let many go to hell or would He have us put for His truth as we are commissioned to do?
Note: I am not encouraging or discouraging the use of mental health pharmaceuticals, nor would I want anyone to feel guilty over their use if they have a genuine organic condition. I'm not qualified to judge that. I am only relating my own circumstance and thoughts.