Does God heal addictions?

[hornetguy]

But, peace to you on this issue..I just don't like any language that hints about Word of Faith teachings. They are a bunch of kooks. However I totally agree with your position on this. I believe that struggling individuals can be caused to stumble in their earnest attempts to defeat sin by claims that defeat is inevitable. Actually, Satan's defeat is inevitable, but on some issues the believer may be struggling with them until he dies.

Good points... so, in your mind, for someone truly asking about complete healing of addiction, as the OP was... would it be better to tell him the truth, that there are many, MANY Bible believing, God fearing, saved individuals that have had, and maybe will still have an occasional slip on their road to recovery.... or, to give a blanket statement that says that "if you give your heart to Jesus, all your physical addictions will be instantly HEALED" .... only to have that person experience a slip, just like MANY other Christians have done, and lose his faith because he was not "instantly healed" as "someone" had promised?

 

[Kim82]

Does God heal addictions? If not does He view them as a sin that is out of a persons control or do you go to hell for having addictions?

I believe that God can heal. It can be miraculous or it may take a long time. But God does heal.

I think people can also be healed to different extent so everyone may have a different testimony.

For instance, some alcoholics may always have the temptation but God gives them the strength to resist. While others may just turn aside from alcohol and have no temptations in that regard. Maybe God works both ways for a reason, and regardless of the nature of your healing, you still have a testimony.

I don't believe that you will go to hell for having an addiction. And as you trust God that His grace is sufficient for your weakness, He will bring about your healing when and how He chooses.

Only God can set you free of sin or any addiction. And when we live in fear that if we are not perfect, then we will go to hell, we become even more of a failure.

But when you cast your burden on Jesus, spending time in prayer and reading His word, listening to inspiring sermons then you'll find that you'll start making progress.

 

[hornetguy]

I believe that God can heal. It can be miraculous or it may take a long time. But God does heal.

I think people can also be healed to different extent so everyone may have a different testimony.

For instance, some alcoholics may always have the temptation but God gives them the strength to resist. While others may just turn aside from alcohol and have no temptations in that regard. Maybe God works both ways for a reason, and regardless of the nature of your healing, you still have a testimony.

I don't believe that you will go to hell for having an addiction. And as you trust God that His grace is sufficient for your weakness, He will bring about your healing when and how He chooses.

Only God can set you free of sin or any addiction. And when we live in fear that if we are not perfect, then we will go to hell, we become even more of a failure.

But when you cast your burden on Jesus, spending time in prayer and reading His word, listening to inspiring sermons then you'll find that you'll start making progress.

EXACTLY! Exactly what I said, but you said it in a more eloquent way.... THANK you....

 

[Blik]

Does God heal addictions? If not does He view them as a sin that is out of a persons control or do you go to hell for having addictions?

It is very interesting to read reports of people who work with demon possession. Malachi Martin wrote a report, he was an ex-priest, and a very controversial person. Some say he made this report up, but it does give insight about how demons work.

Addition is not of God, for certain. What isn't of God is our enemy, and it is a good idea to know about our enemy so we can best protect ourselves from them. By filling our hearts and minds with Christ there is no room for thoughts from demons to enter in.

Some demons are very powerful, Christ said some take fasting and prayer to get rid of them. Certainly, people who are addicted need help.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

Good points... so, in your mind, for someone truly asking about complete healing of addiction, as the OP was... would it be better to tell him the truth, that there are many, MANY Bible believing, God fearing, saved individuals that have had, and maybe will still have an occasional slip on their road to recovery.... or, to give a blanket statement that says that "if you give your heart to Jesus, all your physical addictions will be instantly HEALED" .... only to have that person experience a slip, just like MANY other Christians have done, and lose his faith because he was not "instantly healed" as "someone" had promised?

Definitely I'm in the first camp, although I think it is possible for a person to obtain instantaneous delivery from a sin.

As an example, when I became a believer, I was delivered from cigarette smoking. I tried over and over again to quit and failed at it.
I never smoked again.

But, I still struggle with various other sins. Some of them I can see have grown very faint in their allure to me, and others are still strong.

I have slipped up once recently on one of the sins that had grown faint, but I refused to let that drag me down. I have been united with Christ, and he will not give up on me with regards to the sin OR salvation. My identity is in Christ.

I believe the most important thing is to keep seeking God through the means of grace we have: prayer, bible study, confession, fasting, fellowship, and serving others. These things draw us closer to Christ, and the sin issue fades away. I believe the key is focusing on growing in your relationship with Christ, and not in rigid self-discipline techniques to bring you out of it.

I think those methods could be helpful, though, in a limited way, as long as one keeps focused on Christ. However, certain individuals are basically relying on their own strength to get them past addiction, rather than their union with Christ and their identity in Him.

I also recommend two books, Union with Christ by Rankin Wilbourne, and Identity in Christ by Jonathan Cruse. Knowing these foundational truths about Christianity is important, and unfortunately vapid, superficial Christianity in our culture today doesn't often consider these fundamental teachings of the Bible.

By the way, there's a couple of articles Jeff Durbin wrote on this topic that are great. I don't know if I posted them. He is a sound pastor who struggled with addictions himself. Parts may not apply to everyone because he focuses more on the new birth and some here are likely already believers.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

I agree with this... with the added note that some of these idols become PHYSICALLY addictive. In other words, your physical body HAS to have the substance, or you will die. Countless alcoholics have died from "DT's" ... I do not know for sure, but I am sure some drug addicts have died during withdrawl...

THIS is what I was talking about when I said that someone would fall right back into addiction.... ask ANY alcoholic in recovery if they would be ok with taking one drink... 99.9% would answer "NO"... I cast no aspersions on anyone in recovery. I hope and pray for continued abstinence... but I also know that many, many recovering addicts will have "slips"... where they give in to temptation, and slip up. It's not usually the end of the world, but it is simply a human "slip up". Exactly like any one of us who gives in to ANY temptation to sin. God forgives...

What our savior gives us is the power to overcome temptation. Not that our body's physical need for that addictive substance is instantly gone, but that we have the strength to resist that temptation... in many cases, permanently and completely... no slips.

This is not a message of doubt, but a message of celebration that Jesus heals our heart's evil desires....

Right, I certainly wouldn't claim that there is not a physical component to addiction, and that some secular techniques such as isolation would not help it.

However, the primary issue is that addiction is misplaced worship, like Jeff Durbin suggests in the articles that I posted in my response to you. We are looking to some other substance to meet our needs.

The issue is that we were created for our lives to revolve around God, and if we don't have that relationship, it revolves around something else. That something else could be something that is healthy of itself, or something that is not healthy of itself. But, ultimately the fundamental center of reference MUST BE God, or the person is living a vain existence and will never be satisfied. His search for satisfaction will lead him in many sinful directions.

In regards to this I will recommend yet another book, The Fruitful Life, by Jerry Bridges. Again, with me it is going to come around to the concept of union with Christ, and identity in Christ. These are two FUNDAMENTAL teachings of Christianity. The center of reference of all mankind needs to be God, and union with Christ brings us into the fellowship of the Triune God.

It's really as simple as that..too bad it took me over 25 years to learn it

 

[hornetguy]

.... and regarding our ability to resist temptation, we only need to look at the apostle Paul. He obviously struggled with some type of temptation/s, but he told us how Jesus has us covered.

"14 So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. 15 I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. 16 But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. 17 So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.
18 And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[d] I want to do what is right, but I can’t. 19 I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. 20 But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.
21 I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. 22 I love God’s law with all my heart. 23 But there is another power[e] within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. 24 Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? 25 Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin."

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

.... and regarding our ability to resist temptation, we only need to look at the apostle Paul. He obviously struggled with some type of temptation/s, but he told us how Jesus has us covered.

"14 So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. 15 I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. 16 But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. 17 So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.
18 And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[d] I want to do what is right, but I can’t. 19 I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. 20 But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.
21 I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. 22 I love God’s law with all my heart. 23 But there is another power[e] within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. 24 Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? 25 Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin."

It is amusing that some legalists will fail to see what you have pointed out, and will claim that Paul was talking about his pre-conversion life exclusively in this section. They seem to imply that they themselves do not sin anymore, but we know this cannot be true.

My conviction is that the closer a person walks with Christ, the more apparent their sinfulness becomes to them. If they are not saved at all, perhaps the Holy Spirit is not illuminating their sinfulness, so they are oblivious to it. Either that, or they are deluding themselves into thinking they are morally perfect by their own righteousness.

Pelagian street preachers evidence this sort of arrogance more prominently. One well-known Pelagian claims he only sins a few times a year. Others claim sinlessness.

I am speaking about guys like Jesse Morrell, Jed Smock, Clarence Cope (who has the nastiest mouth I have heard), Dean Saxton, Micah Armstrong. For a while I studied Pelagian street preachers, and their level of delusion in this regard is amazing. I suspect they are not saved whatsoever, since most of them deny core Christian teachings like original sin, justification by faith alone, and imputed righteousness.