To vote for Jesus is to vote for policies that promote public health and safety by limiting the use of marijuana to only those who are terminal ill...

This week we have been addressing the issue of marijuana. Specifically, we have been asking and answering the question “What policies would Jesus promote when it comes to the issue of the legalization of marijuana? Would Jesus promote the legalization of marijuana, or would Jesus promote the prohibition of marijuana?”

So far this week, we have looked at the passages in the letters that make up the Bible that those who advocate for the legalization of marijuana point to and found them less than persuasive. We then looked at two principles that we can draw upon from the letter that make up the Bible that help us to shed light on what Jesus would hold to when it comes to the issue of the legalization of marijuana.

The first principle, found in Romans 13:1-4, revealed the reality that since using marijuana for either medical or recreational use is still a federal crime, the principle of submission to government would argue that Jesus would not be a proponent of legalizing marijuana. The second principle, which is found in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of 1 Corinthians, in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, revealed the reality that in light of the price that Jesus paid to rescue and redeem us; in light of the reality that we are His possession, we are to glorify God with our bodies. We then asked the question "Does smoking marijuana result in you glorifying God with your body?  Does smoking marijuana place you in a position where you can influence the opinion of others in a way that enhances God’s reputation?"

And if our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit; if the Holy Spirit dwells within us, how does smoking marijuana impact the temple? What is so interesting here is that one of the most potent arguments for the legalization of marijuana is that it can be used to treat medical disorders. However, what is being repeatedly discovered is that smoking marijuana can be extremely harmful to one’s health. The most potent argument against the use of marijuana to treat medical disorders is that marijuana may cause the acceleration or aggravation of the very disorders it is being used to treat.

Smoking marijuana regularly (a joint a day) can damage the cells in the bronchial passages which protect the body against inhaled microorganisms and decrease the ability of the immune cells in the lungs to fight off fungi, bacteria, and tumor cells. For patients with already weakened immune systems, this means an increase in the possibility of dangerous pulmonary infections, including pneumonia, which often proves fatal.

The use of marijuana as a medical therapy can and does have a very serious negative effect on patients with pre-existing immune deficits from AIDS, organ transplantation, or cancer chemotherapy, the very conditions for which marijuana has most often been suggested as a treatment. In addition, a study indicated that a marijuana user's risk of heart attack more than quadruples in the first hour after smoking marijuana. The researchers suggest that such an effect might occur from marijuana's effects on blood pressure and heart rate and reduced oxygen-carrying capacity of blood.

Additionally, the smoke from cannabis—the plant from which marijuana is derived—contains compounds that can damage DNA and increase the risk of cancer just like tobacco smoke according to a recent study from the United Kingdom. In laboratory tests at the University of Leicester found certain carcinogens in cannabis smoke in amounts 50 percent greater than those found in tobacco smoke. They noted that light cannabis use could possibly prove to be even more damaging because cannabis smokers usually inhale more deeply than cigarette smokers. Researchers found that the smoking of three to four cannabis cigarettes a day is associated with the same degree of damage to bronchial mucus membranes as twenty or more tobacco cigarettes a day.

In addition, studies have shown that marijuana causes short-term memory loss, distorted perception, trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor skills, decrease in muscle strength, and increased heart rate and anxiety. According to the Mayo Clinic, marijuana smoke contains 50 to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than tobacco smoke and has the potential to cause cancer of the lungs and respiratory tract. This is the case because marijuana cigarettes have no filter.

Now another objection, if we could have a conversation, would sound something like this: “Well Dave, what about marijuana brownies? What about marijuana that is ingested and not smoked?” The short answer is that eating marijuana tends to produce a stronger and much longer-lasting high than smoking it; one that, as one pro marijuana website maintains “is often scary to inexperienced users and can be disconcerting to regulars”. In addition, those who eat cannabis have to estimate what the dose they’ve taken will do, and the length of the high means that any unpleasant effects take longer to go away.

Because of this reality, ingested marijuana is far more difficult to dose and is far more addictive because of the combination of the stronger high that the ingested marijuana produces, combined with the increased potency of marijuana over the last 20 years. To give you a little perspective, the average potency of all marijuana in the US in 2009 was 8.52%. The highest tested sample had 22.04% THC (domestic) and 27.30% THC (nondomestic).  For comparison, the national average of marijuana's THC content in 1978 was 1.37%.

Another objection could be “Well Dave, I totally disagree with you. I totally disagree with you because there is no difference between marijuana and alcohol. If alcohol is legal why shouldn’t marijuana be legal?” That is a fair objection and my response to you objection would be this: Besides the medical evidence above, I would point to a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Ephesians. In Ephesians 5:18, we see that Apostle Paul say the following:

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,

In this verse, we see the Apostle Paul reveal for us the timeless principle that we are influenced by what influences us. Whether you are a follower of Jesus or not, you are influenced by what influences you. Your life does not occur in a vacuum; in your life there are external and internal forces at work in your life that influence your life. As follower of Jesus, we must live lives that are controlled and influenced by the Holy Spirit. As followers of Jesus we are not to allow any substance, whether it is alcohol, marijuana, or prescription drugs, to control us; instead, we are to be controlled by the Holy Spirit’s activity in our lives.

So, with all this evidence and all of these principles in mind, what should policies would Jesus promote when it comes to marijuana? Would Jesus promote the legalization of marijuana, or would Jesus promote the prohibition of marijuana? It is the answer to this question that provides for us a timeless truth when it comes to voting for Jesus. And that timeless truth is this: To vote for Jesus is to vote for policies that promote public health and safety by limiting the use of marijuana to only to those who are terminal ill.

You see, to vote for Jesus is to recognize that humanity has been divinely designed to live in relationship with Him and one another and to live lives of responsibility in our relationships with one another. And a part of that Divine Design and responsibility involves making much of God by how we handle and take care of our physical bodies.

To vote for Jesus is to recognize that recreational marijuana use does not influence the opinion of others in a way that enhances the reputation of God in the eyes of others. To vote for Jesus is to recognize that recreational marijuana does far more damage to our bodies than alcohol or cigarettes.

And because of that reality, to vote for Jesus is to promote policies that promote public health and safety by limiting the use of marijuana to those who are terminally ill and can benefit from ingested marijuana’s effects of reducing pain. And to vote for Jesus is to promote policies that produce the necessary research to accurately evaluate the effects that ingested marijuana has for medical treatment of serious and/or terminal diseases.