“…they have addicted themselves.” Some of the descriptive words the dictionary associates with addiction are these: abuse, habit, attachment, abandoned, wedded, devoted, obsessed, fixation. Addiction can be either in a bad or good sense. In the text sighted, it is the latter. This present generation has come to think of the word as relating primarily to drugs and drink. But it can cover a wide variety of things. It can include everything from food to sports, and all in between. But in this article, I want to speak about the negative aspect of addiction.
The popular teaching of today is that addiction has to do with the genes. As everything else in this sin-sick age, the fault is always traced back to someone or something else; it couldn’t be a personal responsibility! But if you’ll notice in our scripture quotation above, addiction has to do with the individual themselves. On either side of the word “addicted” are the personal pronouns, “they” and “themselves.” Addiction then lies at the door of the addict himself or herself. One need not go to your family home, or to friends, in order to find who’s at fault.
The Bible teaching is that “Self” is at the root of all evil addiction. And until this entity is dealt with, one will always be “hooked.” Jesus said we are to “deny self.” That is, any rights or claims upon our lives. As long as you are the center of your existence and everything revolves around you, there can be no deliverance. When the focus is upon Jesus, He "immediately "lifts up the sinking soul. Ask Simon Peter.
Old-fashioned “Repentance” will do more for a person in a day, than all the rehabs can in a year!
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