Saturday Song: Neil Diamond, "The Pot Smoker's Song"

With Cannabis being legalized in Canada and some American states, this song is germane to the issue. If you listen carefully, you'll find that all the people speaking between the choruses tell the story of their broken lives and pot's failure to satisfy them.

Hear Neil Diamond's thoughtful song here.

Though marijuana wasn't known to people in the Middle East when the scriptures were being penned, we can easily use strong drink as an analogy. Both are mood-altering drugs and both dull a person's awareness.

According to the New Testament writers, we err whenever we let our senses become misled by alcohol. The Apostle Paul warned in Ephesians 5:18 (KJV), "And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;"

Booze also makes people act stupidly. Proverbs 20:1 (KJV) warns, "Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise."

I notice that in many passages of the Bible, drunkenness is used as a metaphor for God's judgement upon nations. Look at what Isaiah 63:6 (KJV) says. "And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth."

But some will argue that Jesus turned water into wine. Isn't that hypocritical? Christ's first miracle was an act of kindness and generosity to the wedding guests and their host. John 2:11 (BBE) gives another reason. "This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee and let his glory be seen openly; and his disciples put their faith in him."

So we can see that a little wine isn't bad for us. It's when we become totally out of control that God frowns upon our behaviour. It ruins our testimony too. And since both marijuana and cigarette smoke cause lung cancer, it's best to abstain from both.

What do you think of the song and what I've written? Please feel free to comment.

By the way, I'll be posting about the sinfulness of sin on Monday. The Bible portrays it as a horrendous affront to God but the Qu'ran says it's no big deal.