Some folks will say, "Now the preacher has stopped preaching and gone to meddling!" We don't mean to meddle in your life, but we do mean to bring out what the Bible says about the use of tobacco. Many of the things we will say can also be applied to dancing, drinking, and general wickedness.

Many people want to find a Bible verse that says, "Thou shall not use tobacco." There is no verse like that in all the Bible. Neither is there a verse that says, "Thou shall not dance, or use alcohol, or drugs." The reason the Bible doesn't say "Thou shall not use tobacco" is because the Bible is not just a list of do's and don'ts. There are do's and don'ts in the Bible, but God wants us to see the principle behind his thoughts.

Romans 12:1, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." We know this verse is true and we ought to present our bodies a living sacrifice to a most holy God. With this in mind, let me ask you, did your first use of tobacco come at the suggestion of God? Were you in church services when the pastor convinced you, from the Word of God, that you ought to use tobacco? Or did someone other than a faithful servant of God introduce you to tobacco?

Do you use tobacco in the name (by the authority) of the Lord Jesus? Does the Spirit of God lead you in the use of tobacco? Romans 8:5, "So they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the spirit the things of the spirit."

I Corinthians 10:31, "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God:". When you use tobacco, can you give God the glory for using it? Or do you wish you had never started using tobacco? Can you thank God that you use tobacco?

Does the use of tobacco put young people in the best of company, or in the questionable? I am not saying that all tobacco users are lost, or that they are bad people, for there are many good people that use tobacco. I am saying that there are many bad habits that accompany tobacco, such as drinking, swearing, smart talk, and such. I am asking, "Is it good for young people to use tobacco?" Do you recommend that your children learn how to smoke, dip, or chew?

Would Christ have used tobacco? That's very doubtful, isn't it? If you use tobacco, are you being like Christ?

Does tobacco belong to a separated people, a people separated from the world by the cross of Christ? I Corinthians 6:19, "What, know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?" When we are saved, our body becomes the temple of the Holy Ghost, and we shouldn't defile the dwelling place of the Holy Ghost with ungodly tobacco usage.

Some people approve tobacco use by comparing it with overeating. They say it is wrong to overeat, and it is wrong to use tobacco, but one isn't any worse than the other.

Let me ask you, is the intense craving for tobacco a natural God given hunger? Or is the craving for tobacco from Satan?

Is tobacco nourishment for your body? Matthew 6:11, "Give us this day our daily bread." Can we ask God to give tobacco when we ask Him to give our daily food?

Others will say, "It's nobody's business but mine."

It is God's business. I Corinthians 6:20, "For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."

Romans 14:7, "For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself."

Romans 14:21, "It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak."

Romans 15:3, "For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, the reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me."

So we find it is somebody else's business. First of all, it is God's business. If you are saved, you belong to Him, not just your spirit, but your entire life. Jesus has bought and paid for you with His own precious, sinless blood.

Not only is it Jesus business, but younger people will follow your example. If you are guilty of leading them into sin, God will judge you. If you lead them into righteousness, God will reward you. We are not in this world to please ourselves, but to please our heavenly Father, who guides us and protects us from all harm.

This is true. Nothing will send you to hell except to reject Jesus Christ as your personal saviour, but you can lose rewards by not following the example of Jesus Christ. Let me ask you, do you want to get away with all the sin you can, or do you want to get away from all the sin you can? Your truthful answer to this question will reveal some hidden things in your heart.

Have you allowed God to quietly speak to your own heart, withholding your own will in this matter until He has spoken?

I Thessalonians 5:22, "Quench not the Spirit."

James 4:17, "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin."

Romans 14:23, "...for whatsoever is not of faith is sin."

Do you use tobacco by faith, trusting God to give blessings? Or do you quietly pray that God will spare you from the consequences of tobacco use?

Proverbs 14:9, "Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour." I once knew a good man who would mock his own cigarette smoking. He called his cigarettes "coffin nails" and "little sins". Sure enough, this good man got lung cancer. He quit smoking, but it was too late. He lost his life to tobacco.

What takes more real courage, following God or following the longings of your body? Nobody in their right mind will say that following God is easy, but it is very satisfying to say "no" to sin and "yes" to God. Some tobacco companies advertise that their products satisfy, but they don't say who is satisfied. Don't you really believe that Satan is more satisfied with the use of tobacco than God is?

Romans 8:13, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." It isn't easy to quit using tobacco. It is a drug the body craves. But through the Spirit of God, all tobacco users can have the victory.