Pastor of pot

[westsidebud]

A local pastor is preaching the benefits of pot to his followers. But now this marijuana ministry is facing the wrath of county prosecutors.
While Los Angeles city leaders struggle to figure out how to deal with the hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries that have sprung up all over town, law enforcement is targeting alleged law-breakers. A pastor who built his ministry around marijuana is now out of business. One look at the storefront on one West Los Angeles street and you know you're looking at a marijuana dispensary. Beverly Hills Green Cross is different



http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?secti ... id=7137520

[eyepop]

Genesis 9:3
3 Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green herb, I now give you everything.

Proverbs 4:20
20 My son, pay attention to what I say;
listen closely to my words.

[AlanH]

Los Angeles is not local.

You can become an Ordained Minister online...He started a church lol... and get this.. his defense when he goes to court is that the warrant was obtained under dubious circumstances, and failed to acknowledge the fact that the temple is a legitimate religious organization, and thus entitled to specific protections under the law.

Have fun in prison Pastor criminal. Selling pot is illegal, even if you try to do it for Jesus.

Far from a big movement if that's what you were getting your hopes up for there westsidebutt.

[big-d2C]

Genesis 1:11 "And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

[Mr. Personality]

Perhaps I'm misinformed, but as I understand it, marijuana dispensaries are legal in the state of California but Illegal in the United States of America. With federal law trumping state law, a dispensary can be running legally by state standards, but illegally on a federal level, simply for being a marijuana dispensary and can therefor always be deemed "illegal"

[westsidebud]

i jus found it amusing alan.and besides pologomy seems to be legal in bc why not a ministry of weed?

[westsidebud]

and the lord said go forth and plant thy marijuana seeds so they can multiply . on the 9th day god said let there be hash and there was hash

[westsidebud]

And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. (Ezekiel 34:29)


The Lord said unto me, 'I will take my rest and I will consider in my dwelling place like a clear heat upon herbs.' " -- Isaiah 18:4-5


The hemp plant (scientific name: cannabis, slang name: marijuana) is but one of the many useful herbs "yielding seed after its kind" (Genesis 1:12, 29) blessed by God on the third day of creation for people to use in conjunction with our free will. The only place in the Bible where Cannabis was mentioned by name got switched into 'calamus' by the King James translators as part of a holy ointment (described in Exodus 30:23).

The Bible also predicted prohibition: "In the later times, some shall … speak lies in hypocrisy … commanding to abstain from meats which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." (Paul: 1 Timothy 1-4) Nowhere in the Bible does it say people cannot grow, possess, use or even smoke cannabis or that hemp is bad. In fact, quite the contrary: "God said, 'Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed which is upon the face of all the earth.…To you it will be for meat.' … And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." (Genesis 1:29-31)



The Bible also predicted prohibition: "In the later times, some shall … speak lies in hypocrisy … commanding to abstain from meats which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." (Paul: 1 Timothy 1-4) Nowhere in the Bible does it say people cannot grow, possess, use or even smoke cannabis or that hemp is bad. In fact, quite the contrary: "God said, 'Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed which is upon the face of all the earth.…To you it will be for meat.' … And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." (Genesis 1:29-31)

[westsidebud]

In the 10 Commandments, God ordered that man shalt not hold cannabis or anything else as a 'false god,' 'not covet' it, 'not steal' it and 'not lie' about it (Ex. 20:1-17). Unfortunately, the US government has done nothing but lie about cannabis for most of this century. The result of all this is that these lies have been used to rationalize the arrest of more than 10 million Americans for marijuana; 695,201 in 1997 alone, and 87% of them for personal possession. This is a good example of why the Bible also warns that "If a ruler hearken to lies, all his servants are wicked." (Prov. 29:12)

Although Jesus lived among a society with many cannabis smokers, He never chastised the practice and warned us not to criticize other people for their habits or for whatever they consume. "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; that which cometh out of the mouth defileth a man." (Mat. 15:11) The Apostle Paul wrote, "I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost." (Paul: Romans 14: 2,3,13,14,17)

What would Jesus do? He told his followers to show tolerance, compassion and unselfishness in every effort to end the persecution of God's children. He told us to visit those in prison, and when it comes to the Drug War, remember His words, "Blessed are the peacemakers." (Matthew 5:9) This is reinforced in older texts, in which was written, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you, that you will be no priest to Me… for I desired mercy and not sacrifice." (Hosea 4:6, 6:6) "The Lord… hath sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound." (Isaiah 61:1)

What does the Bible say about marijuana? The Bible says that God created hemp for people to use "as meat," (ie, to consume), that its seed oil is to be used as an ointment, and that cannabis is "to be received with thanks-giving of them which believe and know the truth." Paul also warned that some people would "speak lies in hypocrisy" and prohibit us from using it.

It also says that we "shall not bear false witness" about people who use cannabis, nor judge them because that judgement is reserved to the Lord. The Lord hates those who speak lies and sow discord among brethern. For those people harrassed and imprisoned for using cannabis rightfuly, Jesus offers these words of comfort, "Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness's sake: For theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven."

[westsidebud]

And the earth brought forth grass and herb yielding seed after its kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:12)

God said, "Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so." And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. (Gen. 1:29-31)

God has given us life. He has created certain herbs and plants for eating and healing.

"Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things." (Genesis 9:3).

Herb (marijuana) is a Godly creation from the beginning of the world. It is known as the weed of wisdom, angel's food, the tree of life and even the "Wicked Old Ganja Tree". Its purpose in creation is as a fiery sacrifice to be offered to our Redeemer during obligations.

Incense was assigned miraculous powers by the Israelites. It was burned in golden bowls or cauldrons placed on or beside the altar. It was also burned in hand-held censers. In the Blessing of Moses, a poem belonging to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, and written about 760 B.C., the sacrificial smoke is offered to the God of Israel.

The Essenes, a kabalistic priest/prophet/healer sect of Judaism dating back to the era of the Dead Sea Scrolls, used hemp, as did the Theraputea of Egypt, from where we get the term 'therapeutic'

In the Biblical story of Creation, God said, "Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed and to you it will be for meat." (Genesis 1:29) Marijuana is technically an herb and was considered a spiritual meat in the ancient world.

Christ said, "Do this in remembrance of me." Here the original unity of man with God is restored. In general the reception of the Holy Spirit is connected with the actual realization, the inward experiencing of God. Marijuana has been referred to as a mild euphoric (the producer of a feeling of well-being) that produces a profound religious experience of a mystical and transcendental nature. This religious experience is said to be brought about by the stirring of deeply buried, unconscious sensitivities so that one experiences ultimate reality or the divine and confirms the feeling of the worshipper that he has been in the presence of God and has assimilated some of His powers.

[westsidebud]

Realization of one's union with God is necessary in understanding the true Christian sacrament. The understanding of man's relationship to God and God's relationship to man (God in Man and Man in God) was quite prevalent in the ancient world, particularly among the religions that utilized marijuana as part of their religious practice.

The sacramentality of marijuana is declared by Christ himself and can be understood only when a person partakes of the natural divine herb. The fact is communion of Jesus cannot be disputed or be destroyed. Marijuana is the new wine divine and cannot be compared to the old wine, which is alcohol. Jesus rejected the old wine and glorified the "new wine" at the wedding feast of Cana.

Isaiah 65:8 declares that the new wine is found in the cluster and that a blessing is in it. When one mentions clusters, one thinks of clusters of grapes. Webster's New Riverside Dictionary, Office Edition, defines marijuana: 1. Hemp 2. The dried flower clusters and leaves of the hemp plant, esp. when taken to induce euphoria.

Due to the prosecution of God's church from the beginning of the Christian era and due to the persecution against marijuana the true understanding of the Eucharist has remained hidden from Christendom and the world, only to be revealed in these times, the culmination of all human history.

[westsidebud]

For the first four hundred years after Jesus' birth, the term "Christian" was used to describe a wide variety of sects and a large volume of different documents. Through the acceptance of one of the more ascetic branches of Christianity by the Roman ruling class, Christianity eventually became the state religion of its former persecutors.

In an effort to unify the faith into a controllable mass, the newly formed Roman Catholic Church held a number of councils. These councils prohibited not only pagans, but also differing Christian sects, and edited a wealth of Christian literature down to the few meager documents which have survived as the modern New Testament. Z Z The New Testament in its present form was composed and edited between 367-397AD, about twelve generations after the events in question.



In an attempt to save their manuscripts from the editorial flames of the Roman Catholic Church, certain Christians, now considered Gnostic heretics, hid copies of their scrolls in caves. One of these ancient hiding places was rediscovered in our own century, and the large collection of early Christian documents was named the Nag Hamadi Library,2 after the Egyptian area where it was found. Prior to this discovery, what little was known of the Gnostics came from a few fragmentary texts, and the many polemics written against them by the founders of the Catholic Church.

There is no reason to consider these ancient Gnostic documents as less accurate portrayals of the life and teachings of Jesus than the New Testament accounts. In a sense, the rediscovery of the Nag Hamadi Library marks the resurrection of a more historical Jesus, an ecstatic rebel sage who preached enlightenment through rituals involving magical plants, and who is more analogous to the Indian Shiva, or the Greek Dionysus, than the pious ascetic that has come down to us through the Bible's New Testament.

The Anointed One

Contrary to the depiction given in the New Testament gospels of Matthew and Luke, Jesus was likely not born as the Messiah. He received this title through his initiation by John the Baptist, and so it is not surprising that both Mark and John are conspicuously absent of the virgin-birth mythology, and begin their stories of Jesus' short career with his initiation by John.

Although their version of Jesus' baptism by John describes it as involving submersion under water, the term "baptism" has connotations of "initiation", and Gnostic scriptures indicate that the original rite was performed in conjunction with the kaneh-bosm anointing rite, "the annointing taking place either before or after the baptismal ceremony."3 Some Gnostic texts also specifically state that Jesus recieved the title Christ "because of the anointing,"4 not because of a water baptism.

Conceivably, the washing off of the oil with water would have been a means to begin the termination of ritual and the oil's effects.

The description of the after-effects of the rite clearly indicates that Jesus underwent an intense psychological experience, more than one would recieve from a simple submersion in water.
K The reference to a dove may have connotations of the Goddess tradition, which was continued by the Gnostics, who paid special attention to Sophia, Goddess of Wisdom. In earlier times the dove was sacred to Astarts, Aphrodite, Ishtar and other forms of the Goddess. "Gnostic Christians said Sophia was incarnate in the dove. . . that descended on Jesus at his baptism to impregnate his mind." 12



Jesus came from Nazareth Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove. K And a voice came from heaven "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, and he was in the desert for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with wild animals, and angels attended him. (Mark 1: 9-13)

It should be noted that the vision and words described were seen and heard only by Jesus, as it specifically states that "he saw".

The role played by John the Baptist, as priest and prophet, is very similiar to that of the Old Testament prophet Samuel. Just as Samuel's annointing of Saul and David marked them as Messiah-king, so did Jesus' initiation by John make him the Christ.

In the events after Jesus' vision and his overwhelmed recluse into the desert, there are clear parallels with the story of the prophet Samuel's initiation of Saul with the cannabis-rich holy ointment, and Saul's ensuing madness in the form of possession by the Spirit, and wandering off to make nabi (act in a frenzied ecstatic manner) (1 Samuel 10).

The tale of Saul's possession by the spirit is an example of how the ancients interpreted the effects of cannabis and other entheogens. What we perceive as being "high" or "stoned" the ancients called "possessed by the Spirit of the Lord."

"As a result of the spiritual 'anointing' Jesus expected to be different; and he was different. The prophecies had said that the Messiah would recieve from God wisdom and insight, the power to heal and to subjugate evil. The faith of Jesus was so strong that he did not question that these capacities had now been conferred upon him." 6

The entheogenic effect of the cannabis annointing oil would have immensely magnified both Jesus' own expectations, and the ensuing experience with John.

J The same proclamation is stated of the Anointed One, or King in Psalm 2: 7.



In some authorative texts of the Gospel according to Luke, after the Baptism the voice of God declares, "This day I have begotten thee." J This indicates that the event of Jesus' encounter with John marks the true beginnings of Jesus' mission and his acknowledgement as the Messiah.

The importance of the anointing, and Jesus' own acknowledgement of it, is again exemplified in the gospel of Luke.

According to the New Testament Jesus began his ministry in Nazareth, by reading the following passage from the scroll of Isaiah and proclaiming, "today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing" (Luke 4:16)

The Spirit of Yahweh God is upon me, because Yahweh has anointed me to bring good tidings to the afflicted; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound... (Isaiah 61:1-2)

The Anointed Ones

Unlike the shamanistic priests and kings of earlier generations, Jesus did not follow the strict Old Testament taboos that limited the holy cannabis oils use to Yahweh's chosen few (Exodus 30:33), but broke tradition and began to liberally use it in both healing and initiation rites.

Through this open distribution the singular Christ, "the Anointed", was extended to become the plural term "Christians", that is, those who had been smeared or anointed. "By rubbing on this divine unction. . . obtained from certain special herbs or plants, they believed they were donning the panoply of God."7 L A similar claim was made about hashish by the medieval Sufi poet Fuzuli, who recorded in his treatise Bang and Wine, the story of Basra, a disciple whose sheik felt that he had reached the ultimate degree of perfection through the consumption of hashish, and that he was no longer in need of further guidance. This story led to Fuzuli's proclamation that "hashish is the perfect being. . . for the seeker of the mystical experience." In many ways the Sufi movement can be seen as the phoenix which rose from the ashes of the earlier Gnostics.



As the New Testament's John explains:

. . . you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. . . . the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit - just as it has taught you, remain in him." (1 John 2: 27). L

". . . the Christian, the 'smeared or anointed one', received 'knowledge of all things' by his 'anointing from the Holy One' (1 John 2: 20). Thereafter he had need of no other teacher and remained forevermore endowed with all knowledge (v. 27). M ie: Kaneh Bosm, documented as cannabis.5


"Whatever the full ingredients of the Christian unction may have been, they would certainly have included the aromatic gums and spices of the traditional Israelite anointing oil: myrrh, aromatic cane,M cinnamon, and cassia. . . Under certain enclosed conditions a mixture of these substances rubbed on the skin could produce the kind of intoxicating belief in self-omniscience referred to in the New Testament."8 N N This quote is from scholar John Allegro, whose work I drew from for this article. Allegro was a great scholar of both the bible and ancient languages, and his work broke a lot of ground. Allegro was also the only human secularist on the original team of scholars involved in the translation of the Dead Sea Scrolls, so he came to his views through more unbiased anthropological thinking than that of his more "faithful" co-researchers. In The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, Allegro translated the kaneh-bosm reference in Exodus as "aromatic cane", and I have quoted him here on how the anointing oil "could produce a kind of intoxicating belief in self-omniscience." Yet Allegro failed to make the rightful connection with cannabis, seeing instead another plant drug at use, the amanita muscaria mushroom. His writings reveal he was extremely prejudiced against cannabis, even going so far with his etymological arguments as to suggest that the Greek term "kannabis" somehow referred to a mushroom. Allegro never smoked marijuana, but his own observations of what he referred to as "the 'pot'-smokers of today, the weary dotards who wander listlessly round our cities and universities," caused him to discount any possible use of cannabis as a means of achieving spiritual ecstasy.



The Incomplete Baptism

In the first few centuries AD, Christian Gnostic groups such as the Archontics, Valentians and Sethians rejected water baptism as superfluous, referring to it as an "incomplete baptism".9 In the tractate, the Testimony of Truth, water Baptism is rejected with a reference to the fact that Jesus baptized none of his disciples.3

Being "anointed with unutterable anointing", the so-called "sealings" recorded in the Gnostic texts, can be seen as a very literal event. "There is water in water, there is fire in chrism." (Gospel of Philip).

"The anointing with oil was the introduction of the candidate into unfading bliss, thus becoming a Christ." 10

"The oil as a sign of the gift of the Spirit was quite natural within a semetic framework, and therefore the ceremony is probably very early. . . In time the biblical meaning became obscured." 13

The survivng Gnostic descriptions of the effects of the anointing rite make it very clear that the holy oil had intense psycho-active properties, which prepared the recipient for entrance into "unfading bliss". In some Gnostic texts like the Pistis Sophia and the Books of Jeu, the "spiritual ointment" is a prerequisite for entry into the highest mystery. 10

In the Gospel of Philip it is written that the initiates of the empty rite of Baptism:

"go down into the water and come up without having received anything. . . The anointing (chrisma) is superior to baptism. For from the anointing we were called 'anointed ones' (Christians), not because of the baptism. And Christ also was [so] named because of the anointing, for the Father anointed the son, and the son anointed the apostles, and the apostles anointed us. [Therefore] he who has been anointed has the All. He has the resurrection, the light. . . the Holy Spirit. . . [If] one receives this unction, this person is no longer a Christian but a Christ."

Similarly, the Gospel of Truth records that Jesus specifically came into their midst so that he:

"might anoint them with the ointment. The ointment is the mercy of the Father. . . those whom he has anointed are the ones who have become perfect."

The apocryphal book, The Acts of Thomas, refers to the ointment's entheogenic effects as being specifically derived from a certain plant:

Holy oil, given us for sanctification, hidden mystery in which the cross was shown us, you are the unfolder of the hidden parts. You are the humiliator of stubborn deeds. You are the one who shows the hidden treasures. You are the plant of kindness. Let your power come by this [unction].

Gnostic Mysteries

The Gnostics had many levels of initiation, and the mysteries of these different grades were not written down like the more esoteric surviving texts were, but were given verbally at special ceremonies. Elements like the recipe of the obviously psychoactive holy oil were guarded with the closest secrecy, and were known only by the sect's most trusted initiates. This was a standard mystery school method, as "magic revealed is magic lost", and such secrets could only be entrusted to the group's most loyal members.

"Gnostic treatises did not reveal the whole matter. . . the final revelation was only communicated by word of mouth in the body, and by vision out of the body."10

"It is certain that Gnostic texts even in cultic matters favour a metaphorical symbolic manner of speaking and. . . clearly avoided communicating precise details about their 'mysteries'."3

In 130-200AD, the Catholic Church Father Irenaeus accused the Gnostics of initiating members with "secret sacraments". In his discussion of Gnostic texts which dealt with the anointing rite, he stated that they were written in an archaic manner, "to baffle even more those who are being initiated." 14

We can add to Ireneaus's comments that the Gnostics likely wrote in such a concealing fashion to "baffle" their persecutors, like Ireneus, whom they feared would find out the source behind the secret power of their anointing oil.

Mysteries of the Faith

Such a hidden reference to other psychoactive plants can be seen in "the mystery of the five trees", which were used by Jesus in complicated shamanistic initiation rituals. They are described in what is possibly the oldest Christian text in existence O, The Gospel of Thomas:

"...there are five trees for you in Paradise... Whoever becomes acquainted with them will not experience death." O The Gospel of Thomas has an estimated date of composition as early as 40-100 AD, and likely predates the earliest New Testament Gospel, Mark, which is thought to have been written around 60 AD.



In the Gnostic view, "not experiencing death" meant reaching a certain state of interior purification or enlightenment, at which point the initiate would "rise from the dead" and "never grew old and became immortal." That is to say, he rose from ignorance and blindness, gained possession of the unbroken consciousness of his spiritual ego, and as such realized that he was a part of a larger Cosmic whole, which continued on long after the disappearance of the material body. Jesus referred to attaining this "higher" state of consciousness, as "entering the kingdom of heaven".

The attainment of this Gnostic state can be compared to the goal of yoga, (which itself means "union"), where the successful devotee obtains "a radical switch in consciousness obliterating the sense of individuation." 15

As with the similar goal of yoga union, the "kingdom of heaven" state was not attained instantaneously, but required years of vigorous training. Like certain older branches of yoga, a variety of psychoactive plants were used as aids to facilitate the devotee in attaining this "higher" state.

Although the Gnostic give us some detailed descriptions of these esoteric Christian teachings, it is interesting to note that they are also alluded to in New Testament accounts by Jesus himself:

"To you has been given the secret of the Kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables: so that they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand. . . " (Mark 4:11)

The Treasure of Light and the Mystery of the Five Trees

At the turn of the present century Professor GRS Mead summarized a German translation of a surviving Gnostic text, the "Second Book of Ieou". 16 P The text describes Jesus bidding male and female disciples to join him so that he can reveal to them the great mystery of the Treasure of Light.
P One of the few that managed to survive the Catholic Church's editorial flames, without being hidden with the Nag Hamadi codexes.



In order to accomplish this, the candidates have to be initiated by three Baptisms: The Baptism of Water, the Baptism of Fire, and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, "and thereafter the Mystery of the Spiritual Chrism [anointing]."10

Jesus tells his followers that the master-mysteries of the Treasure of Light are involved with the mystery of the Five Trees, which may mean having knowledge of the magical plants that were used in the ceremony.

All of these mysteries Jesus promises to give to His disciples, that they may be called "Children of the Fullness (Pleroma) perfected in all mysteries." The Master then gathers His disciples, and sets forth a place of offering, placing one wine-jar on the right and on the left, and strews certain berries and spices round the vessels; He then puts a certain plant in their mouths, and another plant in their hands, and ranges them in order round the sacrifice.10

[westsidebud]

THROUGH THE INNOCENTLY APPEARING GUISE OF THE "NATURAL HERBAL HIGH" CALLED MARIJUANA, SATAN HAS FOUND AN OPEN DOORWAY FOR INVASION INTO THE MINDS OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE. MANY A DECEIVED CHRISTIAN HAS LOST THEIR SALVATION IN CHRIST THROUGH THIS DECEPTIVE DEVICE OF THE ONE WHOSE PURPOSE IS TO KILL, STEAL, AND DESTROY. THE DECEPTIVE REASONING THAT SATAN USES IS THIS: "GOD MADE PLANTS FOR THE BENEFIT OF MAN, MARIJUANA IS A PLANT, THEREFORE GOD MADE IT FOR THE BENEFIT OF MAN. IT OPENS UP A PERSON'S MIND SO THAT THEY CAN FLOW IN THE SPIRIT." THE TRUTH IS THAT THE SPIRIT WHICH THIS PLANT OPENS ONE UP TO IS THE SPIRIT OF THE DEVIL. THIS "INNOCENT NATURAL HIGH" IS REALLY JUST THE BAIT THAT THE DEVIL USES TO CAPTIVATE THE SOUL (MIND, WILL AND EMOTIONS). THE DEVIL IS THE MASTER OF DECEPTION!!! READ SOME CASE HISTORIES OF THOSE IN MENTAL WARDS, MOST OF THEM STARTED OUT SO "INNOCENTLY" ON MARIJUANA.

MARIJUANA HAS BEEN PROVEN TO BE A DRUG THAT RENDERS IT'S USERS PSYCHOLOGICALLY DEPENDENT TO A SEVERE DEGREE. MANY M.J. USERS BECOME TRAPPED IN A DEAD END LIFESTYLE OF POVERTY, DEPENDENCE AND PARANOIA. OF WHOSE SPIRIT ARE THESE FRUITS?? DID YOU KNOW THAT THE DEVIL USES NO NEW THING TO BEGUILE PEOPLE? SORCERERS, SATANISTS, AND WITCHES HAVE KNOWN FOR CENTURIES THAT MARIJUANA IS A MEANS OF OPENING UP TO THE SPIRIT WORLD OF SATAN AND HIS DEMON FORCES. CHRISTIANS DON'T NEED THE DEVIL'S TOOLS!

WHO CONTROLS YOU?
The thief (Satan) cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I (Jesus) am come that they may have life and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10

THE DEVIL WILL USE ANYTHING OR ANYONE TO ACCOMPLISH HIS PURPOSES. HIS NUMBER ONE TARGET IS CHRISTIANS!! IF HE CAN USE MARIJUANA TO CON THEM INTO BEING WEAK AND INEFFECTUAL, HE WILL. WHEN WE COME TO JESUS CHRIST, HE FORGIVES US FOR OUR SINS AND PUTS HIS LIFE INSIDE OF OUR HEARTS. THEN WE CAN WALK IN NEWNESS OF LIFE. WE DO NOT NEED THE CRUTCHES OF THE FORMER LIFESTYLE LIKE MARIJUANA. THE CHRISTIAN WHO TRIES TO WITNESS FOR CHRIST WHILE HIGH ON MARIJUANA IS REALLY NOT A WITNESS FOR CHRIST AT ALL. THE ONLY WITNESS THAT SUCH A ONE GIVES IS THAT SATAN STILL HAS AUTHORITY IN HIS LIFE.

DEAR CHRISTIAN, YOU DO NOT NEED MARIJUANA (OR ANY OTHER DRUG, INCLUDING ALCOHOL), FOR THROUGH JESUS CHRIST YOU CAN HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT MORE ABUNDANTLY. YOU MUST LEARN TO NO LONGER LOOK TO THE RUDIMENTS OF THE WORLD, SUCH AS MARIJUANA, FOR HELP. YOU MUST LEARN TO LOOK TO GOD! YOU MUST LEARN TO KNOW HIM, FOR HE IS ALL YOU WILL EVER NEED. LOVE JESUS, WALK IN HIS HOLY SPIRIT, AND DON'T LET SATAN CONNIVE YOU INTO FOLLOWING ANOTHER SPIRIT -THE SPIRIT OF ANTI-CHRIST.

"But I fear, lest by any means as the serpent beguiled eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit (demons) which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him." 2 Cor. 11:3-4

THE WITCHCRAFT - DRUG CONNECTION!
Let's not lose sight of the fact that all drugs are more correctly identified by their proper name of pharmaceuticals, which in the Bible is always translated as witchcraft or sorcery. Yet many people mistakenly believe that using drugs to gain access to spiritual forces is a modern fad and that the Bible is silent in this regard. This is simply not true. As a matter of fact, mind altering drugs have been employed by the devil and his agents since the earliest times to achieve his ends and are specifically condemned in both the Old and New Testaments. Of course a distinction must be made between drugs that have a proven medical value and are used accordingly and those drugs that are misused and abused by people seeking to escape reality. It is this latter category that definately relates to witchcraft and sorcery and ultimately ends in the total demonic enslavement of the user.

It has been shown in other research works that the Greek words pharmakeia, pharmakeus and pharmakos, which are translated witchcraft, sorceries and sorcerers in the New Testament are connected with the use of mind altering drugs. The three words are derived from the Greek word pharmakon, which means drugs or magic potions. In the Greek version of the Old Testament the words pharmakeia, pharmakeuo, pharmekon, and pharmekos are used twenty two times to translate several different Hebrew words. The Hebrew words in question are kashaph, lehatim and chartummim. All three words are connected with sorcery, witchcraft and enchantments.

It is obvious that the Greek word pharmakon has to do with drugs; a more relevant and contemporary application could hardly be found. The denunciations against sorcery contained in Revelation 9:21; 18:23; 21:8 ; and 22:15 apply to those who use drugs to bring on trances during which they claim to have supernatural knowledge or power. (from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary) (Copyright (C) 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)

SORCERY A. Nouns. 1. pharmakia (or-- eia) ^5331^ (Eng., "pharmacy," etc.) primarily signified "the use of medicine, drugs, spells"; then, "poisoning"; then, "sorcery," <Gal. 5:20 , RV, "sorcery" (KJV, "witchcraft"), mentioned as one of "the works of the flesh." See also <Rev. 9:21; 18:23 .# In the Sept., <Ex. 7:11,22; 8:7,18; Isa. 47:9, 12 .# In "sorcery," the use of drugs, whether simple or potent, was generally accompanied by incantations and appeals to occult powers, with the provision of various charms, amulets, etc., professedly designed to keep the applicant or patient from the attention and power of demons, but actually to impress the applicant with the mysterious resources and powers of the sorcerer.

Sorcery is listed along with other sins because people involved in the black arts of witchcraft use drugs to alter their state of mind to try to gain supernatural knowledge or abilities. God never gives knowledge or abilities in this way though, because it is in contrast with gaining them through discipline (self control), obedience, patience, and other fruits of a day-to-day intimate relationship with Him. The only insights, pleasures, etc. gained through mind altering substances are therefore coming from Satan.

The connection between witchcraft and drugs in undeniable. Today, drugs are used more than ever throughout every realm of witchcraft and the occult. The truth remains that drugs open the user to the spirit, yet what foolish people fail to realize is that once you've been opened you have no power to close the door. Drugs are one of Satan's most powerful weapons. He uses them to gain entrance into your life, and once he's in his only ambition is to keep you HELL BOUND!

[westsidebud]

God DOES NOT love marijuana or homosexuals. They are both sins.

[westsidebud]

jesus was mexican an smoked reefers